Quick Facts
ScorpioBiography
Timothy Stack (born November 21, 1956) is an American film and television actor, producer and screenwriter.
Life and career
Education
Timothy was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, the son of Joan and Tom Stack. He graduated from the Philadelphia-area prep school Germantown Academy in 1973 and graduated from Boston College in 1978. After graduating, Tim moved to Los Angeles and quickly joined the improvisational comedy group The Groundlings in 1979.
On television
The 1980s
In 1986, he appeared in a five-episode arc of Punky Brewster, as rule-obsessed but unfeeling DCFS social worker Simon Chillings. Chillings was originally charged with Henry's petition to adopt Punky, but instead, he removes her from Henry's care, concerned Henry could not adequately support her after his business burns down and he is hospitalized with an ulcer. Convinced Punky would be permanently better off with another foster family, he places her with a wealthy couple, Jules and Tiffany Buckworth. Ultimately, Jules Buckworth leaves Tiffany and returns Punky to Henry, who completes the adoption. When Simon calls Henry's new studio to congratulate him on the adoption, he reaches Mike, who laughs, reminding him he was the one trying to keep them apart. Simon states that he has quit his job with DCFS and has become romantically involved with Tiffany Buckworth.
The 1990s and early 2000s
In the early 1990s, Stack appeared as the father of the main character on Parker Lewis Can't Lose. He later starred as Dick Dietrick on the raunchy talk show send-up/satire Night Stand with Dick Dietrick.
The role Stack is probably best known for is Notch Johnson on Son of the Beach, a Howard Stern-produced Baywatch send-up which aired on the FX cable channel from 2000 to 2002. Stern claimed that extras on Son of the Beach insisted on being paid extra before they would do kissing scenes with Stack.
Stack also starred as a fictionalized version of himself on My Name is Earl.
Other work
Stack continues to get regular voiceover work, e.g. The Brave Little Toaster film series, as Lampy the orange desktop lamp. Beginning in 2005, Stack started appearing in a recurring sketch on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno called Pumpcast News. In the sketch, Stack plays a fictional cable news reporter who interacts with customers at gas pumps-–sometimes completely taking people off guard. Stack also acted out a fictional version of himself on the television program My Name Is Earl, in which he was depicted as an arrogant, depressed, alcoholic resident of Camden County who frequently hosted beauty pageants and parades.
He also wrote several episodes of both Son of the Beach and My Name Is Earl. He also starred as the principal in Idle Hands.
Stack has guest starred in several popular sitcoms over the years, including Benson, Laverne and Shirley, Night Court, The Wonder Years, Seinfeld, Wings, Malcolm in the Middle and The Golden Girls. He lives with his wife Jan Stack and their children Murphy and Doyle.
He hosts the computer DVD game Outburst.
Filmography
Films
| Year | Film | Role | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas | Melvin's Crew | Colin Higgins | |
| 1985 | The Aviator | First Officer | George T. Miller | |
| 1986 | Back to School | Trendy Man | Alan Metter | |
| 1987 | Blind Date | Grant | Blake Edwards | |
| The Brave Little Toaster | Lampy / Zeke | Jerry Rees | ||
| 1989 | Martians Go Home | Seagrams | David Odell | |
| 1992 | Double Trouble | Albers | John Paragon | |
| Nervous Ticks | Tim | Rocky Lang | ||
| 1994 | Clifford | Kevin's Father | Paul Flaherty | |
| It's Pat | Doctor | Adam Bernstein | ||
| 1996 | Dear God | Cousin Guy, the Postal Cop | Gary Marshall | |
| 1997 | The Brave Little Toaster to the Rescue | Lampy | Robert C. Ramirez | |
| 1998 | The Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars | Lampy | Robert C. Ramirez | |
| 1999 | Idle Hands | Principal Tidwell | Rodman Flender | |
| 2000 | Cast Away | Morgan Stockton | Robert Zemeckis | |
| 2003 | Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd | Doctor | Troy Miller | |
| Scary Movie 3 | Carson Ward | David Zucker | ||
| 2004 | Teacher's Pet | Daddy | Timothy Björklund | |
| 2005 | American Pie Presents: Band Camp | Mr. Nelson | Steve Rash | |
| 2006 | Funny Money | Dr. Rogers | Leslie Greif | |
| 2007 | Welcome to Paradise | Eugene Fennig | Brent Huff |
TV series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Lou Grant | Mayberry | 4.10 "Boomerang" |
| Thornwell | Means | Television film | |
| Days of Our Lives | Mark Garrett | ||
| Quincy M.E. | Mr. Crowley | 7.03 "Slow Boat to Madness" | |
| Trapper John, M.D. | Male Patient | 2.17 "The Albatross"; 3.13 "Angel of Mercy" | |
| 1982 | Benson | C.C. McFadden | 3.16 "Getting Even" |
| Desire, the Vampire | Daryl | Television film | |
| Laverne & Shirley | Bank Teller | 8.06 "Death Row" | |
| 1983 | The Winds of War | Yeoman Ryan | Television miniseries |
| Murder Me, Murder You | Natty | Television film | |
| Reggie | Tom Lockett | 1983 | |
| AfterMASH | Ernie Temple / Heard | 1.07 "Little Broadcast of '53"; 2.06 "The Recovery Room" | |
| 1984 | Cagney & Lacey | Bartender | 4.03 "Insubordination" |
| 1985 | The Facts of Life | Carl | 6.16 "Jazzbeau" |
| Remington Steele | Arthur McKinley Reynolds III | 3.15 "Springtime for Steele" | |
| The Paper Chase | 3.10 "It's Only a Show" | ||
| 1986 | That's My Mama Now! | Deuce | Television film |
| Punky Brewster | Simon P. Chillings | 2.17 "Changes" | |
| It's a Living | Raymond | 4.06 "Night at the Iguana" | |
| 1987 | Night Court | Bill / Tim Bond / Mr. Marley | 4.14 "The Modest Proposal"; 6.18 "From Snoop to Nuts"; 7.15 "Wedding Bell Blues" |
| Starman | Henry Kimble | 1.18 "The Wedding" | |
| The New Adventures of Beans Baxter | Murray De Lamour | 1.05 "Beans and the Satanic Backwards Masking Conspiracy" | |
| Thirtysomething | Maitre D' / Valet Parking Attendant / Movie Ticket Seller | 1.05 "But Not for Me" | |
| 1988 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Officer Swan | 32.19 "Justin Case" |
| 1989 | ALF | Jim | 4.11 "Happy Together" |
| Free Spirit | Dick Drake | 1.11 "Radio Nights" | |
| Doctor Doctor | Sam | 1.03 "Running on M.D."; 1.04 "The M.D. Nest Syndrome"; 2.04 "Bachelor Doctor"; 2.13 "No Free Lunch" | |
| 1990 | The Golden Girls | Agent Bell | 5.25 "The President's Coming! The President's Coming!" |
| Tales from the Crypt | Frank | 2.17 "My Brother's Keeper" | |
| Hurricane Sam | Bob Kelvin | Television film | |
| Almost Vegas | |||
| Parker Lewis Can't Lose | Mr. Martin Lewis | 1990–1993 | |
| 1991 | The Flash | Jim Kline | 1.11 "The Trickster" |
| Father Dowling Mysteries | Stu | 3.21 "The Consulting Detective Mystery" | |
| My Life and Times | Daniel Miller | 1.04 "Millennium"; 1.05 "Fare on Park Avenue" | |
| Pacific Station | 1.03 "A Man's Best Friend" | ||
| 1992 | Maid for Each Other | Larry the Lawyer | Television film |
| Ring of the Musketeers | 1st Federal Agent | ||
| 1993 | Johnny Bago | Lee Corsair / Bob Burrows / National Tattletale Reporter | 1.01 "Johnny Bago Free at Last"; 1.04 "Johnny's Golden Shaft"; 1.06 "Lady Madonna"; 1.07 "Spotting Elvis" |
| The Wonder Years | Mr. Plenitzer | 6.17 "Eclipse" | |
| Seinfeld | Dwayne | 5.07 "The Glasses" | |
| The John Larroquette Show | Feinberg | 1.09 "There's a Mister Hitler Here to See You" | |
| The Mommies | Detective Malone | 1.12 "Christmas" | |
| 1994 | Nurses | Oscar | 3.13 "Parental Guidance Suggested" |
| The Second Half | Charles | 1.12 "Far and Awry" | |
| L.A. Law | Stanton's Atty. Stoddard | 8.19 "Tunnel of Love" | |
| Wings | Mr. Elias | 5.24 "A Decent Proposal" | |
| 1995 | On Our Own | Mr. Pinapel | 1.14 "The Boarder" |
| My Brother's Keeper | Father Frank | Television film | |
| Night Stand with Dick Dietrick | Dick Dietrick | Series Lead (1995–1997) | |
| 2000 | Son of the Beach | Notch Johnson | Series Lead (2000–2002) |
| 2005 | The Tonight Show with Jay Leno | Jack Rafferty | 2005–2013 |
| Malcolm in the Middle | Sam | 6.20 "Stilts" | |
| The Surreal Life | Jeff Probe | 5.07 "Voted Out of Vegas" | |
| 2005 | My Name Is Earl | TV's Tim Stack | 2005–2009 |
| 2007 | Tim Stack's Family Vacation | TV's Tim Stack | Television pilot |
| 2012 | Raising Hope | TV's Tim Stack / Notch Johnson (uncredited) | 2.12 "Gambling Again"; 3.19 "Making the Band" |
Producer/executive producer
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Night Stand with Dick Dietrick | Executive producer (1995–1996) |
| 2000 | Son of the Beach | Executive producer (2000–2002) |
| 2005 | My Name Is Earl | Consulting producer (2005–2009) |
| 2007 | Tim Stack's Family Vacation | Executive producer (2000–2002) |
| 2010 | Raising Hope | Consulting producer (2010–2014) |
| 2015 | The Millers | Consulting producer (2014–2015) |
Writer
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Saturday Night Live | 11.17 "Jimmy Breslin and Marvin Hagler/Level 42/E.G. Daily"; 11.18 "Anjelica Huston and Billy Martin/George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic" (additional sketches) |
| 1988 | Glory Days | Television film |
| 1989 | Doctor Doctor | 2.02 "Member of the Club" |
| 1992 | What She Doesn't Know | Television film |
| 1994 | On Our Own | 1.11 "That's My Car and I'm Sticking to It"; 1.18 "Little Rascals" |
| 1995 | Night Stand with Dick Dietrick | 86 episodes (1995–1997) |
| 1997 | Family Matters | 9.06 "A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Read"; 9.21 "Lost in Space" |
| 2000 | Son of the Beach | 42 episodes (2000–2002) |
| 2005 | My Name Is Earl | 7 episodes (2005–2009) |
| 2011 | Raising Hope | 9 episodes (2011–2014) |
| 2015 | The Millers | 2.11 "Hero" |
| Kirby Buckets | 2.03 "The Gil in My Life" |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Result | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Writers Guild of America Award | My Name Is Earl (shared with Barbie Adler, Bobby Bowman, Vali Chandrasekaran, J.B. Cook, Brad Copeland, Victor Fresco, Gregory Thomas Garcia, John Hoberg, Kat Likkel, Michael Pennie, Hilary Winston and Danielle Sanchez-Witzel) | Best Comedy Series | Nominated | |
| 2006 | Best New Series | Nominated |