Ted L. Nancy is the pseudonym used by the comedian Barry Marder, author of a number of prank letters which have been published in a series of bestselling books under the titles Letters from a Nut, More Letters from a Nut, Extra Nutty!: Even More Letters from a Nut, and the new book All New Letters from a Nut.
Nancy specializes in letters to unsuspecting celebrities and organizations; these missives typically consist of off-the-wall queries and much of the entertainment derives from the replies as individuals and institutions endeavor to respond politely to the author's often absurd requests and outlandish proposals.
Although it was "widely rumored" that Nancy was an alter ego of the comedian Jerry Seinfeld,[1] this appears to have been a marketing ploy.[2] Roger Friedman of Fox News suggested in 2002 that Barry Marder — a longtime Seinfeld collaborator and friend, and the executive producer of the ABC pilot based on the letters (which never made it to the air) — is the real source. This assumption proved true on September 23, 2010 when Jerry Seinfeld introduced Barry Marder as the writer "Ted L. Nancy" on Larry King Live on CNN.
Barry Marder is a comedian, former writer on "Seinfeld" and the co-writer of DreamWorks' animated hit "Bee Movie."
He was a writer for Bill Maher, Jay Leno, & David Letterman. He has also written with George Carlin.
Marder has performed at most major theaters in the United States as opening act for Jerry Seinfeld. He was a regular comedian at the Improv in Hollywood for 15 years. He has appeared on numerous television shows as a stand-up. Barry Marder has written and produced TV pilots for ABC, Fox, FX, Lionsgate, Sony TV.
In 2002 ABC made a pilot for “Letters From A Nut.” It was written & produced by Barry Marder & Jerry Seinfeld.
In 2003 FX Television made a pilot for "The Ted L. Nancy" show. That show was written & produced by Barry Marder & Jerry Seinfeld.
In 2007 Lionsgate Television, winner of the Emmy for Best Show for Mad Men, optioned the books from Barry Marder to make into a television show which was reported by Daily Variety.[3]
In 2008 Lionsgate sold the show as a pilot presentation to Fox TV. That show called Sincerely, Ted L. Nancy is created and written by Jerry Seinfeld, Barry Marder and Chuck Martin. Reportedly, Ted L. Nancy is the voice for the underdog consumer who is usually the last to get help from customer service. It stars Kevin Sussman as the comic hero Ted.
In 2008 Marder, writing as Ted L. Nancy & The Kabobby Family of Glendale, authored Hello, Junk Mail! which is a new take on the same idea embodied in his other books, Letters from a Nut, More Letters from a Nut and Extra Nutty!: Even More Letters from a Nut. In this book Mr. Nancy and the Kabobbys answered Junk Mail. Alan Marder did the illustrations for all the Letters From A Nut books and for Hello Junk Mail!
In September 2010 “All New Letters From A Nut” by Ted L. Nancy was published by Crown Books (Random House). It was another best seller.
In March 2011 “Ted L. Nancy’s Afternoon Stories” was published. In this book Ted L. Nancy is a traveling storyteller going to various places telling his insane stories and traveling with his lunatic acts.
In 2005 "Stories From A Moron" by Ed Broth was published by St. Martins. Foreword by Jerry Seinfeld. Marder wrote this as Ed Broth. Alan Marder did the illustrations for that book also.
In 2002, a number of news sources reported that Ted L. Nancy — or rather Jerry Seinfeld, who was assumed to be behind the prank — incurred the wrath of Hunter S. Thompson by embroiling the gonzo godfather in one such correspondence. Thompson allegedly accused Seinfeld of pitching the letters as a show idea to ABC and objected to having his name associated with what he regarded as a cheap stunt.[4] However, perhaps in keeping with the playful spirit of forgery and pranksterism surrounding the Nancy letters, the authenticity of Thompson's response has, subsequently, also been brought into question.[5] [6]
In 2008, comedian Bruce Baum claimed co-authorship of the series in a posting on his "Funny Or Die" profile.[7] However in September 2010, Seinfeld went on the TODAY show to reveal that the actual author was Barry Marder.[8]