Rick Miller (comedian)
Encyclopedia
Rick Miller is a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...

, comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...

 and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...

, currently living in Toronto. Miller is most well known for hosting the television series Just For Laughs
Just for Laughs
Just for Laughs is a comedy festival held each July in Montreal, Quebec, founded in 1983. It is the largest international comedy festival in the world.- Information :...

and for performing a version of "Bohemian Rhapsody
Bohemian Rhapsody
"Bohemian Rhapsody" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was written by Freddie Mercury for the band's 1975 album A Night at the Opera...

" during which he impersonates "twenty five of the most annoying voices in the music industry".

Career

Miller has starred in three plays, Bigger than Jesus, MacHomer
MacHomer
MacHomer is a one-person play by Rick Miller which blends William Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth with the animated television series The Simpsons. Miller first conceived of the idea in 1994, when he was performing in a production of Macbeth. The first performance of MacHomer was at the Montreal...

, and Robert Lepage
Robert Lepage
Robert Lepage, is a playwright, actor, film director, and stage director from Québec City, Québec, and is one of Canada's most honoured theatre artists.- Life and work :...

's Lipsync (Toronto, June 2009).

In an example of art imitating life imitating art, The Simpsons featured a segment in the episode "Four Great Women and a Manicure
Four Great Women and a Manicure
"Four Great Women and a Manicure" is the twentieth episode of the twentieth season of The Simpsons. It was broadcast on the Fox network in the United States on May 10, 2009. It is the first Simpsons episode in history to have four acts instead of the usual three...

", in which Homer and Marge played versions of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, respectively. This was an idea originally conceived by Miller for his one-man-show MacHomer. Matt Groening approved of the show and allowed Miller to use his characters.

Bohemian Rhapsody Skit

Miller is best known for his famous portrayal of the Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

 song "Bohemian Rhapsody
Bohemian Rhapsody
"Bohemian Rhapsody" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was written by Freddie Mercury for the band's 1975 album A Night at the Opera...

" "as performed by 25 of the most annoying voices in the music industry". However, the actual number of parodies in the sketch is 27, including a general parody of lead guitarists. A video of the performance was uploaded on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

 in 2007, and has been seen over 900 000 times. The list of parodies includes (in order): Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...

, Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...

, Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton is an American singer and songwriter. Bolton originally performed in the hard rock and heavy metal genres from the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s, both on his early solo albums and those recorded as the frontman of the band Blackjack...

, Corey Hart, Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...

, Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...

, Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as the founder, occasional rhythm guitarist, and lead singer of rock band Bon Jovi, which was named after him...

, Robbie Robertson
Robbie Robertson
Robbie Robertson, OC; is a Canadian singer-songwriter, and guitarist. He is best known for his membership as the guitarist and primary songwriter within The Band. He was ranked 59th in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time...

, Neil Diamond
Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond is an American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades from the 1960s until the present....

, Aaron Neville
Aaron Neville
Aaron Neville is an American soul and R&B singer and musician. He has had four top-20 hits in the United States along with four platinum-certified albums...

, Dennis DeYoung
Dennis DeYoung
Dennis DeYoung is an American singer, songwriter, musician and producer best known for being a founding member of the rock band Styx, a tenure that lasted from 1970 to 1999.-Early life:...

, Barney the Dinosaur, Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...

, "Any Annoying Lead Guitarist", Meat Loaf
Meat Loaf
Michael Lee Aday , better known by his stage name, Meat Loaf, is an American hard rock musician and actor...

, Crash Test Dummies
Crash Test Dummies
The Crash Test Dummies is a Canadian folk rock/alternative rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba, widely known for their 1993 single "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm".The band is most identifiable through Brad Roberts and his distinctive bass-baritone voice...

, Tom Petty
Tom Petty
Thomas Earl "Tom" Petty is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is the frontman of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and was a founding member of the late 1980s supergroup Traveling Wilburys and Mudcrutch. He has also performed under the pseudonyms of Charlie T...

, Beck
Beck
Beck Hansen is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by the stage name Beck...

, The B-52's
The B-52's
The B-52's are an American rock band, formed in Athens, Georgia in 1976. The original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider , Kate Pierson , Cindy Wilson , Ricky Wilson , and Keith Strickland . Following Ricky Wilson's death in 1985 Strickland switched to guitar...

, AC/DC
AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian rock band, formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Commonly classified as hard rock, they are considered pioneers of heavy metal, though they themselves have always classified their music as simply "rock and roll"...

, Metallica
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...

, The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

, Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...

, Julio Iglesias
Julio Iglesias
Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva , better known simply as Julio Iglesias, is a Spanish singer who has sold over 300 million records worldwide in 14 languages and released 77 albums. According to Sony Music Entertainment, he is one of the top 15 best selling music artists in history,...

, Bobby McFerrin
Bobby McFerrin
Robert "Bobby" McFerrin, Jr. is an American vocalist and conductor. He is best known for his 1988 hit song "Don't Worry, Be Happy". He is a ten-time Grammy Award winner.-Life:...

, Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli, is an Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist. Born with poor eyesight, he became blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident....

, and Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...

.

Voice Work

Miller has also worked as a voice actor
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...

 for numerous animated television shows and a video game.

Some of the characters he has voiced include:
  • The Dark Prince in Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones
    Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones
    Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones is an action-adventure computer and video game developed and published by Ubisoft Montreal. It was released in December, 2005 in North America for the Xbox, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, and the Nintendo GameCube...

     (Video Game)
  • Principal Shawbly in Mona The Vampire
    Mona the Vampire
    Mona the Vampire is a Canadian animated television series based on the series Robyn le Vampire, directed by Louis Piché and Jean Caillon, originally based on the short stories created and written Sonia Holleyman and later written by Hiawyn Oram. It is mainly shown on YTV, Radio-Canada, VRAK.TV and...

  • Sparky in Atomic Betty
    Atomic Betty
    Atomic Betty is a Canadian animated television series produced by Atomic Cartoons, Breakthrough Films & Television, and Tele Images Kids. Additional funding for production is provided by Teletoon in Canada and M6 and Télétoon in France. It currently airs on CITV. The series has once again begun...

  • Various Characters in Odd Job Jack
    Odd Job Jack
    Odd Job Jack was a Canadian animated comedy television show featuring Don McKellar, about one man's misadventures in temporary employment. Seen on and produced for the The Comedy Network, a cable specialty channel, and shown on Adult Swim in Latin America, the show is currently finished its...

    , Arthur
    Arthur (TV series)
    Arthur is an American/Canadian animated educational television series for children, created by Cookie Jar Group and WGBH for the Public Broadcasting Service...

    , Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat
    Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat
    Sagwa is the name of a cat in the children's book Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat by author Amy Tan. Sagwa's popularity with children prompted an educational animated series of the same name on PBS Kids, with production held by French animation studio CineGroupe and Sesame Street creator Sesame...

    , Grossology
    Grossology (TV series)
    Grossology is a Canadian animated television series produced by Nelvana, and based loosely on the non-fictional children’s book series of the same name by Sylvia Branzei. It debuted on the YTV network in Canada on September 29, 2006, and was first shown on Discovery Kids in the United States on...

    , Cyberchase
    Cyberchase
    Cyberchase is an American educational television series for children age 6-12, that teaches children discrete mathematics. The show airs on Public Broadcasting Service and PBS Kids GO! in the United States. Seasons one through five were produced by Thirteen/WNET New York and Nelvana...

    , Lucky Luke
    Lucky Luke (TV Series)
    Lucky Luke was a short-lived Italian western-comedy series starred by Terence Hill that aired in 1992, and was based on the Belgian comic book series Lucky Luke and on a movie with the same title directed and produced by the same Hill in 1991...

    , Caillou
    Caillou
    Caillou is a Canadian children's television show based on the books by author Christine L'Heureux and illustrator Hélène Desputeaux. Many of the stories in the animated version began with a grandmother introducing the story to her grandchildren, then reading the story about the book...

    , Time Warp Trio
    Time Warp Trio
    The Time Warp Trio is a book series written by Jon Scieszka and illustrated by Lane Smith and later by Adam McCauley, which chronicles the adventures of three boys - Joe, Sam, and Fred - who travel through time and space with the aid of the mysterious Book.The storyline has been adapted into an...

    , The Berenstain Bears
    The Berenstain Bears (2003 TV series)
    The Berenstain Bears is a 2003 animated television series based on Stan and Jan Berenstain's children's book series of the same name. Although most of the earlier episodes in the series were based on the book series, later episodes were not based on any of the books.-Sypnosis:The series follows...

    , Franklin
    Franklin (TV series)
    Franklin is a Canadian animated television series, based on the Franklin the Turtle books by Brenda Clark and Paulette Bourgeois. The television series was named after its main character, Franklin the Turtle...

    Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings
    Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings
    Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings is a British children's animated television programme, featuring the adventures of a young child named Simon, who has a magic chalkboard...

    , Billy and Buddy, Kid Paddle
    Kid Paddle
    Kid Paddle is a Belgian, French and Canadian co-produced animated series. It aired on Teletoon, Sundays at 4:00 am, EST, but is currently on an indefinite hiatus...

    , Wombat City, Iron Nose, Snailympics, X-DuckX, Pet Pals, Funpak, Erky Perky
    Erky Perky
    Erky Perky is an Australian and Canadian animated television program on YTV developed by CCI Entertainment. and Ambience Entertainment. The show is about two bickering, dimwitted insects, Erky and Perky, who live at a hot dog stand, but are accidentally taken to a house...

    , What It's Like Being Alone
    What It's Like Being Alone
    What It's Like Being Alone is a Canadian television program which aired on CBC Television in 2006. It is a black comedy created by Brad Peyton, and combines clay animation with voice work by Stacey DePass, Adam Reid, Dwayne Hill, Julie Lemieux, Peter Cugno, and Andrew Sabiston.Having debuted on...

    , Wayside
    Wayside (TV series)
    Wayside is a Canadian animated television series created by Louis Sachar, developed and written by John Derevlany for Canadian television channel Teletoon. The series centers on Todd, a transfer student who attends Wayside, an offbeat educational institution based on Sachar's upbringing...

    , Turtle Island
    Turtle Island
    - Places :* Turtle Island, Queensland , the name of four islands in Queensland, Australia* Turtle Islands, Tawi-Tawi, a group of islands in the Southern Philippines...

    , Bakugan Battle Brawlers
    Bakugan Battle Brawlers
    is a Japanese action adventure anime television series produced by TMS Entertainment and Japan Vistec under the direction of Mitsuo Hashimoto. The story centers on the lives of creatures called Bakugan and the battle brawlers who possess them...

    , Carl Squared
    Carl Squared
    Carl² is a Canadian animated series which explores what would happen if a teenager had a clone. The concept of the cartoon is a mixture of biological studies and normal teenage life....

    , Prudence Gumshoe, Franny's Feet
    Franny's Feet
    Franny's Feet is an animated series for children. It is produced by DHX Media/Halifax Film in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and created by Cathy Moss and Susan Nielsen. The show follows the adventures of four-year-old Frances "Franny" Fantootsie as she tries on various pairs of shoes and travels to...

    , Rotten Ralph
    Rotten Ralph
    Rotten Ralph is a children's book about a mischievous red cat who enjoys playing mean, practical jokes on his family. It was written by Jack Gantos and published in 1976...

    , Captain Flamingo
    Captain Flamingo
    Captain Flamingo is a Canadian animated television series, which chronicles the adventures of the protagonist and main character Milo Powell Captain Flamingo is a Canadian animated television series, which chronicles the adventures of the protagonist and main character Milo Powell Captain Flamingo...

    , Di-Gata Defenders
    Di-gata defenders
    Di-Gata Defenders is a Canadian action/adventure, science fiction, fantasy animated television series created by Greg Collinson with Nelvana Entertainment. This show is rated C8 according to the Canadian TV Classification System. The series currently has 52 episodes and is airing the Ethos Saga as...

    , The Wombles
    The Wombles (TV series)
    The Wombles is a stop motion animated British television series made in 1973–1975. Further animated episodes were made in 1996–1997.After the first Wombles book, published in 1968, was featured on the BBC children's television programme Jackanory....

    , Ruby Gloom
    Ruby Gloom
    Ruby Gloom is an animated television show based on an apparel franchise. The show is produced by Nelvana and began airing on October 13, 2006 in Canada on the network YTV...

    , The Country Mouse and the City Mouse Adventures
    The Country Mouse and the City Mouse Adventures
    The Country Mouse and the City Mouse Adventures is an animated TV series that aired on HBO from March 1, 1998 to early 2001. The show follows the adventures of two mice, Emily and her cousin Alexander, who go on adventures around the world in the early 20th century, usually to stop the evil rat...

    , Tommy and Oscar
    Tommy and Oscar
    Tommy and Oscar is an Italian animated television series created by Max Alessandrini and Iginio Straffi, and produced by the Italian company Rainbow S.r.l. and by RAI Fiction.-External links:* *****...

    , Ripley's Believe It or Not!
    Ripley's Believe It or Not!
    Ripley's Believe It or Not! is a franchise, founded by Robert Ripley, which deals in bizarre events and items so strange and unusual that readers might question the claims...

    , Turbo Dogs
    Turbo Dogs
    Turbo Dogs is a television show that airs on Qubo and Kids' CBC. The show is based on the book Racer Dogs by Bob Kolar. The show premiered on October 3, 2008.-Premise:...

    , Busytown Mysteries
    Busytown Mysteries
    Busytown Mysteries, also known as Hurray for Huckle!, is a Canadian animated television series created by Cookie Jar Entertainment. Currently the series airs in Canada as part of the Kids' CBC block on CBC Television, in the United Kingdom on the Tiny Pop channel and in the United States as part of...

    , Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends
    Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends
    Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends is an animated program based on the children's books by David Kirk, which airs on Nick Jr. in the United States, on Treehouse TV in Canada, and on Discovery Kids in Brazil...

    , Inuk, Belphegor
    Belphegor
    In demonology, Belphegor is a demon, and one of the seven princes of Hell, who helps people to make discoveries. He seduces people by suggesting to them ingenious inventions that will make them rich. According to some 16th century demonologists, his power is stronger in April...

    , Jimmy Two-Shoes
    Jimmy Two-Shoes
    Jimmy Two-Shoes is a Canadian/American animated television series. It airs on Disney XD in the United Kingdom and in the USA, and Teletoon in Canada...

    , Magi-Nation
    Magi-Nation (TV series)
    Magi-Nation is an animated television series based on the card game Magi Nation Duel. The show premiered in Canada on September 8, 2007 on CBC Television and on September 22, 2007 in the U.S. on Kids' WB. A series of DVDs are set to be released on October 21, 2008 through January 6, 2009. The...

    , The Twins, Malo Korrigan
    Malo Korrigan
    Malo Korrigan is a French animated television series with 26 episodes, created by Arthur Qwak and Norman J. LeBlanc of Futurikon. It is a Futurikon - Tooncan - M6 Métropole Télévision - Canal J co-production and distributed by M6 Métropole Télévision...

    , My Dad the Rock Star
    My Dad the Rock Star
    My Dad the Rock Star is an animated television series created by Gene Simmons of KISS fame, and produced by Canadian company Nelvana for the Canadian based channel Teletoon...

    , Wunschpunsch
    Wunschpunsch
    Wunschpunsch is an animated series inspired by the novel The Night of Wishes by Michael Ende.In every episode, a wizard named Bubonic and his aunt, a witch named Tyrannia, must wreak havoc on the city in which they live or suffer a severe punishment from their supervisor, Maledictus Maggot...

    , The Kids from Room 402
    The Kids from Room 402
    The Kids from Room 402 is a television program that originally aired on Fox Family in the USA starting in 1999, previously aired on Teletoon, and currently airs in the UK.The show is focused primarily on the students from Room 402, as the title implies...

    , Spider Riders
    Spider Riders
    is a series of science fiction novels first published in December 2004, published by Newmarket Press written by Tedd Anasti, Patsy Cameron-Anasti and Stephen D. Sullivan . The stories became the basis of the animated television series produced by Cookie Jar Entertainment of Canada and Bee Train of...

    , Bizby, Pig City
    Pig City
    Pig City is an animated television program originally airing on Teletoon , on September 1, 2002. It features a country pig moving to the big city to live with his cousins ....

    , Daft Planet
    Daft Planet
    Daft Planet was a Canadian cartoon, first airing on Teletoon Canada. It originally ran from September 2, 2002 to December 12, 2002. Its main claim to fame is that it was the first cartoon in the world that was made in Flash and appeared on a national television network...

    , The Lost World
    The Lost World
    -Conan Doyle novel and adaptations:* The Lost World , a 1912 book* The Lost World , a silent film* The Lost World , set in Venezuela* The Lost World , set in Africa...

    , Willa's Wild Life
    Willa's Wild Life
    Willa's Wild Life is an animated television series that first aired on ABC2 in 2008, then on Qubo and Nickelodeon Canada in 2009. The show is based on Dan Yaccarino's book An Octopus Followed Me Home. It is about a 9 year old girl named Willa who has some very unusual pets...

    , Team S.O.S., Jacob Two-Two
    Jacob Two-Two (TV series)
    Jacob Two-Two is a Canadian animated TV series based on a trilogy of books written by Mordecai Richler that first aired on Canadian children's channel YTV and aired on the French Canadian VRAK.TV as Jacob Jacob and in Spanish on Telemundo as Jacobo Dos Dos. It was produced by Nelvana; before being...

    , Knights of Zodiac, King
    King (TV series)
    King is a Canadian television series on Family, also aired on Nicktoons TV in the UK from 4 March 2006, and showing on POP! on March 12, 2007.-Plot:...

    , Bigfoot Presents: Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks
    Bigfoot Presents: Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks
    Bigfoot Presents: Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks is a children's show on Discovery Kids, that premiered in the fall of 2006 and was produced by Endgame Entertainment and Bigfoot....

    , Martin Morning
    Martin Morning
    Martin Morning is a French animation TV series of 78 13-minute episodes, created in 2002 by Denis Olivieri, Claude Prothée and Luc Vinciguerra, produced by Millimages in assiocation with Cartooneurs and associates.-Synopsis:...

    , Marsupilami
    Marsupilami
    Marsupilami is a fictional comic book species created by André Franquin, first published on 31 January 1952 in the magazine Spirou. Since then it appeared regularly in the popular Belgian comic book series Spirou et Fantasio until Franquin stopped working on the series in 1968 and the character...

    , Spaced Out
    Spaced Out
    Spaced Out is a 2002 animated series, co-produced by Alphanim and Cartoon Network Europe, in association with several other companies and television networks...

    , A Miss Mallard Mystery
    A Miss Mallard Mystery
    A Miss Mallard Mystery is an animated mystery series for children produced by Cinar and Teletoon. The premise of the series and episodes are based on the books written by Robert Quackenbush. Each show focuses on Miss Mallard and her nephew Willard Widgeon as they visit various places around the...

    , Totally Spies!, Upstairs, Downstairs Bears, My Big Big Friend, Mimi and Friends, World of Quest
    World of Quest
    World of Quest is an animated series based on the graphic novel story by Jason Kruse published by Komikwerks . The series was created by Cookie Jar Entertainment, and was animated by Mercury Filmworks East, for season 1. Season 2 was produced by Vancouver's Atomic Cartoons...

    , Chilly Beach
    Chilly Beach
    Chilly Beach is a Canadian animated series, which airs on CBC Television in Canada and The Comedy Channel in Australia. The series is a comedic depiction of life in the fictional Canadian town of Chilly Beach, described by the producers as "a bunch of Canadians doing the stuff that Canadians do,...

    , The Manly Bee and Beyblade.

External links

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