Tom Schiller is an American writer best known for his eleven-year stint writing and directing short films for ''

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 ...

'' (following the show's original short film makers

Albert Brooks Albert Brooks (born Albert Lawrence Einstein ; July 22, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for 1987's '' Broadcast News'' and was widely praised for his performance as a ...

and

Gary Weis Gary Weis (c. 1943) is an American filmmaker. He is known for creating multiple short films that aired on ''Saturday Night Live'' in the late 1970s. He co-produced and provided visual effects for the documentary ''Jimi Hendrix'' (1973); he co- ...

). His films, often featuring members of the original ''SNL'' cast, aired on the program in a segment titled, "Schiller's Reel." He is the son of TV comedy writer/producer

Bob Schiller Robert Achille Schiller (November 8, 1918 – October 10, 2017) was an American screenwriter. He worked extensively with fellow producer/screenwriter Bob Weiskopf on numerous television shows in the United States, including ''I Love Lucy'' (1955 ...

Career

Schiller was part of the original 1975 writing team when ''Saturday Night Live'' debuted on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

. Schiller was an on-screen cast member for one season. Notable films included the

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most i ...

send-up "La Dolce Gilda" and "Don't Look Back in Anger", which depicted an elderly

John Belushi John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American comedian, actor, and musician, best known for being one of the seven original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). Throughout his ca ...

as the last living "Not Ready For Primetime Player" and dancing on the graves of his deceased castmembers. (Ironically, Belushi would be the first ''SNL'' cast member to die, four years after the film first aired.) Another favorite was "Java Junkie", a send-up of a 1950s-style cautionary film about a coffee addict (played by

Peter Aykroyd Peter Jonathan Aykroyd (November 19, 1955 – November 6, 2021) was a Canadian actor, comedian, and writer. Biography Born to Lorraine (1918–2018) and Peter Hugh Aykroyd (1922–2020) in Ottawa, he was the younger brother of comedian Dan Aykr ...

) which Schiller made with producer/cinematographer

Neal Marshad Neal Marshad (born April 25, 1952) is an American film and television producer, director, cinematographer, advertising executive, internet strategist, and designer. Personal life Marshad was born on April 25, 1952, in Peekskill, New York, the son ...

. Schiller wrote and directed the short film "Love Is a Dream" for ''SNL'' again with producer/cinematographer Neal Marshad and starring

Phil Hartman Philip Edward Hartman (; September 24, 1948 – May 28, 1998) was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter and graphic designer. Hartman was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, and his family moved to the United States w ...

and

Jan Hooks Janet Vivian HooksJan Hooks obituary
liteseyfh.com; accesse ...

. Schiller also wrote and directed a feature film, '' Nothing Lasts Forever'' (1984). The film, which was shelved by

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

, has never been officially released theatrically or for home media, featured

Bill Murray William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his deadpan delivery. He rose to fame on ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' (1973–1974) before becoming a national presence on ''Saturday Nigh ...

Dan Aykroyd Daniel Edward Aykroyd ( ; born July 1, 1952) is a Canadian actor, comedian, producer, musician and writer. He was an original member of the "Not Ready for Prime Time Players" on ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1979). During his tenure on ''SNL'' ...

Zach Galligan Zachary Wolfe Galligan (born February 14, 1964) is an American actor. He is best known for starring as Billy Peltzer in the comedy-horror films ''Gremlins'' (1984) and '' Gremlins 2: The New Batch'' (1990). Early life and education Galligan was ...

Sam Jaffe Shalom "Sam" Jaffe (March 10, 1891 – March 24, 1984) was an American actor, teacher, musician, and engineer. In 1951, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in '' The Asphalt Jungle'' (1950) and ap ...

Mort Sahl Morton Lyon Sahl (May 11, 1927 – October 26, 2021) was a Canadian-born American comedian, actor, and social satirist, considered the first modern comedian. Sahl pioneered a style of social satire that pokes fun at political and current event t ...

Lauren Tom Lauren Tom (born August 4, 1961) is an American actress. Her roles include Lena St. Clair in '' The Joy Luck Club'', Julie in the NBC sitcom ''Friends'', Dot in the final season of ''Grace Under Fire'', and the voices for Amy Wong in ''Futurama'' ...

Imogene Coca Imogene Coca (born Emogeane Coca; November 18, 1908 – June 2, 2001) was an American comic actress best known for her role opposite Sid Caesar on ''Your Show of Shows''. Starting out in vaudeville as a child acrobat, she studied ballet and wishe ...

, Apollonia van Ravenstein and

Eddie Fisher Edwin Jack Fisher (August 10, 1928 – September 22, 2010) was an American singer and actor. He was one of the most popular artists during the 1950s, selling millions of records and hosting his own TV show, ''The Eddie Fisher Show''. Actress Eli ...

, has gained a cult following and influenced a number of young directors. Prior to working on ''Saturday Night Live'', Schiller worked as an assistant to documentary filmmaker Robert Snyder and directed a film about his longtime friend and mentor, author

Henry Miller Henry Valentine Miller (December 26, 1891 – June 7, 1980) was an American novelist. He broke with existing literary forms and developed a new type of semi-autobiographical novel that blended character study, social criticism, philosophical ref ...

. Schiller is the son of sitcom writer

, who was a staff writer on ''

I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning six seasons. The show starred Lucille Ball, her husband, Desi Arnaz, along with ...

''. Schiller has gone on to direct over 500 comedy TV commercials and is currently represented by his own company, Schillervision. In spring, 2013, the comedy album "Tom and Don", which is a compilation of improv interviews between Schiller and musician

Donald Fagen Donald Jay Fagen (born January 10, 1948) is an American musician best known as the co-founder, lead singer, co-songwriter, and keyboardist of the band Steely Dan, formed in the early 1970s with musical partner Walter Becker. In addition to his w ...

, was released. Schiller's body of work is the subject of the 2005 book ''Nothing Lost Forever: The Films of Tom Schiller'' by Michael Streeter. Schiller is married to humorist, community volunteer, author and partygiver
Jacque Schiller, née Lynn

References

External links

*
Nothing Lost Forever:The Films of Tom Schiller
- a book about Schiller. * http://www.schillervision.com/ the official Schillervision site

Interview - Tom and Don: Part 1 at Apple

ITunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schiller, Tom Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American male comedians 21st-century American comedians American male television actors American television directors American television writers American male television writers American film directors Primetime Emmy Award winners 21st-century American screenwriters Advertising directors 21st-century American male writers