John Byner
- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
The proud owner of tons of dialects and hundreds of uncanny impersonations, the short (5'7 "), slight, deadpan, rubber-faced, fair-haired funnyman
John Byner is the forerunner to such latter day gifted comic impressionists asDana Carvey,Frank CaliendoandJim Carrey.Byner's spot-on impressions have run the entertainment and historical gamut -- from John Wayne, Ed Sullivan, Walter Brennan and George Jessel to U.S. Presidents Richard Nixon and Lyndon Johnson. As icing on the cake, he hilariously unleashed over-done singing vocals to such stylists as Johnny Mathis and Dean Martin. At his heyday in the late 60s and early 70s, John andRich Littlewere the cream of the mimicking crop -- deservedly recognized as the "Men of 1,000 Impressions".
Born John Thomas Biener on June 28, 1938, in New York City, he was the son of Michael Biener, an auto mechanic, and Christina Biener, a mental hospital attendant. His stand-up comedy career began in New York's Greenwich Village where he worked for a year for Max Gordon at Gordon's jazz club "Village Vanguard". He then went on to open for some of the finest jazz greats of his time and steadily became a favorite New York nightclub fixture. As he rose to the top of his game, he opened or headlined prominent niteries throughout the country included headlining stints at Basin Street East, Copa Cabana, Latin Quarter, The Rainbow Room and at such showrooms as Harrah's, The Sahara, The Sands, Caesar's Palace, The Tropicana and Las Vegas Hilton.
John's TV career break happened in New York City onMerv Griffin's "Talent Scouts Show" in 1964. After great exposure on bothGarry MooreandSteve Allen's variety shows in 1966 and 1967, he clowned around onEd Sullivan's showcase program over two dozen times andJohnny Carsonlate-night haunt over three dozen times. He added to the laughs onCarol Burnett,Mike DouglasandDean Martin's self-titled shows and became a veritable favorite withDavid LettermanandJay Lenoat night.
John hosted and starred in his own summer variety series withThe John Byner Comedy Hour (1972)which focused on sketch comedy and sitcom spoofs. John's series "Comedy on the Road," which aired for four seasons on A&E earned him his second Ace Award. The first came for his uproarious series Bizarre (1979),a half-hour sketch-styled program which aired for six seasons.
John began on-camera acting in 1967. He began things off with a recurring part on the short-lived sitcomAccidental Family (1967)starringJerry Van Dykeand as the sole voice in the cartoon segmentThe Ant and the Aardvark (1969)ofThe Pink Panther (1969)series. This segment had the title characters voiced by Byner, who gave dead-on impressions ofDean MartinandJackie Mason,respectively.
From there, he provided many side-splitting moments on such established 60s and 70s shows as "Get Smart", "The Mothers-In-Law," "Love, American Style," "Hawaii 5-O," "The Odd Couple," "Maude" and "When Things Were Rotten," and added greatly to the zaniness as Detective Donahue in the hit spoofSoap (1977)as well as the family sitcomThe Practice (1976)starring comic legendDanny Thomas.On the TV movie scene, John starred as a gangster inMcNamara's Band (1977),but it failed as a pilot to a prospective series. He also appeared in the comediesThe Man in the Santa Claus Suit (1979)andMurder Can Hurt You! (1980),and the rare dramaWill: The Autobiography of G. Gordon Liddy (1982)and played a failed ventriloquist in an episode of "Friday the Thirteenth: The Series."
John made his film debut in a slightly noticeable bit in theBarbra Streisand/Ryan O'NealgagfestWhat's Up, Doc? (1972).While he never found a strong footing in film, he managed to add second-banana fun to a handful of action comedies and slapstick vehicles such asThe Last of the Cowboys (1977)withHenry FondaandEileen Brennan;the highly obscureA Pleasure Doing Business (1979)withConrad BainandAlan Oppenheimer;Stroker Ace (1983)starringBurt Reynolds;and the comedy horrorTransylvania 6-5000 (1985)withJeff GoldblumandEd Begley Jr..
John's penchant for creating voices led to an expansive career in animation for DisneyThe Black Cauldron (1985)as well as the TV cartoon programs "Duckman," "Garfield," Angry Beavers "and" Rugrats "and a revamped" Felix the Cat. "
His continued visibility into the 90's millennium has included a recurring role in the crime drama seriesSilk Stalkings (1991),as well as sporadic parts on "Married...with Children," "Dharma & Greg," "In the Heat of the Night" and "The First Family." He was also spotted in the fantasy comedyMunchie Strikes Back (1994);the fantasy horrorWishmaster (1997);theRodney Dangerfieldslapstick farceMy 5 Wives (2000);and the National Lampoon offeringRobodoc (2009).
Married four times, John has four children from his first marriage.
Born John Thomas Biener on June 28, 1938, in New York City, he was the son of Michael Biener, an auto mechanic, and Christina Biener, a mental hospital attendant. His stand-up comedy career began in New York's Greenwich Village where he worked for a year for Max Gordon at Gordon's jazz club "Village Vanguard". He then went on to open for some of the finest jazz greats of his time and steadily became a favorite New York nightclub fixture. As he rose to the top of his game, he opened or headlined prominent niteries throughout the country included headlining stints at Basin Street East, Copa Cabana, Latin Quarter, The Rainbow Room and at such showrooms as Harrah's, The Sahara, The Sands, Caesar's Palace, The Tropicana and Las Vegas Hilton.
John's TV career break happened in New York City onMerv Griffin's "Talent Scouts Show" in 1964. After great exposure on bothGarry MooreandSteve Allen's variety shows in 1966 and 1967, he clowned around onEd Sullivan's showcase program over two dozen times andJohnny Carsonlate-night haunt over three dozen times. He added to the laughs onCarol Burnett,Mike DouglasandDean Martin's self-titled shows and became a veritable favorite withDavid LettermanandJay Lenoat night.
John hosted and starred in his own summer variety series withThe John Byner Comedy Hour (1972)which focused on sketch comedy and sitcom spoofs. John's series "Comedy on the Road," which aired for four seasons on A&E earned him his second Ace Award. The first came for his uproarious series Bizarre (1979),a half-hour sketch-styled program which aired for six seasons.
John began on-camera acting in 1967. He began things off with a recurring part on the short-lived sitcomAccidental Family (1967)starringJerry Van Dykeand as the sole voice in the cartoon segmentThe Ant and the Aardvark (1969)ofThe Pink Panther (1969)series. This segment had the title characters voiced by Byner, who gave dead-on impressions ofDean MartinandJackie Mason,respectively.
From there, he provided many side-splitting moments on such established 60s and 70s shows as "Get Smart", "The Mothers-In-Law," "Love, American Style," "Hawaii 5-O," "The Odd Couple," "Maude" and "When Things Were Rotten," and added greatly to the zaniness as Detective Donahue in the hit spoofSoap (1977)as well as the family sitcomThe Practice (1976)starring comic legendDanny Thomas.On the TV movie scene, John starred as a gangster inMcNamara's Band (1977),but it failed as a pilot to a prospective series. He also appeared in the comediesThe Man in the Santa Claus Suit (1979)andMurder Can Hurt You! (1980),and the rare dramaWill: The Autobiography of G. Gordon Liddy (1982)and played a failed ventriloquist in an episode of "Friday the Thirteenth: The Series."
John made his film debut in a slightly noticeable bit in theBarbra Streisand/Ryan O'NealgagfestWhat's Up, Doc? (1972).While he never found a strong footing in film, he managed to add second-banana fun to a handful of action comedies and slapstick vehicles such asThe Last of the Cowboys (1977)withHenry FondaandEileen Brennan;the highly obscureA Pleasure Doing Business (1979)withConrad BainandAlan Oppenheimer;Stroker Ace (1983)starringBurt Reynolds;and the comedy horrorTransylvania 6-5000 (1985)withJeff GoldblumandEd Begley Jr..
John's penchant for creating voices led to an expansive career in animation for DisneyThe Black Cauldron (1985)as well as the TV cartoon programs "Duckman," "Garfield," Angry Beavers "and" Rugrats "and a revamped" Felix the Cat. "
His continued visibility into the 90's millennium has included a recurring role in the crime drama seriesSilk Stalkings (1991),as well as sporadic parts on "Married...with Children," "Dharma & Greg," "In the Heat of the Night" and "The First Family." He was also spotted in the fantasy comedyMunchie Strikes Back (1994);the fantasy horrorWishmaster (1997);theRodney Dangerfieldslapstick farceMy 5 Wives (2000);and the National Lampoon offeringRobodoc (2009).
Married four times, John has four children from his first marriage.