Jeffrey Tambor
Jeffrey Tambor is an Emmy-nominated American actor, celebrated for his notable roles on popular sitcoms, particularly as Hank Kingsley on *The Larry Sanders Show* and as George Bluth Sr. in *Arrested Development*. Born on July 8, 1944, in San Francisco, Tambor developed an early interest in acting and pursued formal education in theater, earning a bachelor's degree from San Francisco State University and a master's degree from Wayne State University. His career began in theater, leading to a range of television appearances throughout the late 1970s and 1980s, but he gained significant recognition in the 1990s with *The Larry Sanders Show*, where he received multiple Emmy nominations.
Tambor's later success included a critically acclaimed role in *Transparent*, for which he won several awards, including a Golden Globe and multiple Emmys. However, his career faced serious challenges after allegations of sexual harassment emerged in 2017, resulting in his dismissal from *Transparent*. Despite these controversies, Tambor is noted for his unique comedic talent, often portraying eccentric and neurotic characters. He has been married twice and has six children.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Jeffrey Tambor
Actor
- Born: July 8, 1944
- Place of Birth: San Francisco, California
Contribution: Jeffrey Tambor is an Emmy-nominated American actor best known for his roles on the sitcoms The Larry Sanders Show and Arrested Development.
Background
Jeffrey Michael Tambor was born on July 8, 1944, in the Sunset District of San Francisco, California, and was raised in Park Merced. He became interested in acting as a child and took his first acting lessons at the age of twelve.
Tambor later enrolled at San Francisco State University, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in theater in 1965. He then enrolled at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, where he earned a master of fine arts degree in 1969. He stayed on at Wayne State to earn a doctorate but left the program in 1970 for the opportunity to appear onstage with actor Richard Chamberlain in a production of Richard II at the Seattle Repertory Theater.
Tambor was soon performing in various stage productions around the country. He also initiated a successful career as an acting teacher, instructing students for several years before turning to acting full time in the mid-1970s. Tambor made his Broadway debut in 1976, acting in Arthur Penn’s production of Sly Fox at the Broadhurst Theatre.
Career
Tambor continued to work in theater before landing parts in episodes of the television shows Kojak (1977), Starsky and Hutch (1978), and Taxi (1979).
After playing a lawyer in the Al Pacino legal drama . . . And Justice for All (1979), Tambor was cast as Jeffrey P. Brookes III on the ABC sitcom The Ropers, a spin-off of the popular sitcom Three’s Company. The show ran from 1979 to 1980 before it was canceled due to dismal ratings.
From 1981 to 1987, Tambor had a recurring role as a judge on the police drama Hill Street Blues. Though he continued to play supporting roles in various films such as The Man Who Wasn’t There (1983) and No Small Affair (1984), Tambor primarily found success on television, performing in guest spots on such shows as The Love Boat (1981–83), M*A*S*H (1982), and Three’s Company (1981–82).
In 1985 and 1986 Tambor performed in two episodes of the revived The Twilight Zone series, and in 1986 he starred in the sitcom Mr. Sunshine, playing a blind professor. The show was canceled after its first season due to low ratings. In the late 1980s, Tambor made episodic appearances on several mainstream television shows, including L.A. Law (1988) and The Golden Girls (1989–91). He also appeared on the sci-fi series Max Headroom from 1987 to 1988. From 1990 to 1991, he held a supporting role as an editor on the sitcom American Dreamer, acting in the entirety of the first season before the show was canceled.
It was in 1992 that Tambor got his big television break when he began appearing on the HBO comedy sitcom The Larry Sanders Show. The show focuses on the behind-the-scenes goings-on of the titular late-night talk show. Tambor portrayed Hank Kingsley, the show’s announcer and the sidekick of Larry, the neurotic host, played by Garry Shandling.
Though the show never drew in huge audiences, it was a major critical success and helped HBO to become one of the leading premium channels in the United States. The Larry Sanders Show ran for six seasons from 1992 to 1998. During that time, Tambor was nominated for four Emmy Awards for outstanding supporting actor in a comedy series.
When The Larry Sanders Show ended, Tambor was a highly in-demand actor, appearing in the comedy hits Dr. Dolittle and There’s Something about Mary in 1998, as well as the drama Meet Joe Black. He finished off the decade with a supporting role in the 1999 drama Girl, Interrupted.
After a slew of guest appearances on television in the early 2000s, Tambor again found mainstream sitcom success in 2003 when he took on the roles of twin brothers George Bluth Sr. and Oscar Bluth on the sitcom Arrested Development. The show focuses on the members of the dysfunctional Bluth family as they cope with George’s arrest for corporate fraud.
The show performed exceptionally well with critics, and in 2004 and 2005 Tambor was nominated for the Emmy Award for outstanding supporting actor in a comedy series. Though the show received widespread critical acclaim, it was canceled in 2006 due to low ratings.
Tambor played supporting characters in a number of features in the early 2000s, appearing in Hellboy (2004), Slipstream (2007), and The Invention of Lying (2009). He went on to do voice acting for Tangled (2010), Trolls (2016), Tangled: Before Ever After (2017), and episodes of the animated spy series Archer (2010–17). He also appeared on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2013–14) and The Good Wife (2013–14). In 2009 he acted in the comedy film The Hangover with Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, and Zach Galifianakis; Tambor reprised this role for the sequels The Hangover Part II (2011) and The Hangover Part III (2013).
From 2011 to 2015, Tambor supplied the voice of Professor Leonard Cakes on the Adult Swim animated comedy series China, IL. He also appeared in six episodes of the NBC romantic comedy Bent before the show was canceled in 2012. In 2013, Netflix resurrected Arrested Development for a fourth season, with Tambor appearing in all fifteen episodes alongside the members of the original cast. The entire cast was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for best ensemble in 2014. The show was renewed for another several seasons.
In 2014 Tambor starred in the first season of the Amazon show Transparent, a comedy about a family adjusting to their father's revelation that he will be living his life as a woman. For his performance as the transitioning Maura Pfefferman, Tambor won a Golden Globe in 2015, Emmy Awards in 2015 and 2016, and a Screen Actors Guild Award in 2016.. In late 2017 two trans associates, his former assistant Van Barnes and his castmate Trace Lysette, accused him of propositioning, inappropriate touching, and other forms of sexual harassment. Tambor admitted to an anger problem but denied the sexual-misconduct allegations. He maintained he was being attacked for being a cisgender actor playing a transgender woman, something that critics had opposed from the start. After an internal investigation by Amazon, Tambor was dismissed from the show in early 2018.
Returning to film, Tambor costarred as Georgy Malenkov alongside Steve Buscemi and Simon Russell Beale in the 2018 political satire The Death of Stalin. His other television show, Arrested Development, concluded in 2019. That same year Tambor admitted to and apologized for having verbally abused costar Jessica Walter on set.
In the years after the allegations, Tambor’s career stalled, with the actor appearing in just one production, the 2020 Disney+ film, Magic Camp, from 2020 to 2024.
Impact
Tambor has made a successful acting career by imbuing tightly wound and megalomaniacal types with quirky humor. His comedic potency comes mostly in the form of dry, seemingly unintentional humor, making him a unique and powerful force of comedy acting.
Personal Life
Tambor married Kathryn Mitchell in 1991, but they divorced in 2000. He then married Kasia Ostlun in 2001. Tambor has six children.
Bibliography
Abramovitch, Seth. “Jeffrey Tambor Harassment Claims on ‘Transparent’: An Up-Close Look.” The Hollywood Reporter, 7 May 2018, www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/lines-got-blurred-jeffrey-tambor-an-up-close-look-at-harassment-claims-transparent-1108939. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.
Aroesti, Rachel. "'You’re Toxic!' Can TV Shows Survive When Their Star Becomes a Scandal?" Guardian, 12 May 2021, www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/may/12/youre-toxic-can-tv-shows-survive-when-their-star-becomes-a-scandal-joss-whedon-jeffrey-tambor-kevin-spacey-noel-clarke. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.
Egner, Jeremy. “Jeffrey Tambor on the Return of ‘Arrested Development.’” New York Times, 21 May 2013, archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/21/jeffrey-tambor-on-the-return-of-arrested-development/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.
"Jeffrey Tambor." IMDb, 2024, www.imdb.com/name/nm0001787/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.
Olsen, Mark. “It’s a Matter of Character.” Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2003, www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-aug-24-ca-q-a24-story.html. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.
Pazornik, Amanda. “Hey Now!: SFSU Honors Star Actor Alum and S.F. Native Jeffrey Tambor.” J. Weekly, 14 May 2009, jweekly.com/2009/05/15/hey-now-sfsu-honors-star-actor-alum-and-s-f-native-jeffrey-tambor/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.