Steven Banks
Encyclopedia
Steven Banks is an American musician
, comedian
, actor
, mime
and writer
of television, plays, books and cartoons, including SpongeBob SquarePants
.
Banks attended Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus clown college. Shortly after that (during his honeymoon), he met fellow clown college alumnus
Penn Jillette
and began a lifelong friendship with the future magician
. Both shared a fascination with punk
and classic rock and roll
music, yet both men eschewed drugs and alcohol. The two also shared a love for comedy.
Banks hit it big when he developed (and starred in) a one-man theatrical show titled Home Entertainment Center – a comedic play about an easily-distracted procrastinator
trying to meet a work deadline. He gave 440 performances of Home Entertainment Center at venues like the Canon Theater, Pasadena Playhouse, Marines' Memorial Theater, and The One Act in San Francisco
(where the show ran for eleven months). For his performances, he was awarded the LA Weekly Theater Award
, four Drama-Logue Award
s, and three San Francisco Bay Area Critic's Awards. He also performed at the Aspen Comedy festival, the Cast Theater, Callboard Theater, and Las Palmas Theater.
In 1989 Home Entertainment Center achieved national fame when it was filmed and aired on Showtime; the filming was done at the Marines' Memorial Theater. The show featured original songs written and performed by Banks. On 14 May 1989, he appeared (with Penn) on the Dr. Demento
radio program (that year's Mother's Day
Special) and performed a number of his songs live on-air.
The ensuing fame landed him a tv pilot
on Showtime in January 1991 – The Steven Banks Show (sometimes inaccurately referenced as The Steven Brooks Show). The plot of the show was much the same as his one-act play: Banks portrayed Steven Brooks – an underachieving, chronic procrastinator fascinated by trivia and cursed with a penchant for comedic songs.
In the summer of 1991 after Paul "Pee-Wee Herman" Reubens
was arrested for allegedly masturbating in an adult movie theater, Banks was among a number of entertainers who protested the decision of CBS
to drop Reubens' show from their lineup. Banks can be seen in a crowd of protestors on an LA street in the E!
True Hollywood Story
episode about Reubens' arrest. Reubens was later offered (and declined) a supporting role on Banks' fledgling TV program.
Showtime aired the pilot for Banks' show, but never ran any other episodes. In 1994, PBS took an interest in his act. They filmed and aired The Steven Banks Show that summer – the first original sitcom
ever produced and run by PBS. Brandon Tartikoff
produced the show, filmed at WYES in New Orleans
. A CD album for the show was also released, consisting of original songs written and performed by Banks. Thirteen shows were shot and the program garnered critical acclaim, but one episode "Miss Janie Regrets" was not aired due to controversy over a PBS-like children's show parody. Banks' show has attained a kind of cult status despite its short run on PBS. On one show, Penn Jillette sang and played guitar, Teller on keyboard, joining Steven Banks. The song was "I wear the clothes of the dead", the setup for which was Penn wearing suits bought at estate sales.
However, that same year, Banks landed a bit role in Beverly Hills Cop III
. By the late 1990s, Banks was making guest appearances on various TV shows, including Dharma & Greg
, King of the Hill, and Dream On
. He also appeared in Caroline in the City
.
Steven Banks performed a set of songs at the 2004 B.O.R.E.D. Tour on the RMS Queen Mary
in Long Beach, CA.
Banks performed as "Billy the Mime" in the 2005 comedic documentary "The Aristocrats
" which was created by Penn Jillette
and Paul Provenza. Other appearances include The Jimmy Kimmel Show, Penn & Teller’s Bullshit!, Parks & Recreation (his scene was cut out) and The Green Room with Paul Provenza. He presented a six-week engagement at The Flea Theater in New York and has also appeared at The Upright Citizens Brigade Theater (LA and NYC), The New York International Fringe Festival, The Montreal Just For Laughs Festival, The Aspen Comedy Festival, SketchFest (San Francisco), The Revolutions International Theater Festival (New Mexico), The Lakeshore Theater (Chicago), and in Los Angeles at The Actors Gang, Sit ‘n Spin, Largo, The Comedy Central Stage, The Steve Allen Theater in Girly Magazine Party and The Rudy Casoni Show and The Sacred Fools Theater.
animated series CatDog
. He wrote several CatDog books as well. He continued working for Nickelodeon, penning several SpongeBob books (including The Big Halloween Scare which actually charted on the New York Times bestseller list). In 2002 Banks was named head writer for The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius
, and in 2004 he was nominated for one of the 56th Annual Writers Guild
Awards
for the episode Rescue Jet Fusion.
In 2004 he wrote for Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi
– an animated series from the Cartoon Network
about the adventures of real life J-pop
music stars Ami Onuki
and Yumi Yoshimura
.
In late 2004 he became story editor for the hit show "SpongeBob SquarePants
" and then head writer for five seasons.
Banks and friend Penn Jillette
also collaborated in writing Love Tapes – an unconventional love story for the stage which premiered February 2005 at Sacred Fools Theater in Hollywood
.
Banks's novel (King of the Creeps) was published by [Knopf] in 2006.
He wrote the book and additional lyrics for "SpongeBob SquarePants: The Musical!" opening May 2007.
He was nominated for an Emmy in 2008 for the SpongeBob episode he wrote "The Two Faces of Squidward"
In 2009 he collaborated with the dance company Pilobolus creating a full-evening piece "Shadowland" currently touring internationally.
He developed the CGI series for Nickelodeon, Planet Sheen
.
His new play, "Looking at Christmas", opened in New York at The Flea Theater November 20, 2010 and was filmed by PBS/Channel 13 to be aired next December.
Banks was profiled in the New York Times Sunday Arts & Leisure Section on November 28, 2010.
He is currently head writer on the Arnold Schwarzenegger / Stan Lee animated series The Governator to air in Fall of 2012.
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, mime
Mime
The word mime is used to refer to a mime artist who uses a theatrical medium or performance art involving the acting out of a story through body motions without use of speech.Mime may also refer to:* Mime, an alternative word for lip sync...
and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
of television, plays, books and cartoons, including SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants is an American animated television series, created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg. Much of the series centers on the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the underwater city of "Bikini Bottom"...
.
Banks attended Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus clown college. Shortly after that (during his honeymoon), he met fellow clown college alumnus
Alumnus
An alumnus , according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "a graduate of a school, college, or university." An alumnus can also be a former member, employee, contributor or inmate as well as a former student. In addition, an alumna is "a female graduate or former student of a school, college,...
Penn Jillette
Penn Jillette
Penn Fraser Jillette is an American magician, comedian, illusionist, juggler, bassist and a best-selling author known for his work with fellow illusionist Teller in the team Penn & Teller, and advocacy of atheism, libertarian philosophy, free-market economics, and scientific skepticism.-Early...
and began a lifelong friendship with the future magician
Magic (illusion)
Magic is a performing art that entertains audiences by staging tricks or creating illusions of seemingly impossible or supernatural feats using natural means...
. Both shared a fascination with punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and classic rock and roll
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
music, yet both men eschewed drugs and alcohol. The two also shared a love for comedy.
Performing
In 1987 Banks landed his first acting role, performing as a minor character in the fantasy-comedy Date with an Angel.Banks hit it big when he developed (and starred in) a one-man theatrical show titled Home Entertainment Center – a comedic play about an easily-distracted procrastinator
Procrastination
In psychology, procrastination refers to the act of replacing high-priority actions with tasks of low-priority, and thus putting off important tasks to a later time...
trying to meet a work deadline. He gave 440 performances of Home Entertainment Center at venues like the Canon Theater, Pasadena Playhouse, Marines' Memorial Theater, and The One Act in San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
(where the show ran for eleven months). For his performances, he was awarded the LA Weekly Theater Award
LA Weekly Theater Award
LA Weekly Theater Award is an annual critics' award established in 1979, given by the LA Weekly for outstanding achievements in small theatre productions in Southern California...
, four Drama-Logue Award
Drama-Logue Award
The Drama-Logue Award was a theater award established in 1977, given by the publishers of Drama-Logue newspaper, a weekly west-coast theater trade publication. Winners were selected by the publication's theater critics, and would receive a certificate at an annual awards ceremony...
s, and three San Francisco Bay Area Critic's Awards. He also performed at the Aspen Comedy festival, the Cast Theater, Callboard Theater, and Las Palmas Theater.
In 1989 Home Entertainment Center achieved national fame when it was filmed and aired on Showtime; the filming was done at the Marines' Memorial Theater. The show featured original songs written and performed by Banks. On 14 May 1989, he appeared (with Penn) on the Dr. Demento
Dr. Demento
Barret Eugene Hansen , better known as Dr. Demento, is a radio broadcaster and record collector specializing in novelty songs, comedy, and strange or unusual recordings dating from the early days of phonograph records to the present....
radio program (that year's Mother's Day
Mother's Day
Mother's Day is a celebration honoring mothers and celebrating motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, yet most commonly in March, April, or May...
Special) and performed a number of his songs live on-air.
The ensuing fame landed him a tv pilot
Television pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
on Showtime in January 1991 – The Steven Banks Show (sometimes inaccurately referenced as The Steven Brooks Show). The plot of the show was much the same as his one-act play: Banks portrayed Steven Brooks – an underachieving, chronic procrastinator fascinated by trivia and cursed with a penchant for comedic songs.
In the summer of 1991 after Paul "Pee-Wee Herman" Reubens
Paul Reubens
Paul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
was arrested for allegedly masturbating in an adult movie theater, Banks was among a number of entertainers who protested the decision of CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
to drop Reubens' show from their lineup. Banks can be seen in a crowd of protestors on an LA street in the E!
E!
E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by NBCUniversal. It features entertainment-related programming, reality television, feature films and occasionally series and specials unrelated to the entertainment industry.E! has an audience reach of...
True Hollywood Story
E! True Hollywood Story
E! True Hollywood Story is an American documentary series on E! that deals with famous Hollywood celebrities, movies, TV shows and well-known public figures...
episode about Reubens' arrest. Reubens was later offered (and declined) a supporting role on Banks' fledgling TV program.
Showtime aired the pilot for Banks' show, but never ran any other episodes. In 1994, PBS took an interest in his act. They filmed and aired The Steven Banks Show that summer – the first original sitcom
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
ever produced and run by PBS. Brandon Tartikoff
Brandon Tartikoff
Brandon Tartikoff was a television executive who was credited with turning around NBC's low prime time reputation with such hit series as Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law, ALF, Family Ties, The Cosby Show, Cheers, Seinfeld, Miami Vice, The Golden Girls, Knight Rider, The A-Team, St...
produced the show, filmed at WYES in New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. A CD album for the show was also released, consisting of original songs written and performed by Banks. Thirteen shows were shot and the program garnered critical acclaim, but one episode "Miss Janie Regrets" was not aired due to controversy over a PBS-like children's show parody. Banks' show has attained a kind of cult status despite its short run on PBS. On one show, Penn Jillette sang and played guitar, Teller on keyboard, joining Steven Banks. The song was "I wear the clothes of the dead", the setup for which was Penn wearing suits bought at estate sales.
However, that same year, Banks landed a bit role in Beverly Hills Cop III
Beverly Hills Cop III
Beverly Hills Cop III is a 1994 action-comedy film starring Eddie Murphy and directed by John Landis, who had previously worked with Murphy on Trading Places and Coming to America...
. By the late 1990s, Banks was making guest appearances on various TV shows, including Dharma & Greg
Dharma & Greg
Dharma & Greg is an American television sitcom that aired from September 24, 1997, to April 30, 2002.It starred Jenna Elfman and Thomas Gibson as Dharma and Greg Montgomery, a couple who married instantly on their first date despite being complete opposites...
, King of the Hill, and Dream On
Dream On (TV series)
Dream On is an American adult-themed situation comedy about single New Yorker, Martin Tupper. The show used a gimmick where old black and white clips were used to punctuate the main character's feelings or thoughts...
. He also appeared in Caroline in the City
Caroline in the City
Caroline in the City is an American situation comedy that ran from September 21, 1995 to April 26, 1999 on the NBC television network. It starred Lea Thompson as cartoonist Caroline Duffy. The series premiered in the two-hour Thursday night block led by Friends.-Premise:Caroline Duffy is a...
.
Steven Banks performed a set of songs at the 2004 B.O.R.E.D. Tour on the RMS Queen Mary
RMS Queen Mary
RMS Queen Mary is a retired ocean liner that sailed primarily in the North Atlantic Ocean from 1936 to 1967 for the Cunard Line...
in Long Beach, CA.
Banks performed as "Billy the Mime" in the 2005 comedic documentary "The Aristocrats
The Aristocrats (film)
The Aristocrats is a 2005 documentary film about the famous dirty joke of the same name. It was conceived and produced by comedians Penn Jillette and Paul Provenza, edited by Emery Emery, and released to theaters by TH!NKFilm...
" which was created by Penn Jillette
Penn Jillette
Penn Fraser Jillette is an American magician, comedian, illusionist, juggler, bassist and a best-selling author known for his work with fellow illusionist Teller in the team Penn & Teller, and advocacy of atheism, libertarian philosophy, free-market economics, and scientific skepticism.-Early...
and Paul Provenza. Other appearances include The Jimmy Kimmel Show, Penn & Teller’s Bullshit!, Parks & Recreation (his scene was cut out) and The Green Room with Paul Provenza. He presented a six-week engagement at The Flea Theater in New York and has also appeared at The Upright Citizens Brigade Theater (LA and NYC), The New York International Fringe Festival, The Montreal Just For Laughs Festival, The Aspen Comedy Festival, SketchFest (San Francisco), The Revolutions International Theater Festival (New Mexico), The Lakeshore Theater (Chicago), and in Los Angeles at The Actors Gang, Sit ‘n Spin, Largo, The Comedy Central Stage, The Steve Allen Theater in Girly Magazine Party and The Rudy Casoni Show and The Sacred Fools Theater.
Writing
In 1998 Banks began writing for Nickelodeon'sNickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
animated series CatDog
CatDog
CatDog is an American animated television series which premiered on April 4, 1998, and ended with an unaired episode on September 22, 2004. The series was created for Nickelodeon by Peter Hannan. It was also shown as a sneak peek in theaters with The Rugrats Movie...
. He wrote several CatDog books as well. He continued working for Nickelodeon, penning several SpongeBob books (including The Big Halloween Scare which actually charted on the New York Times bestseller list). In 2002 Banks was named head writer for The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius
The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius
The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, often shortened to just Jimmy Neutron, is an American animated television series, and spin-off of the Academy Award-nominated computer-animated movie, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius. The series first officially aired on July 20, 2002, on Nickelodeon...
, and in 2004 he was nominated for one of the 56th Annual Writers Guild
Writers Guild of America
The Writers Guild of America is a generic term referring to the joint efforts of two different US labor unions:* The Writers Guild of America, East , representing TV and film writers East of the Mississippi....
Awards
Writers Guild of America Award
The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949...
for the episode Rescue Jet Fusion.
In 2004 he wrote for Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi
Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi
is an American-Japanese animated series from Cartoon Network, produced by Renegade Animation. The show was created by Sam Register, who also serves as the series' executive producer....
– an animated series from the Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....
about the adventures of real life J-pop
J-pop
, an abbreviation for Japanese pop, is a musical genre that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in 1960s music, such as The Beatles, and replaced kayōkyoku in the Japanese music scene...
music stars Ami Onuki
Ami Onuki
is a member of the pop group PUFFY.She has co-hosted several Japanese TV shows with the "cool" half of PUFFY, Yumi Yoshimura, including the talk show Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Puffy, part of a morning show called Saku-Saku, and the 2006 series Hi Hi Puffy Bu, in which Ami and Yumi perform one given task each...
and Yumi Yoshimura
Yumi Yoshimura
is a member of the Japanese pop duo PUFFY, along with Ami Onuki.She was born in Neyagawa, Osaka, Japan. In 1995, she learned that there was a talent search underway in Tokyo. She successfully tried out and was paired with Ami Onuki to form the group PUFFY.From 1999 to 2003 she was married to singer...
.
In late 2004 he became story editor for the hit show "SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants is an American animated television series, created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg. Much of the series centers on the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the underwater city of "Bikini Bottom"...
" and then head writer for five seasons.
Banks and friend Penn Jillette
Penn Jillette
Penn Fraser Jillette is an American magician, comedian, illusionist, juggler, bassist and a best-selling author known for his work with fellow illusionist Teller in the team Penn & Teller, and advocacy of atheism, libertarian philosophy, free-market economics, and scientific skepticism.-Early...
also collaborated in writing Love Tapes – an unconventional love story for the stage which premiered February 2005 at Sacred Fools Theater in Hollywood
Hollywood, Los Angeles, California
Hollywood is a famous district in Los Angeles, California, United States situated west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Due to its fame and cultural identity as the historical center of movie studios and movie stars, the word Hollywood is often used as a metonym of American cinema...
.
Banks's novel (King of the Creeps) was published by [Knopf] in 2006.
He wrote the book and additional lyrics for "SpongeBob SquarePants: The Musical!" opening May 2007.
He was nominated for an Emmy in 2008 for the SpongeBob episode he wrote "The Two Faces of Squidward"
In 2009 he collaborated with the dance company Pilobolus creating a full-evening piece "Shadowland" currently touring internationally.
He developed the CGI series for Nickelodeon, Planet Sheen
Planet Sheen
Planet Sheen is an American CGI animated television series. It is the 2010 spin-off of the 2002 series The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius as well as the 2001 Oscar-nominated film Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius. The show was created by John A. Davis, Keith Alcorn and Steve Oedekerk and based on...
.
His new play, "Looking at Christmas", opened in New York at The Flea Theater November 20, 2010 and was filmed by PBS/Channel 13 to be aired next December.
Banks was profiled in the New York Times Sunday Arts & Leisure Section on November 28, 2010.
He is currently head writer on the Arnold Schwarzenegger / Stan Lee animated series The Governator to air in Fall of 2012.