Damon Wayans: Favorite Male Performer In a New TV Series

In 1990 comedian Damon Wayans burst onto the television scene with In Living Color, an outrageously funny and often controversial comedy show broadcast on the Fox Network. Each week, the half-hour variety show parodied life in America, with one big distinction, its street-smart, urban perspective. He then moved on to appear in numerous films. In 2001 Wayans debuted in another, though far less controversial, hit television comedy series, My Wife and Kids.

Born in 1961 and raised in the Chelsea district of New York City as one of 11 children, Wayans learned the value of a family. Though they were poor, he doesn't hold any bad memories of his childhood. In fact, Wayans credited his upbringing for much of his comic ability, where as children and his siblings would stretch their imaginations with a game of "make me laugh or die."

The popularity of In Living Color made him especially adept at mimicking people like Louis Farrakhan. But his self-created characters Homey the Clown, Anton the Bum, and Handi-Man (a handicapped superhero) distinguished him from the rest of the ensemble and made Damon Wayans one of the most popular cast members.

Next Wayans developed the comedy TV series, Damon, which debuted mid-season in 1998. Wayans played an undercover Chicago police officer and David Allen Grier--also of In Living Color fame-- took on the role of Wayans' inept younger brother. Wayans assumes numerous disguises throughout the course of his undercover work. People Weekly's Terry Kelleher noted that "Wayans comes alive" when he puts on a disguise and presents a comic caricature, but that "when the cop is himself, the star is on autopilot." The series was not renewed for a second season.

Wayans served as producer and co-creator of the tv show “My Wife and Kids”. In 2002 My Wife and Kids won a People's Choice Award for Favorite New TV Comedy series. Wayans also garnered the Favorite Male Performer in a New TV Series award. Wayans was next set to appear in a full-length film version of Homey the Clown.

Emmy Awards for outstanding writing in a variety program, for In Living Color, 1991 and 1992; Soul Train Comedy Award for best actor in a TV sketch comedy role, 1993; People's Choice Awards, Favorite Male Performer In a New Television Series, 2002.

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Camryn Manheim: Star of "The Practice"

In 1998, Camryn Manheim came to the attention of television episode audiences when she won a Best Supporting Actress Emmy for her role as lawyer Ellenor Frutt on David E. Kelley's acclaimed law drama The Practice. Hoisting her award in the air and exuberantly declaring, "This is for all the fat girls!", the actress won over millions of viewers, many of whom may not have been aware of her existence before the awards ceremony.

Born in Caldwell, New Jersey on March 8, 1961, Manheim was raised in Peoria, Illinois and Long Beach California, the daughter of a math professor father and school teacher mother. She developed an interest in acting after attending a Renaissance fair at the age of sixteen, and she went on to get a Masters in Fine Arts from New York University in 1987. After graduating, Manheim made her screen debut with a miniscule role in Bonfire of the Vanities in 1990. A long series of similarly minor roles in films ranging from Jeffrey (1995) to Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997) followed before she was cast in The Practice in 1997. After winning fame and an Emmy for her work on the show, Manheim gained additional exposure and respect with her role as a denizen of Todd Solondz's dysfunctional New Jersey suburbia in the acclaimed Happiness (1998). The following year, in addition to winning a Golden Globe and another Emmy nomination for her portrayal of Ellenor Frutt, Manheim continued to act in films, appearing in Fools Gold and Joe the King, both of which were shown at the 1999 Sundance Festival.

In addition to acting, Manheim also authored Wake Up, I'm Fat, a memoir that began life as a one-woman show at New York's Public Theatre. By turns funny and excruciating, it details the actress's transformation from wholesome middle American to tattooed, dozen-earringed California biker, her struggles with those who told her she'd have to lose weight to fit in, and the trials and tribulations of making it in the entertainment industry.

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The Wonder Years of Fred Savage

Born in a Chicago suburb, Fred Savage began appearing in local TV commercials from the time he could read. In 1986, Fred made his big-screen debut in Disney's The Boy Who Could Fly. Savage's subsequent film roles of note included the inquisitive grandson of yarn-spinning Peter Falk in The Princess Bride (1987) and the junior edition of Judge Reinhold in Vice Versa (1988). After essaying a supporting part in the 1986 TV series Morningstar/Eveningstar, Savage was elevated to top billing in the role of Kevin Arnold on the nostalgic seriocomedy The Wonder Years (1988-1993). Fred Savage is the brother of Ben Savage, star of TV's Boy Meets World (1993), and juvenile supporting actress Kala Savage.

Fred Savage is best known for his role as Kevin Arnold in the television series The Wonder Years, an American television show drama created by Carol Black and Neal Marlens. It ran for six seasons on ABC, from 1988 through 1993. The pilot aired on January 31, 1988 after ABC's coverage of Super Bowl XXII.

The show achieved a spot in the Nielsen Top Ten for two of its six seasons. TV Guide named the show one of the 1980s' 20 best. After only six episodes aired, The Wonder Years won an Emmy for best comedy show series in 1988. Moreover, at the age of 13, Fred Savage gained the honor of being the youngest actor ever nominated Outstanding Lead Actor for a Comedy Series. In addition, the tv show was awarded a Peabody Award in 1989, for achieving two seemingly contradictory effects, evoking a traditional family sitcom while pushing boundaries and using new modes of storytelling. In total, the tv series won 22 awards, and was nominated for a further 54 more.

The Wonder Years | TV Episodes

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