Mr. President...STEVE BRIDGES
Meet the
President -- Almost!
"Mr. President"...Steve Bridges
The son of a Baptist preacher, Steve Bridges was
all set to follow in his father’s footsteps. Instead, he became President of
the United States. Sort of.
Bridges is a master impressionist who recently
developed an amazingly accurate characterization of George W. Bush. His “Bush”
voice is so good, it inspired Academy Award-winning prosthetic makeup artist
Kevin Haney (Driving Miss Daisy) to create a perfect "George W. Bush"
appearance to match.
He has become a regular on the "Tonight Show
with Jay Leno" and has been featured on a variety of national stages including
Jay Leno’s Tenth Anniversary Special (NBC), Judy Woodruff’s Inside Politics
(CNN) and Steve Edwards’ Good Day Live (Fox). "Mr. President" has shared the
spotlight with Washington DC insiders like political consultant, James
Carville, former Senator, Bill Bradley, former Speaker of the House, Newt
Gingrich and former CNN Washington Bureau Chief, Frank Sesno.
Bridges’ natural talent for making people laugh
was apparent early on, keeping his parents amused by impersonating Larry, Moe
and Curly from the back seat of the family car. By the time he entered High
School, he had honed ad expanded his characterizations to include contemporary
political figures; back then, his biggest laughs came courtesy of Jimmy
Carter.
Today, his George W. Bush impression is the best
of anyone, anywhere.
He has mastered a host of other political
characters (with the emphasis on characters) including Bill Clinton and Al
Gore. His repertoire encompasses a wide range of personalities, from
broadcasters Tom Brokaw, Paul Harvey and Rush Limbaugh to TV characters like
Barney Fife, Homer Simpson and the ever-popular Mr. Haney from Green Acres.
What makes Bridges such a standout? Not only does he accurately voice these
and other characters, but he can switch instantly from one to the other,
creating actual conversations!
A member of SAG/AFTRA, Bridges’ extensive
training includes work at the famed Groundings in LA as well as private
classes with some of the best comic trainers in the business. To his credit,
he’s made numerous appearances at many of southern California’s best comedy
venues including The Improv, The Ice House and The Comedy Store.
Known for his hilarious, clean routines, Bridges
has appeared on many TV shows including ER (NBC), The District, (CBS) and ABC
News Overnight (Nationwide). His radio credits include guest appearances on
KABC (Ken & Barkley Show) and K EARTH 101 (Los Angeles), NBC Mutual Radio
(Nationwide) and event he venerable BBC. He also has done commercial
voiceovers for clients HBO and Coca-Cola.
About the Makeup Artist...
Kevin Haney
Academy Award Winning Prosthetic Makeup Artist
Kevin Haney is a man of many faces – only one of
which belongs to him. The others belong to history, to the movies – even to
reigning world leaders.
Haney’s self-taught talent first caught the eye
of legendary makeup artist, Dick Smith (The God Father, The Exorcist, Little
Big Man) in 1977. Smith subsequently brought the Ohio native to New York to
work with him on the movie, Altered States (1980).
Haney later moved to New York to live and do an
apprenticeship in the NBC makeup department. Working under the tutelage of
renowned makeup artist, John Caglione (Dick Tracy), Haney ultimately became
responsible for the prostheses work at NBC. He transformed Saturday Night Live
comics like Joe Piscopo into Frank Sinatra and Eddie Murphy into Mohammed Ali,
and he did makeup work for NBC news and soaps.
Haney’s first full-set job on a Hollywood movie was with Bob Norrin for
Cocoon (1985). Since then, he’s made Los Angeles his home base and has worked
on numerous movies including The Addams Family (1991), The Babe (1992), Death
Becomes Her (1992), Addams Family Values (1993), The Shawshank Redemption
(1994), and How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
