Actor, screenwriter. Born on August 14, 1945, in Waco, Texas. Leading comedy star of American TV and films. The son of a real estate executive, he was raised in Southern California from age five. In his mid-teens he sold guidebooks and performed magic tricks at Disneyland and at 18 added banjo riffs and comedy routines to his repertoire. He majored in philosophy at California State University at Long Beach, intending to teach, but after a year switched to UCLA from which he graduated with a degree in theater arts. He landed his first big-time job as a comedy writer for TV's "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour", for which he earned an Emmy Award in 1969. He went on to perform similar services for Sonny and Cher and other entertainers, and at the same time began appearing with increasing frequency in TV comedy-variety shows. Martin then took to the road as a standup comic, eventually scoring great success as a club performer and recording artist. His popularity soared with his frequent appearances as guest or guest host on NBC's "The Tonight Show" and especially on "Saturday Night Live", where he perfected his "Wild and Crazy Guy" routine.
The prematurely gray Martin made his film debut in 1977 and scored his first big hit two years later in The Jerk. He quickly emerged as a popular movie performer, bringing to the screen his likable, self-mocking split personae, forever wavering between vulnerability and over-confidence, between frenzied cheeriness and pathetic heartbreak. He collaborated on the screenplays and participated in the production of several of his films. Martin won the Writers Guild Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and shared the Los Angeles Film Critics Award for Roxanne (1987), his modern-day adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac. His switch from comic to romantic lead in light comedies was a complete success, making him a sought-after star into the 90's. Separated from actress Victoria Tennant. Author: Cruel Shoes (1979).
