Biography
Despite his diminutive 5-foot frame, actor Danny DeVito loomed large on television and in features after his stint as the acerbic Louie De Palma on the classic sitcom, "Taxi" (ABC/NBC, 1978-1983). After gaining acclaim as the sex-obsessed mental patient Martini in both the stage and film versions of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975), DeVito landed the role of Louie and spent the next five years delighting in his torment of a ragtag …
Danny DeVito SlideShow
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Career Milestones
1963 | Worked as hairdresser for one year at his sister's shop in New Jersey |
1966 | Met Michael Douglas while studying at the AADA and working at the Eugene O'Neill Foundation |
1968 | Made feature film debut in "Dreams of Glass" |
1969 | Off-Broadway debut in the leading role of one of three one-act plays jointly titled "The Man With the Flower in His Mouth" |
1971 | Appeared in the off-Broadway production of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" |
1972 | Had a supporting role in the Italian-French co-production "La mortadella," starring Sophia Loren |
1973 | Co-wrote and produced (with Rhea Perlman) first short film, "The Sound Sleeper" |
1975 | DeVito and Perlman received grant from American Film Institute to write and produce a second short film "Minestrone"; shown at the Cannes Film Festival |
1975 | Reprised the role of Martini for the Milos Forman's feature adaptation of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"; Michael Douglas produced |
1978 | Made TV debut as Louie De Palma, the dispatcher for the fictional Sunshine Cab Company on the hit show "Taxi" (ABC, 1978-82; NBC, 1982-83) |
1982 | Made directing debut with episodes of "Taxi" |
1983 | Had a small but memorable role opposite Shirley MacLaine in James L. Brooks' "Terms of Endearment" |
1984 | Teamed with Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner in "Romancing the Stone" |
1985 | Re-teamed with Douglas and Turner for the sequel "The Jewel of the Nile" |
1986 | Starred opposite wife Rhea Perlman on the second season premiere of the NBC anthology series "Amazing Stories"; also directed the episode |
1987 | Made feature directing debut with "Throw Momma from the Train"; also co-starred |
1991 | Voiced the part of Herb Powell, Homer Simpson's long-lost half-brother on several episodes of "The Simpsons" (Fox) |
1992 | Co-founded production company Jersey Films with wife Rhea Perlman |
1992 | First feature producing credit, "Hoffa"; also directed and co-starred |
1992 | Had a memorable role as the Penguin in Tim Burton's "Batman Returns" |
1993 | Supplied the voice of Rocks for the feature "Look Who's Talking Now" |
1994 | First executive producing credit on a feature, "8 Seconds" |
1994 | Produced the Ben Stiller directed film, "Reality Bites" |
1994 | Served as executive producer for Quentin Tarantino's smash hit "Pulp Fiction |
1996 | Produced, directed and acted in the film adaptation of Roald Dahl's "Matilda"; also co-starred with Perlman |
1997 | Portrayed a smarmy tabloid columnist in Curtis Hanson's "L.A. Confidential" |
1997 | Re-teamed with Michael Douglas for "John Grisham's The Rainmaker" |
1998 | Had rare romantic role opposite Holly Hunter in the comedy-drama "Living Out Loud" |
1999 | Cast alongside Kevin Spacey and Peter Facinelli in the drama "The Big Kahuna" |
2000 | Produced the box-office hit "Erin Brockovich," starring Julia Roberts; earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture |
2000 | Teamed with Bette Midler for "Drowning Mona"; also served as one of the executive producers |
2001 | Played a leading role in the screen comedy "What's the Worst That Could Happen?" |
2001 | Served as an executive producer on the CBS drama series, "Kate Brasher," co-starring his wife Perlman |
2002 | Directed and starred in "Death to Smoochy" |
2003 | Co-starred in the Woody Allen comedy "Anything Else" |
2003 | Helmed the romantic comedy "The Duplex," co-starring Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore |
2003 | Played ringmaster Amos Calloway in Tim Burton's "Big Fish" |
2004 | Guest starred as a stripper on an episode of "Friends" (NBC); received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy series |
2004 | Served as executive producer of Comedy Central's "Reno 911" |
2006 | Returned to series TV after joining cast on the second season of the FX comedy "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" |
2007 | Cast in Jake Paltrow's directorial debut "The Good Night" |
2007 | Co-starred in Mark Rydell's "Even Money," a series of intertwining stories on how gambling and drugs destroy people's lives |
2010 | Played one of Kristen Bell's suitors in the comedy "When in Rome" |
2011 | Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame |
2012 | Voiced the title character in animated feature "Dr. Seuss' The Lorax" |
Awards
1978 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television in Taxi |
1979 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television in Taxi |
1979 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor In a Comedy or Comedy-Variety or Music Series in Taxi |
1980 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television in Taxi |
1981 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television in Taxi |
1981 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor In a Comedy, Variety or Music Series in Taxi |
1982 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor In a Comedy, Variety or Music Series in Taxi |
1983 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor In a Comedy, Variety or Music Series in Taxi |
1986 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy Or Musical in Ruthless People |
1987 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy Or Musical in Throw Momma From the Train |
1993 | MTV Movie Award for Best Villain in Batman Returns |
1996 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in Get Shorty |
1998 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in L.A. Confidential |
2000 | Academy Award for Best Picture in Erin Brockovich |
2000 | BAFTA Award for Film in Erin Brockovich |
2004 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor In a Comedy Series in Friends |
2007 | Karlovy Vary International Film Festival for Crystal Globe for Outstanding Artistic Contribution to World Cinema in Jar City |
2011 | Critics' Choice TV Award for TELEVISION ICON AWARD |