Back فرانك أوز Arabic فرانك اوز ARZ Frank Oz AST فرانک اوز AZB Франк Оз Bulgarian Frank Oz Catalan Frank Oz CEB فڕانک ئۆز CKB Frank Oz CO Frank Oz Czech
Frank Oz | |
|---|---|
 Oz at the 38th Annual Saturn Awards 2012 | |
| Born | Frank Richard Oznowicz May 25, 1944 Hereford, Herefordshire, England |
| Citizenship | United States[1] |
| Alma mater | Oakland City College |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1961–present |
| Spouses | Robin Garsen
(m. 1979; div. 2005)Victoria Labalme (m. 2011) |
| Children | 4 |
Frank Oz (born Frank Richard Oznowicz;[2] May 25, 1944) is an American puppeteer, filmmaker and actor. He is best known for his involvement with Jim Henson and George Lucas through the Muppets, Sesame Street, and Star Wars, as well as his directorial work in feature films and theater.
During his adolescence, Oz worked as an apprentice puppeteer in Oakland, California. Despite his interest in journalism, Oz continued his career as a puppeteer when he was hired by Jim Henson in 1963 to work for The Jim Henson Company where he went on to perform several characters in multiple television series and specials. Oz performed the Muppet characters of Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, and Sam Eagle on The Muppet Show (1976–1981), and Cookie Monster, Bert, and Grover on Sesame Street (1969–2013).[3] He was hired by George Lucas and began performing the character of Yoda in the Star Wars series, beginning with The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and reprising the role in six subsequent films and various media for the next forty years, including into the Disney era.
His work as a director includes The Dark Crystal (1982), The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984), Little Shop of Horrors (1986), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988), What About Bob? (1991), In & Out (1997), Death at a Funeral (2007), and an episode of the US television series Leverage (2011).
- ^ Douglas, Edward (August 10, 2007). "Exclusive: A Chat with Frank Oz". ComingSoon.net. Evolve Media, LLC. Archived from the original on May 19, 2018. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
- ^ "The Jim Henson Legacy - A Conversation with Frank Oz at the Museum of the Moving Image". May 16, 2021. Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved August 21, 2023.
- ^ "Frank Oz". AllMusic.