Wallace Shawn

Wallace Michael Shawn (born November 12, 1943), is an American actor, voice artist, comedian, playwright and essayist. His film roles have included those of Wally Shawn (a fictionalized version of himself) in the Louis Malle–directed drama My Dinner with Andre, Vizzini in The Princess Bride, Mr. James Hall in Clueless and the voice of Rex in the Toy Story franchise and Monsters, Inc.. He has also had roles in six of Woody Allen's films. His television work includes recurring roles as Jeff Engles in The Cosby Show, Grand Nagus Zek in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Cyrus Rose in Gossip Girl, and Dr. John Sturgis in Young Sheldon.

His plays include Obie Award–winning Aunt Dan and Lemon, The Designated Mourner and Grasses of a Thousand Colors. He also co-wrote the screenplay for My Dinner with Andre with Andre Gregory, and scripted A Master Builder, a film adaptation of the play by Henrik Ibsen, in which he also starred. His book Essays was published in 2009 by Haymarket Books.

Early Life
Shawn was born in New York City, to a Jewish family. His parents were William Shawn (1907–1992), the longtime editor of The New Yorker, and journalist Cecille Shawn (née Lyon; 1906–2005). He has two younger siblings, twins Allen, a composer, and Mary Shawn, who is autistic and lives in an institution.

Shawn attended The Putney School, a private liberal arts high school in Putney, Vermont. He graduated with a A.B. in history from Harvard College. He studied philosophy, politics and economics, as well as Latin, at Magdalen College, Oxford, originally intending to become a diplomat. He also traveled to India as an English teacher on a Fulbright program. He taught Latin in Manhattan but since 1979, he has made his living primarily as an actor.

Career
Shawn's involvement with theater began in 1970 when he met Andre Gregory, who has since directed several of his plays. As a stage actor, he has appeared mostly in his own plays and other projects with Gregory. He made his film debut in 1979, playing Diane Keaton's ex-husband in Woody Allen's Manhattan and an insurance agent in Bob Fosse's All That Jazz. His best-known film roles include Earl in Strange Invaders (1983) and Mr. Hall in Clueless (1995). After seeing his performance in My Dinner With Andre (1981), casting director Janet Hirshenson was so fond of his delivery of the word "inconceivable" that she cast him as Vizzini in The Princess Bride (1987). Other roles include Baron Von Westphalen in Southland Tales, Cyrus Rose on Gossip Girl, and Ezra in The Haunted Mansion (2003).

His rare non-comedic film roles include two collaborations with Andre Gregory and Louis Malle: the semi-autobiographical dialogue My Dinner with Andre, and a combined production-and-backstage-drama of Uncle Vanya titled Vanya on 42nd Street. Shawn quite often appears on television, where he has appeared in many genres and series. He has had recurring roles as the Grand Nagus Zek on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Stuart Best on Murphy Brown, Jeff Engels on The Cosby Show, Dr. Howard Stiles on Crossing Jordan, Arnie Ross on Taxi, Charles Lester on The Good Wife, and a reprisal of his role as Mr. Hall on Clueless (based on the film). He appeared in the 1985 music video for Chaka Khan's "This is My Night". On February 4, 2010, Shawn appeared as Alan Rubin on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He appeared in Vegas Vacation as Marty. A Master Builder opened in New York City in June 2014. In 2018, he joined the cast of Young Sheldon in the recurring role of Meemaw's boyfriend and Sheldon's physics professor, Dr. John Sturgis.

Shawn stars in Woody Allen's 2020 film Rifkin's Festival, set in San Sebastian, Spain.

Shawn was honored in 2005 with the PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater Award as a Master American Dramatist.

Shawn is a voice actor for animated films and television series, including Rex in the Toy Story franchise, Monsters, Inc. (2001) during the outtakes in the end credits, Kingdom Hearts III, Mr. Gilbert Huph in The Incredibles, Principal Mazur in A Goofy Movie, Bertram in Family Guy, Munk in Happily N'Ever After, Purple Pirate Paul in Tom and Jerry: Shiver Me Whiskers, and as a caricature of himself in BoJack Horseman.

Shawn said that Toy Story director John Lasseter may have seen both his My Dinner with Andre and The Princess Bride roles and saw him as "excitable" like Rex.

In The Fox and the Hound, he was originally going to voice Boomer, but dropped out and was replaced by Paul Winchell. In Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore, Shawn replaced Jon Lovitz as the voice of Calico.

Films

 * Napoleon (1995) - Echidna

Animated Films

 * Mia and the Migoo (2008) - The Migoo

Video Game Dubbing

 * Kingdom Hearts III (2019) - Rex