Pat Proft is an American
comedy
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
writer, actor, and director. Born in Minnesota in 1947, Proft began his career at
Dudley Riggs' Brave New Workshop in Minneapolis in the mid 1960s. He went on to perform as a one-man comedy act in the late 1960s. In 1972, Proft began working at
The Comedy Store
The Comedy Store is an American comedy club opened in April 1972. It is located in West Hollywood, California, at 8433 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip. An associated club is located in La Jolla, San Diego, California.
History
The Comedy ...
in Hollywood which led to work in television and film writing for
the Smothers Brothers
The Smothers Brothers are Thomas ("Tom" – born February 2, 1937) and Richard ("Dick" – born November 20, 1938), American folk singers, musicians, and comedians. The brothers' trademark double act was performing folk songs (Tommy on acoustic gu ...
and
Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker
Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker (abbreviated to ZAZ) were an American comedy filmmaking trio consisting of Jim Abrahams and brothers David and Jerry Zucker who specialized in writing slapstick comedy films during the 1980s.
History
David Zucker, Jim ...
.
Of the many feature films Proft has written, ''
Wrongfully Accused
''Wrongfully Accused'' is a 1998 satirical comedy film written, produced and directed by Pat Proft and starring Leslie Nielsen as a man who has been framed for murder and desperately attempts to expose the true culprits. The film is a parody of t ...
'', is the only one he also directed. It was released in 1998.
Proft continued to work with David Zucker, and in 2013 announced he was working on a parody film with Zucker involving the ''Jason Bourne'' and ''Mission: Impossible'' series.
Biography
Proft was born in 1947 in Minnesota. Proft attended
Columbia Heights High School where his English teacher Stuart J. Anderson encouraged Proft to develop his talent.
Proft would later perform at the
Chanhassen
Chanhassen is a city about southwest of Minneapolis in Carver County and partially in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The southwest edge of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul suburbs, there is a mix of residential neighborhoods and rural ...
Dinner Theatre's stage, acting in musicals even though Proft felt that he "can't sing or dance".
In 1972, Proft moved to Hollywood where he began working at
The Comedy Store
The Comedy Store is an American comedy club opened in April 1972. It is located in West Hollywood, California, at 8433 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip. An associated club is located in La Jolla, San Diego, California.
History
The Comedy ...
.
Jerry
Jerry may refer to:
Animals
* Jerry (Grand National winner), racehorse, winner of the 1840 Grand National
* Jerry (St Leger winner), racehorse, winner of 1824 St Leger Stakes
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Jerry'' (film), a 2006 Indian fil ...
and
David Zucker
David Samuel Zucker (born October 16, 1947) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Associated mostly with parody comedies, Zucker is recognized as the director and writer of the critically successful 1980 film ''Airplane!'' ...
saw some of Proft's work at the Comedy Store and would later invite him to join them at Kentucky Fried Theater.
Proft received a special thanks message in the credits of the film ''
Airplane!
''Airplane!'' (alternatively titled ''Flying High!'') is a 1980 American parody film written and directed by the brothers David and Jerry Zucker, and Jim Abrahams in their directorial debuts, and produced by Jon Davison. It stars Robert Hay ...
'' (1980).
Television career
In his early career, Proft wrote for several television and comedy variety shows. Proft was a regular on ''The Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour'' that lasted from June to September 1973. In 1975, Proft would also appear as a regular on ''Joey & Dad'', a variety show featuring
Joey Heatherton
Davenie Johanna "Joey" Heatherton (born September 14, 1944) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. A sex symbol of the 1960s and 1970s, she is best known for her many television appearances during that time, particularly as a frequent varie ...
and her father.
Proft would work as a screenwriter on the
situation comedy
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...
show ''
When Things Were Rotten
''When Things Were Rotten'' is an American sitcom television series created in 1975 by Mel Brooks. It aired for half a season on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC network. A parody of the Robin Hood legend, the series starred Dick Gautier (w ...
'' developed by
Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks (born Melvin James Kaminsky; June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodies. He began h ...
and screened between September and December 1975.
[Brooks, 2009. p.1509] The series a satire on the ''Robin Hood'' story and was well received by critics but was cancelled in 1975 due to low ratings.
In 1976, Proft was writing for ''Van Dyke and Company'', a variety show that was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 1977.
[Hyatt, 2006. p.284]
Film career
In 1997, the film ''
Mr. Magoo'' was released written by Proft and
Tom Sherohman
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name)
Characters
* Tom Anderson, a character in '' Beavis and Butt-Head''
* Tom Beck, a character ...
. The film was based on the
UPA cartoon series from the 1950s and 1960s about a nearsighted eccentric.
The film received poor reviews ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' stated that both Proft and Sherohman "have labored mightily to cobble together a plot capable of stretching to feature length the one-joke premise of the six-minute cartoons."
In 1998, Proft's directoral debut titled ''
Wrongfully Accused
''Wrongfully Accused'' is a 1998 satirical comedy film written, produced and directed by Pat Proft and starring Leslie Nielsen as a man who has been framed for murder and desperately attempts to expose the true culprits. The film is a parody of t ...
'' was released. The film was a parody of the
thriller genre exemplified by ''
The Fugitive'' (1993). In the same year, Proft announced a parody of the ''
Dirty Harry
''Dirty Harry'' is a 1971 American neo-noir
Neo-noir is a revival of film noir, a genre that had originally flourished during the post-World War II era in the United Statesroughly from 1940 to 1960. The French term, ''film noir'', translates ...
'' film series about an American police officer who heads to England to extradite a criminal without much success and a script titled ''Deep Titanic: Armageddon'' and ''Titanic, Too: It Missed the Iceberg'' which he also wanted to direct. ''Titanic, Too: It Missed the Iceberg'' had actors
Leslie Nielsen
Leslie William Nielsen (11 February 192628 November 2010) was a Canadian actor and comedian. With a career spanning 60 years, he appeared in more than 100 films and 150 television programs, portraying more than 220 characters.
Nielsen was bo ...
,
Priscilla Presley
Priscilla Ann Presley ( Wagner, changed by adoption to Beaulieu; born May 24, 1945) is an American actress and businesswoman. She is the former wife of American singer Elvis Presley, as well as co-founder and former chairwoman of Elvis Presley ...
and
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 ...
in talks for starring with a release date originally aimed for early 1999.
CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...
's film analyst Martin Grove stated the film was not likely to be made as two recent parody films ''Wrongfully Accused'' and ''
Plump Fiction
''Plump Fiction'' is a 1997 American parody film written and directed by Bob Koherr and produced by Rhino Entertainment. It is a spoof of mid- 1990s films in general, and violent, convoluted films more specifically; the overall story is a send-up ...
'' were not well received.
In 2013, Proft was working on a script with David Zucker titled ''Counter Intelligence''. Proft described the film as a "''Naked Gun'' take on ''
Mission Impossible
''Mission: Impossible'' is a multimedia franchise based on a fictional secret espionage agency known as the Impossible Missions Force (IMF). The 1966 TV series ran for seven seasons and was revived in 1988 for two seasons. It inspired a serie ...
'' and ''
Bourne
Bourne may refer to:
Places UK
* Bourne, Lincolnshire, a town
** Bourne Abbey
** Bourne railway station
* Bourne (electoral division), West Sussex
* Bourne SSSI, Avon, a Site of Special Scientific Interest near Burrington, North Somerset
* Bourne ...
'' film series.
Zucker would discuss in 2017 that he was working on a script for a fourth ''Naked Gun'' film with Proft.
No project with Zucker has been made since ''Scary Movie V''.
In 2021, Proft was again working on a script for David Zucker titled ''The Star of Malta'', a parody of ''
film noir
Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...
'' and heist films.
Personal life
Proft is married to actress and singer
Karen Philipp
Karen Philipp (born September 7, 1945) is an American singer and actress.
Career
Philipp came to national prominence in 1968 when she was hired as one of the two female vocalists in the second iteration of Sérgio Mendes and Brasil '66, debuti ...
.
Filmography
Feature credits
Acting roles
Television credits
*''The Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour'' (1973)
*''
The Smothers Brothers Show
''The Smothers Brothers Show'' is
an American Fantasy television, fantasy sitcom featuring the Smothers Brothers that aired on CBS on Friday nights at 9:30 p.m. ET from September 17, 1965, to April 22, 1966, co-sponsored by Alberto-Culver' ...
'' (1975)
*''The Jim Stafford Show'' (1975)
*''
When Things Were Rotten
''When Things Were Rotten'' is an American sitcom television series created in 1975 by Mel Brooks. It aired for half a season on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC network. A parody of the Robin Hood legend, the series starred Dick Gautier (w ...
'' (1975)
*''
Welcome Back, Kotter
''Welcome Back, Kotter'' is an American sitcom starring Gabe Kaplan as a high-school teacher in charge of a racially and ethnically diverse remedial education class called the "Sweathogs." Recorded in front of a live studio audience, the series ...
'' (1975)
*''
Van Dyke and Company
''Van Dyke and Company'' is an American comedy and variety show television series hosted by Dick Van Dyke on NBC in 1976. Andy Kaufman made his prime time debut on the show and became a series regular. The executive producer of the show, Byron Pau ...
'' (1976)
*''
3 Girls 3'' (1977)
*''The Redd Foxx Comedy Hour'' (1977)
*''Mary'' (1978)
*''
Ringo'' (1978)
*''
Star Wars Holiday Special
The ''Star Wars Holiday Special'' is a 1978 American television special that originally aired on November 17, 1978, on CBS. It is set in the universe of the sci-fi-based ''Star Wars'' media franchise. Directed by Steve Binder, it was the first ' ...
'' (1978)
*''
Detective School
''Detective School'' (a.k.a. ''Detective School – One Flight Up'') is an American television Situation comedy, sitcom that was shown on American Broadcasting Company, ABC for four months in 1979 in television, 1979, for a total of 13 episodes.
...
'' (1979)
*''
Twilight Theater
''Twilight Theater'' is the fourth studio album by the Finnish rock band Poets of the Fall. It was released in Finland as well as on iTunes on 17 March 2010 '' (1982)
*''
Police Squad!
''Police Squad!'' is an American television crime comedy series that was broadcast on the ABC network in 1982. It was created by David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker, starring Leslie Nielsen as Frank Drebin. A spoof of police procedural ...
'' (1982)
*''
High School U.S.A.
''High School U.S.A.'' is a 1983 American made-for-television comedy film starring Michael J. Fox, Nancy McKeon, Anthony Edwards, and Crispin Glover, directed by Rod Amateau. The film originally aired on NBC on October 16, 1983.
Several of t ...
'' (1984)
*''Super Dave's Spike-Tacular'' (2009)
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Proft, Pat
Living people
American comedy writers
American male film actors
American male screenwriters
American male television actors
American television writers
Comedy film directors
Male actors from Minnesota
1947 births
American male television writers
Screenwriters from Minnesota
Film directors from Minnesota
Writers Guild of America Award winners