Daniel Lichtblau
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Daniel Lichtblau (born July 13, 1981) is an American actor, writer, and martial artist. He currently lives in Los Angeles, CA and works for The Simpsons.[1]
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[edit] Early Life
Lichtblau was youngest of three boys and grew up in Buffalo, NY. He was raised in a secular Jewish home and continues to enjoy characteristics of that upbringing. Precocious from an early age, he maintained an 11 year streak of finding the afikoman growing up. He attended The Park School of Buffalo where he became an expert in survivalist living and introduced an Outward Bound style ropes course to the school, which remains to this day a mandatory prerequisite for graduation. He left to attend Bard College, where he majored in Film and graduated in 2003. His time at Bard included involvement in the controversial workings of the experimental film department, and he was unwittingly portrayed in the hit piece "Bob at Bard", a film aimed at mocking fellow student Rob Ponce. Lichtblau also headlined a Spinal Tap inflected metal band called Exhumed, which was notorious for inciting raucous parties and female nudity.
[edit] Writing Career
Lichtblau has written in both the journalistic and literary veins. In 2005, he traveled to the Republic of Georgia to cover post-punk bands in the capital city of Tbilisi. More recently he has finished several screenplays currently being shopped among Hollywood producers, and received much praise for his spec script for an episode of Gilmore Girls. Unfortunately, the show was cancelled and the episode was never made. His writing is marked by his signature staccato dialogue style in the manner of early Dashiell Hammett mixed with meandering postmodern plotlines and observational humor. Current projects include a gangster screenplay and a film that will retell the makings of "Bob at Bard" from his perspective.
[edit] Acting Career
Lichtblau remains active in the underground theater scene in L.A. and has some association with the radical theater group "Early Morning Opera." He has, nonetheless, been behind the scenes on numerous Hollywood production lots, and Val Kilmer requests that he be used as his body double whenever Lichtblau is available. Most recently, he played the eponymous role of "DL" in a Cinéma vérité production, where he portrays a character whose mid-80s black Cadillac keeps breaking down after being fixed over and over by the same intransigent garage. In the final scene, the car breaks down even before he has pulled out of the garage parking lot and he abandons it to the conniving owners--but not before he clips the brake lines and flings the keys petulantly at the ruddy-faced mechanic. The film was nominated for a Barrymore award in 2007 after its release in Philadelphia.[2] His name has been on the bubble of breakthrough success for some time and only narrowly missed being cast in the role of "Lonestar" in Mel Brooks' "Spaceballs" and, more recently, in his assistance in developing the "Tequilla Dance" alongside Paul Reubens.
[edit] Other Successes
Lichtblau has maintained an interest in hip-hop and surrealist political activism for some time. He is credited as introducing the Rickrolling phenomenon as a protest mechanism against Scientology[3] in 2006 and bringing Miami-style rap a la 2Live Crew to the L.A. scene in his cult underground release "Rap to the Fishes."
[edit] Personal Life
Lichtblau currently lives alone in the Westwood area of L.A. Having some formal training as a chef, he is a known gourmand and enjoys hanging and curing his own meats. He trains in Ninjitsu and Kendo and has a film slated for production in 2009 about being trapped in the Catacombs of Paris and battling his way out. He is also an expert in linear algebra and trigonometric identities.[4]
