Early life

Lane was born Joseph Lane in Jersey City, New Jersey on February 3, 1956. His father, Daniel, was a truck driver and an aspiring tenor who died from alcoholism when Lane was eleven. His mother, Nora, was a housewife and secretary who suffered from manic depression and died in 2000. He has two older brothers, Daniel Jr. and Robert. Lane's parents were Catholics of Irish descent. He was named after his uncle, a Jesuit priest. Lane attended Catholic schools in Jersey City, including Jesuit-run St. Peter's Preparatory High School, where he was voted Best Actor in 1974, and years later received the 2011 Prep Hall of Fame Professional Achievement Award.

Career

1970s-1980s

Accepted to Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia on a drama scholarship, he was accompanied on what was supposed to be his first day there by his older brother Dan. Discovering that the scholarship would not cover enough of his expenses, he decided to leave, and work for a year to earn some money. "I remember him saying to me, 'College is for people who don't know what they want to do,'" his brother said. Because there already was a Joseph Lane registered with Actors Equity, he changed his name to Nathan after the character Nathan Detroit from the musical Guys and Dolls. He moved to New York City where, after a long struggle, his career began to take off, first with some brief success in the world of stand-up comedy with partner, Patrick Stack, and later with Off-Broadway productions at Second Stage Theatre, the Roundabout Theatre, and the Manhattan Theatre Club. He made his Broadway debut in a 1982 revival of Noël Coward's Present Laughter as Roland Maule (Drama Desk nomination) with George C. Scott, Kate Burton, Dana Ivey, and Christine Lahti.

His second Broadway appearance was in the 1983 musical Merlin, starring Chita Rivera and magician Doug Henning. This was followed by Wind in the Willows as Mr. Toad, Some Americans Abroad at Lincoln Center, and the national tour of Neil Simon's Broadway Bound.

Off-Broadway productions included Love (the musical version of Murray Schisgal's Luv), Measure for Measure directed by Joseph Papp in Central Park, for which he received the St. Clair Bayfield Award, The Common Pursuit, The Film Society, In a Pig's Valise, She Stoops to Conquer, The Merry Wives of Windsor and A Midsummer Night's Dream. He also appeared at the Williamstown Theatre Festival in The School for Scandal and John Guare's Moon Over Miami.

1990s

In 1991, Lane appeared with George C. Scott again in a revival of Paul Osborne's On Borrowed Time at the Circle in the Square Theatre on Broadway. In 1992, he starred in the hit revival of Guys and Dolls, playing the character who lent him his name, opposite Peter Gallagher and Faith Prince. For this performance, he received his first Tony nomination, as well as Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards. In 1992, he won an Obie Award for Sustained Excellence of Performance.

His professional association with his close friend the playwright Terrence McNally, whom he met in 1987, includes roles in The Lisbon Traviata (Drama Desk and Lucille Lortel Awards), Bad Habits, Lips Together, Teeth Apart, Love! Valour! Compassion! (Obie, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards), Dedication or the Stuff of Dreams, which opened in 2005 (Drama Desk nomination), The Last Mile on PBS Great Performances, and the film version of Frankie and Johnny.

The early 1990s began a stretch of successful Broadway shows for Lane. In 1993, he portrayed Sid Caesar-like Max Prince in Neil Simon's Laughter on the 23rd Floor, inspired by Simon's early career writing sketches for Your Show of Shows. In 1996, he starred in the hit revival of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, for which he won the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards. In 1998, he appeared Off-Broadway in Jon Robin Baitz’s revised 1984 comedy, Mizlansky/Zilinsky or 'Schmucks'.

His association with Sondheim began with the workshop of Assassins. In 1999, he appeared with Victor Garber in the workshop of Wise Guys (later retitled Road Show). His collaboration with Sondheim continued when Lane revised the original book for and starred in the Broadway debut of the composer's The Frogs at Lincoln Center in 2004. The Sondheim song, "Little Dream," in the film The Birdcage, a role for which Lane received his first Golden Globe nomination, was supposedly written especially for him..

In 1994, Lane voiced Timon, the meerkat, in Disney's blockbuster animated film The Lion King. In 1995, he played the Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz in Concert at Lincoln Center to benefit the Children's Defense Fund. The performance was originally broadcast on Turner Network Television (TNT). In 1999, he appeared in the Encores! concert revival of Do Re Mi at City Center.

2000s

Lane starred in the Roundabout revival of The Man Who Came to Dinner as Sheridan Whiteside, with Jean Smart and Harriet Harris in 2000.

In 2001, he starred as Max Bialystock in the blockbuster musical version of Mel Brooks's The Producers, a role that earned him his second Tony as well as Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards. In 2004, he replaced Richard Dreyfuss, who was let go just a week before the show's first preview at London's Theatre Royal Drury Lane, and went on to win the Olivier Award as Best Actor in a Musical. His performance in the film version, opposite Broadway co-star, Matthew Broderick as Leo Bloom, earned him his second Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy. In 2003 he starred Off-Broadway in Trumbo: Red, White, and Blacklisted.

In 2005, Lane rejoined Broderick for a successful limited run of The Odd Couple. In 2006, he took on a primarily dramatic role in a revival of Simon Gray's Butley, having played the role to great success at The Huntington Theater in Boston in 2003. He and Broderick received adjacent stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in a joint ceremony on January 9, 2006 and were immortalized in wax as Max and Leo at Madame Tussauds Museum in New York City on January 16, 2009. In 2008, he played the President of the United States in the David Mamet political satire, November, directed by Joe Mantello. This was followed by the critically acclaimed 2009 revival of Waiting for Godot (Outer Critics Circle nomination) in which he played Estragon opposite Bill Irwin's Vladimir. He was a 2008 American Theatre Hall of Fame inductee.

2010s

In 2010, Lane appeared in the musical version of The Addams Family as Gomez (Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations). Committed to starring in a revival of the Eugene O'Neill play The Iceman Cometh at Chicago's Goodman Theatre in 2012, Lane assumed the role of Hickey, with Brian Dennehy playing the role of Larry Slade in a production directed by the Goodman's Artistic Director, Robert Falls. Receiving rave reviews, it won six Jeff Awards, including Best Ensemble, Director, and Production, and is the most successful show to date in the theater's history. In the spring of 2013, Lane returned to Broadway in The Nance, a Lincoln Center production of new play by Douglas Carter Beane that was directed by Jack O'Brien. For this performance, he received Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations, and won the Outer Critics Circle Award and the 2013 Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance. The play aired on PBS Live From Lincoln Center in 2014.

In autumn 2014, he appeared in an all-star ensemble of Terrence McNally's revised and updated It's Only a Play, with F. Murray Abraham, Matthew Broderick, Stockard Channing, Rupert Grint, Megan Mullally, and Micah Stock. The show became one of the biggest hits of the season. In February 2015 he reprised the role of Hickey in the Robert Falls production of The Iceman Cometh to great acclaim at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. He later returned to the Broadway run of It's Only a Play.

Personal life

When Lane told his mother at age 21 that he was gay, she replied, "I would rather you were dead," to which he replied, "I knew you'd understand." Lane, who came out officially after the death of Matthew Shepard, has been a long-time board member of and fundraiser for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, and has been honored by the Human Rights Campaign, Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, The Trevor Project, and the Matthew Shepard Foundation for his work in the LGBT community. On November 17, 2015, Lane married his long-time partner, theater producer and writer Devlin Elliott.

Awards and nominations

Television

He has received three Daytime Emmy nominations for George and Martha, Timon and Pumbaa and Teacher's Pet, and won two Daytime Emmy Awards, in 1995 for Disney's Timon and Pumbaa and in 2000 for Disney's Teacher's Pet. He has also received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations for guest appearances on Frasier, Mad About You, Modern Family, and The Good Wife. In 1999 he won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Male Performer in a New TV Series.

Film

• 1997 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast - The Birdcage
• 1996 American Comedy Award for Funniest Actor in a Motion Picture - The Birdcage
• 2002 National Board of Review Award for Best Ensemble Performance - Nicholas Nickleby

Nominations

• 1996 American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture - Jeffrey
• 1997 MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo - The Birdcage
• 1997 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy - The Birdcage
• 1997 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role - The Birdcage
• 2006 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy - The Producers

Theatre

• 1986 St. Clair Bayfield Award for Shakespearean Performance - Measure for Measure
• 1990 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play, Lucille Lortel Award, Los Angeles Critics Circle Award - The Lisbon Traviata
• 1992 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical - Guys and Dolls
• 1992 Obie Award for Sustained Excellence of Performance
• 1995 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play - Love! Valour! Compassion!
• 1995 Obie Award for Ensemble Acting - Love! Valour! Compassion!
• 1996 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
• 1996 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
• 2001 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical - The Producers
• 2001 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical - The Producers
• 2005 Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical - The Producers
• 2010 Drama League Award - Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theater
• 2013 Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance - The Nance
• 2013 The Joan and Joseph F. Cullman Award for Extraordinary Creativity - The Nance

Nominations

• 1983 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play - Present Laughter
• 1990 Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play - The Lisbon Traviata
• 1992 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical - Guys and Dolls
• 2006 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play - Dedication or the Stuff of Dreams
• 2009 Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play - Waiting For Godot
• 2010 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical - The Addams Family
• 2010 Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical - The Addams Family
• 2013 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play - The Nance
• 2013 Tony Award for Leading Actor in a Play - The Nance

Also the winner of 5 Outer Critics Circle Awards for Guys and Dolls, Love! Valour! Compassion!, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, The Producers, and The Nance, and two GQ Man Of The Year Awards for Theater in 1997 and 2000

Other

• 2002 GLAAD Media Awards Vito Russo Award * 2003 Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame
• 2006 American Theatre Wing Honor for his commitment to and achievement in theatre
• 2006 Hollywood Walk of Fame Star
• 2007 The Trevor Project Hero Award
• 2007 Human Rights Campaign Equality Award
• 2009 The Barrow Group Sustained Excellence in Theater Award
• 2010 National Corporate Theatre Fund - Theatre Artist Award
• 2012 COAF Humanitarian Award * 2012 Tribute Award from League of Chicago Theaters
• 2013 Guild Hall Lifetime Achievement Award For the Performing Arts
• 2014 Sir Peter Ustinov Comedy Award - Banff Media Festival
• 2015 Monte Cristo Award - Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
• 2015 Making A Difference Award - Matthew Shepard Foundation

Television work

This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living people that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately.

His television credits include One of the Boys with Mickey Rooney and Dana Carvey, The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd, the title role in The Man Who Came to Dinner, broadcast live on PBS, the voices of the title characters in two Disney animated series, Teacher's Pet and Timon & Pumbaa, as well as George and Martha on HBO. In addition to recurring roles on Modern Family and The Good Wife, he has made guest appearances on Miami Vice, Mad About You, Sex and the City, Frasier, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Absolutely Fabulous, and 30 Rock. He played F. Lee Bailey in the first season episodes of American Crime Story, titled The People vs. O.J. Simpson, premiering on the FX channel in February 2016.

He has hosted Saturday Night Live, The Tony Awards (once as host for the 50th anniversary telecast, and three as co-host, with Glenn Close and Gregory Hines; Rosie O'Donnell; and Matthew Broderick respectively), and appeared on Great Performances (Alice In Wonderland, The Last Mile, Guys and Dolls: Off The Record, My Favorite Broadway: The Love Songs, Recording The Producers: A Musical Romp With Mel Brooks, and as host of the 30th anniversary telecast, A Celebration in Song). He has starred in two television films, The Boys Next Door and Laughter on the 23rd Floor. With the Boston Pops, he performed a tribute concert of Danny Kaye material, as well as appeared in the Harry Connick Christmas Special; Merry Christmas, George Bailey; The Wizard of Oz in Concert; and A Muppet Christmas: Letters to Santa. His attempts at a regular series of his own, Encore! Encore! and Charlie Lawrence, were ratings disappointments.

Filmography

Film

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1987	Ironweed	Harold Allen
1990	The Lemon Sisters	Charlie Sorrell
1990	Joe Versus the Volcano	Baw, Waponi Advance Man
1991	He Said, She Said	Wally Thurman
1991	Frankie and Johnny	Tim
1993	Addams Family Values	Desk Sergeant
1993	Life with Mikey	Ed Chapman
1994	The Lion King	Timon	Voice
1995	Jeffrey	Father Dan	Nominated—American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture
1996	The Birdcage	Albert Goldman	American Comedy Award for Funniest Actor in a Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated—MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
1997	MouseHunt	Ernest "Ernie" Smuntz
1998	The Lion King II: Simba's Pride	Timon	Voice
1999	Stuart Little	Snowbell	Voice
1999	At First Sight	Phil
1999	Get Bruce!	Himself	Documentary
2000	Titan A.E.	Preed	Voice
2000	Love's Labours Lost	Costard
2000	Isn't She Great	Irving Mansfield
2000	Trixie	Kirk Stans
2002	Stuart Little 2	Snowbell	Voice
2002	Nicholas Nickleby	Vincent Crummles	National Board of Review Award for Best Cast
2002	Austin Powers in Goldmember	Mysterious Disco Man
2004	The Lion King 1½	Timon	Voice
2004	Teacher's Pet	Spot AKA Scott Leadready	Voice
2004	Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!	Richard Levy the Driven
2005	The Producers	Max Bialystock	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
2007	Trumbo	Himself	Documentary
2008	Swing Vote	Art Crumb
2009	Astro Boy	Hammegg	Voice
2010	The Nutcracker	Uncle Albert
2012	Mirror Mirror	Brighton
2013	The English Teacher	Mr. Kapinas
2015	No Pay, Nudity	Herschel Thalkin
2016	Carrie Pilby	Dr. Petrov
2017	Sidney Hall	Harold

Television

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1981	Jacqueline Susann's Valley of the Dolls	Stage Manager	Television movie
1982	One of the Boys	Johnathan Burns	13 episodes
1983	Great Performances	Mouse	Episode: "Alice in Wonderland"
1985	Miami Vice	Morty Price	Episode: "Buddies"
1989-1991	The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd	Bing Shalimar	3 episodes
1990	The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd	Bing Shalimar	Episode: "Here Are Just a Few Things That Could Possibly Go Wrong"
1995	Frasier	Phil	Episode: "Fool Me Once, Shame on You, Fool Me Twice..." Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
1995	Timon & Pumbaa	Timon	Voice 10 episodes Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program
1996	The Boys Next Door	Norman Bulansky	Television movie
1998	Mad About You	Nathan Twilley	Episode: "Good Old Reliable Nathan" Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
1998-1999	Encore! Encore!	Joseph Pinoni	13 episodes
1999-2000	George and Martha	George	Voice 26 episodes Nominated—Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program
2000-2002	Teacher's Pet	Spot Helperman	Voice 39 episodes Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program
2001	Laughter on the 23rd Floor	Max Prince	Television movie
2002	Sex and the City	Bobby Fine	Episode: "I Love a Charade"
2003	Charlie Lawrence	Charlie Lawrence	7 episodes
2004	Curb Your Enthusiasm	Nathan Lane	Episode: "Opening Night"
2007	30 Rock	Eddie Donaghy	Episode: "The Fighting Irish"
2010-2016	Modern Family	Pepper Saltzman	8 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
2012-2014	The Good Wife	Clarke Hayden	15 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series
2016	The People v. O.J. Simpson	F. Lee Bailey	8 episodes
2016	Difficult People	Himself	Season two, episode three

Theater

• A Midsummer Night's Dream (1978-Off Broadway) as Francis Flute
• Present Laughter (1982-Broadway) as Roland Maule
• Merlin (1983-Broadway) as Prince Fergus
• Love (1984-Off Broadway) as Harry Berlin
• She Stoops to Conquer (1984-Off Broadway) as Tony Lumpkin
• Measure for Measure (1985-Off Broadway) as Pompey
• Wind in the Willows (1985-Broadway) as Toad
• The Common Pursuit (1986-Off Broadway) as Nick Finchling
• Claptrap (1987-Off Broadway) as Harvey Wheatcraft
• Broadway Bound (1987-National Tour) as Stanley
• The Film Society (1988-Off Broadway) as Jonathan Balton
• In a Pig's Valise (1989-Off Broadway) as James Taxi
• The Lisbon Traviata (1989-Off Broadway) as Mendy
• Assassins (1989-New York reading) as Sam Byck
• Bad Habits (1990-Off Broadway) Jason Pepper, M.D./Hugh Gumbs
• Some Americans Abroad (1990-Broadway) as Henry McNeil
• Lips Together, Teeth Apart (1991-Off Broadway) as Sam Truman
• On Borrowed Time (1991-Broadway) as Mr. Brink
• Guys and Dolls (1992-Broadway) as Nathan Detroit
• Laughter on the 23rd Floor (1993-Broadway) as Max Prince
• Love! Valour! Compassion! (1994-Off Broadway and Broadway) as Buzz Hauser
• A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1996-Broadway) as Pseudolus
• Angela Lansbury: A Celebration (1996-Broadway benefit) as Host
• Mizlansky/Zilinsky or "Schmucks" (1998-Off Broadway) as Davis Mizlansky
• Do Re Mi (1999-Off Broadway) as Hubert Cram
• Wise Guys (1999-New York workshop) as Addison Mizner
• The Frogs (2000-Library of Congress) as Dionysus
• The Man Who Came to Dinner (2000-Broadway) as Sheridan Whiteside
• The Producers (2001-Broadway) as Max Bialystock
• The Play What I Wrote (2003-Broadway) as Mystery Guest Star
• Trumbo: Red White and Blacklisted (2003-Off Broadway) as Dalton Trumbo
• Butley (2003-Huntington Theater, Boston) as Ben Butley
• The Frogs (2004-Broadway) as Dionysus
• The Producers (2004-West End, London) as Max Bialystock
• Dedication or the Stuff of Dreams (2005-Off Broadway) as Lou Nuncle
• Catch Me If You Can (2005-New York reading) as Hanratty
• The Odd Couple (2005-Broadway) as Oscar Madison
• Catch Me If You Can (2006-New York Workshop) as Hanratty
• Butley (2006-Broadway) as Ben Butley
• Catch Me If You Can (2007-New York reading) as Hanratty
• November (2008-Broadway) as Charles Smith
• Waiting for Godot (2009-Broadway) as Estragon
• The Addams Family (2010-Broadway) as Gomez Addams
• The Iceman Cometh (2012-Chicago, Goodman Theatre) as Theodore "Hickey" Hickman
• The Nance (2013-Broadway) as Chauncey Miles
• It's Only a Play (2014-2015-Broadway) as Jimmy Wicker
• The Iceman Cometh (2015-Brooklyn Academy of Music) as Theodore "Hickey" Hickman
• White Rabbit, Red Rabbit (2016-Off-Broadway) as himself

Other

• Presented Mike Birbiglia's (2008) Off-Broadway show Sleepwalk With Me.
• Lane provided the voice of Tom Morrow, the Audio-Animatronic host of Disneyland's Innoventions attraction.
• Children's book Naughty Mabel, written with partner Devlin Elliott, published by Simon and Schuster, released in October 2015.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]