J. Elvis Weinstein

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J. Elvis Weinstein bigraphy, stories - American writer-actor

J. Elvis Weinstein : biography

1971 –

Josh "J. Elvis" Weinstein (born May 21, 1971https://twitter.com/JElvisWeinstein/status/337050096359321600) is an American writer and performer, best known for his roles as Dr. Laurence Erhardt and the original puppeteer and voice for Tom Servo on Mystery Science Theater 3000.

Cinematic Titanic

On October 30, 2007, Joel Hodgson announced he was starting a new show with the same "riffing on bad movies" premise as MST3K called Cinematic Titanic, together with former MST3K cast and crew members Weinstein, Trace Beaulieu, Frank Conniff and Mary Jo Pehl.

He continued to tour with Cinematic Titanic starting from November 2013 until the show’s indefinite hiatus in February 2013.

Work after MST3K

After leaving Mystery Science Theater 3000, he went on to become a writer for The Young Person’s Guide to Becoming a Rock Star, Malcolm and Eddie, and he wrote and produced the critically acclaimed NBC dramedy Freaks and Geeks. He has also been the head writer for NBC’s late night show Later with Greg Kinnear, and America’s Funniest Home Videos.

Weinstein has an extensive background in stand-up comedy; he has performed over a thousand shows as a stand-up comedian, and has also written material for Garry Shandling, Dennis Miller, Roseanne Barr, Louie Anderson and other comedians. He is currently the president of Stinkburger Inc.

He also appeared in the 2010 science fiction computer game DARKSTAR – The Interactive Movie as Captain Cedrick Stone of the Galactic Discovery II.

Mystery Science Theater 3000

Weinstein was one of the founding writers/performers of the show in 1988 at the age of 17. He changed his professional name from "Josh" to "J. Elvis" to avoid confusion with former Simpsons writer Josh Weinstein. The two are frequently confused nonetheless. Weinstein worked on Mystery Science Theater 3000 during its original appearance on Minneapolis UHF station KTMA-TV from 1988 to 1989, and its first season on Comedy Central (then called the Comedy Channel) from 1989 to 1990. However, a significant age gap existed between him and the other cast members; he was only 17 when he joined the show, having been recruited by Joel from his "Stand Up and Smartology" comedy classes. This ultimately led to Weinstein feeling unhappy with the more professional approach to the show the move to the Comedy Channel demanded, and caused him to leave the show. http://www.youtube.com/v/I3tP8bxfV-s