Bio
Richard Horvitz has been entertaining audiences for 30 years. His film, stage and voice over career has taken him from the streets of Van Nuys, California, to the shores of the Black Sea, to the glittering lights of Las Vegas and back to downtown Burbank.
Beginning at the age of 10, Richard realised a lifelong dream by being among the first people on television to utter the phrase, "There's liquid inside this gum!!" on the national ad campaign for Freshen-Up bubble gum.
The rave reviews he garnered led to other leading roles in such blockbuster hits as "Chevy Citation" and "Rustler Steak House."
Constantly re-inventing himself, Richard shocked the world when he walked away from his successful on camera commercial career to follow another dream - hand modeling. The gamble paid off when in 1977 his hands were chosen from thousands of other hands to model Mattel Toys newest creation Kent and His Cosmic Cruiser action doll.
But after two years in the fast-paced, drug-riddled world of modeling, he began to feel like just another pretty hand. Longing to have his whole body appreciated, 1979 found Richard making his professional stage debut, when he starred along side Dick Shawn and Stubby Kaye in Oliver at the Aquarius Theatre in Hollywood.
Fearful of being type-cast as a cockney pickpocket, Richard quietly bowed out of the spotlight when the show closed a month after opening.
Richard devoted most of the early eighties to his studies. From time to time he would show up in such classic television shows as Different Strokes or Kids Incorporated. But these sightings were rare.
In 1984 Richard studied Theatre Arts at UCLA for one quarter. After mastering all that UCLA had to offer, he left to star in the Ted Turner original series, Safe At Home.
Richard portrayed stage manager Gary Van Sickle in 103 episodes over its three year run on cable station WTBS. Though the sitcom existed in relative obscurity it was critically acclaimed by critics and several viewers alike.
It was during the production of Safe At Home that Richard took a three-month hiatus to shoot his most enduring role to date. In mid-1986 Richard took a meeting with director/writer/producer Carl Reiner.
Reiner was directing a new film for Paramount starring the then sexiest man alive, Mark Harmon. The movie was Summer School. Richard was cast as the nerdy negotiator of the misfit students, Alan Eakian. Richard then returned to Safe At Home to finish out the remainder of its run.
Following the series end, he went to work on the syndicated remake of the hit series The Munsters, called The Munsters Today. Richard guest starred in seven out of the first 13 episodes.
As the 90's began Richard had grown tired of the glaring eye of the paparazzi and longed for his long ago surrendered anonymity. While many of his peers were content to continue their climb to fame by starring in hit movies and television series, Richard once again decided to challenge himself by not allowing himself to be cast in any of the hit movies or television series of the day. Instead he decided to gamble once again.
A friend had once commented on Richard's unique voice. Capitalising on his instinct, Richard pursued what would soon become his current legacy.
In 1994 he began his long-running association with the cable network Nickelodeon. He starred as the voice of Daggett in The Angry Beavers. The five-year run netted 65 half hour episodes that continue to run today on Nick and Nicktoons TV.
Richard's next project for the network was the short-lived but highly praised show, Invader Zim. Richard gave voice to the manic, little alien Zim.
During this time Richard began another series for the Cartoon Network entitled The Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy. Richard continues to voice the character of Bill today.