[MADtv] Matt Braunger

[Miss Information]

Full Name: Matt Braunger [news]
Date of Birth: August 1st, 1974
Place of Birth: Chicago, IL
Height / Weight: 6'4" / 225lbs.
Seasons on MADtv: 14+ (2008 - present)

Recurring Characters:

• Careco (Coach Hines)

Celebrity Impressions:

• Al Michaels
• Andy Griffith
• Charlie Sheen
• James "J.D." Power
• Jimmy Kimmel
• Joe Jonas
• John Mayer
• Tom Bergeron
• William Frawley
• William Shatner

Biography:
Of the four cast members to join "MADtv" at the start of Season 14, Matt Braunger is the only full-time repertory player. Matt's road to that rare honor began just outside Chicago, IL, where (as one biography eloquents states) he was born "and kept by his parents." That delightfully warped comment alone should give prospective fans an initial glimmer into the comedic stylings that propelled Matt from childhood actor to his current "MADtv" gig, with several interesting stops along the way. In terms of education, these stops included Grant High School, in Portland, OR, where he and his family eventually moved. After graduation, Matt studied theater at Manhattanville College, in Purchase, NY, where he obtained a bachelor's degree in his chosen pursuit. The talented actor's comedic training, however, would not begin earnestly until he moved back to Chicago, the city which would become the center of his developmental comedy period.

In Chicago, Matt studied improvisation under such notable teachers as Susan Messing and Del Close. He put that training to excellent use when he became a founding member of the influental improv group the Seaning. Along the way, Matt also became a full-fledged stand-up comedian, honing his craft in several dive bars and theaters of ill repute; he even worked for a time as a bartender. Nonetheless, the budding comedian would eventually find his way out of those humbling environs to participate in both the 2001 and 2002 Chicago Comedy Festivals. As the comedian's star rose on the stand-up circuit, another relocation was inevitable, this time to Los Angeles, CA, where that star of Matt's would really begin to take off.

The move to the City of Angels took place in 2003. As Matt's stand-up career continued to blossom in L.A., he would, in time, showcase his stand-up act on every major comedy stage around, the Improv and Comedy Death Ray chief among them. In addition to the hectic stand-up schedule, Matt began appearing in several acclaimed plays and on many sketch comedy series. Customarily, the young actor also did his share of commercials and guest apperances on television shows such as "Pushing Dashies," "iCarly," and "Carpoolers." One notable guest apperance occurred during Season 12 of "MADtv." In 2007, any viewer of the series who paid close attention to Episode #1211 would have spotted Matt in a hazmat suit during the sketch entitled "Sesame Street: Dirty Bomb." Little could the wearer of that hazmat suit have realized the benefits that his minor guest appearance would reap in the near future.

Approximately a year after that initial "MADtv" experience, Matt was given a chance to try out for a regular gig on the series. He auditioned several times for several different people: casting directors, producers, and network executives. While he waited for those fine folks to determine his "MADtv" fate, Matt busied himself with a couple of noteworthy stand-up pursuits. First, he participated in the first annual Rooftop Comedy Festival in Aspen, CO, where he nearly spit out his beer at the awards ceremony after being announced as the "Best of Fest." After nabbing that honor in such memorable fashion, Matt ventured to Nebraska for the Great American Comedy Festival. Two days before he went onstage, the comedian discovered that he had indeed been hired as a full-time repertory player for Season 14 of "MADtv." While the crutches he was on at the time prevented him from literally leaping for joy, he was nonetheless "utterly blown away to be on the show." Around the same time, Matt found out that a buddy of his, Eric Price, had also been hired for the series' fourteenth season. (Two other featured players, Lauren Pritchard and Erica Ash, would join the men that season as "MADtv" newbies.) How high that star of Matt Braunger's can rise in the near future remains to be seen. Still, anyone who can say without hesitation that he has landed a job on one of the premier sketch comedy shows around is already off to a hell of a start.

Where are they now?
As of May 2009, Matt is a featured player in his first season on "MADtv." Matt currently resides in Portland, OR.

Television - Starring Roles:

• <none at this time>

Television - Guest Roles:

• Carpoolers: "Down for the Count" - Patient
• iCarly: iScream on Halloween" - <unknown>
• Late Show with David Letterman: "Episode 16.66" - Himself
• Pushing Daisies: "Dummy" - Rick

Film - Starring Roles:

• <none at this time>

Film - Supporting Roles:

• Asian Stories (Book 3) (2006) - Deli Customer
• Who the F#ck Is Chip Seinfeld? (2008) - Himself

Other Credits:

• <none at this time>

Fun Facts:

• <none at this time>

Famous Catch-Phrases:

• <none at this time>

Memorable Quotes:

• <none at this time>

Pertinent Links:

• MattBraunger.com [OFFICIAL]
• Matt's MySpace [OFFICIAL]

Special Thanks:

• mizzimad - Biography
• tvmanismadformad - Appearance and Character Info

Sources:

• Planet MADtv
• EffinFunny
• IMDb
• Rooftop Comedy
• The Bastion

__________________________________________________

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[dumbguy]

If you're curious to see Matt Braunger doing stand-up comedy, he'll be on tomorrow night's (Friday) new episode of "Live at the Gotham" @ 10PM on Comedy Central.

[BoardheadBrother]

Found this...

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/3e52f44e1a

[dumbguy]

Matt will be a guest on Letterman next Friday (9.12.08) the night before the new season of Mad Tv.

[potroastpig]

so is he a series regular? In the episode part of the forum he's listed at the end of the cast list with Erica, Eric, and Lauren.

[mizzimad]

Matt is a series regular; the other three are featured players.

BTW, chillun, good Lawd willin' 'n' the creeks don' rise, I should have Matt's bio up very, very soon, as well as the other new cast members' bios. Please, please, let's not have a rally.

[edkedkedk]

I'm confused; Is Matt skinny, or is he big? Different pictures tell different stories!

[mizzimad]

Matt's bio is up. Let me know how great it is or how much it sucks. (Actually, don't let me know how much it sucks. ) I'll add more stuff to it later. Mizzimad thanks you for reading this post.

Originally Posted by edkedkedk

I'm confused; Is Matt skinny, or is he big? Different pictures tell different stories!

Six-feet-four, 225 pounds -- I wouldn't exactly call him a small fry.

[chopperQ]

According to that anybirthday.com site (which now goes by this URL: http://stevemorse.org/birthday/birthday2.html) he was born in 1974 not 1973, if you type in "Matthew Braunger"

[mizzimad]

Originally Posted by chopperQ

According to that anybirthday.com site (which now goes by this URL: http://stevemorse.org/birthday/birthday2.html) he was born in 1974 not 1973, if you type in "Matthew Braunger"

I'll admit that I made an educated guess on that one. I guess I was doing well to be only one year off. I didn't even think about doing a people search. Thanks, chopper!

[edkedkedk]

Originally Posted by Miss Information

One notable guest apperance occurred during Season 13 of "MADtv." Any viewer of the series who paid close attention to Season 13's final episode would have spotted Matt in a hazmat suit during the sketch entitled "Sesame Street: Economic Depression." Little could the wearer of that hazmat suit have realized the benefits that his minor guest appearance would reap in the near future.

I don't think Economic Depression has a hazmat guy... It was the Radiation Poisoning episode!

[mizzimad]

Oh, goddammit, it's a wonder that the roof doesn't cave in on me when I get out of bed in the morning. *Sigh!* For some reason, I was fixated on the idea that Matt's appearance occurs at the end of S13 -- hence, "Economic Depression." I just hope this doesn't require too much rewriting.

Seriously, thanks for pointing that out to me, edk. Oh, and try not to enjoy my lapse in judgment too much.


EDIT: It turned out to be a minor edit after all. Ah, miracles of miracles, I might actually sleep tonight!

[edkedkedk]

Me? Gloating? Never!

[chopperQ]

Originally Posted by mizzimad

I'll admit that I made an educated guess on that one. I guess I was doing well to be only one year off. I didn't even think about doing a people search. Thanks, chopper!

n/p :-)
I checked the other new players on that site, but didn't see any matches. Eric Price was too common of a name, and the ones that came up for Erica and Lauren didn't look like they were the right ones.

[BoardheadBrother]

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/5d0ba0e524

[nicoleparkerfan8]

Originally Posted by BoardheadBrother

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/5d0ba0e524

Hey! He's pretty funny! Can't wait to see him in action!

[tvmanismadformad]

For those interested, Matt is going to be on David Letterman on Friday. Maybe Dave might slip the show a little promotion in there.

[adamfishercox]

He is a featured player, not a series regular.

[Dartanian]

From Matt's myspace:

First and second audiences.

Last night was a "shoot night," and we performed for two audiences. At the tail end of the first group (who had just sat there for roughly four hours), the sketch I was in got crickets. We got the second one in, put the same sketch on, and ta-dah! It got laughs. Just goes to show you, tired people don't laugh loudly. Or at all. It's really an amazing sketch, written by one of the newest writers on the staff. I really love it. It's kind of in the tradition of "Kids in the Hall," I think. No pop culture reference, no parody, just original, dark, and funny. So when it didn't hit big the first time around, Crista Flanagan and I (the two people in the sketch) didn't bat an eye. It really surprised me. Usually that kind of thing makes me want to set myself on fire. The producers had the great idea to have us do it again with a fresh audience, and boom!

I'm not sure how much I'll be in this Saturday's episode, but I can bet it'll be more than last week. And you know what? I've shot a lot, so it'll all (as they say) come out in the wash. Last night they screened my "Drunk Reporter" piece. It was one of the first things I taped for Mad, and I'd almost forgotten about it. In it, I pretended to be a reporter interviewing people on the street who didn't think he was working that day and had had a few "pops" earlier. Basically, he's shitty. I interviewed real people while acting loaded (which was terrifying), but it looks like it came out funny. At one point one of the people I talked to said to a producer, "I think that reporter's going to get fired." Success!

But then, I know drunk like W.C. Fields. Could do it in my schleep.

Your pal always,
Fatty Arbuckle

[edkedkedk]

Amazing! I'll be looking forward to the sketch with Crista!