Samuel Kent Harris (born June 4, 1961) is an American pop and

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...

musician as well as a television, theater and film actor.

Career

Singing

Harris got his start as the grand champion singer of ''

Star Search ''Star Search'' was an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./ Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 2929 Productions from 2003 to 2004. On both versio ...

'' in its premiere season in 1983. He gained acclaim and became best known for his winning rendition of the song " Over the Rainbow" on the show. "Over the Rainbow" has since become his signature song. His appearance on ''Star Search'' led to him landing a contract with

Motown Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmant ...

. His first single, "Sugar Don't Bite", was a

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

, reaching #36 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in November

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

. "Over the Rainbow" was released in Australia and peaked at number 65 in 1985. He is a multi-million selling recording artist with nine studio albums to his credit. He can also be heard on numerous concert, guest artist, and cast recordings. He has toured extensively in concert and has played to sold-out audiences at major venues including New York's

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

, Los Angeles' Universal Amphitheatre, and

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

's West End. He has appeared with the

Boston Pops Orchestra The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symp ...

, at the White House, and has sung on a variety of television specials and live productions. On February 12, 2008, he released a new single entitled "War on War" that became an Internet phenomenon with music videos made by the general public. The song became a part of his album, ''Free'', which was released that summer. The single "Change Is On The Way" was written to support the Obama campaign and was heard on numerous television shows and behind Internet videos around the time of the election. In 2010, Sam wrote and released "My Reclamation", which has become an anthem for marriage equality. Harris was cited by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as "One of the greatest 100 singers of all time."

Stage

On Broadway, he received a

Drama Desk The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...

nomination for his role in the Jeff Calhoun-directed revival of '' Grease'', and a

Drama League Award The Drama League Awards, created in 1922, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing. Each May, the awards ...

as well as

Tony Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

, Outer Critic's Circle and Drama Desk Award nominations for his work in

Cy Coleman Cy Coleman (born Seymour Kaufman; June 14, 1929 – November 18, 2004) was an American composer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. Life and career Coleman was born Seymour Kaufman in New York City, United States, to Eastern European Jewish parents ...

's Tony-nominated musical '' The Life''. He's also appeared on Broadway in

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 ...

' Tony Award-winning musical '' The Producers'', in the national tour of ''

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' (often colloquially known as ''Joseph'') is a sung-through musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. Thi ...

'', and in the musicals ''

Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Gospels' accounts of the Passion, the work interprets the psychology of Jesus and other characters, with ...

'', ''

Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

'', ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and f ...

'', and ''

Pippin Pippin or Pepin may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Pippin (comics), ''Pippin'' (comics), a children's comic produced from 1966 to 1986 * Pippin (musical), ''Pippin'' (musical), a Broadway musical by Stephen Schwartz loosely based on the life ...

'' and "The First Wives Club". . He also starred in the self-penned shows ''Hardcopy'', ''Different Hats'', ''Revival'' and the critically acclaimed ''SAM''. Harris's most recent show was ''Ham: A Musical Memoir'' which played in New York and Los Angeles. The Los Angeles run received

Ovation Awards The Ovation Awards are a Southern California award for excellence in theatre, established in 1989. They are given out by the non-profit arts service organization LA Stage Alliance and are the only peer-judged theatre awards in Los Angeles. Winne ...

for Best Musical, Best Actor (Harris), and Best Musical Director (for Todd Schroeder.)

Films

Harris has appeared in three feature films to date: ''In the Weeds'' (2000, as Jonathan), the documentary '' Little Man'' (2005, as himself) and ''

Elena Undone ''Elena Undone'' is a 2010 lesbian film written and directed by Nicole Conn and starring Necar Zadegan, Traci Dinwiddie, and Gary Weeks. It is based loosely on Conn's romance with filmmaker Marina Rice Bader. Plot The paths of Elena Winter ...

'' (2010, as Tyler).

Television

Harris co-created the television series '' Down to Earth'' (1984, which ran for four years and 104 episodes). In addition to his now iconic performances on "Star Search" he was a series regular on '' The Class'' (2006-2007 - Perry Pearl). In 1986-87, Harris was one of several "Star Search" alumni who performed the contestants' songs on the songwriting competition series ''

You Write the Songs ''You Write the Songs'' is an American music competition series that aired in syndication from 1986 to 1987 for a total of 26 episodes. The show featured amateur songwriters competing to have one of their songs recorded. Format Each week three am ...

'' with Harris singing the winning song "Everybody Needs A Dream" by songwriter Tom Grose (also a "Star Search" alumnus with his band The Varsity.) Harris is also credited on ''

Rules of Engagement Rules of engagement (ROE) are the internal rules or directives afforded military forces (including individuals) that define the circumstances, conditions, degree, and manner in which the use of force, or actions which might be construed as pro ...

'' (Jackie, recurring), ''

The Wayne Brady Show ''The Wayne Brady Show'' is an American variety show hosted by comedian Wayne Brady that aired in two separate forms. On August 8, 2001, ABC, for whom Brady had been working as a panelist on ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'', launched the first ''Wa ...

'', ''CSI'' (Alan Widcom), ''Major Crimes'' (Jason) among others. He was music supervisor on ''Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration'' (2001), and has also appeared on numerous talk shows including ''

The Rosie O'Donnell Show ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show'' is an American daytime variety television talk show created, hosted, and produced by actress and comedian Rosie O'Donnell. It premiered on June 10, 1996, and concluded after six seasons on May 22, 2002. This talk sh ...

'' (1997 and 2000 - three episodes), ''

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ...

'' (1994), ''

Brunch Brunch is a meal eaten between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., sometimes accompanied by alcoholic drinks (typically champagne or a cocktail). The meal originated in the British hunt breakfast. The word ''brunch'' is a portmanteau of ''breakfast'' a ...

'' (co-host (2006), ''

The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', often referred to as ''The Oprah Show'' or simply ''Oprah'', is an American daytime broadcast syndication, syndicated talk show that aired nationally for 25 seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in Chicag ...

'' (1997 and 2001 - two episodes), '' Dr. Phils 500th episode (2005), '' The View'' (2007 - one episode), ''

The Tyra Banks Show ''The Tyra Banks Show'', also known as and shortened to ''Tyra'' or ''The Tyra Show'', was an American talk show hosted by Tyra Banks that aired from 2005 to 2010. While Banks's show covered a variety of topics, there was a sensationalized focus ...

'' (2010), '' The Dr. Drew Show'' (2011) and "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon".

Author

In 2014, Harris penned a collection of autobiographical essays and stories entitled ''Ham - Slices of a Life'' which was published by Simon & Schuster/Gallery Books, and received unanimous critical praise. Harris subsequently adapted the book into an Off-off-Broadway solo performance, ''HAM: A Musical Memoir''. In 2020, Harris released his second book, a novel entitled ''The Substance of All Things''.

Personal life

Sam Harris left his home in Oklahoma at the age of 15 to pursue a theater career, finished high school through correspondence courses, and briefly attended the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

, where he received the

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

Pop Singing Award. Harris and Danny Jacobsen, who is a director and presentation coach for numerous blue-chip companies and also a film producer, have been together since 1994. In 2008, they adopted a son, Cooper Atticus Harris-Jacobsen, and then the couple married.

Stage work

*''

'' (1990) *''

'' (1994) *'' Grease'' (1994) *'' The Life'' (1997) *'' The Producers'' (2002) *''SAM.'' (2003) *''

The Jazz Singer ''The Jazz Singer'' is a 1927 American musical drama film directed by Alan Crosland. It is the first feature-length motion picture with both synchronized recorded music score as well as lip-synchronous singing and speech (in several isolated ...

'' (1998) (workshop) *''Hair'' (2000) *'' Funny Girl'' (2002) (benefit concert) *''

Mack & Mabel ''Mack and Mabel'' (often stylized as Mack & Mabel) is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The plot involves the tumultuous romantic relationship between Hollywood director Mack Sennett and Mabel Nor ...

'' (2003) (benefit concert) *''

'' (2005) *''

The First Wives Club ''The First Wives Club'' is a 1996 American comedy film directed by Hugh Wilson, based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Olivia Goldsmith. The film stars Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn, and Diane Keaton as three divorcées who seek retribution ...

'' (2009) *''Ham: A Musical Memoir'' (2014-2015)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Sam 1961 births Living people 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American singers 21st-century American male actors 21st-century American singers American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American male pop singers American male television actors Motown artists American gay actors American gay musicians LGBT people from Oklahoma LGBT singers from the United States Male actors from Oklahoma Singers from Oklahoma People from Cushing, Oklahoma 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male singers 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people