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 Mr. Bill's Biography
From his humble Super 8 beginnings that smashed him upon TV screeens nationwide on "Saturday Night Live," to the unique spot he now occupies in the nation's consciousness, Mr. Bill has, in 25 short years, become a legend. Like other great entertainers of the modern age, he's done it all: network, cable, movies, home videos, music videos, nightclubs, a best-selling book, college lecture circuit, tribute at the Smithsonian, Letterman... Was it really 25 years ago that Mr. Bill was born? Oh, Nooooooo! Fresh from the can, he got his big break via "Saturday Night Live's" home movie contest. Submitted as a parody of bad animation, he took the prize and, with creator Walter Williams, went on to spend seven years at SNL, a period in which his role on the show grew to 10 appearances a season. A 15th Anniversary USA Today survey found Mr. Bill's popularity among SNL's characters excelled only by the late John Belushi and Gilda Radner, and he is still the character with the most appearances. Mr. Bill left in 1980 with creator Lorne Michaels and the original cast. But he hasn't spent the last 25 years in the freezer. Mr. Bill has amassed a body of work and honors any thespian would be proud to call his own. "The Mr. Bill Collection" (the original films shown on SNL) sold hundreds of thousands copies and his book, "The Mr. Bill Show," instantly rose to number one on the New York Times bestseller list. He's starred in TV specials with Dick Clark and Bob Hope, worked with Shelly Duvall on Showtime's "Mr. Bill's Real Life Adventures" was a regular host on USA-TV's "Night Flight", a guest correspondent on HBO's "Not Necessarily the News," and even cut a comedy album with Rich Little. He did promos for Comedy Central and anti-substance abuse spots for Knight-Ridder. Mr. Bill even had his own line of cards and gifts in Hallmark stores. In 1994 he visited our nation's capitol to film "Mr. Bill Goes To Washington," a short subject that screened with the feature "Ernest Rides Again." Mr. Bill's cousin, Pizza Head reined for four years in the kids' market for Pizza Hut with over 20 commercial spots produced. In "Mr. Bill 20th Anniversary Special," (Anchor Bay), the world's best loved Play-Doh presence reveals his career and other important events of his first twenty years with the help of his friends and co-stars. You'll see his faithful dog Spot, Ms. Sally, his "friend" Mr. Hands, and some surprise guests, all of whose finest moments blend together in a dizzying montage of memories. More dizzying to Mr. Bill is his discovery -- too late -- that not only is his old nemesis Sluggo directing the show, but the cameraman is also Sluggo, as is everybody in the audience. Looking back on the show's footage (85% of which is post SNL), Mr. Bill appears in nearly every format: Super 8, 16 mm, Panavision, video and computer animation. Mr. Bill will soon be in virtual reality. Oh, Noooooo! And this holiday season, look for a special 25th Anniversary "Mr. Bill's Classics" DVD and "Ho Ho Nooo!!! It's Mr. Bill's Christmas Special" available from Anchor Bay. And most recently, Mr. Bill has gone Hollywood and starred in forty episodes of "Ohh Nooo!!! Mr. Bill Presents" for the Fox Family Channel. He will be appearing in an all new DVD "Mr. Bill Does Vegas & Mr. Bill Goes Hollywood," along with two matching videos being released this Christmas by Trimark. Oh, and he's even currently doing a national TV ad campaign for Ramada Inn with 4 spots to run throughout 2001. So all is well in Mr. Bill land. |