One of the longest-running cast members in the 33-year history of Saturday Night Live, versatile comedian Tim Meadows crafted some of the series' most memorable characters during his 10 years on the popular late night show. Such characters included Leon Phelps, The Ladies' Man and Lionel Osbourne, host of the fictional public affairs show, Perspectives, as well as uncanny impressions of OJ Simpson, Ike Turner and Sammy Davis Jr.
Born in Highland Park, Mich., and raised in Detroit, Meadows studied television and radio broadcasting at Wayne State University before performing improvisational comedy at the Soup Kitchen Saloon. In 1985, Meadows relocated to Chicago, where he first joined ImprovOlympic, and then the legendary comedy troupe Second City. During his three-years at Second City, he wrote and starred in productions of The Gods Must Be Lazy, with Chris Farley; It Was Thirty Years Ago Today; and Flag Smoking Permitted in Lobby Only, gaining a loyal following with his sharp comedic talent. In 1991, Meadows achieved the dreams of comics nationwide when producer
Lorne Michaels asked him to join SNL as a featured player. Nominated for an Emmy® as part of the show's writing team that same month, he later made the transition to cast member status two years afterward.
Several years after appearing in a string of films based on Saturday Night Live sketches, including Coneheads and Wayne's World 2, Meadows was offered his own chance at features. The 2000 release of Paramount's The Ladies Man gave the eponymous hero Leon Phelps the opportunity to bring his Courvoisier-drinking romantic adviser to the big screen. That same year, he left SNL to join NBC's prime-time line-up as a regular cast member on The
Michael Richards Show, and in 2002, he joined the cast of the NBC sitcom Leap of Faith.Â
Meadows played a school principal in the hit comedy Mean Girls and most recently co-starred in the Revolution comedy Benchwarmers. His recent films also include Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story with
John C. Reilly; Semi-Pro with
Will Farrell and just completed filming of Aliens in the Attic with
Kevin Nealon and
Ashley Tisdale. Currently, he plays 'Paul' on The Bill Engvall Show on TBS. He is also a regular correspondent on The Late Late Show with
Craig Ferguson on CBS and The Colbert Report on Comedy Central.
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