Leo Benvenuti (born October 10, 1959) and Steve Rudnick (born February 24, 1958) are a Chicago-based film and television writing and producing team. The two met in 1978 while studying with Josephine Forsberg at The Players Workshop of Second City. [1] In 1990, they developed their own late-night variety show called The Steve and Leo Show.
Benvenuti and Rudnick also created and co-executive produced NBC's TV series "The Second Half" and the short-lived 1998 Fox TV series Damon , starring Damon Wayans.
They have written several films, including The Santa Clause , Space Jam , and Kicking & Screaming .
The Santa Clause is a 1994 American Christmas comedy film directed by John Pasquin and written by Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick. The first installment in The Santa Clause franchise, it stars Tim Allen as Scott Calvin, an ordinary man who accidentally causes Santa Claus to fall from his roof to his supposed death on Christmas Eve. When he and his young son, Charlie, finish the late St. Nick's trip and deliveries, they go to the North Pole where Scott learns that he must become the new Santa and convince those he loves that he is indeed Santa Claus.
Ivan Reitman was a Czechoslovak-born Canadian filmmaker. He was best known for his comedy work, especially in the 1980s and 1990s. He was the owner of The Montecito Picture Company, founded in 1998.
A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of video production on a television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television networks, but upon acceptance they focus on business matters, such as budgets and contracts. Other producers are more involved with the day-to-day workings, participating in activities such as screenwriting, set design, casting, and directing.
Naked Raygun is an American punk rock band that formed in Chicago in 1980. The band was active from 1980 to 1992, along with reunion shows in 1997, and since 2006.
N.Y.P.D. was a half-hour American police crime drama set in the context of the New York City Police Department. The program appeared on the ABC network during the 1967–1968 and 1968–1969 United States network television schedules, running in the evening during the 9:30 p.m. night time slot. During the second season, N.Y.P.D was joined by The Mod Squad and It Takes a Thief to form a 2½ hour block of crime dramas.
Jeffrey Garlin is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is best known for playing Murray Goldberg, patriarch of the eponymous family in the ABC sitcom The Goldbergs, and Jeff Greene on the HBO sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm. He also played Marvin on Mad About You and Mort Meyers on Arrested Development for Fox and Netflix.
The Naked Truth is the fourth live album by Dutch hard rock band Golden Earring, released in 1992. All songs were performed with acoustic instruments. The album has been released over the decade with additional tracks under the titles The Complete Naked Truth and Fully Naked.
Kicking & Screaming is a 2005 American sports comedy film directed by Jesse Dylan and written by Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick. The film stars Will Ferrell and Robert Duvall as a father and son who exploit their own sons' soccer teams to try and beat the other. Mike Ditka, Kate Walsh, and Josh Hutcherson also star. It was released on May 13, 2005, to mixed reviews and grossed $56 million worldwide.
Wayne Kramer is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, producer and film and television composer.
The Improv Institute was an improvisational comedy company in Chicago from 1984 until 1994. The mainstage show was improvised following audience suggestions. The troupe had two storefront-theaters, both on West Belmont Avenue on Chicago's North side, first at 2939 W. Belmont (1984–1990), and later at 2319 W. Belmont (1991–1994).
Abraham Laboriel Jr. is an American session musician best known as the drummer and backing vocalist of Paul McCartney's touring band since 2001. He is the son of Mexican bass guitarist Abraham Laboriel, nephew of Mexican rock musician Johnny Laboriel, and brother of record producer, songwriter and film composer Mateo Laboriel.
Paul Rudnick is an American writer. His plays have been produced both on and off Broadway and around the world. He is also known for having written the screenplays for several movies, including Sister Act, Addams Family Values, Jeffrey, and In & Out.
George Drakoulias is a Greek-American music producer and a former A&R executive at the American Recordings label. He is often considered a protégé of Rick Rubin.
"Breath" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam. Featuring lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music written by guitarist Stone Gossard, "Breath" first appeared on the soundtrack to the 1992 film, Singles. The song was included on Pearl Jam's 2004 greatest hits album, rearviewmirror . An early version of the song, entitled "Breath and a Scream", was included as part of the reissue of the band's debut album, Ten, in 2009.
The Jackie Thomas Show is an American sitcom that aired on the ABC network from December 1992 to March 1993. The series received widespread attention due to its creators Roseanne Arnold, then starring in the fifth season of her comedy Roseanne, and her then-husband and Roseanne co-producer Tom Arnold. The Jackie Thomas Show starred Tom Arnold as a misanthropic sitcom actor.
Straight Faced was an American rock band formed in Huntington Beach, California, United States, in 1992.
Tom Gorai is an American film producer.
Created in 1971 by Josephine Forsberg, The Players Workshop was Chicago's only official school of improvisation for over a decade. Although it was never officially a part of The Second City cabaret theater, The Players Workshop was often referred to as Players Workshop Of The Second City, due to the school's close affiliation with the famous sketch comedy stage. From 1971 through the mid-1990s, performers flocked to The Players Workshop to study improv with Josephine Forsberg, Linnea Forsberg, Martin de Maat, or one of the school's many other instructors, in the hopes of eventually getting onto The Second City mainstage.
The Second Half is an American sitcom television series created by Leo Benvenuti, Steve Rudnick and John Mendoza, that aired on NBC from September 7, 1993 to April 12, 1994. The series was executive-produced and co-created by its star, John Mendoza.
The Santa Clause is a media franchise that consists of three American Christmas family-comedy theatrical feature films starring Tim Allen, and one television series for Disney+. Based on an original story by Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick, the plot centers around Scott Calvin's transformation into Santa Claus, and his adventures thereafter.