Tony Hale Biography

Anthony "Tony" Hale (born September 30, 1970) is an American actor, best known for his role in the Fox comedy series Arrested Development as the neurotic Byron "Buster" Bluth. He currently plays Gary Walsh, the sycophantic personal aide to the Vice-President of the United States on the HBO comedy Veep, for which he won the 2013 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

Early life

Hale was born in West Point, New York. His mother, Rita (née Garnett), worked as a staff assistant to State Representative Kathy Ashe, and his father, Mike Hale, taught nuclear and atomic physics, and served in the military. Hale grew up in Tallahassee, Florida, where he attended the Young Actors Theatre and participated in numerous theatrical and musical productions. Graduated from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama (where he became a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity) with a journalism degree in 1992. He is a 1994 graduate of the School of Communication and the Arts of Regent University in Virginia. After graduating, he set up residence in New York City and lived there for nearly ten years. While in New York, Hale helped found The Haven, an artistically-minded community of Christians that meets weekly. He also studied acting at The Barrow Group, a New York City theatre company.

Career

Hale made minor guest appearances in TV shows such as Dawson's Creek, The Sopranos, and Sex and the City. He is often recognized for his role in the famous Volkswagen television commercial aired in 1999, in which he danced to the song "Mr. Roboto", which was later spoofed on Fox sitcom Arrested Development. From 2003 to 2006, and returning to the role in 2013, Hale found success in television when he was cast as Byron "Buster" Bluth, the hapless, neurotic son with "mother issues" on Arrested Development. Hale also appeared in a season ten episode of MADtv in a parody of COPS, where two British robbers try to stop a domestic dispute among the Royal Family.

In March 2006, Hale was cast in a co-starring role as the video store owner Simon in the NBC sitcom Andy Barker P.I., starring Andy Richter and co-created by Conan O'Brien. He appeared in minor roles in Stranger Than Fiction and Because I Said So. He was the voice of Furlough in The Tale of Despereaux, an animated children's film released in 2008. Hale had a recurring role as Emmett on Chuck, beginning in October 2008 and ending with the character's murder in January 2010. His departure made room for his starring role on the NBC web series Ctrl, which premiered on July 13, 2009. He appeared in a cameo in the second episode of the first season of Showtime's dramedy United States of Tara, as English teacher Oral Gershenoff. He joined the cast of Numb3rs in 2009, in the recurring role of Professor Russell Lazlo.

In 2012, Hale starred in the drama comedy Not That Funny. He also guest starred on NBC's long-running show Law & Order: SVU as Rick Simms, a teacher who gets fired from his job after being accused of inappropriate behavior with a student.

In 2012, Hale was cast in the HBO comedy Veep as Gary Walsh, the personal assistant to Vice President Selina Meyer (portrayed by Julia Louis-Dreyfus). On July 18, 2013, Hale was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for his work in the show's second season and won it on September 22, 2013. This is his first Emmy nomination or win to date.

Personal life

Hale married Emmy Award-winning make-up artist Martel Thompson on May 24, 2003. They have one daughter and reside in Los Angeles.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2003	My Blind Brother	Bill
2004	Stateside	Donny
2005	Fortunes	Phil Yount
2006	Unaccompanied Minors	Alan Davies
2006	Stranger Than Fiction	Dave
2006	The Beach Party at the Threshold of Hell	Remington biographer
2006	RV	Frank
2006	Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector	Jack Dabbs
2006	The Proper Care & Feeding of an American Messiah	Homeowner with demons
2007	Flatland: The Movie	King of Pointland	Voice
2007	Because I Said So	Stuart
2007	Dante's Inferno	Pope Nicholas III	Voice
2008	My Suicide	Social worker
2008	The Tale of Despereaux	Furlough	Voice
2008	The Year of Getting to Know Us	Nickie
2009	The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard	Wade
2009	The Informant!	James Epstein
2009	Answer Man	Mailman
2009	The Ballad of G.I. Joe	Dr. Mindbender
2010	Happythankyoumoreplease	Sam #2
2010	In My Sleep	Ben
2011	Wuss	Mr. Crowder
2011	Perfect	Gene	Short
2011	Sironia	Chad
2012	First in Fight	Wilbur Wright	Short film
2012	Not That Funny	Stefan Lane
2013	The Heat	The John

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1997	Ghost Stories	Billy Thorpe	Episode: "Personal Demons"
1998	Legacy	Hyram	Episode: "The Gift"
2000	The $treet	Trainee	Episode: "Closet Cases"
2001	Sex and the City	Tiger	Episode: "The Real Me"
2001	The Sopranos	RN / OCN Collins	Episode: "Second Opinion"
2001	Dawson's Creek	Doctor Bronin	Episode: "A Winter's Tale"
2003"2006 2013	Arrested Development	Byron "Buster" Bluth
2005	Stacked	Brent Lamble	Episode: "Beat the Candidate"
2007	Big Day	David	Episode: "Last Chance to Marry Jane"
2007	Andy Barker P.I.	Simon
2008"2010	Chuck	Emmett Milbarge	14 episodes
2008"2009	ER	Norman	Episodes: "Life After Death" and "T-Minus-6"
2008	Samantha Who?	Dr. Andy Adams	Episode: "The Pill"
2009	United States of Tara	Oral Gershenoff	Episode: "Aftermath"
2009	Rules of Engagement	Steve	Episode: "May Divorce Be With You"
2009"2010	Numb3rs	Russell Lazlo	Episodes: "Hydra" and "Devil Girl"
2010	The Life and Times of Tim	Vince	Voice Episode: "Tim's Beard"
2010	Community	Professor Holly	Episode: "Beginner Pottery"
2010	Law & Order	Phillip Shoemaker	Episode: "Brazil"
2010	Justified	David Mortimer	Episode: "The Collection"
2010	Medium	Gil Bureli	Episode: "The Match Game"
2011	Human Target	Harry	Episodes: "Communication Breakdown" and "The Trouble With Harry"
2011	Royal Pains	Andy	Episode: "Ta Da For"
2011	NTSF:SD:SUV::	Dr. Karl	Episode: "Dolphinnegan's Wake"
2011	Good Vibes	Wadska	Voice
2011	Psych	Jerry Kincaid	Episode: "Neil Simon's Lover's Retreat"
2012"present	Veep	Gary Walsh	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
2012	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Rick Simms	Episode: "Learning Curve"
2012	Up All Night	Dr. Welborn	Episode: "Ma'am'd"
2013	Drunk History	Meriwether Lewis	Episode: Nashville
2013"present	Sanjay and Craig	Mr. Noodman	Voice

Music videos

Year	Band	Song
2008	Fall Out Boy	"Beat It"
2007	Switchfoot	"Awakening"

Web

Year	Title	Role
2009	CTRL	Stuart

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	For	Category	Result	Other notes
2004-2005	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Arrested Development	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series		Shared with Jason Bateman, Michael Cera, David Cross, Portia de Rossi, Will Arnett, Alia Shawkat, Jeffrey Tambor, and Jessica Walter
2013	Primetime Emmy Award	Veep	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series