Barry Sobel (born July 11, 1959) is an American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing Amusement is the state of experiencing humorous and entertaining events or situations while the person or a ...

Life and career

Sobel was raised in a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York. During the 1980s, he toured the comedy circuit heavily. In 1987, he appeared in

Rodney Dangerfield Rodney Dangerfield (born Jacob Rodney Cohen; November 22, 1921 – October 5, 2004) was an American stand-up comedian, actor, screenwriter, and producer. He was known for his self-deprecating one-liner humor, his catchphrase "I don't get no resp ...

's Young Comedians special. Sobel played a part in '' Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise''. He also appeared in the 1987 film

Blind Date A blind date is a social engagement between two people who have not met, usually arranged by a mutual acquaintance. Structure A blind date is arranged for by a mutual acquaintance of both participants. The two people who take part in the blind ...

. He adopted his hip-hop comedy rap in 1987 when he was featured on

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

's Uptown Comedy Express. Sobel was a guest on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' was an American late-night talk show hosted by Johnny Carson on NBC, the third iteration of the ''Tonight Show'' franchise. The show debuted on October 1, 1962, and aired its final episode on May 22, ...

'', in the episode July 24, 1987. In his guest-starring appearance, he provided a comedy act while sitting at the desk next to Johnny on one side & actor

Mark Harmon Thomas Mark Harmon (born September 2, 1951) is an American actor. He is most famous for playing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs in '' NCIS''. He also appeared in a wide variety of roles since the early 1970s. After spending the majority of ...

on the other. In the 1988 film, ''

Punchline A punch line (a. k. a. punch-line or punchline) concludes a joke; it is intended to make people laugh. It is the third and final part of the typical joke structure. It follows the introductory framing of the joke and the narrative which sets up ...

'', he had a small part, but played a more prominent off screen role as comedic advisor to

Tom Hanks Thomas Jeffrey Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. Known for both his comedic and dramatic roles, he is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide, and is regarded as an American cultural icon. Ha ...

. According to Sobel, Hanks caught his act which stylistically was considered 'dangerous' as was the character Hanks was to play in Punchline. Sobel was a series regular on ABC's ''

The Ellen Burstyn Show ''The Ellen Burstyn Show'' is an American sitcom starring Ellen Burstyn. The series was produced by Touchstone Television and debuted on ABC on September 20, 1986. The series was canceled after 13 episodes. Synopsis Burstyn played Baltimore coll ...

'' in 1986, and was added to the cast of ''

227 Year 227 ( CCXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Senecio and Fulvius (or, less frequently, year 980 ''Ab urbe condi ...

'' in its fourth season. In the 1990s, he did voice-over work as himself on ''

Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist ''Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist'' is an American adult animated sitcom that ran on Comedy Central from May 28, 1995 to February 13, 2002. The series starred the voice talents of Jonathan Katz, H. Jon Benjamin, and Laura Silverman. The show wa ...

''. From 1998 to 2000, he co-starred with

Wayne Brady Wayne Alphonso Brady (born June 2, 1972) is an American television personality, comedian, actor, and singer. He is a regular on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' He was the host of ...

on the

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series ''Vinyl Justice'', a parody of '' Cops'' in which both played police officers who raided citizens' private music collections and made wisecracks about them. Around this time, Sobel also guest starred as an angel on ''

The Parent 'Hood ''The Parent 'Hood'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on The WB from January 18, 1995, to July 25, 1999. The series starred Robert Townsend and Suzzanne Douglas. Originally to be titled ''Father Knows Nothing'' (a parody of th ...

''. He voiced the character of Chico on the series ''

The Boondocks Boondocks are remote, usually brushy areas. Boondocks may also refer to: * The Boondocks (band), an Estonian rock band * ''The Boondocks'' (comic strip), a comic strip by Aaron McGruder ** ''The Boondocks'' (2005 TV series), the television ser ...

''. In 2001, Sobel was nominated for an

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

for his writing work on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

''. In 2008, he appeared in commercials in scenes from

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...

's then-new show, ''

Chocolate News ''Chocolate News'' is an American satirical news show hosted and head written by David Alan Grier in 2008 with an emphasis on African American culture. The show was broadcast on Wednesday nights at 10:30 pm on Comedy Central as a lead-in to its ...

'', starring

David Alan Grier David Alan Grier (born June 30, 1956) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his work as Bernard on '' Damon'' (1998), as David Bellows on ''Life with Bonnie'' (2002–2004), as Joe Carmichael on ''The Carmichael Show'' (2015� ...

."NY Times July 10, 2008, An Equal-Opportunity News Parody"
/ref> That show debuted on October 15, 2008.

Notes

External links

Pedophile accusation

Official Home Page
* * 1959 births Living people American male film actors American stand-up comedians American male television actors American male voice actors 20th-century American male actors People from Brooklyn Comedians from New York (state) {{US-screen-actor-stub