Biography
Comedian Artie Lange earned his reputation by stepping into the position of the heavyset, slapstick foil in comedies headlined by Saturday Night Live veterans, a spot previously held by Chris Farley until the latter’s death in 1997. Though less unrestrained than Farley, Lange shares a comparable physique and circle of connections, turning those traits along with his signature flustered punch lines into several movie roles and a steady spot on Howard Stern’s radio program.
Union, New Jersey, native Lange entered the world on October 11, 1967, displaying an early mischievous streak that led to his repeating a year of high school. That setback proved temporary, as he landed a recurring spot on Fox’s Mad TV between 1995 and 1997. Once he departed the sketch series, he leveraged his ties to SNL alum Norm MacDonald, first joining the cast of MacDonald’s 1998 revenge comedy Dirty Work, which also featured Farley, and then appearing on MacDonald’s ABC sitcom Norm, alternately titled The Norm Show.
Direct parallels with Farley surfaced again when Lange shared the screen with David Spade, Farley’s onetime collaborator, in the 1999 feature Lost and Found, performing many of the same physical gags Farley had popularized. Additional screen appearances followed in Mystery Men (1999) and The Bachelor (1999). In 2001 Lange joined Howard Stern’s radio broadcast, taking over for longtime joke writer Jackie Martling. Late 2008 saw the publication of his memoir Too Fat to Fish, which entered the New York Times best-seller list. The following year his album Jack and Coke was issued by the Shout Factory label.
Union, New Jersey, native Lange entered the world on October 11, 1967, displaying an early mischievous streak that led to his repeating a year of high school. That setback proved temporary, as he landed a recurring spot on Fox’s Mad TV between 1995 and 1997. Once he departed the sketch series, he leveraged his ties to SNL alum Norm MacDonald, first joining the cast of MacDonald’s 1998 revenge comedy Dirty Work, which also featured Farley, and then appearing on MacDonald’s ABC sitcom Norm, alternately titled The Norm Show.
Direct parallels with Farley surfaced again when Lange shared the screen with David Spade, Farley’s onetime collaborator, in the 1999 feature Lost and Found, performing many of the same physical gags Farley had popularized. Additional screen appearances followed in Mystery Men (1999) and The Bachelor (1999). In 2001 Lange joined Howard Stern’s radio broadcast, taking over for longtime joke writer Jackie Martling. Late 2008 saw the publication of his memoir Too Fat to Fish, which entered the New York Times best-seller list. The following year his album Jack and Coke was issued by the Shout Factory label.