Jason Alexander Biography

Date of Birth: September 23, 1959

Born as Jay Scott Greenspan in Newark, New Jersey, Jason Alexander's interest in the performing arts began at an early age. He would entertain his fellow school students by doing impressions and reciting movie dialogue or comedy albums in order to make them refrain from teasing him about his chubbiness.

Most everyone who went to high school with Alexander knew he was destined to become a major actor. He had such a commanding stage presence that he was invariably cast as the star in school plays, in roles ranging from romantic leads to elderly character parts.

While attending Boston University, the 20-year-old Alexander was cast in the lead of the Broadway musical Merrily We Roll Along, which might have made him an overnight star had it not closed almost as soon as it opened. He continued to perform in shows on and off Broadway, including a role in The Rink with Liza Minelli, before starring in Jerome Robbins' Broadway, for which he won the 1989 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical.

During his studies, he won his first film role in the horror flick, The Burning(1981). In that same year, he made his first TV-movie bow in Senior Trip.

In 1990, he was cast as clueless loser George Costanza in the popular sitcom Seinfeld. The show became one of the most successful comedy programs on television, and the character of George has been Alexander's most recognizable role to date. For his work in this show alone, Alexander has received five Emmy and two Golden Globe nominations, as well as winning a 1993 American TV Award, a 1995 Screen Actor's Guild Award and two American Comedy Awards. On top of these awards for acting, he has also received a Director's Guild of America nomination for Best Director of a Comedy Series for an episode of Seinfeld.

In 1994, his voice could be heard each week on the USA cable network as the webfooted, sex-obsessed private eye hero of the animated cartoon series Duckman. Alexander's feature film career has picked up speed during the '90s as both a character actor in major comedies such as Dunston Checks In (1996), The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (2000), and a voice on numerous television shows like Disney¹s Aladdin (1993), Hercules(1998) and Dilbert (1999).

A New York resident for most of his life, Alexander was forced to move to Los Angeles with his wife of fourteen years, writer and actress, Daena Title, because of his commitments to Seinfeld. He has since continued his movie career, even making his feature film directorial debut with For Better or Worse (1996).

In 1993, Alexander and Title had their first son, Gabriel, and in February 1996, they had another son, Noah.

Filmography:

Shallow Hal (2001)
How to Go Out on a Date in Queens (2001)
The Edge (2001)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame II (2001)(V)
Trumpet of the Swan (2001)
The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (2000)
On Edge (2000)
Love and Action in Chicago (1999)
Denial (1998)
Love! Valour! Compassion! (1997)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) (voice)
Dunston Checks In (1996)
For Better or Worse (1996)
The Last Supper (1995)
The Paper (1994)
Blankman (1994)
North (1994)
Coneheads (1993)
Down on the Waterfront (1993)
The Return of Jafar (1993) (V) (voice)
Sexual Healing (1993)
I Don't Buy Kisses Anymore (1992)
White Palace (1990)
Jacob's Ladder (1990)
Pretty Woman (1990)
Brighton Beach Memoirs (1986)
The Mosquito Coast (1986)
The Burning (1981)