Robert Wuhl
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Biography
This curly-haired, gap-toothed comedian and comedy writer found success in feature character roles, typically as pushy wiseacres and sleazy yet feckless nerds. Long an admirer of the cynical wit and loquacious patter of Billy Wilder, Neil Simon and Woody Allen, Robert Wuhl (pronounced "wall") ambled his way through the University of Houston over the course of seven years alongside classmate Dennis Quaid before trying standup comedy in New York. He was part of the comedy group "Bob, Larry and the Frog" before branching out as a solo act at places like the Improv. Wuhl eventually won notice for his self-described "optimistic anarchistic" style, and wrote material for comic Rodney Dangerfield.
Wuhl moved to Los Angeles in 1979 and made his feature debut in the teen farce "Hollywood Knights" (1980). His improvised footage as a comic in "Flashdance" (1983) wound up on the editing room floor, and for years Wuhl could only find work as a writer, serving as story editor for the cop show spoof, "Police Squad!" (ABC, 1982). Standup work again garnered Wuhl attention, and in 1986 he wrote, directed and starred in "The Big Bang," a Cinemax special in which he lampooned TV's various "man on the run" series. A lengthy association with Billy Crystal, then in his award show host phase, began with "The 29th Annual Grammy Awards" (1987), the first of three consecutive Grammy telecasts--and later four consecutive Oscar telecasts--Wuhl would co-write with or for Crystal.
Appearances before the camera picked up for Wuhl at the same time. A breakthrough came as Robin Williams' noisy deejay colleague in "Good Morning Vietnam" (1987), and Wuhl consolidated his usefulness in brash, unattractive but amusing roles as the tobacco-chewing assistant coach in "Bull Durham" (1988). He brought some laughs to "Batman" (1989) as a curious reporter, spoofed Crystal as an Oscar host in "The Bodyguard" (1992), and played his first lead as a washed-up writer in the Hollywood-set "Mistress" (1992). He returned to the worlds of sports and journalism as Al Stump, a reporter and biographer faced with the nasty mystery of baseball's "Cobb" (1994). Wuhl passed time with appearances in a direct-to-video erotic thriller ("A Kiss Goodnight" 1994) and a forgettable horror comedy ("Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde" 1995) before making his debut as a would-be auteur.
Wuhl wrote, directed and starred in "Open Season" (shot in 1993; released theatrically in 1995), a little-seen comedy feature which attempted to join a satire of the TV industry with an old-fashioned screwball romance. A great movie buff, Wuhl attempted to emulate such heroes as Billy Wilder and Frank Capra in a story wherein--through a technological fluke--a public TV station appears to become a ratings champ. The barely released film failed to impress many reviewers. Redirecting his creative energies to the small screen, Wuhl resurfaced as executive producer, creator and star of "Arli$$" (HBO, 1996-2002). He played sports agent Arliss Michaels in a series intended to satirize the professional sports world with the hilarity and insider's severity of the late-night talk show critique offered by "The Larry Sanders Show."
Filmography
Director (Feature Film)
Cast (Feature Film)
Writer (Feature Film)
Director (Special)
Cast (Special)
Writer (Special)
Producer (Special)
Special Thanks (Special)
Misc. Crew (Special)
Cast (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
1976
Began a career in standup comedy after graduating from college, relocated to New York City
1978
Sold some comedy material to Rodney Dangerfield
1979
Moved to Los Angeles
1980
Made feature film debut, "The Hollywood Knights"
1981
Earliest TV credits include work as a writer on the ABC compilation documentary, "Legends of the West: Truth and Tall Tales"
1982
Served as a writer and story editor for the short-lived ABC sitcom, "Police Squad!"
1983
Appeared in a second feature film, "Flashdance", but his improvised scenes as a standup comedian wound up on the editing room floor
1985
TV acting debut, "Rockhopper", a series pilot starring Parker Stevenson
1986
Wrote, directed and starred (as Arlo) in a half-hour comedy which aired on Cinemax, "The Big Bang"
1987
Co-wrote "The Spa Who Loved Me", an episode of the ABC police comedy spoof series, "Sledge Hammer!"
1987
Played breakthrough role in his third feature film, "Good Morning, Vietnam"
1987
Co-wrote the first of three consecutive Grammy Awards specials, "The 29th Annual Grammy Awards"; this credit also marked an early collaboration with Billy Crystal and with fellow writer Buz Kohan
1990
First TV credit as executive producer, "Robert Wuhl's World Tour", an HBO comedy special which he also wrote and starred in
1990
Received a writing credit for the first of four consecutive Oscar telecasts, "The 62nd Annual Academy Awards Presentation", all hosted by Billy Crystal; Wuhl either credited as a "writer" or for "additional material"
1992
Played first leading role in a feature in "Mistress"
1993
Hosted "USO Comedy Tour", a TV special which aired on Comedy Central
1993
Wrote and directed his first feature film, "Open Season", in which he also starred; released theatrically in 1995
1996
Created, starred in and produced the HBO comedy series "Arli$$"
1997
Cast in the CBS miniseries, Mario Puzo's "The Last Don"
2005
Player in the Game Show Network's "Poker Royale series"
2006
Starred in a one-man-show, "Assume the Position with Mr. Wuhl" (HBO) where he taught a history class to show how history is created and propagated in a similar fashion to pop culture
Companions
