French Stewart

Milton French-Stewart (born February 20, 1964), known professionally as French Stewart, is an American actor and comedian, best known for his role as Harry Solomon on the 1990s sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun and for his role as Chef Rudy on the sitcom Mom.

Early life

Stewart was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and attended Del Norte High School. His mother was a homemaker, and his stepfather was a microfilm technician.

Career

Stewart studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and toured in regional theatre for seven years before breaking into television with the role of Razor Dee, a spaced-out DJ on the final season of The New WKRP in Cincinnati in 1992. Stewart earned his Screen Actors Guild card while working for Hanna-Barbera's Shakey Quakey tour, but was later terminated for removing the head of his costume in front of children. In 1996, he was cast on 3rd Rock from the Sun, which lasted for six seasons. On the show, Stewart was noted for his talents at physical comedy and his characteristic "squinting" facial expression. During the height and popularity of 3rd Rock from the Sun, Stewart appeared in numerous commercials and as a spokesperson for the beverage Clamato.

Major motion picture credits for French Stewart include his film debut on Stargate (1994) as Lieutenant Ferretti, followed by Leaving Las Vegas (1995), The Poison Tasters (1995), Magic Island (1995) Glory Daze (1996), McHale's Navy (1997), Love Stinks (1999), Clockstoppers (2002) as Earl Doppler and Wedding Daze as Nathan Bennett IV. Animated credits include the voice of Bob on the short-lived animated series God, the Devil and Bob (2000), and Disney's animated series Hercules (1998) as Icarus. Since the end of 3rd Rock in 2001, Stewart has appeared in a number of minor roles, mainly in situation comedies such as Just Shoot Me!, Becker, The Drew Carey Show, Less Than Perfect and That '70s Show (from the same creators as 3rd Rock from the Sun) He also starred in the WB show Charmed as a genie at the end of season 2. He has starred in comedy films, with major roles in the direct-to-video films Home Alone 4 (2002) and Inspector Gadget 2 (2003). He also appeared as a guest star in the TV show, Phineas and Ferb, in the episode "Run Away Runway" as the fashion designer, Gaston Le Mode (2008).

Stewart has appeared on MADtv and guest-starred in the Seinfeld episode "The Opposite". He can also be seen on the I Love The... series on VH1. Stewart was an executive producer for Has Anyone Seen My Baby?, a drama on the Lifetime network that portrayed the life of a woman who lost her child on an African safari in the early 1970s. He also appeared as the "weird guy" office temp on NewsRadio.

Stewart produced and costarred in the dual role of Queen Victoria and Sigmund Freud in Watson: The Last Great Tale of the Legendary Sherlock Holmes at the Sacred Fools Theater Company, where he is a member, and served as co-Artistic Director for its 2012–2013 season. In May and June 2012, he appeared at Sacred Fools as Buster Keaton in the original play Stoneface: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Buster Keaton, written by his wife, Vanessa Claire Smith. In 2011, Stewart also voiced the character of Richard De Longpre on Allen Gregory.

On April 20, 2013, Stewart was a special guest on the NickHD television show Marvin Marvin, playing Marvin's Uncle Steve. In 2013, Stewart joined the CBS series Mom in the series regular role of Chef Rudy and remained on the show until the end of its second season. Recently he has guest starred on the TV show The Middle as Principal Cameron (2013-May 13, 2015).

Personal life

Stewart married actress Katherine LaNasa on May 19, 1998: They met when she had a guest appearance on a 1996 episode of 3rd Rock from the Sun. They divorced in December 2009.

Stewart married actress Vanessa Claire Smith in June 2011. Their daughter, Helene Claire Stewart, was born on June 28, 2013.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

Daytime Emmy Award

• 2000: Nominated for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program playing Icarus on Hercules

Ovation Awards

• 2011: Nominated for Lead Actor in a Play for the role of Nate in the Sacred Fools Theatre Company production of "Voice Lessons"
• 2011: Nominated for Featured Actor in a Play for the role of Freud/Queen Victoria in the Sacred Fools Theatre Company production of "Watson – The Last Great Tale of the Legendary Sherlock Holmes"

• ^ "Kiss Me Kate Tops 2011 Ovation Award Nominations.". 19 September 2011.