- Born
- Died
- Birth nameGary Moore
- Gary Austin is the founder and original director of The Groundlings, Los Angeles' premier character-based improv company, which began in 1974. Many of "Saturday Night Live's" actors and writers have come from The Groundlings. He began his professional career as a performing member of San Francisco's famed improv company, The Committee, where he worked with Second City's Del Close. Gary holds a BA degree in theater from San Francisco State University. He is the producer and artistic director of The Gary Austin Workshops.
His students work throughout the world of entertainment as actors, singers, comedians, writers, directors and producers. Some notable artists to come from The Groundlings are Lisa Kudrow, Will Ferrell, Paul Reubens (Pee Wee Herman), Laraine Newman, Kathy Griffin, Cheryl Hines, Jon Lovitz, Chris Kattan, Cheri Oteri, Maya Rudolph, Julia Sweeney, Phil LaMarr, Ana Gasteyer, Mindy Sterling, Wil Forte, Jennifer Coolidge, Kristen Whig and the late Phil Hartman.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Cherie Kerr - Gary Austin is the founder and original director of The Groundlings, Los Angeles' premier character-based improv company, which began in 1974. Many of "Saturday Night Live's" actors and writers have come from The Groundlings. He began his professional career as a performing member of San Francisco's famed improv company, The Committee, where he worked with Second City's Del Close. Gary holds a BA degree in theater from San Francisco State University. He is the producer and artistic director of The Gary Austin Workshops.
His students work throughout the world of entertainment as actors, singers, comedians, writers, directors and producers. Some notable artists to come from The Groundlings are Lisa Kudrow, Will Ferrell, Paul Reubens (Pee Wee Herman), Laraine Newman, Kathy Griffin, Cheryl Hines, Jon Lovitz, Chris Kattan, Cheri Oteri, Maya Rudolph, Julia Sweeney, Phil LaMarr, Ana Gasteyer, Mindy Sterling, Will Forte, Jennifer Coolidge, Kristen Wiig and the late Phil Hartman.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Cherie Kerr
- SpousesWenndy MacKenzie(1990 - April 1, 2017) (his death, 1 child)Wenndy MacKenzie(? - April 1, 2017) (his death, 1 child)
- Founded famed comedy improvisation troupe The Groundlings in 1974. Saturday Night Live (1975) producer Lorne Michaels often attended performance of the troupe and in fact hired several members as writers and/or performers on "SNL".
- He famously turned down Lorne Michaels' offer to join 'Saturday Night Live" (1975)_ (along with Laraine Newman) after directing the ABC Lily Tomlin special Lily (1975).
- An Oklahoma native, he moved to Los Angeles after college, soon working as stage manager for the San Francisco-based The Committee and L.A.'s Comedy Store. In the early 1970s he began assembling the troupe that would become The Groundlings, a name taken from the ground-seated audiences of William Shakespeare's day.
- Writing, performing country/western music. Running acting workshops.
- As The Groundlings' artistic director, performer and teacher of improv skills, he would help shape modern comedy, introducing to the world such performers as Laraine Newman, Phil Hartman and Paul Reubens who, with Hartman by his side, developed his Pee-wee Herman character during his stint at The Groundlings.
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