Vicki Lewis
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Notes
"There's less and less livelihood in New York, and it's very disheartening. There's a pool of talent in New York that doesn't get utilized, and I think they're slowly migrating. You can always count that NBC, ABC and CBS will have X amount of slots and you'll get at least something at some point. It's lucrative out here and there's more of it." --Vicki Lewis in USA Today, August 15, 1995.
"I developed a lot of weird qualities just because I was never fitting in--that horrible ugly-duckling school thing. I developed a certain amount of sarcasm as a defense. The same story you hear from Bette Midler and anybody with a big nose and red hair, right? It was just innate." --Lewis in USA Today, August 15, 1995.
Biography
Her flaming red hair and in-your-face personality made Vicki Lewis perfect for musical comedy and sitcoms, and, indeed, beginning in the late 80s she became an active participant in both. She has recurring roles as Tim Allen's inept producer on ABC's "Home Improvement" and as Jason Alexander's bane-of-my-existence secretary on NBC's "Seinfeld" before landing the regular stint as Beth, the secretary from Smart Aleck 101, on "NewsRadio" (NBC, 1995-99).
Although originally an awkward math major, Lewis took dancing lessons while in college and before long was performing for an audience. She went to New York, where she appeared in musicals and other comedies, including "Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?" Lewis was spotted by writer-director James L. Brooks, who offered her a part in a film he was making. It took several years before "I'll Do Anything" (1994) was released and then the musical numbers had been cut. Lewis had relocated to Hollywood and was working consistently in guest appearances.
She did take time to return to Broadway to appear in a revival of "Damn Yankees" playing a reporter who gains access to the men's locker room and belts out "Shoeless Joe From Hannibal, Mo." Lewis also appeared alongside Patti LuPone, Bebe Neuwirth and Peter Gallagher in the concert version of "Pal Joey" (1995), as Gladys Bumps, the woman who knows all about Joey's past. She also used her musical comedy skills as Gloria Rasputin in the TV version of "Bye Bye Birdie" (ABC, 1995).
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Life Events
1982
Co-starred in musical, "Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?"
1985
Co-starred with Nathan Lane in the short-lived Broadway musical "The Wind in the Willows"
1985
Early TV role, Schoolbreak Special, "The Day the Senior Class Got Married"
1988
First episodic guest appearance, "Annie McGuire"
1992
Played recurring role of Maureen Binford, producer of "Home Improvement" (ABC)
1994
Feature film debut, "I'll Do Anything"
1994
Had recurring role as Ada, George's secretary on "Seinfeld" (NBC)
1994
Appeared in Broadway revival of "Damn Yankees"
1997
Co-starred opposite Nathan Lane in "Mousehunt"
1998
Had featured role as a paleontologist in "Godzilla"
1999
Played Velma Kelly in the national tour of the stage musical "Chicago"; assumed role on Broadway in summer 2000
1999
Appeared opposite off-screen companion Nick Nolte in "Breakfast of Champions"
2001
Co-starred in the NBC midseason replacement sitcom "Three Sisters"
2001
Returned to Broadway playing Velma in the hit revival of "Chicago"
2009
Played a saleswoman in the romantic comedy, "The Ugly Truth"
2009
Landed a recurring role on the Disney Channel comedy series "Sonny with a Chance"
2010
Voiced the character of Eve in the animated feature, "Alpha and Omega"
Family
Companions
Bibliography
Notes
"There's less and less livelihood in New York, and it's very disheartening. There's a pool of talent in New York that doesn't get utilized, and I think they're slowly migrating. You can always count that NBC, ABC and CBS will have X amount of slots and you'll get at least something at some point. It's lucrative out here and there's more of it." --Vicki Lewis in USA Today, August 15, 1995.
"I developed a lot of weird qualities just because I was never fitting in--that horrible ugly-duckling school thing. I developed a certain amount of sarcasm as a defense. The same story you hear from Bette Midler and anybody with a big nose and red hair, right? It was just innate." --Lewis in USA Today, August 15, 1995.
