Jerry Trainor

Last updated

Jerry Trainor
Jerry Trainor in 2022.png
Trainor in April 2022
Born
Gerald William Trainor

(1977-01-21) January 21, 1977 (age 48) [1]
Education University of California, Santa Barbara (B.F.A.)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • musician
Years active2000–present

Gerald William "Jerry" Trainor (born January 21, 1977) [1] is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as "Crazy" Steve in Drake & Josh and Spencer Shay in the teen sitcom iCarly and its revival series of the same name, winning three Kids' Choice Awards for his performances. He also did voice work in T.U.F.F. Puppy as Dudley Puppy, for which he received a Daytime Emmy Award nomination. Since 2004, Trainor has worked primarily on the Nickelodeon network. Outside of this, he has had recurring and guest roles on young adult-oriented shows on the Disney Channel and Netflix as well as in the more mature shows Crossing Jordan and 2 Broke Girls .

Contents

Early life and education

Trainor was born and raised in San Diego, California, [2] [3] the son of Bill Trainor, a retired Navy fighter pilot and public defender, and Madelyn Trainor, a retired high school calculus teacher. He has an older sister named Liz. He is of Irish, Croatian, and German descent. [4]

Trainor grew up in the San Diego community of Scripps Ranch and attended the University of San Diego High School. [5] He studied drama at the University of California, Santa Barbara graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. [1] [6] He studied improvisation at The Groundlings school in Los Angeles. Before becoming an actor, he worked at San Diego SeaWorld. [7]

Acting career

Trainor in 2012 Jerry Trainor.jpg
Trainor in 2012

His first television role was in the MTV series Undressed as Eric. Some of his other television credits include Law & Order True Crime, Angel , and Malcolm in the Middle . His first recurring TV role was as Brian "the A.V. guy" on Crossing Jordan . He has had several small roles in films such as the science fiction drama Donnie Darko and the cheerleader comedy Bring It On Again . He appeared on the web series Hungry Girl. [8]

Trainor had a recurring role on Drake & Josh as "Crazy Steve", a movie theater worker, from 2004 to 2007. He starred in iCarly as Spencer Shay, the older brother and guardian of Miranda Cosgrove's title character from 2007 to 2012 (he and Cosgrove had previously acted together on Drake & Josh, as Cosgrove played the role of the title duo's little sister). For iCarly, he won three Kids' Choice Awards. He completed the 2008 music-themed comedy Wreckless Epic, in which he stars. Trainor starred in the animated series T.U.F.F. Puppy as the voice of Dudley Puppy, for which he was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program.

Trainor was involved in a World of Warcraft video series titled Project Lore, playing the Draenei shaman Goggins. In February 2009, he left the series and was replaced by Jeff Cannata. He also starred alongside iCarly co-star Jennette McCurdy in the Nickelodeon TV movie Best Player , where he played Quincy Johnson, a video-game enthusiast whose main competition in a video-gaming contest is McCurdy's character.

In 2013, Trainor starred in the short-lived series Wendell & Vinnie as Vinnie, the uncle and guardian of Buddy Handleson's character Wendell. He played Commander Michael Sullivan for both seasons of the Halo in-universe podcast Hunt the Truth. In 2017, Trainor voiced the recurring role of Commander Cone on Bunsen Is a Beast .

Trainor at the 2021 Kids Choice Awards Jerry Trainor KCA 2021.jpg
Trainor at the 2021 Kids Choice Awards

Since 2018, Trainor and Mike O'Gorman have starred in a comedy Web series called The Porch, which can be found on YouTube. In 2018, Trainor starred in the film Cover Versions written and directed by award-winning filmmaker Todd Berger. The film premiered at the 2018 Palm Springs Film Festival and was acquired for distribution by Sony Pictures. Parts of the film were shot on location during the KAABOO Del Mar music festival (in coastal northern San Diego County). Trainor's performance was heralded as being edgy and thought-provoking.

In March 2021, it was announced that iCarly was being revived. The series premiered on Paramount+ in June of that year, with Trainor reprising his role as Spencer Shay. [9]

Music career

In October 2015, Trainor formed the band Nice Enough People with guitarist-vocalist Mike O'Gorman, drummer Andrew Zuber, and guitarist Allison Scagliotti, who also happened to be a co-star of Trainor's in Drake & Josh as the character Mindy Crenshaw. [10] Trainor plays bass for the group. [10] The group released its first EP, Hanover Hideaway, on June 22, 2016. [11]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2001 Donnie Darko Lanky KidCameo [12]
Evolution TommyCameo[ citation needed ]
WaysideTommyDirect-to-video film
2004 Bring It On Again Smug GuyDirect-to-video film
2007Waking DreamsAndrewDirect-to-video film
2008 Merry Christmas, Drake & Josh Crazy SteveTV film
2009Factory 9Roland WatersDirect-to-video film
Wreckless Epic: The Journey to SXSWKelly Kirkwood
The Gamers HimselfTelevision film
2011 Best Player Quincy "Q" JohnsonTelevision film
iParty with Victorious Spencer Shay Television film
2012Holiday RoadDougSegment: "October"
2013 Pororo, The Racing Adventure Walter FeatherbottomVoice role
2017Cover VersionsTravis
2018 Alex & Me "Nigel"/NickDirect-to-video film
2022 Snow Day Snowplow ManTelevision film

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
2000 Undressed Eric2 episodes
2001 Malcolm in the Middle Private EdwardsEpisode: "Evacuation"
2002 My Wife and Kids Star Trek fanEpisode: "The Bowling Show"
Angel JaredEpisode: "Supersymmetry"
ER DariusEpisode: "One Can Only Hope"
2004–2005 Crossing Jordan Brian - A.V. GuyRecurring role; 5 episodes
2004–2007 Drake & Josh "Crazy" Steve Recurring role; 10 episodes
2007–2012 iCarly Spencer Shay Main role; also Director: "iApril Fools" and "iLost My Head in Vegas"
2009 BrainSurge HimselfContestant
2010 The Penguins of Madagascar Eddie (Cockroach)Voice role; episode: "Stop Bugging Me"
2010–2015 T.U.F.F. Puppy Dudley PuppyMain voice role
2010–2013 Victorious Audience memberEpisode: "Jade Dumps Beck" (uncredited)[ citation needed ]
Spencer ShayEpisode: "April Fools Blank"
2011That Movie ShowN/A1 episode
2012–2013 Doc McStuffins WillRecurring voice role; 4 episodes
2012Simian Undercover Detective SquadKelly the Elastic Man / Heptagan Scientist2 episodes
2013 Wendell & Vinnie VinnieMain role
2014 Sam & Cat "Crazy" Steve / Himself2 episodes
Living the DreamCal LoganTelevision film
2016 2 Broke Girls LeninEpisode: "And the Partnership Hits The Fan" [13]
Still the King P.M.S. Leader3 episodes
Star vs. the Forces of Evil RoyVoice role; episode: "Goblin Dogs"
2017 Bunsen Is a Beast Commander ConeVoice role; 3 episodes
Law & Order True Crime Will CantonEpisode: "The Menendez Murders: Episode 3"
2018 The Adventures of Kid Danger The Wahoo Punch BroVoice role; episode: "The Wahoo Punch Bro"
Henry Danger JoeyEpisode: "Thumb War"
2019 No Good Nick ToddRecurring role; 5 episodes
2020Apocalypse GoalsNews JanitorRecurring role; 3 episodes
Bunk'd DaveEpisode: "My Fairy Lady"
2021–2022 Tooned In HimselfCo-host (season 2) [14]
2021–2023 iCarly Spencer ShayMain role; also Producer

Video games

YearTitleRoleNotes
2009 iCarly Spencer Shay Voice role
2010iCarly: iDream in Toons
iCarly 2: iJoin the Click!
2014 Cars: Fast as Lightning Todd Marcus

Discography

Soundtrack appearances

YearTitleSong
2022Snow Day"These Kids"

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryWorkResultRefs
2009 Teen Choice Awards Choice TV Actor: Comedy iCarly Nominated [16] [17]
2010 Australian Kids' Choice Awards Big Kid AwardWon [18] [19]
LOL Award (shared with ensemble)Won [18]
2011 UK Kids' Choice Awards Nick UK's Funniest PersonWon [20]
Meus Prêmios Nick BrazilFunniest CharacterNominated [21] [22]
2012 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite TV SidekickNominated [23]
2013 Daytime Emmy Awards Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program T.U.F.F. Puppy Nominated [24]
2022Kids' Choice AwardsFavorite Male TV Star (Family) iCarly Nominated [25]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Jerry Train or Biography, Celebrity Facts and Awards". TV Guide .
  2. Bell, Diane (February 15, 2013). "San Diego native stars in new Nickelodeon series". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved January 19, 2025.
  3. "Jerry Trainor of 'iCarly' stars in new sitcom". San Diego Union-Tribune. February 15, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2025.
  4. Trainor, Jerry [@jerrytrainor] (April 17, 2013). "@SeddieMania I'm Irish, of course I want some of your baked potato! Duh! Get it in my stomach now!" (Tweet). Retrieved March 3, 2021 via Twitter.
  5. "San Diego native stars in new Nickelodeon series". San Diego Union-Tribune. February 16, 2013. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  6. "Jerry Trainor". sfsketchfest2015.sched.com. 2015. Archived from the original on June 26, 2022. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  7. "San Diego native stars in new Nickelodeon series - the San Diego Union-Tribune". Archived from the original on September 21, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  8. HungryGirlTV (December 15, 2008). "Fun With... The Hungry Girl Book". Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved November 7, 2011 via YouTube.
  9. "iCarly's Miranda Cosgrove, Jerry Trainor and Nathan Kress to Reunite at the Kids' Choice Awards". PEOPLE.com. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  10. 1 2 Grant, Stacey (April 12, 2016). "Crazy Steve And Mindy From Drake & Josh Started A Band With A Very Appropriate Name". MTV News . Archived from the original on August 25, 2016. Retrieved August 23, 2016.
  11. Nice Enough People [@NiceEnoughPpl] (June 21, 2016). "It's here! Our debut EP "Hanover Hideaway" now on iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify & Amazon etc. Here's the iTunes link" (Tweet). Retrieved August 23, 2016 via Twitter.
  12. Sethi, Arjun (June 1, 2020). "'iCarly': What has happened with Jerry Trainor (Spencer) and how it looks today? - News series". Code List. Archived from the original on July 10, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  13. "Goofing around on the set of Two Broke Girls". facebook.com. Archived from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  14. "Exclusive: 'iCarly's Jerry Trainor Co-Hosts S2 of Nick Trivia". beta.animationmagazine.net. September 9, 2021.
  15. "Hanover Hideaway by Nice Enough People". niceenoughpeople.bandcamp.com.
  16. "Teen Choice Awards 2009 nominees". Los Angeles Times . June 15, 2009. Archived from the original on October 5, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
  17. "Announcing the Winners of the 2009 Teen Choice Awards!". PopSugar . August 9, 2009. Archived from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
  18. 1 2 "Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2010 Winners List & Orange Carpet Video!". Take40. October 8, 2010. Archived from the original on September 26, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
  19. "2010 Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards Nominations List!". Take40. August 18, 2010. Archived from the original on October 12, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
  20. "Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2011 Winners!". Fun Kids . Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
  21. "Nickelodeon anuncia finalistas do Meus Prêmios Nick 2011" [Nickelodeon announces 2011 Nick Awards finalists]. ANMTV (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on February 17, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
  22. "Nickelodeon divulga os vencedores do Meus Prêmios Nick 2011" [Nickelodeon announces the winners of My Nick Awards 2011]. ANMTV (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
  23. "Lista completa de ganadores Kids Choice Awards 2012" [Complete list of winners Kids Choice Awards 2012]. Solo Famosos (in Spanish). Archived from the original on October 12, 2013. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
  24. "Microsoft Word - day_1213_nominations_v02.doc" (PDF). The Emmys. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 12, 2013. Retrieved May 2, 2013.
  25. "Miranda Cosgrove and Rob Gronkowski to Co-Host "Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards 2022," Live on Saturday, April 9, at 7:30 P.M. (ET/PT)" (Press release). Nickelodeon. March 9, 2022. Archived from the original on August 25, 2023. Retrieved March 12, 2022 via The Futon Critic.