Bob Odenkirk Biography Quotes 11 Report mistakes

Early Life and Education
Bob Odenkirk was born on October 22, 1962, in Berwyn, Illinois, and grew up in nearby Naperville. One of several siblings, he gravitated early to comedy and radio, gravely influenced by the fast, smart humor he heard and saw around Chicago. He attended Marquette University and later Southern Illinois University Carbondale, where he worked at the campus radio station and began experimenting with sketch comedy. Chicago improv and The Second City became formative training grounds, sharpening his writing and performance instincts and introducing him to collaborators who would shape his career.

Breaking Into Television Writing
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Odenkirk wrote for Saturday Night Live, working alongside writers and performers such as Conan O Brien and Robert Smigel. His Second City work yielded the Matt Foley character that Chris Farley immortalized on stage and on SNL, a reminder of Odenkirk s knack for building indelible comic premises. He then joined The Dennis Miller Show and moved on to The Ben Stiller Show, where he wrote and performed with Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo, and Judd Apatow. That series brought him an Emmy for writing and a reputation for audacious, idea-driven sketch comedy.

Mr. Show and the Sketch-Comedy Vanguard
With David Cross, Odenkirk co-created Mr. Show with Bob and David on HBO (1995 1998). Their partnership pushed sketch comedy toward intricate structures and layered satire. The ensemble included talents like Paul F. Tompkins, Brian Posehn, Tom Kenny, and Mary Lynn Rajskub, and the series developed a devoted cult following that influenced future generations of comedians. Years later, he and Cross reunited for the Netflix limited series W/ Bob & David, reaffirming the pair s creative chemistry.

Acting Range in Television and Film
As a performer, Odenkirk found steady momentum with memorable television roles. On The Larry Sanders Show, created by Garry Shandling, he played agent Stevie Grant with a mix of bravado and insecurity that hinted at his dramatic potential. He later appeared in Fargo, sharing scenes with Martin Freeman and Allison Tolman, and played the exacting executive Arthur Hobbs on How I Met Your Mother. In film, he worked under directors of distinct sensibilities: Alexander Payne s Nebraska, alongside Bruce Dern and Will Forte; Steven Spielberg s The Post, playing journalist Ben Bagdikian; and Greta Gerwig s Little Women, as the March family patriarch.

Saul Goodman and a Transformative Turn
Odenkirk s career-defining pivot came with AMC s Breaking Bad, created by Vince Gilligan. Introduced in 2009, Saul Goodman brought antic energy and moral slipperiness to a show anchored by Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul. The character s popularity led Gilligan and Peter Gould to create Better Call Saul, a prequel and companion series that premiered in 2015. There, Odenkirk carried the narrative as Jimmy McGill, tracing the slow transformation into Saul Goodman and, eventually, Gene Takavic. He acted opposite a superb ensemble, including Rhea Seehorn, Jonathan Banks, Michael McKean, Giancarlo Esposito, Patrick Fabian, Michael Mando, and Tony Dalton. The series earned Odenkirk a raft of major award nominations and widespread critical recognition for dramatic depth, moral complexity, and finely tuned comic timing.

Director, Producer, and Champion of New Voices
Beyond acting and writing, Odenkirk has directed and produced. He directed Melvin Goes to Dinner, and the studio comedies Let s Go to Prison and The Brothers Solomon. He also became an early supporter of Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim, helping them develop Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! and later producing The Birthday Boys. His production work often centered on giving distinctive, off-center comic voices room to thrive, an extension of the risk-taking ethos he cultivated with David Cross.

Late-Career Reinvention and Return to Television
He surprised audiences again with the action film Nobody, directed by Ilya Naishuller and written by Derek Kolstad, developed with producers David Leitch and Kelly McCormick. The film cast Odenkirk against type, and his commitment to the physicality of the role earned praise and broadened his screen persona. He then returned to serialized television as the lead of Lucky Hank on AMC, bringing wry intelligence to a middle-aged academic navigating professional and personal ruts, and sharing the screen with Mireille Enos.

Books and Writing Beyond the Screen
Odenkirk s writing voice extends into publishing. A Load of Hooey collected his comedic pieces, showing his flair for absurd premises and verbal play. His memoir, Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama, charted the long road from Chicago radio humorist to a dramatic lead, highlighting mentors, near-misses, and late breakthroughs. With his daughter Erin Odenkirk, he co-authored the poetry collection Zilot & Other Important Rhymes, a family collaboration that doubled as a testament to his enduring affection for language and play.

Personal Life and Collaborations
He married producer and talent manager Naomi Odenkirk in 1997, and they have two children, Nathan and Erin. Family connections dovetail with his creative life: his brother Bill Odenkirk became a writer on series such as The Simpsons, extending the family s imprint on American comedy. Across decades, Bob Odenkirk s most important collaborators David Cross, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Rhea Seehorn, Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, and many others have both challenged and amplified his work, while he, in turn, has mentored younger artists.

Health, Resilience, and Legacy
In 2021, Odenkirk suffered a heart attack on the set of Better Call Saul. The quick response of colleagues and crew and subsequent medical care enabled a recovery that astonished fans and friends alike, including castmates like Rhea Seehorn and Jonathan Banks who publicly voiced their support. He returned to complete the acclaimed final season, a finish that underscored the steadiness and grit audiences had come to associate with his journey. Spanning sketch innovation, character acting, writing, and producing, Bob Odenkirk s career reflects a rare blend of perseverance and reinvention, the work of an artist who kept evolving while elevating those around him.

Our collection contains 11 quotes who is written by Bob, under the main topics: Music - Art - Movie - Career - Pride.

Other people realated to Bob: Ben Stiller (Comedian), Mary Lynn Rajskub (Actress)