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Harland Williams Biography

harland-williams
  • Born:
  • Years Active: 1990s-2000s
  • Member of: The Cousins
  • Genre: World & Reggae

The unpredictable, strange, and uninhibited standup comic Harland Williams is also a musician, an actor, and an artist and writer of children's books. Born in Toronto, Ontario, the artistically inclined Williams aimed to refine his passion for drawing and painting at Canada's prestigious Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario. Childlike curiosity combined with his love of art drove him to create a series of popular children's books in which a similarly curious young dinosaur named Lickety Split embarks on a series of amazing adventures and learns important life lessons in the process. Finding a creative outlet in poetry and painting while working as a forest ranger for five years after dropping out of Sheridan College, Williams eventually decided to move to L.A. and channel his creativity into standup and comedic acting. While touring the comedy club circuit in the '80s he released his first comedy album, When Rhubarb Turns to Radish, by himself and only on cassette. His film career kicked off in 1994 with an appearance in Dumb and Dumber. Appearances on late-night television talk shows and Comedy Central specials ran parallel with more work in Hollywood, including his starring role in the 1997 Disney film Rocketman and a major part in the 1998 stoner comedy Half-Baked. The early 2000s found him self-releasing his second comedy CD, Crowd Control, and forming the band Cousins with his cousin Kevin Hearn from Barenaked Ladies. Cousins' debut CD, The Love Song Years, appeared in 2004 and was followed a year later by Williams' third standup album and first for the Comedy Central label, Har-Larious. ~ David Jeffries, Rovi

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