Jason Robert Hervey (born April 6, 1972) is an American actor and television producer. He is best known for his role as Wayne Arnold on ''
The Wonder Years
''The Wonder Years'' is an American coming-of-age comedy/drama television series created by Neal Marlens and Carol Black. It ran on ABC from January 31, 1988, until May 12, 1993. The series premiered immediately after ABC's coverage of Super ...
''.
Early life and acting
Hervey was born in Los Angeles, the son of Marsha, a talent agent, and Alan Hervey, a retail sales manager. In his early career, Hervey had small roles in films including ''
Back to the Future
''Back to the Future'' is a 1985 American science fiction film directed by Robert Zemeckis, and written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale. It stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover, and Thomas F. Wilson. Set in 1985, ...
'', ''
Pee-wee's Big Adventure'', ''
Meatballs Part II
''Meatballs Part II'' is a 1984 American comedy film and the in-name only sequel to the 1979 film ''Meatballs''. The film stars Richard Mulligan, Hamilton Camp, John Mengatti, Kim Richards, Archie Hahn, Misty Rowe, and John Larroquette, and w ...
'', ''
Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment'', and had a recurring role as Charlie in the final season of ''
Diff'rent Strokes
''Diff'rent Strokes'' is an American television sitcom, which aired on NBC from November 3, 1978, to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985, to March 7, 1986. The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and Willis Jackso ...
''. His big break came as a cast member of the successful family dramedy''
The Wonder Years
''The Wonder Years'' is an American coming-of-age comedy/drama television series created by Neal Marlens and Carol Black. It ran on ABC from January 31, 1988, until May 12, 1993. The series premiered immediately after ABC's coverage of Super ...
'', as the older brother of
Fred Savage
Frederick Aaron Savage (born July 9, 1976) is an American actor and director. He is known for his role as Kevin Arnold in the American television series ''The Wonder Years'' (1988 to 1993). He has earned several awards and nominations, such as ...
's character. He ranked at #71 on
VH1's 100 Greatest Kid Stars for the role.
Hervey's role on ''The Wonder Years'' led to a later guest appearance on the animated show ''
Justice League Unlimited
''Justice League Unlimited'' (''JLU'') is a 2004–2006 American superhero animated television series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Comics universe, and ...
''. He appeared alongside Savage in the episode "Hawk and Dove", where Hervey provided the voice of the younger, more passive brother
Don Hall/Dove, opposite Savage's role of the older and more aggressive brother, in a role reversal from ''The Wonder Years''. The original idea had been to cast Hervey as Hawk in tribute to his role as Wayne Arnold, until both he and Savage felt the opposite roles were better challenges.
Hervey was the voice of Eddie McDowd on the
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
series ''
100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd'' for season two. He made a brief appearance in the 1993 adventure game ''
Return to Zork
''Return to Zork'' is a 1993 graphic adventure game in the '' Zork'' series. It was developed by Activision and was the final ''Zork'' game to be published under the Infocom label.
Gameplay
Unlike the previous games in the '' Zork'' franchise, ...
'' as the troll king.
While post-''Wonder Years'' acting credits were few and far between for Hervey, he did maintain ties to the entertainment industry as the producer of various sports-themed videos and specials (a substantial number of which were related to the
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...
organization), a handful of made-for-television movies, and a few television series. As the wave of 1980s nostalgia washed over the media in the early 2000s, Hervey became a frequent contributor to
VH1's ''
I Love the 80s'' and ''
I Love the 80s Strikes Back'' and appeared as himself on reality shows such as ''
Hogan Knows Best
''Hogan Knows Best'' is an American reality documentary television series on VH1. The series debuted on July 10, 2005 and centered on the family life of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan (Terry Bollea). Often focusing on the Hogans' raising of th ...
'' and ''
Scott Baio Is 45...and Single''.
Public relations
Hervey served as the Senior Vice President of Media and Communications for
HealthSouth Corporation
Encompass Health Corporation, based in Birmingham, Alabama, is one of the United States' largest providers of post-acute healthcare services, offering both facility-based and home-based post-acute services in 36 states and Puerto Rico through its ...
, based in
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
. Hervey relocated to Birmingham to assume the post. He worked for the company from late 2001 until late 2003, during events that would lead to a fraud scandal. He later sued HealthSouth, demanding $300,000 in compensation.
Producing and game development
After a guest appearance on
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...
television during his tenure on ''The Wonder Years'', Hervey obtained a backstage position as an executive producer for WCW, which he held until the company's closure in 2001. During this time, he became friends with then-WCW Vice President
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff (born May 27, 1955) is an American television producer, professional wrestling booker, and performer. He is best known for serving as Executive Producer and later Senior Vice President of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and ...
, with whom he formed
Bischoff Hervey Entertainment. Their company produced several sports and reality television shows, including ''
I Want to Be a Hilton
''I Want To Be a Hilton'' is a 2005 weekly NBC reality television series that was hosted by Kathy Hilton.
The show featured people who ''"Wanted to be like a Hilton."'' The finalist of the competition receives a prize package that includes a $2 ...
'', ''
Scott Baio Is 45...and Single'', and
Hulk Hogan
Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...
's
Celebrity Championship Wrestling, alongside Hogan. When Bischoff joined
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment.
Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...
(TNA) in January 2010, Hervey also joined the promotion as an executive producer. He co-created the reality show ''
TNA Reaction
''TNA Reaction'' is an American professional wrestling-focused documentary-style television program by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) that aired in the United States and Canada on Spike. The show aired two pilot episodes and a twenty-episo ...
''. Hervey appeared in a backstage segment with
Eric Young on the June 16, 2011, edition of ''
Impact Wrestling
Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment.
Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...
'' which was his last appearance.
In 2013, along with partners
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff (born May 27, 1955) is an American television producer, professional wrestling booker, and performer. He is best known for serving as Executive Producer and later Senior Vice President of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and ...
and
Ike McFadden
Ike McFadden (born June 20, 1977) is an American video game producer, former television and film producer and public relations agent. He has produced video games featuring Hulk Hogan, David Hasselhoff, The Blues Brothers, Dennis Rodman and Jame ...
, Hervey formed the online gaming company MX Digital. The company specializes in creating celebrity-themed online games, including games featuring
David Hasselhoff
David Michael Hasselhoff (born July 17, 1952), nicknamed "The Hoff", is an American actor, singer, and television personality. He has set a Guinness World Record as the most watched man on TV. Hasselhoff first gained recognition on ''The You ...
and
Hulk Hogan
Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...
, among others.
Hervey is credited in ''The
Eddie Guerrero
Eduardo Gory Guerrero Llanes (October 9, 1967 – November 13, 2005) was an American professional wrestler. He was a prominent member of the Guerrero wrestling family, being the son of first-generation wrestler Gory Guerrero. Eddie Guerrero i ...
Story: Cheating Death, Stealing Life'' for coming up with the idea for the
Latino World Order
The Latino World Order (abbreviated lWo or LWO) was a professional wrestling stable that existed in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1998 and 1999 led by Eddie Guerrero. The name of the stable was invented by Jason Hervey and was inspired by ...
(LWO).
Reality shows
Hervey appeared in an episode of ''
Hogan Knows Best
''Hogan Knows Best'' is an American reality documentary television series on VH1. The series debuted on July 10, 2005 and centered on the family life of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan (Terry Bollea). Often focusing on the Hogans' raising of th ...
'' alongside Eric Bischoff, talking about
energy drinks, and in several episodes of ''
Scott Baio Is 45...and Single''. In 2002, he made a brief appearance on the
VH1 special ''
I Love the '80s''. Along with Baio, he co-hosts
VH1's ''
Confessions of a Teen Idol
''Confessions of a Teen Idol'' is an American reality series that began airing on VH1 on January 4, 2009 and concluded on February 22, 2009. It ran for eight episodes. The series was hosted and produced by former teen idols Scott Baio and Jaso ...
'', a reality show in which former teen idols attempt to revitalize their entertainment careers.
[. In 2007 Hervey pitched an idea of "Who wants to be the next Batman"]
Confessions of a Teen Idol's VH1 Page
/ref> In February 2015, WGN premiered Bischoff/Hervey's latest production, ''Outlaw Country'', a "reality crime drama" following two sets of brothers, one being on the criminal side of the law and the other being on the law enforcement side.
Filmography
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hervey, Jason
1972 births
Male actors from Los Angeles
American male child actors
American male film actors
American male television actors
American male voice actors
Television producers from California
Professional wrestling executives
Living people
University High School (Los Angeles) alumni
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors