I once typed in the word piano on IMDB.com to find out how many actors and actresses play the piano and I came up with quite a few.

Kelsey Grammer
David Hyde Pierce
Guy Pearce
Harry Connick JR. (of Course!)
Hugh Jackman
Paul Reiser(took piano performance degree in college)
Jason Cook (I) (the guy who play shawn on Days of our Lives)
Elijah Wood

-------------
Sandra Bullock
Alyssa Milano
Courtney Cox
Asia Carrera
Eliza Dushku
Phyllis Diller ("As of 2000, had appeared as a piano soloist with 100 symphony orchestras across the United States, including performances in Dallas, Denver, Annapolis, Houston, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Detroit, and Cincinnati.")

Any more?

Don't know any off the top of my head, if you're just asking about actors and actresses... but there is a pro (I think) football player who is a jazz pianist. Played at a half-time show I think.... I don't know. lol. But that list is definitely interesting...

Ben Ruppert

BTW, I love your posting name.

Condeliza Rice and Noah Adams(All Things Considered)

The late Dudley Moore

Sean Hayes (Will & Grace) once supported himself as a classical pianist.

Holly Hunter... played all the music in the movie "The Piano."

Don't know if her renditions made it to the sound track, but it's her on the film.

Nina

Before his accident, Christopher Reeve was a very talented pianist, classically trained.

I forgot about Grant Hill(basketball player). I saw him play on letterman once, he is very good.

Clint Eastwood is an excellent pianist. He's a big fan of jazz and does quite a bit to promote and support it.

Are you sure she didn't play ON TOP[/b] of the piano?? :p

Steve Allen played piano and was obviously on TV. Also in at least one movie about the Dorsey band where he "played" clarinet. I think Steve Allen was one of the 30 or so people on TV that could be used to counter the "Vast Wasteland" theory. Anybody here seen the series about famous historical figures he produced in the 70's?

Victor Mature?????no no no another barrel chested guy in movie about Eddy Duchant. Can't recall his name right now.

David Frost played, I believe. So did Peter Graves, but all his recordings self-destructed 5 seconds after you listened to them. William Buckley also played but only while his boat was outside the territorial waters of the United States. Plus, in honor of his features, he only played in keys with more than 5 sharps. :rolleyes:

Bob

From the interview with Bobcat Goldthwait?

Sorry but to me replicants will always call to mind Blade Runner not Space Ghost.

Max Gail, the guy who played Wojohowitz on Barney Miller. Supported himself for a while as a jazz pianist playing in piano bars.

Chevy Chase plays jazz piano.

I once heard Mickey Rooney improvise very well on a television show a number of years ago.

I almost forgot! Fred Rogers (Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood) is also a pianist, and I believe he has a degree in composition.

DT: Yes! Exactly! I LOVE that interview... "Crack a window, will ya?!" I LOVELOVELOVELOVE Space Ghost.......................

Anyone else a fan?

Ben Ruppert

P.S. I haven't seen Blade Runner.

Teller from Pen and Teller. They're both accomplished musicians. I also believe that Gary Oldman and Geofrey (sp?) Rush had to at least be familiar with the instrument to play their roles in Immortal Beloved and Shine, respectively.

Mike

Originally posted by The D's Pianist:
HA! I read that too quickly and thought it said "Republicans are the creation of the Evil Dr. Zehn!" HA!

Oops, wrong forum, I should be in the coffee room!

LOL.

Richard Gere....and that piece he was playing in "Pretty Woman" was supposedly one of his own compositions.

I love him! I'm a BIG Mr. Rogers fan! Must be those sweaters.

Don't forget Robert Downey Jr. He played piano on Ally McBeal several times during his year (that show's best, IMO).

penny

No man, she actually played a bach program at carnegie in her youth and has an IQ of like 150

Anthony Hopkins is - though this is only what I heard - a highly accomplished classical pianist, and is focussing more and more on music these days.

The late photographer, Ansel Adams, was a classically trained pianist...in fact he wavered between becoming a concert pianst and a photographer.

Gardener wrote:
Richard Gere....and that piece he was playing in "Pretty Woman" was supposedly one of his own compositions.[/b]

Well, if Gere is claiming that's his own composition, it is plagiarized from the piano introduction of Bruce Springsteen's "Racing in the Streets"

Jack Lemmon was a jazz pianist. And I seem to recall from Noah Adams' book that NPR's Susan Stamberg is an excellent sight reader on the piano.

Did anyone catch John Tesh on Conan O'Brien on Thanksgiving? Conan got Tesh to play "Turkey in the Straw" on keyboard in a pen filled with turkeys. You had to see it to believe it.

Joy

On the DVD supplement for Hannibal, there is an alternate scene where Hopkins plays his own composition.

Hopkins also wrote the score for his film "August."

great thread guys, i also heard that Jason Alexander, from Seinfeld (George Costanza) plays the piano very well, someone told me they saw it on his biography on the A&E channel, i believe it was that one.

Joy, Yeah... Jack Lemmon was a fine pianist. I remember a wonderful TV show I saw back in the 1970s ... just Jack and Peter Nero chatting in a studio with two grand pianos side by side. It was great... just the two of them talking about music and playing . As I recall it was part of a series which Nero was presenting at the time ? Boy, would I love to get hold of THAT one ! Has anyone mentioned DEAN MARTIN ... may be wrong ... but I think he did his own piano work in "Ocean's Eleven" ? 1950s heart throb Johnnie Ray was pretty handy on the old "88 ".