Comedic Background Quotes

I've always done comedy, and I've always wanted to do a dramatic role. I wanted to be a sheriff.

Working at the magic shop really gave me a sense of comedy because it was all jokes.

As a kid, I loved Paula Poundstone and Richard Pryor. But my mother was a huge influence on my comedy.

People have a comic bent or an angularity to their thinking, and those are the people who make jokes. And it's usually people who were in an environment, when they were young, where jokes were at a premium, or at least considered important to a life. My parents always listened to the comedy radio shows, we went to the comedy movies, and my parents appreciated comedy. So kids listen and follow what their parents like.

Having a human conversation is not something I've had any training in either as a comedian or as, you know, a human being.

I have been a funny kid growing up but every one thought I was a serious person. I think it has to do with the choice of my films such as 'Zakhm,' 'Kalyug' and 'Traffic Signal.'

Because I started my career in improv, performing with Second City and the Ace Trucking Company, I always enjoy being in situations where - as an actor - you have to think fast & be light on your feet.

I've been doing improv since high school, and I've been getting paid for it since I was 20.

I don't think my acting was ever bad; I always knew that I could do it. But when you go to audition for a drama, they're very serious in the room, and I was used to being kind of goofy and having small talk.

I came up through Second City, so I'm used to playing 20 characters every night who are very different from each other. I wouldn't want my career to be any different.

I grew up in Glen Ellyn, which is about 20 miles west of Chicago. I attended Glenbard South High School and University of Illinois. I didn't study acting until I moved to Los Angeles after college, but the fact that I was raised in the Chicago area set the stage for all of my comedic and acting sensibilities.

I have played nasty people, but not everyone has seen that stuff. Before 'The Office,' I mainly got cast as little toe-rags.

I'm sure everyone's got their back story. I don't come from a place of where I was tortured and needed to let something out. I came from a very happy home. I was a little out of control at times. But my family... we all liked to be funny, we all liked to make each other laugh.

I really consider myself a Californian, but I have those great comedic roots in Brooklyn.

I've played villains on stage - you know, the Iagos and so on - but I think of myself as a funny person. I mostly did comedies before I did TV work.

I never thought of myself as a comedic actor. I didn't go to Second City, that's not my background, I'm not a comic, I studied theater and my career when I started was a lot of dramatic stuff.

Sometimes I wonder how I got into comedy at all.

I wanted to be a vet before I got into comedy, but then once I found out how much gore goes into that job, I wanted nothing to do with it.

When you're a comedic actor and you're used to just getting laughs, it's kind of scary to go serious, even for a second.