*** Welcome to piglix ***

Maurice LaMarche

Maurice LaMarche
Maurice LaMarche by Gage Skidmore 2.jpg
LaMarche at the 2010 Comic Con in San Diego, California, on a panel for Futurama.
Born (1958-03-30) March 30, 1958 (age 58)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupation Voice actor, stand-up comedian
Years active 1979–present
Spouse(s) Robin Eiseman (m. 1991)
Children 1
Awards Annie Award
1998 Voice Acting by a Male Performer in an Animated Television Production
Pinky and the Brain
Emmy Award
2011 Outstanding Voice-Over Performance
Futurama
Emmy Award
2012 Outstanding Voice-Over Performance
Futurama

Maurice LaMarche (born March 30, 1958) is a Canadian voice actor and former stand-up comedian. He is best known for voicing The Brain in Animaniacs and its spin-off as well as his Emmy-winning performances in Futurama.

LaMarche was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, but his family moved to Timmins, Ontario, very soon after he was born. LaMarche's childhood was filled with his "own little world of cartoons and sixties television". It was not until his sophomore year of high school that he learned of the popularity his talent for mimicry could garner him. This realization came from a coincidental performance in a high school "variety night" when a couple of friends urged him to enter. The act he performed at the variety night was "celebrities as waiters" which he actually used all the way up until the end of his stand-up career.

At the age of 19, LaMarche took his high school act to an open mic night in New York City, performing to a reaction in which, as he describes, "they just totally ignored me". This reaction was coupled with the backlash LaMarche received from fellow Canadian comedians who LaMarche describes as discouraging him from pursuing a career outside of Canada.

Three years later, at the age of 22, LaMarche moved straight to Los Angeles to further his stand-up career. This move, LaMarche says, would always be something he regretted doing instead of moving to New York: "... in retrospect, I thought it was a mistake. I think that a couple of years in New York would have made me a stronger comedian."

Over the next five years, LaMarche's career would gradually progress, playing comedy clubs all over the U.S., with several appearances on Merv Griffin and "An Evening At The Improv", but in spite of such interest, LaMarche always believed that, while his impersonations and stage presence were strong, he needed to develop funnier comedy material. Despite being so critical of himself, LaMarche would be granted the opportunity of being part of the 1985 HBO production, Rodney Dangerfield Hosts the 9th Annual Young Comedians Special, on which also appeared Bob Saget, Rita Rudner, Louie Anderson, Yakov Smirnoff, and the breakout first appearance of Sam Kinison. Although he was received (and reviewed) favorably, in looking back on his own performance in that special, LaMarche believed he was "probably about five years away from going from being a good comedian to being a great comedian" and being the "only impressionist that actually comes from somewhere".


...
Wikipedia

...