Early life

Harry Anderson was born in Newport, Rhode Island. His first exposure to magic began when the Anderson family moved to Chicago. Anderson's father, who was a salesman, would occasionally take him to The Pump Room, the famous restaurant downstairs in the Ambassador East Hotel. There, Anderson discovered wise guys playing card games, hustling and occasionally performing magic tricks. Young Anderson became highly intrigued by the art of conjuring and wanted to learn more about the subject. He eventually had the opportunity to see legendary magician Harry Blackstone, Sr. perform at a show.

Anderson was fascinated by the performance and continued to digest all he could about magic. He moved to Los Angeles and attended high school there. Every day after school, he would practice, fine tune and polish his conjuring skills. Anderson attended Buena Park High School and graduated in 1970 along with actor Steven Seagal, according to the 1970 BPHS annual in which both actor's photos are printed with the senior class. It is unclear from where the detail comes that he transferred to North Hollywood High School. He joined the Dante magic club where he rubbed elbows with close-up magic wizards Paul Harris and Paul Green. He also frequented the Magic Castle, where he befriended a lot of magicians, including magic legend Dai Vernon. At age 17, Anderson decided to move to San Francisco and worked the streets performing magic.

Career

His many appearances on Saturday Night Live led to his role as Harry "The Hat" Gittes on the several seasons of Cheers and eventually as Judge Harry Stone on the hit TV show Night Court. Anderson went on to appear in numerous other TV specials and shows, including 12 appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. As a magician, Anderson has since toured extensively and performed many comedy/magic shows for clubs and broadcast, including Harry Anderson's Sideshow in 1987.

In 1990, he starred in the successful television adaptation of Stephen King's It as the adult Richie Tozier. The miniseries was directed by Tommy Lee Wallace. From 1993 to 1997, Anderson starred in the sitcom Dave's World, based loosely on the life and columns of humor columnist Dave Barry. Together with longtime friend Turk Pipkin, Anderson wrote a book called Games You Can't Lose: A Guide for Suckers, a collection of gags, cons, tricks and scams. First published in 1989 (ISBN 978-1-58080-086-0, 2001 reprint), this title also contains a survey of "Games You Can't Win" told from an insider's perspective. He appeared with Criss Angel in a TV special called The Science of Magic, later released on DVD. In November 2008, Anderson played himself on an episode of 30 Rock along with fellow Night Court cast members Markie Post and Charles Robinson.

Personal life

A longtime Mel Tormé fan, Anderson gave the eulogy at the singer's funeral. Judge Stone in Night Court was also a Tormé fan; the show's creator Reinhold Weege says the fact that Anderson was also a Tormé fan was completely coincidental. Anderson kept a nominally low profile after Dave's World was canceled. Tired of L.A.'s glaring spotlight, Anderson moved to New Orleans in 2002. In the 1990s, he and his second wife Elizabeth opened a small shop in the French Quarter named "Sideshow" selling various "magic, curiosities, and apocrypha". In 2005, he opened a nightclub in the French Quarter called "Oswald's Speakeasy", located at 1331 Decatur Street at the corner of Esplanade Avenue. He performed a one-man show there called Wise Guy.

In August 2006, Anderson and his wife, Elizabeth, announced their decision to leave New Orleans and move to Asheville, North Carolina. Anderson appears in Hexing a Hurricane, a documentary about the first six months in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. The Andersons sold Oswald's Speakeasy in October 2006. Anderson continues to present his evening show Wise Guy, which was originally developed for his theater in New Orleans.

Filmography

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1981-85	Saturday Night Live	Himself	8 episodes
1982-93	Cheers	Harry 'The Hat' Gittes	6 episodes
1984-92	Night Court	Judge Harold "Harry" T. Stone	193 episodes; also director and writer Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (1984-86)
1985	Tales from the Darkside	Leon	Episode: "All a Clone by the Telephone"
1988	Tanner '88	Billy Ridenhour	2 episodes
1988	Spies, Lies & Naked Thighs	Freddie	Movie
1988-89	Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color	Professor Henry Crawford	2 episodes
1990	Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme	Peter Piper	Movie
1990	It	Richie Tozier	Miniseries
1990	Tales from the Crypt	Jim Korman	Episode: "Korman's Kalamity"
1992	Parker Lewis Can't Lose	Ronny Ray Rasmussen	Episode: "Glory Daze"
1993-97	Dave's World	Dave Barry	98 episodes
1994	Hearts Afire	Dave Barry	Episode: "Sleepless in a Small Town"
1996	Night Stand with Dick Dietrick	Harry	Episode: "UFO Mother Show"
1996	The John Larroquette Show	Dr. Gates	Episode: "Cosmetic Perjury"
1996	Harvey	Elwood P. Dowd	Movie
1997	Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman	Dr. Klaus 'Fat Head' Mensa	Episode: "The Family Hour"
1998	Noddy	Jack Fable	Episode: "The Magic Show"
2002	Son of the Beach	Bull Cracker	Episode: "The Long Hot Johnson"
2008	30 Rock	Himself	Episode: "The One with the Cast of Night Court"
2013	Comedy Bang Bang	Himself	Episode: "Rainn Wilson Wears a Short Sleeved Plaid Shirt & Colorful Sneakers"
2014	Gotham Comedy Live	Himself	Episode: "Harry Anderson"

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1982	The Escape Artist	Harry Masters
2006	Hexing a Hurricane	Himself
2014	A Matter of Faith	Professor Kaman

[ Source: Wikipedia ]