I have spent many hours watching and recording the many talents of the comedic genius known as Steve Martin…..cuz from 1975 to 1991, all things Steve Martin that were televised on TV which showcased his many talents….. albeit live stand-up comedy concerts, live comedy specials, movies, musical concerts, tv drama, Saturday Night Live, et al….of which recordings were replayed many times at The Sports Place, Madison Square Garden Bar and Restaurant at 302 E. 6th Street in downtown Austin, Texas during those 15 years…..as Steve Martin would be a headliner that drew many large crowds to my establishment. The truth be known, during the decade of the 1980’s, the bleacher section at MSG would fill up with 150+/- patrons at 10pm every Saturday night to watch the next live episode of SNL….and if we featured the airing time of such television specials like Steve Martin: The Winds of Whoopie on our marquee…..that’s when upwards of 300 folks would come into The Garden for an enjoyable evening of comedy and libations…..as there were not any more popular comedians and entertainers than Steve Martin, except for Richard Pryor and Robin Williams…..as customers could simply not get enough of these three Kings of Comedy during the 1980’s.
Comedy & NFL – 2013 – Saturday Night Live Sports Special – NFL Films: Forefathers Of The Game – Featuring Steve Martin as “The Gun”
Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician…..who has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award…..and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013…..plus, he was nominated for two Tony Awards for his musical Bright Star in 2016. Among many honors, he has received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, the Kennedy Center Honors and an AFI Life Achievement Award. In 2004, Comedy Central ranked Martin at 6th place in a list of the 100 greatest stand-up comics…..while The Guardian named him one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination.
Comedy & Entertainment – 1945 To 2022 – Short Biographies Special – “Steve Martin: Life Story”
Martin came to public notice in the 1960’s as a writer for The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour…..for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award in 1969…..and later as a frequent host on Saturday Night Live. In the 1970’s, Martin performed his offbeat, absurdist comedy routines before sold-out theaters on national tours. Since the 1980’s…..while having retired from stand-up comedy….. that is when he became a successful actor…..after starring in such films as The Jerk in 1979…..Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid in 1982)…..The Man with Two Brains in 1983…. All of Me inv1984…..Three Amigos in 1986….in Planes, Trains and Automobiles in 1987…..in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels in 1988…..in L.A. Story in 1991…..Bowfinger in 1999 and Looney Tunes: Back in Action in 2003…..plus, he has also starred in a series of family films portraying the family patriarch in Parenthood in 1989…..the Father of the Bride films 1991–1995…..and the Cheaper by the Dozen films 2003 to 2005.
Comedy – 1968 – The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour Special – “Steve Martin: Stand Up Comedy”
Since 2015, Martin has embarked on several national comedy tours with fellow comedian Martin Short…..when in 2018, they released their Netflix special An Evening You Will Forget for the Rest of Your Life…..for which they received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations. In 2021, he co-created and starred in his 1st television show, the Hulu comedy series Only Murders in the Building alongside Short and Selena Gomez…..where he earned three Primetime Emmy Award nominations, two Screen Actors Guild Award nominations and a Golden Globe Award nomination.
Comedy – 2015 – Netflix Film Special – “Steve Martin & Martin Short: An Evening You Will Forget for the Rest of Your Life”
Martin is also known for writing the book and lyrics to the musical Bright Star in 2016…..and the comedy Meteor Shower in 2017…..both of which premiered on Broadway. While he has played banjo since an early age, and included music in his comedy routines from the beginning of his professional career, he has increasingly dedicated his career to music since the 2000’s….. while acting less and spending much of his professional life playing banjo, recording, and touring with various bluegrass acts….which included Earl Scruggs….with whom he won a Grammy for Best Country Instrumental Performance in 2002. His 1st solo music album, The Crow: New Songs for the 5-String Banjo (2009) received the Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album.
Music & Entertainment – 2015 – PBS News Hour Special – “Steve Martin & Edie Brickell Team-Up in Broadway Show “Bright Star”
Martin was born on August 14, 1945 in Waco, Texas, the son of Mary Lee (née Stewart; 1913–2002) and Glenn Vernon Martin (1914–1997)…..who were real estate brokers and aspiring actors with an older sister, Melinda. Martin is of English, Scottish, Welsh, Scots-Irish, German, and French descent, and was raised in Inglewood, California with his sister…..and then later in Garden Grove, California, in a Baptist family. Martin was a cheerleader of Garden Grove High School. One of his earliest memories is of seeing his father, as an extra, serving drinks onstage at the Call Board Theatre on Melrose Place. During World War II, in the United Kingdom, Martin’s father had appeared in a production of Our Town with Raymond Massey. Expressing his affection through gifts, like cars and bikes, Martin’s father was stern, and not emotionally open to his son…..albeit he was proud but critical…..with Martin later recalling that in his teens his feelings for his father were mostly of hatred.
Music & Comedy – 2013 – Funny or Die Special – “Steve Martin & Kermit The Frog: Dueling Banjos”
Martin’s 1st job was at Disneyland selling guidebooks on weekends and full-time during his school’s summer break…..which lasted for three years from 1955–1958. During his free time, he frequented the Main Street Magic shop….where tricks were demonstrated to patrons. While working at Disneyland, he was captured in the background of the home movie that was made into the short-subject film Disneyland Dream…..which incidentally became his 1st film appearance. By 1960, he had mastered several magic tricks and illusions….which he translated into a paying job at the Magic shop in Fantasyland in August. There he perfected his talents for magic, juggling and creating balloon animals in the manner of mentor Wally Boag….where he frequently performed for tips.
Comedy – 2022 – Saturday Night Live Christmas Special – “Steve Martin & Martin Short: A Visit With Santa Claus + Sprinkles the Elf”
After high school, Martin attended Santa Ana College, taking classes in drama and English poetry. In his free time, he teamed up with friend and Garden Grove High School classmate Kathy Westmoreland to participate in comedies and other productions at the Bird Cage Theater…..then he joined a comedy troupe at Knott’s Berry Farm. Later, he met budding actress Stormie Sherk…..and they developed comedy routines and became romantically involved. Sherk’s influence caused Martin to apply to the California State University, Long Beach…..where he enrolled in a major in philosophy. Sherk enrolled at UCLA, about an hour’s drive north….. and the distance eventually caused them to lead separate lives. Inspired by his philosophy classes, Martin considered becoming a professor instead of an actor-comedian. His time at college changed his life….where as a philosophy major he started studying logic….and they were talking about cause and effect, and you start to realize, “Hey, there is no cause and effect! There is no logic! There is no anything!’ Then it gets real easy to write this stuff because all you have to do is twist everything hard…..as you twist the punch line, you twist the non-sequitur so hard away from the things that set it up. Martin recalls reading a treatise on comedy that led him to think: “What if there were no punch lines? What if there were no indicators? What if I created tension and never released it? What if I headed for a climax, but all I delivered was an anticlimax? What would the audience do with all that tension? Theoretically, it would have to come out sometime. But if I kept denying them the formality of a punch line…..then the audience would eventually pick their own place to laugh, essentially out of desperation.” Martin periodically spoofed his philosophy studies in his 1970’s stand-up act, comparing philosophy with studying geology. “If you’re studying geology, which is all facts, as soon as you get out of school you forget it all…..but with philosophy you remember just enough to screw you up for the rest of your life.”
Comedy – Live in Concert at The Universal Ampitheatre – 1979 – “Steve Martin: Stand-Up Comedy”
In 1967, Martin transferred to UCLA…..and switched his major to theater. While attending college, he appeared in an episode of The Dating Game, winning a date with Deana Martin…..when Martin began working local clubs at night, to mixed notices, and at twenty-one, he dropped out of college. In 1967, his former girlfriend Nina Goldblatt, a dancer on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, helped Martin land a writing job with the show by submitting his work to head writer Mason Williams…..who initially paid Martin out of his own pocket…..and along with the other writers for the show, Martin won an Emmy Award in 1969 at the age of twenty-three. He wrote for The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour and The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour. Martin’s 1st television appearance was on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in 1968. He says: “[I] appeared on The Virginia Graham Show, circa 1970. I looked grotesque. I had a hairdo like a helmet, which I blow-dried to a puffy bouffant, for reasons I no longer understand. I wore a frock coat and a silk shirt, and my delivery was mannered, slow and self-aware. I had absolutely no authority. After reviewing the show, I was depressed for a week.”
Comedy & Game Show – 1968 – The Dating Game Show – Featuring Bachelorette Deana Martin and Eligible Bachelor Steve Martin
During these years his roommates included Gary Mule Deer and Michael Johnson…..as Gary Mule Deer supplied the 1st joke Martin submitted to Tommy Smothers for use on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour show. Martin opened for groups such as The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band….who returned the favor by appearing in his 1980 television special All Commercials, The Carpenters, and Toto. He appeared at The Boarding House, among other venues…..and continued to write, earning an Emmy nomination for his work on Van Dyke and Company in 1976.
Comedy & Variety Shows – 1973 – The Midnight Special Presents – “Steve Martin: Live on Stage”
In the mid-1970’s, Martin made frequent appearances as a stand-up comedian on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson…..and on The Gong Show, HBO’s On Location, The Muppet Show and NBC’s Saturday Night Live (SNL)…..whose audience jumped by a million viewers when he made guest appearances…..as he was one of the show’s most successful and frequent hosts…..when he appeared on twenty-seven Saturday Night Live shows and guest-hosted fifteen of them…..which is 2nd only to Alec Baldwin, who has hosted seventeen times as of February 2017. On the show, Martin popularized the air quotes gesture. While on the show, Martin grew close to several cast members, including Gilda Radner. On the night she died of ovarian cancer, a visibly shaken Martin hosted SNL and featured footage of himself and Radner together in a 1978 sketch.
Comedy & Music – 1976 – The Gong Show Presents – Steve Martin Playing Banjo
Comedy & Talk Shows – 1974 – The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson – Featuring Comedian Steve Martin
Comedy & Music – 1977 – The Muppet Show Presents – Steve Martin Singing “Ramblin’ Guy”
Comedy – 1978 – Saturday Night Live – Featuring Gilda Radner & Steve Martin: “Dancing in the Dark”
Comedy – 1977 – Saturday Night Live Comedy Skit – Steve Martin & Bill Murray: “What Tha Hell Is That?”
Comedy – 1978 – Saturday Night Live Comedy Skit – Steve Martin: “The Elephant Guy”
In the 1970’s, his television appearances led to the release of comedy albums that went platinum. The track “Excuuuuse Me” on his 1st album, Let’s Get Small in 1977…..which helped establish a national catch phrase. His next album, A Wild and Crazy Guy in 1978, was an even bigger success, reaching the # 2 spot on the U.S. sales chart…..while selling over a million copies. “Just a wild and crazy guy” became another of Martin’s known catchphrases. The album featured a character based on a series of Saturday Night Live sketches in which Martin and Dan Aykroyd played the Festrunk Brothers; Yortuk and Georgi…..who were bumbling Czechoslovak would-be playboys…..then the album ends with the song “King Tut”…..which is sung and written by Martin and backed by the “Toot Uncommons”, members of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band…..while it was later released as a single, reaching # 17 on the U.S. charts in 1978 and selling over a million copies. The song came out during the King Tut craze that accompanied the popular traveling exhibit of the Egyptian king’s tomb artifacts…..as both albums won Grammys for Best Comedy Recording in 1977 and 1978, respectively……which Martin performed “King Tut” on April 22, 1978, SNL program.
Comedy – 1978 – Saturday Night Live Comedy Skit – Dan Aykroyd & Steve Martin: “Two Wild and Crazy Guys – Computer Dates”
Comedy & Music – 1977 – Saturday Night Live Music Special – “Steve Martin: “King Tut”
Decades later, in 2012, The A.V. Club described Martin’s unique style and its effect on audiences as follows, “[Martin was] both a consummate entertainer and a glib, knowing parody of a consummate entertainer. He was at once a hammy populist with an uncanny, unprecedented feel for the tastes of a mass audience and a sly intellectual whose goofy shtick cunningly deconstructed stand-up comedy.”
Comedy – 2013 – Live in Concert – Steve Martin: Fun Balloon Animals – Absolutely Hilarious!!
On his comedy albums, Martin’s stand-up is self-referential and sometimes self-mocking…..as it mixes philosophical riffs with sudden spurts of “happy feet”, banjo playing with balloon depictions of concepts like venereal disease, and the “controversial” kitten juggling (he is a master juggler; the “kittens” were stuffed animals). His style is off-kilter and ironic and sometimes pokes fun at stand-up comedy traditions, such as Martin opening his act (from A Wild and Crazy Guy) by saying, “I think there’s nothing better for a person to come up and do the same thing over and over for two weeks. This is what I enjoy, so I’m going to do the same thing over and over and over […] I’m going to do the same joke over and over in the same show, it’ll be like a new thing. Or: “Hello, I’m Steve Martin, and I’ll be out here in a minute.” In one comedy routine, used on the Comedy Is Not Pretty! album, Martin claimed that his real name was “Gern Blanston”…..when the riff took on a life of its own…..as there is a Gern Blanston website, and for a time a rock band took the moniker as its name.
Comedy – 2022 – Saturday Night Live Comedy Skit Special – “Martin Short & Steve Martin: A Christmas Carol”
Martin’s show soon required full-sized stadiums for the audiences he was drawing. Concerned about his visibility in venues on such a scale, Martin began to wear a distinctive three-piece white suit that became a trademark for his act. Martin stopped doing stand-up comedy in 1981 to concentrate on movies and did not return for thirty-five years. About this decision, he states “My act was conceptual. Once the concept was stated, and everybody understood it, it was done. … It was about coming to the end of the road. There was no way to live on in that persona. I had to take that fabulous luck of not being remembered as that, exclusively. You know, I didn’t announce that I was stopping. I just stopped.”
Comedy – 1976 – Live at the Troubadour Special – “Steve Martin: Stand Up Comedy”
In 2016, Martin made a low-key comeback to live comedy…..when he opened for Jerry Seinfeld…..and performed a ten-minute stand-up routine before turning the stage over to Seinfeld. Also in 2016 he staged a national tour with Martin Short and the Steep Canyon Rangers…..which yielded a 2018 Netflix comedy special, Steve Martin and Martin Short: An Evening You Will Forget for the Rest of Your Life…..which received four Primetime Emmy Award nominations with Martin receiving two nominations for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special and Outstanding Music and Lyrics for The Buddy Song.
Comedy – 1980 – The Missing Reels Film Special – “Steve Martin: The Absent Minded Waiter” – With Buck Henry & Terri Garr
By the end of the 1970’s, Martin had acquired the kind of following normally reserved for rock stars…..with his tour appearances typically occurring at sold-out arenas filled with tens of thousands of screaming fans…..but unknown to his audience, stand-up comedy was “just an accident” for him….. cuz his real goal was to get into film.
Comedy – 1979 – Saturday Night Live Opening Monologue Special – “Steve Martin and Bill Murray: Cracker Monologue”
Martin had a small role in the 1972 film Another Nice Mess…..then in 1974, he starred in the Canadian travelogue production The Funnier Side Of Eastern Canada….which was created to promote tourism in Montreal and Toronto….. as it also included standup segments filmed at the Ice House in Pasadena, California. His 1st substantial film appearance was in a short titled The Absent-Minded Waiter in 1977. The seven-minute-long film, also featuring Buck Henry and Teri Garr, was written by and starred Martin. The film was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Short Film, Live Action. He made his 1st substantial feature film appearance in the musical Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band…..where he sang The Beatles’ “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer”. In 1979, Martin starred in the comedy film The Jerk, directed by Carl Reiner, and written by Martin, Michael Elias, and Carl Gottlieb…..when the film was a huge success…..while grossing over $100 million on a budget of some $4 million.
Movie & Comedy – 1978 – Movie Clip from Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band Special – “Steve Martin: Maxwell’s Silver Hammer”
Stanley Kubrick met with him to discuss the possibility of Martin starring in a screwball comedy version of Traumnovelle (Kubrick later changed his approach to the material, the result of which was 1999’s Eyes Wide Shut). Martin was executive producer for Domestic Life, a prime-time television series starring friend Martin Mull, and a late-night series called Twilight Theater. It emboldened Martin to try his hand at his 1st serious film, Pennies from Heaven in 1981…..which was based on the 1978 BBC serial by Dennis Potter. He was anxious to perform in the movie because of his desire to avoid being typecast. To prepare for that film, Martin took acting lessons from director Herbert Ross…..and spent months learning how to tap dance. The film was a financial failure; Martin’s comment at the time was “I don’t know what to blame, other than it’s me and not a comedy.”
Movie & Music – 1981 – Movie Pennies From Heaven Official Trailer – Starring Steve martin & Bernadette Peters
Move & Comedy – 1979 – Movie “The Jerk” Official Trailer – Starring Steve Martin & Bernadette Peters
Subsequent to The Jerk, Martin was in three more Reiner-directed comedies including Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid in 1982, The Man with Two Brains in 1983 and All of Me in 1984…..which was his most critically acclaimed performance up to that point. Martin was by now requesting almost $3 million per film…..but Plaid and Two Brains both failed at the box office like Pennies, endangering his young career. In 1986, Martin joined fellow Saturday Night Live veterans Martin Short and Chevy Chase in ¡Three Amigos!, directed by John Landis, and written by Martin, Lorne Michaels, and singer-songwriter Randy Newman. It was originally entitled The Three Caballeros and Martin was to be teamed with Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi.
Movie & Comedy – 1982 – Movie “Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid” – Starring Steve Martin & Rachel Ward
Movie & Comedy – 1983 – Movie “The Man With Two Brains” Official Trailer – Starring Steve Martin & Kathleen Turner
Movie & Comedy – 1984 – Movie “All of Me” Official Trailer – Starring Steve Martin & Lilly Tomlin
Movie & Comedy – 1986 – Movie “Three Amigos” Official Trailer – Starring Martin Short & Chevy Chase & Steve Martin
In 1986, Martin was in the movie musical film version of the hit Off-Broadway play Little Shop of Horrors (based on a famous B-movie), playing the sadistic dentist, Orin Scrivello. The film was the 1st of three films teaming Martin with Rick Moranis. In 1987, Martin joined comedian John Candy in the John Hughes movie Planes, Trains and Automobiles. That same year, Roxanne, the film adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac which Martin co-wrote, won him a Writers Guild of America Award. It also garnered recognition from Hollywood and the public that he was more than a comedian. In 1988, he performed in the Frank Oz film Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, a remake of Bedtime Story, alongside Michael Caine. Also in 1988, he appeared at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater at Lincoln Center in a revival of Waiting for Godot directed by Mike Nichols. He played Vladimir, with Robin Williams as Estragon and Bill Irwin as Lucky. Martin starred in the Ron Howard film Parenthood with Rick Moranis in 1989.
Movie & Comedy – 1986 – Movie “Little Shop of Horrors” Official Trailer – Starring Rick Moranis & Ellen Greene & Vincent Gardenia & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 1987 – Movie “Planes, Trains and Automobiles” Official Trailer – Starring John Candy & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 1987 – Movie “Roxanne” Official Trailer – Starring Daryl Hannah & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 1987 – Movie “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” Official Trailer – Starring Michael Caine & Glenne Headley & amp; Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 1988 – Movie “Waiting for Godot” Official Trailer – Starring Robin Williams & amp; Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 1989 – Movie “Parenthood” – Starring Jason Robards & Rick Moranis & Tom Hulce & Keanu Reeves & Steve Martin
He later re-teamed with Moranis in the Mafia comedy My Blue Heaven in 1990…..then in 1991, Martin starred in and wrote L.A. Story, a romantic comedy, in which the female lead was played by his then-wife Victoria Tennant. Martin also appeared in Lawrence Kasdan’s Grand Canyon, in which he played the tightly wound Hollywood film producer, Davis…..who was recovering from a traumatic robbery that left him injured…..which was a more serious role for him. Martin also starred in a remake of the comedy Father of the Bride in 1991 (followed by a sequel in 1995)…..and in the 1992 comedy Housesitter, with Goldie Hawn and Dana Delany. In 1994, he starred in A Simple Twist of Fate; a film adaptation of Silas Marner.
Movie & Comedy – 1990 – Movie “My Blue Heaven” Official Trailer – Starring Rick Moranis & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 1991 – Movie “L A Story” Official Trailer – Starring Victoria Tennant & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 1991 – Movie “Father of the Bride” Official Trailer – Starring Diane Keeton & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 1994 – Movie “A Simple Twist of Fate” Official Trailer – Starring Movie & Comedy – Starring Gabriel Byrne &, Laura Linney & Catherine O’Hara & Stephen Baldwin & Steve Martin
In David Mamet’s 1997 thriller The Spanish Prisoner, Martin played a darker role as a wealthy stranger who takes a suspicious interest in the work of a young businessman (Campbell Scott). He went on to star with Eddie Murphy in the 1999 comedy Bowfinger…..which Martin also wrote.
Movie – 1997 – Movie “The Spanish Prisoner” Official Trailer – Starring Steve Martin & Campbell Scott
Movie & Comedy – 1999 – Movie “Bowfinger” Official Trailer – Starring Eddie Murphy & Steve Martin
In 1998, Martin guest starred with U2 in the 200th episode of The Simpsons titled “Trash of the Titans”, providing the voice for sanitation commissioner Ray Patterson. In 1999, Martin and Hawn starred in a remake of the 1970 Neil Simon comedy, The Out-of-Towners.
Comedy & Talk Shows – 1980 To 1992 – Late Show With David Letterman Special – “Steve Martin Highlights Collection – Part 1”
Comedy & Talk Shows – 1995 To 2003 – Late Show With David Letterman Special – “Steve Martin Highlights Collection – Part 2”
Comedy & Talk Shows – 2005 To 2010 – Late Show With David Letterman Special – “Steve Martin Highlights Collection – Part 3”
Comedy & Talk Shows – 2011 To 2015 – Late Show With David Letterman Special – “Steve Martin Highlights Collection – Part 4”
By 2003, Martin ranked # 4 on the box office stars list, after starring in Bringing Down The House and Cheaper by the Dozen in 2003…..with each earning over $130 million at U.S. theaters. That same year, he also played the villainous Mr. Chairman in the animation/live action blend, Looney Tunes: Back in Action. In 2005, Martin wrote and starred in Shopgirl, based on his own novella (2000)…..and starred in Cheaper by the Dozen 2. In 2006, he starred in the box office hit The Pink Panther…..as the bumbling Inspector Clouseau…..then he reprised the role in 2009’s The Pink Panther 2…..when combined, the two films grossed over $230 million at the box office.
Movie & Comedy – 2003 – Movie “Bringing Down The House” Official Trailer – Starring Queen Latifa & Eugene Levy & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 2003 – Movie “Cheaper By The Dozen” Official Trailer – Starring Bonnie Hunt & Steve Martin
Movie & Animation – 2003 – Movie Clip from “Looney Tunes: Back In Action” – Tazmanian Devil Scene – Featuring Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 2005 – Movie “Cheaper By The Dozen 2” Official Trailer – Starring Bonnie Hunt &Eugene Levy & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 2000 – Movie “Shopgirl” Official Trailer – Starring Jason Schwartzman & Claire Danes & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 2006 – Movie “Pink Panther” Official Trailer – Starring Kevin Kline & Jean Reno & Emily Mortimer & Steve Martin
In the comedy Baby Mama in 2008 starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, Martin played the founder of a health food company. Martin also appeared as a guest star in 30 Rock as Gavin Volure. He was nominated for an Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. The following year he starred in Nancy Meyers’ romantic comedy It’s Complicated in 2009, opposite Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin. In 2009, an article in The Guardian listed Martin as one of the best actors never to receive an Oscar nomination.
Movie & Comedy – 2008 – Clip from Movie “Baby Mama” – “Great Man Transferring Mental Strength” Scene – Starring Tina Fey & Amy Poehler & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 2009 – Movie “It’s Complicated” Official Trailer – Starring Merle Streep & Alec Baldwin & Steve Martin
During the 2010’s Martin sparsely appeared in film and television. In 2011 he appeared with Jack Black, Owen Wilson, and JoBeth Williams in the birdwatching comedy The Big Year directed by David Frankel…..as the film was criticized for its lightweight story and was a box office bomb. After a three-year hiatus, Martin returned in 2015 when he voiced a role in the DreamWorks animated film Home alongside Jim Parsons and Rihanna. The film received mixed critical reception but was a financial success. In 2016, he played a supporting role in Ang Lee’s war drama Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk. He also appeared as himself in Jerry Seinfeld’s Netflix series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee in 2016…..then he appeared in the taped version of Oh, Hello on Broadway in 2017 as the guest…..as he also starred in the Netflix comedy special An Evening You Will Forget for the Rest of Your Life with Martin Short in 2018.
Movie & Comedy – 2010 – Movie “The Big Year” Official Trailer – Starring Jack Black &Owen Wilson & Steve Martin
Movie & Animation – 2010 – Dreamworks Animated Movie “Almost Home” Official Trailer – Starring Steve Martin as Captain Smek
Movie – 2016 – Clip from Movie “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk” Official Trailer – Starring Kristen Stewart & Chris Tucker & Garrett Hedlund * Vin Diesel & Steve Martin
Film – 2017 – Clips from Netflix Series “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” Official Trailer – Starring Jerry Seinfield & Chris Rock & Jay Leno & David Letterman & Steve Martin et al
In February 2020, Martin opened the 92nd Academy Awards alongside Chris Rock with comedy material. They were not previously announced as that year’s hosts…..and joked after their opening monologue, “Well we’ve had a great time not hosting tonight”. In 2020, Martin reprised his role as George Banks in the short Father of the Bride, Part 3. Martin then stars in and is an executive producer of Only Murders in the Building…..which was a Hulu comedy series alongside Martin Short and Selena Gomez…..which he created alongside John Hoffman. In August 2022, Martin revealed that the series will likely be his final role, as he does not intend to seek out roles or cameos for other shows or films once the series ends.
Comedy & Awards Shows – 2020 – 92nd Academy Awards Show Highlights – Chris Rock & Steve Martin Opening Monologue Roasts Everyone
Comedy & Talk Shows – 2021 – Late Show with Stephen Colbert – Featuring Martin Short & Selena Gomez & Steve Martin on Making the Hulu Series “Only Murders in the Building”
Movie & Comedy – 2021 – A Hulu Special Series “Only Murders In The Building” Official Teaser – Starring Martin Short & Selena Gomez & Steve Martin
Movie & Comedy – 2020 – Movie “Father of the Bride – Part 3ish” – Starring Martin Short & Diane Keeton & Steve Martin
In 1993, Martin wrote his first full-length play, Picasso at the Lapin Agile. The first reading of the play took place in Beverly Hills, California at his home, with Tom Hanks reading the role of Pablo Picasso and Chris Sarandon reading the role of Albert Einstein. Following this, the play opened at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, and played from October 1993 to May 1994, then went on to run successfully in Los Angeles, New York City, and several other US cities. In 2009, the school board in La Grande, Oregon, refused to allow the play to be performed after several parents complained about the content. In an open letter in the local Observer newspaper, Martin wrote “I have heard that some in your community have characterized the play as ‘people drinking in bars, and treating women as sex objects.’ With apologies to William Shakespeare, this is like calling Hamlet a play about a castle […] I will finance a non-profit, off-high school campus production […] so that individuals, outside the jurisdiction of the school board but within the guarantees of freedom of expression provided by the Constitution of the United States can determine whether they will or will not see the play.”
Art & Entertainment – 2015 – Special – “Steve Martin Private Art Collection on Display at Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art in Las Vegas”
Throughout the 1990’s, Martin wrote various pieces for The New Yorker. In 2002, he adapted the Carl Sternheim play The Underpants…..which ran Off Broadway at Classic Stage Company…..and in 2008 co-wrote and produced Traitor, starring Don Cheadle….plus, he has also written the novellas Shopgirl in 2000…..and The Pleasure of My Company in 2003…..as both were more wry in tone than raucous. A story of a 28-year-old woman behind the glove counter at the Saks Fifth Avenue department store in Beverly Hills, Shopgirl was made into a film starring Martin and Claire Danes. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2005 and was featured at the Chicago International Film Festival and the Austin Film Festival before going into limited release in the US. In 2007, he published a memoir, Born Standing Up, which Time magazine named as one of the Top 10 Nonfiction Books of 2007, ranking it at # 6…..while praising it as “a funny, moving, surprisingly frank memoir.” In 2010, he published the novel An Object of Beauty.
Audio Book – 2011 – “The Pleasure of My Company” – Written and Read by Steve Martin
Beginning in 2019, Martin has collaborated with cartoonist Harry Bliss as a writer for the syndicated single-panel comic Bliss. Together, they published the cartoon collection A Wealth of Pigeons. In 2022, they collaborated again for Martin’s illustrated biography, Number One is Walking.
Cartoons & Comedy – 2020 – CBS Sunday Morning Special – Steve Martin & Harry Bliss on the Concise Joy of Cartoons – “A Wealth of Pigeons”
Comedy & Talk Shows – 2022 – Live on The View – Steve Martin & Harry Bliss on the Making of A Cartoon Memoir – “Number One is Walking”
Inspired by Love has Come for You, Martin and Edie Brickell collaborated on his 1st musical, Bright Star…..which is set in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina in 1945–46…..with flashbacks to 1923. The musical debuted on Broadway on March 24, 2016. Charles Isherwood of The New York Times praised its score by Martin and Brickell writing, “The shining achievement of the musical is its winsome country and bluegrass score, with music by Mr. Martin and Ms. Brickell, and lyrics by Ms. Brickell…the songs — yearning ballads and square-dance romps rich with fiddle, piano, and banjo, beautifully played by a nine-person band — provide a buoyancy that keeps the momentum from stalling.” The musical went on to receive five Tony Award nominations including Best Musical…..as Martin himself received Tony nominations for Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score and received the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music and the Outstanding Critics Circle Award for Best New Score. He also received a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
Comedy & Talk Shows – 2007 – Live with Charlie Rose Special – “Steve Martin: Born Standing Up – A Comics Life”
Martin’s next work as a playwright was the comic play Meteor Shower….. which opened at San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre in August 2016…..and went on to Connecticut’s Long Wharf Theatre later the same year…..while the play opened on Broadway at the Booth Theater on November 29, 2017….with a cast that featured Amy Schumer, Laura Benanti, Jeremy Shamos and Keegan-Michael Key…..with direction by Jerry Zaks…..when critic Allison Adaot of Entertainment Weekly wrote, “Meteor Shower is a very funny play. Keening-like-a-howler-monkey funny. Design-a-new-cry-laughing-emoji funny…In the confident hands of writer and comedy maestro Steve Martin, the premise is polished to sparkling.”
Comedy & Play – 2016 – World Premier at The Old Globe Theater in San Diego – Steve Martin’s “Meteor Shower”
Martin hosted the Academy Awards solo in 2001 and 2003, and with Alec Baldwin in 2010. In 2005, Martin co-hosted Disneyland: The First 50 Magical Years, marking the park’s anniversary. Disney continued to run the show until March 2009, which now plays in the lobby of Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.
Awards Show & Comedy – 2001 – The 73rd Academy Awards with Steve Martin Hosting the Oscars – Featuring His Opening Monologue
Awards Show & Comedy – 2003 – The 75th Academy Awards with Steve Martin Hosting the Oscars – Featuring His Opening Monologue
Movie & Comedy – 2016 – The Disneyland Story Special – “Disneyland: The First 50 Magical Years” – With Hosts Steve Martin & Donald Duck
A fan of Monty Python, in 1989 Martin hosted the television special, Parrot Sketch Not Included – 20 Years of Monty Python. Martin 1st picked up the banjo when he was around 17 years old…..as he has stated in several interviews and in his memoir, Born Standing Up, that he used to take 33 rpm bluegrass records and slow them down to 16 rpm and tune his banjo down, so the notes would sound the same. Martin was able to pick out each note and perfect his playing. Martin learned how to play the banjo with help from John McEuen…..who later joined the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. McEuen’s brother later managed Martin as well as the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band….as Martin did his stand-up routine opening for the band in the early 1970’s. He had the band play on his song “King Tut”…..while being credited as “The Toot Uncommons”…. (as in Tutankhamun). The banjo was a staple of Steve Martin’s 1970’s stand-up career…..and he periodically poked fun at his love for the instrument. On the Comedy is Not Pretty! album, he included an all-instrumental jam titled “Drop Thumb Medley”…..and played the track on his 1979 concert tour. His final comedy album, The Steve Martin Brothers (1981) featured one side of Martin’s typical stand-up material…..with the other side featuring live performances of Steve playing banjo with a bluegrass band.
Comedy – 1990 – VHS TV Special – “Monty Python 20 Year Anniversary Show” – Hosted by Steve Martin
Comedy Album – 2015 – From the Comedy Album “Comedy Is Not Pretty” – “Steve Martin: You Can Be A Millionaire”
Comedy Album & Music – 2015 – From the Comedy Album “Comedy Is Not Pretty” – “Steve Martin: Drop Thumb Medley”
Comedy Album – 2014 – From the Comedy & Music Album “The Steve Martin Brothers” – “Steve Martin: Cocktain Show, Vegas-American Photography, A Scientific Question, What I Believe, A Show Biz Moment”
Comedy Album – 2014 – From the Comedy & Music Album “The Steve Martin Brothers” – “Steve Martin: Saga of the Old West”
In 2001, he played banjo on Earl Scruggs’s remake of “Foggy Mountain Breakdown”…..as the recording was the winner of the Best Country Instrumental Performance category at the Grammy Awards of 2002. In 2008, Martin appeared with the band, In the Minds of the Living, during a show in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. In 2009, Martin released his 1st all-music album, The Crow: New Songs for the 5-String Banjo with appearances from stars such as Dolly Parton…..while the album won the Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album in 2010…..when Nitty Gritty Dirt Band member John McEuen produced the album. Martin made his 1st appearance on The Grand Ole Opry on May 30, 2009. In the American Idol season eight finals, he performed alongside Michael Sarver and Megan Joy in the song “Pretty Flowers”.
Music & Talk Shows – 2006 – Late Night with David Letterman Special – “Earl Scruggs & Steve Martin: Foggy Mountain Breakdown”
Music & Talk Shows – 2010 – Late Night with David Letterman Special – “Noam Pikelny & Steve Martin: Dueling Banjos”
Music – 2012 – Live in Delfest Concert at The Allegany County Fairgrounds in Cumberland Maryland – “The Crow” with Steve Martin & The Steep Canyon Rangers with Bela Fleck & Sam Bush & The McCourys”
Music – 2014 – Great Performances on PBS Special – Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers feat. Edie Brickell: “Atheists Don’t Have No Songs”
Music – 2009 – Steve Martin & Dolly Parton & Megan Joy & Michael Sarver – “Pretty Flowers” (with Lyrics)
In June 2009, Martin played banjo along with the Steep Canyon Rangers on A Prairie Home Companion and began a two-month U.S. tour with the Rangers in September…..which included appearances at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival, Carnegie Hall and Benaroya Hall in Seattle. In November, they went on to play at the Royal Festival Hall in London with support from Mary Black. In 2010, Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers appeared at the New Orleans Jazzfest, Merlefest Bluegrass Festival in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, at Bonnaroo Music Festival, at the ROMP Bluegrass Festival in Owensboro, Kentucky, at the Red Butte Garden Concert series, and on the BBC’s Later… with Jools Holland. Martin performed “Jubilation Day” with the Steep Canyon Rangers on The Colbert Report on March 21, 2011, on Conan on May 3, 2011, and on BBC’s The One Show on July 6, 2011. Martin performed a song he wrote called “Me and Paul Revere” in addition to two other songs on the lawn of the Capitol Building in Washington, DC, at the “Capitol Fourth Celebration” on July 4, 2011. While on tour, Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers occasionally performed Martin’s 1978 novelty hit song “King Tut” live in a bluegrass arrangement. One of these performances was released on the 2011 album Rare Bird Alert. In 2011, Martin also narrated and appeared in the PBS documentary “Give Me The Banjo”…..which chronicled the history of the banjo in America.
Music – 2017 – Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers – “On The Water” (Official Video)
Music – 2018 – Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers – “So Familiar” (Official Video)
Music – 2017 – Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers – “Caroline” (Official Video)
Music – 2014 – Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers – “Daddy Played the Banjo” (Official Video)
Music – 2008 – Steve Martin Banjo Frailing clawhammer Medley – “Loch Lomond” & “Sally Anne”
Music – 2013 – Live at the Loft Special – Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers Perform – As Martin Tells His Banjo Story
Love Has Come for You, a collaboration album with Edie Brickell, was released in April 2013. The two made musical guest appearances on talk shows, such as The View and Late Show with David Letterman, to promote the album….. while the title track won the Grammy Award for Best American Roots Song. Starting in May 2013, he began a tour with the Steep Canyon Rangers and Edie Brickell throughout the United States. In 2015, Brickell and Martin released So Familiar as the 2nd installment of their partnership. In 2017, Martin and Brickell appeared in the multi award-winning documentary film The American Epic Sessions directed by Bernard MacMahon…..while recording live direct-to-disc on the 1st electrical sound recording system from the 1920’s…..when they performed a version of “The Coo Coo Bird”….. which was a traditional song that Martin learned from the 1960’s folk music group The Holy Modal Rounders. The song was featured on the film soundtrack, Music from The American Epic Sessions released on June 9, 2017.
Music – 2015 – Edie Brickell & Steve Martin – “So Familiar”
Music – 2014 – Edie Brickell & Steve Martin – “Love Has Come For You”
Music – 2017 – From “American Epic – The Sessions” Album – Edie Brickell & Steve Martin: “The Coo Coo Bird”
In 2010, Martin created the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass…..which was an award established to reward artistry and bring greater visibility to bluegrass performers…..as the prize includes a US $50,000 cash award, a bronze sculpture created by the artist Eric Fischl and a chance to perform with Martin on Late Show with David Letterman. Recipients include Noam Pikelny of the Punch Brothers band in in 2010, Sammy Shelor of Lonesome River Band in 2011, Mark Johnson in 2012, Jens Kruger in 2013, Eddie Adcock in 2014, Danny Barnes in 2015, Rhiannon Giddens in 2016, Scott Vestal in 2017, Kristin Scott Benson in 2018 and Victor Furtado in 2019.
Music – Banjo & Bluegrass – 2010 – Live at the Rockwood Music Hall Special – Noam Pikelny (1st Winner of the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass) & Steve Martin: “Cluck Old Hen”
Music & Talk Shows – 2012 – Late Night with David Letterman Special – Steve Martin & Emory Lester & Mark Johnson (2012 Winner of Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass): “Acoustic Campaign” in the Clawhammer Style
Music & Talk Shows – 2012 – Late Night with David Letterman Special – Steve Martin & Sammy Shelor and the Lonesome River Band (2012 Winner of Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass): “Molly”
In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, Martin was in a relationship with Bernadette Peters, with whom he co-starred in The Jerk and Pennies from Heaven. He also dated Mary Tyler Moore and Karen Carpenter. On November 20, 1986, Martin married actress Victoria Tennant…..with whom he co-starred in All of Me and L.A. Story…..when they divorced in 1994.
Comedy – 2022 – Special – “Compilation of The Best of Steve Martin Stand-Up Routines”
Martin went on a USO Tour to Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm from October 14 to 21, 1990…..as Martin met with military service men and women all over the region signing thousands of autographs and posing for pictures. “Everybody coming out here, giving up part of their lives for this effort. I had some time off, and I felt kind of bad just sitting there,” Martin said, “so I came.”
Comedy & TV Ads – 2015 – Public Service Announcement Special – Steve Martin: “How To Store Plutonium Properly”
On July 28, 2007, Martin married writer and a former The New Yorker staff member Anne Stringfield. Bob Kerrey presided over the ceremony at Martin’s Los Angeles home. Lorne Michaels served as best man. The nuptials came as a surprise to several guests, who had been told they were coming for a party. In December 2012, Martin became a father when Stringfield gave birth to a daughter.
Comedy Album – 1981 – Live at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas Special – “Steve Martin: What I Believe”
Comedy & Music – 2013 – Saturday Night Live Opening Skit – Host Steve Martin Opens With Chris Farley & Mike Meyers & Bill Hartman & The SNL Players Performing “A Cold Opening”
Martin has been an avid art collector since 1968, when he bought a print by Ed Ruscha. In 2001, the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art presented a five-month exhibit of twenty-eight items from Martin’s collection, including works by Roy Lichtenstein, Pablo Picasso, David Hockney, and Edward Hopper. In 2006, he sold Hopper’s Hotel Window (1955) at Sotheby’s for $26.8 million. In 2015, working with two other curators, he organized a show, “The Idea of North: The Paintings of Lawren Harris”, to introduce Americans to Canadian painter and Group of Seven co-founder Lawren Harris. In July 2004, Martin purchased what he believed to be Landschaft mit Pferden (Landscape with Horses), a 1915 work by Heinrich Campendonk, from a Paris gallery for approximately €700,000. Fifteen months later, the painting was sold at Christie’s auction to a Swiss businesswoman for €500,000. Police believe the fake Campendonk originated from a collection devised by a German forgery ring led by Wolfgang Beltracchi, pieces from which had been sold to French galleries. Martin only discovered the fact that the painting had been fake many years after it had been sold at the auction. Concerning the experience, Martin said that the Beltracchis “were quite clever in that they gave it a long provenance and they faked labels, and it came out of a collection that mingled legitimate pictures with faked pictures.”
Art – Abstract – 2019 – MoMA BBC Gallery in London Special – “Steve Martin: On How to Look at Aabstract Art – The Way I See It”
Martin served on the Los Angeles County Museum of Art board of trustees from 1984 to 2004. Martin assisted in launching the National Endowment for Indigenous Visual Arts (NEIVA), a fund to support Australian Indigenous artists in 2021. Martin has supported Indigenous Australian painting previously. He organized an exhibition in 2019 with Gagosian Gallery titled “Desert Painters of Australia”, which featured art by George Tjungurrayi and Emily Kame Kngwarreye.
Art & News – 2021 – 9 News Australia Special – “Steve Martin: Reveals Passion for Indigenous Australian Art”
Martin suffers from tinnitus; the condition was first attributed to the filming a pistol-shooting scene for Three Amigos in 1986, but Martin later clarified that the tinnitus was actually from years of listening to loud music and performing in front of noisy crowds.
Movie – 2012 – Clip from Movie “The Three Amigos” – “Oh Great…Real Bullets Scene” – Starring Martin Short & Chevy Chase & Steve Martin
Martin has stated that his comedy influences include Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy, Jack Benny, Jerry Lewis and Woody Allen. Martin stated, on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, that Jerry Seinfeld is one of his “retro heroes”, “a guy who came up behind me and is better than I am. I think he’s fantastic, I love to listen to him, he almost puts me at peace. I love to listen to him talk”. Martin’s offbeat, ironic, and deconstructive style of humor has influenced many comedians during his career…..which includes Tina Fey, Steve Carell, Conan O’Brien, Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Robert Smigel, B Burnham, and Jordan Peele. Singer and composer Mike Patton cited Steve Martin as an early influence and said that he identified with Martin.
Comedy – 2010 – The Johnny Cash Show Special – “Steve Martin: Johnny’s Very Good Friend”
In concluding this video history of the life and career of Steve Martin…..while after having watched all the videos contained in this story herewith…..it becomes evidently clear that Mr. Excuuuuuse Me, a Wild & Crazy Guy, is without question, one of the most talented people that I have ever paid homage and tribute too here at Imasportsphile. The fact remains as evidenced by these videos showcasing his talents herewith that he is a comedic genius of the highest level…..while he is probably the best actor to never win an Oscar…..wherein, he is one heck of a skilled writer and film producer…..whereby, he is also a master of banjo, who wrote and performed award winning music that topped the country and bluegrass charts….while being an art critic of the highest order. Simply put, Steve Martin is one very talented and highly skilled individual in many forms of entertainment…..who will leave a legacy of work which fans and folks will return too over and over by generations to come…..which makes us at Imasportsphile very pleased to showcase a video history of his life’s work…..as we simply say, Thanks for the Memories!!
Comedy & Awards – 2017 – The Kennedy Center Presents – “A Tribute to Steve Martin” – Hosted by Steve Carell
