Biography
Personal life
Shawn was born into a prominent Jewish family in New York City, where he continues to reside. He is the son of William Shawn, longtime editor of The New Yorker, and journalist Cecille Shawn (née Lyon); his brother Allen is a composer. Shawn attended The Putney School, a private liberal arts high school in Putney, Vermont, and graduated with a B.A. in history from Harvard University. He studied economics and philosophy at Oxford, originally intending to become a diplomat; he also traveled to India as an English teacher, on a Fulbright program. Since 1979, he has made a living primarily as an actor.
Shawn's longtime companion is writer Deborah Eisenberg.
Acting
Shawn's involvement with theater began in 1970 when he met Andre Gregory, who has since directed several of his plays. As a stage actor, he has appeared mostly in his own plays and other projects with Gregory.
Shawn made his film debut in 1979, playing Diane Keaton's ex-husband in Woody Allen's Manhattan. His best-known film roles include the evil Vizzini in the fairy tale comedy The Princess Bride (1987) and debate teacher Mr. Hall in Clueless (1995). His rare non-comic film roles include two collaborations with Andre Gregory and Louis Malle: the semi-autobiographical dialogue My Dinner with Andre, and a combined production-and-backstage-drama of Uncle Vanya titled Vanya on 42nd Street.
Shawn frequently appears on television, where he has appeared in many genres and series. He has had recurring roles as the Ferengi Grand Nagus Zek on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, a comic ex-reporter on Murphy Brown, the Huxtables' neighbor on The Cosby Show, a psychiatrist on Crossing Jordan, and Marilu Henner's love interest on Taxi. He is also a voice actor for animated films and animated TV series, including Toy Story, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc. (cameo appearance as Rex the Green Dinosaur), Gilbert Huph in The Incredibles, and two episodes of Family Guy (as Stewie's half-brother Bertram). Shawn also cameoed as the voice of Principal Fetchit in Chicken Little and voiced the character of Munk in Happily N'Ever After. Another recent role was the megalomaniacal industrialist Baron von Westphalen in Southland Tales.
In a DVD extra for The Princess Bride, Shawn claimed (somewhat surprisingly, given his wide assortment of comedic film roles) that he lacks a sense of humor and played Vizzini in a way that seemed appropriate to him without actually getting the jokes, though this may have been Shawn's way of making a joke in keeping with the character's character.
Playwright
Wallace Shawn at the Miami Book Fair International of 1991
Shawn's early plays, such as Marie and Bruce (1978), portrayed emotional and sexual conflicts in an absurdist style, with language that was both lyrical and violent. In the conversations with Andre Gregory that became My Dinner with Andre, Shawn later referred to these plays as depicting "my interior life as a raging beast." Critical response was extremely polarized: some critics hailed Shawn as a major writer, while John Simon called Marie and Bruce "garbage" and described Shawn as "one of the worst and unsightliest actors in this city." His play A Thought in Three Parts caused a minor uproar in London in 1977 when the production was investigated by a vice squad and attacked in Parliament due to allegedly pornographic content.
His later plays became more overtly political, drawing parallels between the psychology of his characters and the behavior of governments and social classes. Among the best-known of these are Aunt Dan and Lemon (1985) and The Designated Mourner (1997). Shawn's political work has invited controversy, as he often presents the audience with several contradictory points of view: in Aunt Dan and Lemon, which Shawn described as a cautionary tale against fascism, the character Lemon explained her neo-Nazi beliefs with such conviction that some critics called the play effectively pro-fascist. The monologue The Fever, originally created by Shawn to be performed for small audiences in apartments, was dismissed by some critics as "liberal guilt"; it describes a person who becomes sick while struggling to find a morally consistent way to live when faced with injustice, and harshly criticizes the record of the U.S. in supporting repressive anti-communist regimes.
Three of Shawn's plays have been adapted into films: The Designated Mourner (basically a film of David Hare's stage production), Marie and Bruce, and The Fever. Oscar winner Vanessa Redgrave stars in The Fever (2004), which first aired on HBO on June 13, 2007.
Shawn has also written political commentary for The Nation, and in 2004 he published the one-issue-only progressive political magazine Final Edition, which features interviews with and articles by Jonathan Schell, Noam Chomsky, Mark Strand, and Deborah Eisenberg.
Shawn is credited as translator of Bertolt Brecht's The Threepenny Opera, which opened at Studio 54 in Manhattan on March 25, 2006. He appears briefly in voiceover during "Song about the Futility of Human Endeavor."
Plays
The Hotel Play (1970)
Our Late Night (1975)
A Thought in Three Parts (1976)
Marie and Bruce (1978)
Aunt Dan and Lemon (1985)
The Fever (1990)
The Designated Mourner (1997; film directed by David Hare, 1998)
The Threepenny Opera (2006; new translation)
Grasses of a Thousand Colors (2008)
Film and television roles
All That Jazz (dir. Bob Fosse, 1979) - Assistant insurance man
Manhattan (dir. Woody Allen, 1979) - Jeremiah
Atlantic City (dir. Louis Malle, 1980) - Walter
My Dinner with Andre (dir. Louis Malle 1981) - co-written with Andre Gregory
Crackers (dir. Louis Malle, 1984)
The Cosby Show (TV series; guest appearances 1987-91) - Jeffrey Engels
The Bostonians (dir. James Ivory, 1984)
The Hotel New Hampshire (1984) - Freud
Heaven Help Us (film) (1985)
The Princess Bride (1987; dir. Rob Reiner) - Vizzini
Radio Days (dir. Woody Allen, 1987) - Masked Avenger (radio-show character)
Prick Up Your Ears (dir. Stephen Frears, 1987) - John Lahr
The Moderns (dir. Alan Rudolph, 1988)
She's out of control, (1989) - Dr. Fishbinder
We're No Angels, (1989) - Translator
Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills (dir. Paul Bartel, 1989)
Nickel & Dime (1992) - Everett Willits
Mom and Dad Save The World (1992) - Sibor
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (TV series, recurring role 1993-1999) - Grand Nagus Zek
The Pink Panther (1993 TV series) - The Little Man
Vanya on 42nd Street (dir. Louis Malle, 1994) - Uncle Vanya
The Meteor Man (1993) - Mr. Little
Canadian Bacon (1995) - Canadian Prime Minster Clark MacDonald
Just Like Dad (1995) - The dad
A Goofy Movie (1995) - voice of Principal Mazur
The Wife (film) (dir. Tom Noonan, 1995) - Cosmo
Toy Story (1995), Toy Story 2 (1999), and Toy Story 3 (2010) - voice of Rex
House Arrest (1996)-Victor 'Vic' Finley
Clueless (movie & TV series, 1996-97) - Mr. Hall
Vegas Vacation (dir. Stephen Kessler, 1997) - Marty
My Favorite Martian (1999) - Elliot Coleye
The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (dir. Woody Allen, 2001) - George Bond
Crossing Jordan (TV series, recurring role 2002- ) - Dr. Howard Stiles
Duplex 2003 - Herman
Napoleon - Echidna
The Haunted Mansion (dir. Rob Minkoff) 2003 - Ezra
The Incredibles (2004) - voice of Gilbert Huph, Bob Parr's boss
Melinda and Melinda (dir. Woody Allen, 2004) - Sy
Sex and the City (TV Series, 2004) - Martin Grable in "Splat"
Stargate SG-1 - (2005) Appeared as Arlos in episode The Ties That Bind
Family Guy (TV series; two appearances) - voice of Bertram, Stewie's half-brother
Chicken Little (2005) - voice of Principal Fetchit
Fat Actress" (2005 Showtime series) - Doctor Von Oight
Tom and Jerry: Shiver Me Whiskers (2006) - voice of Purple Pirate Paul
Air Buddies (2006) - voice of Billy the Goat
Happily N'Ever After (2007) - voice of Munk
Southland Tales (dir. Richard Kelly, 2008) - Baron von Westphalen
The L Word (2008) - William Halsey
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008) - Mr. Gibson
Scooby-Doo and the Goblin King (2008) - Mr. Gibbles
Gossip Girl (2008-2009) - Cyrus Rose
Personal life
Shawn was born into a prominent Jewish family in New York City, where he continues to reside. He is the son of William Shawn, longtime editor of The New Yorker, and journalist Cecille Shawn (née Lyon); his brother Allen is a composer. Shawn attended The Putney School, a private liberal arts high school in Putney, Vermont, and graduated with a B.A. in history from Harvard University. He studied economics and philosophy at Oxford, originally intending to become a diplomat; he also traveled to India as an English teacher, on a Fulbright program. Since 1979, he has made a living primarily as an actor.
Shawn's longtime companion is writer Deborah Eisenberg.
Acting
Shawn's involvement with theater began in 1970 when he met Andre Gregory, who has since directed several of his plays. As a stage actor, he has appeared mostly in his own plays and other projects with Gregory.
Shawn made his film debut in 1979, playing Diane Keaton's ex-husband in Woody Allen's Manhattan. His best-known film roles include the evil Vizzini in the fairy tale comedy The Princess Bride (1987) and debate teacher Mr. Hall in Clueless (1995). His rare non-comic film roles include two collaborations with Andre Gregory and Louis Malle: the semi-autobiographical dialogue My Dinner with Andre, and a combined production-and-backstage-drama of Uncle Vanya titled Vanya on 42nd Street.
Shawn frequently appears on television, where he has appeared in many genres and series. He has had recurring roles as the Ferengi Grand Nagus Zek on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, a comic ex-reporter on Murphy Brown, the Huxtables' neighbor on The Cosby Show, a psychiatrist on Crossing Jordan, and Marilu Henner's love interest on Taxi. He is also a voice actor for animated films and animated TV series, including Toy Story, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc. (cameo appearance as Rex the Green Dinosaur), Gilbert Huph in The Incredibles, and two episodes of Family Guy (as Stewie's half-brother Bertram). Shawn also cameoed as the voice of Principal Fetchit in Chicken Little and voiced the character of Munk in Happily N'Ever After. Another recent role was the megalomaniacal industrialist Baron von Westphalen in Southland Tales.
In a DVD extra for The Princess Bride, Shawn claimed (somewhat surprisingly, given his wide assortment of comedic film roles) that he lacks a sense of humor and played Vizzini in a way that seemed appropriate to him without actually getting the jokes, though this may have been Shawn's way of making a joke in keeping with the character's character.
Playwright
Wallace Shawn at the Miami Book Fair International of 1991
Shawn's early plays, such as Marie and Bruce (1978), portrayed emotional and sexual conflicts in an absurdist style, with language that was both lyrical and violent. In the conversations with Andre Gregory that became My Dinner with Andre, Shawn later referred to these plays as depicting "my interior life as a raging beast." Critical response was extremely polarized: some critics hailed Shawn as a major writer, while John Simon called Marie and Bruce "garbage" and described Shawn as "one of the worst and unsightliest actors in this city." His play A Thought in Three Parts caused a minor uproar in London in 1977 when the production was investigated by a vice squad and attacked in Parliament due to allegedly pornographic content.
His later plays became more overtly political, drawing parallels between the psychology of his characters and the behavior of governments and social classes. Among the best-known of these are Aunt Dan and Lemon (1985) and The Designated Mourner (1997). Shawn's political work has invited controversy, as he often presents the audience with several contradictory points of view: in Aunt Dan and Lemon, which Shawn described as a cautionary tale against fascism, the character Lemon explained her neo-Nazi beliefs with such conviction that some critics called the play effectively pro-fascist. The monologue The Fever, originally created by Shawn to be performed for small audiences in apartments, was dismissed by some critics as "liberal guilt"; it describes a person who becomes sick while struggling to find a morally consistent way to live when faced with injustice, and harshly criticizes the record of the U.S. in supporting repressive anti-communist regimes.
Three of Shawn's plays have been adapted into films: The Designated Mourner (basically a film of David Hare's stage production), Marie and Bruce, and The Fever. Oscar winner Vanessa Redgrave stars in The Fever (2004), which first aired on HBO on June 13, 2007.
Shawn has also written political commentary for The Nation, and in 2004 he published the one-issue-only progressive political magazine Final Edition, which features interviews with and articles by Jonathan Schell, Noam Chomsky, Mark Strand, and Deborah Eisenberg.
Shawn is credited as translator of Bertolt Brecht's The Threepenny Opera, which opened at Studio 54 in Manhattan on March 25, 2006. He appears briefly in voiceover during "Song about the Futility of Human Endeavor."
Plays
The Hotel Play (1970)
Our Late Night (1975)
A Thought in Three Parts (1976)
Marie and Bruce (1978)
Aunt Dan and Lemon (1985)
The Fever (1990)
The Designated Mourner (1997; film directed by David Hare, 1998)
The Threepenny Opera (2006; new translation)
Grasses of a Thousand Colors (2008)
Film and television roles
All That Jazz (dir. Bob Fosse, 1979) - Assistant insurance man
Manhattan (dir. Woody Allen, 1979) - Jeremiah
Atlantic City (dir. Louis Malle, 1980) - Walter
My Dinner with Andre (dir. Louis Malle 1981) - co-written with Andre Gregory
Crackers (dir. Louis Malle, 1984)
The Cosby Show (TV series; guest appearances 1987-91) - Jeffrey Engels
The Bostonians (dir. James Ivory, 1984)
The Hotel New Hampshire (1984) - Freud
Heaven Help Us (film) (1985)
The Princess Bride (1987; dir. Rob Reiner) - Vizzini
Radio Days (dir. Woody Allen, 1987) - Masked Avenger (radio-show character)
Prick Up Your Ears (dir. Stephen Frears, 1987) - John Lahr
The Moderns (dir. Alan Rudolph, 1988)
She's out of control, (1989) - Dr. Fishbinder
We're No Angels, (1989) - Translator
Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills (dir. Paul Bartel, 1989)
Nickel & Dime (1992) - Everett Willits
Mom and Dad Save The World (1992) - Sibor
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (TV series, recurring role 1993-1999) - Grand Nagus Zek
The Pink Panther (1993 TV series) - The Little Man
Vanya on 42nd Street (dir. Louis Malle, 1994) - Uncle Vanya
The Meteor Man (1993) - Mr. Little
Canadian Bacon (1995) - Canadian Prime Minster Clark MacDonald
Just Like Dad (1995) - The dad
A Goofy Movie (1995) - voice of Principal Mazur
The Wife (film) (dir. Tom Noonan, 1995) - Cosmo
Toy Story (1995), Toy Story 2 (1999), and Toy Story 3 (2010) - voice of Rex
House Arrest (1996)-Victor 'Vic' Finley
Clueless (movie & TV series, 1996-97) - Mr. Hall
Vegas Vacation (dir. Stephen Kessler, 1997) - Marty
My Favorite Martian (1999) - Elliot Coleye
The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (dir. Woody Allen, 2001) - George Bond
Crossing Jordan (TV series, recurring role 2002- ) - Dr. Howard Stiles
Duplex 2003 - Herman
Napoleon - Echidna
The Haunted Mansion (dir. Rob Minkoff) 2003 - Ezra
The Incredibles (2004) - voice of Gilbert Huph, Bob Parr's boss
Melinda and Melinda (dir. Woody Allen, 2004) - Sy
Sex and the City (TV Series, 2004) - Martin Grable in "Splat"
Stargate SG-1 - (2005) Appeared as Arlos in episode The Ties That Bind
Family Guy (TV series; two appearances) - voice of Bertram, Stewie's half-brother
Chicken Little (2005) - voice of Principal Fetchit
Fat Actress" (2005 Showtime series) - Doctor Von Oight
Tom and Jerry: Shiver Me Whiskers (2006) - voice of Purple Pirate Paul
Air Buddies (2006) - voice of Billy the Goat
Happily N'Ever After (2007) - voice of Munk
Southland Tales (dir. Richard Kelly, 2008) - Baron von Westphalen
The L Word (2008) - William Halsey
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008) - Mr. Gibson
Scooby-Doo and the Goblin King (2008) - Mr. Gibbles
Gossip Girl (2008-2009) - Cyrus Rose
