Victor Garber Biography

Victor Joseph Garber (born March 16, 1949) is a Canadian actor and singer. He is known for playing Jesus in Godspell, Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, John Wilkes Booth in Assassins, Jack Bristow in the television series Alias, Max in Lend Me a Tenor, Thomas Andrews in James Cameron's Titanic, and Ken Taylor, Canadian Ambassador to Iran, in Argo. He is currently a series regular on Legends of Tomorrow as Dr. Martin Stein, playing the same role as a guest star on The Flash and the web series Vixen.

Early life

Garber was born in London, Ontario, and is of Russian-Jewish descent. His parents were father Joseph "Joe" Garber (died 1995), and mother, Hope Garber (ne Bessie Hope Wolf; died 2005), an actress, singer, and the host of At Home with Hope Garber. He has a brother, Nathan, and a sister, Alisa.

Garber began acting at the age of nine, and studied at the University of Toronto's Hart House at age 16.

When Garber was twelve, he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. He attended Ryerson Elementary School. He also was enrolled in the children's program of the Grand Theatre; and, at age 16, he was accepted at a six-week summer theatre training program at the University of Toronto taught by Robert Gill.

Career

Music

In 1967, after a period working as a solo folk singer, he formed a folk group called The Sugar Shoppe with Peter Mann, Laurie Hood and Lee Harris. The group enjoyed moderate success, breaking into the Canadian Top 40 with a version of Bobby Gimby's song "Canada" (1967). Three other Sugar Shoppe songs made the lower reaches of the Canadian Top 100 in 1967 and '68, and the band even performed on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson before breaking up.

Theatre

He played "Jesus" in Toronto's 1972 production of Godspell. In 1985 he appeared in a supporting role in Noises Off at the Aldwych Theatre on London's West End.

He appeared on Broadway in the original productions of Deathtrap, Sweeney Todd and Noises Off, and in the original Off Broadway cast of Assassins, as well as the 1990s revival of Damn Yankees. He has been nominated for four Tony Awards and opened the Tony Awards program in 1994 (the year he was nominated for the Tony Award for Damn Yankees). In 1998, he co-starred on Broadway in the Tony Award-winning play Art with Alan Alda and Alfred Molina. In 2005, he played the role of Frederic in the Los Angeles Opera production of A Little Night Music. He played "Ben" in a critically praised Encores! staged concert production of Follies (2007), opposite Donna Murphy. In mid-2007, he played Garry Essendine in a production of Nol Coward's Present Laughter at Boston's Huntington Theatre. He reprised the role on Broadway in the Roundabout Theatre production, which opened in January 2010.

Garber is set to next appear on Broadway as Horace Vandergelder in the Tony-winning, Scott Rudin-produced revival of Hello, Dolly! at the Shubert Theatre. Replacing David Hyde Pierce and starring opposite Bernadette Peters, Garber will begin performances on January 20, 2018 prior to an official opening night on February 22, 2018.

Film

His film work includes James Cameron's Titanic (1997), in which he essayed a Mid-Ulster accent to play the shipbuilder Thomas Andrews. Other movie appearances include Godspell (1973) as Jesus (the part he originally played in the 1972 Canadian stage production), Sleepless in Seattle (1993), Annie (1999), Legally Blonde (2001), and Tuck Everlasting (2002). In 2009, he took on the role of the DC Comics supervillain Sinestro in the direct-to-video animated film Green Lantern: First Flight. The same year, Garber played a Klingon interrogator in J. J. Abrams' Star Trek film; however, his scenes were deleted from the finished film.

In 2010, Garber had an uncredited cameo in The Town as a bank manager. The film was directed by Alias co-star Jennifer Garner's husband, Ben Affleck. Also Garber had a credited role in the Ice Quake at the end of 2010. In late 2012, he appeared in Affleck's film Argo, about the Iran hostage crisis; Garber portrayed Canadian Ambassador to Iran Kenneth D. Taylor. He also co-starred in 2014 Samuel L. Jackson and Felicity Huffman in the Finnish-British Action Thriller Big Game.

Television

On television, he has had roles on American and Canadian shows. Garber's first leading role on television show was in CBS's 1985 summer series I Had Three Wives. He had a recurring guest role on CTV's E.N.G. (1991-93). He portrayed Jack Bristow on ABC's show, Alias, earning three Emmy nominations. He next starred on the television series Justice (2006) on Fox and ABC's Eli Stone. He appeared as Olivier Roth in four episodes of the Canadian science drama ReGenesis. He appeared in Episode 3 of the Fox series Glee as Will's father. He currently guest stars as Dr. Martin Stein on The Flash and appears as a regular on Legends of Tomorrow. He appeared once on Frasier as Frasier Crane's butler.

Awards and honours

In December 2010, for their annual birthday celebration to "The Master", The Nol Coward Society invited Garber as the guest celebrity to lay flowers in front of Coward's statue at New York's Gershwin Theatre, thereby commemorating what would have been Coward's 111th birthday.

In 2013, he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.

Personal life

Garber prefers to keep his personal life private and has largely stayed out of the tabloids. He referred publicly to his homosexuality in 2012. In 2013, he said "I don't really talk about it, but everybody knows." Garber has been in a relationship with Canadian artist and model Rainer Andreesen since 2000. On October 10, 2015, Andreesen announced on his Instagram page that he and Garber were married in Canada.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1973	Godspell	Jesus Christ
1974	Monkeys in the Attic	Eric
1981	In the Research of Path of Life	Benjamin Lonergan
1988	'	Ernest Hemingway
1992	Singles	Child's Father	Uncredited
	I'll Never Get to Heaven	Eric Hoskins
	Light Sleeper	Tis Brooke
1993	Sleepless in Seattle	Greg
	Life with Mikey	Brian Spiro
1994	Exotica	Harold Brown
	Mixed Nuts	Irate Neighbour	Voice role
1995	Jeffrey	Tim
	Kleptomania	Morgan Allen
1996	'	Bill Atchison	National Board of Review Award for Best Acting by an Ensemble
1997	Titanic	Thomas Andrews	Nominated"?Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
	'	Father Carson	Short
1998	How Stella Got Her Groove Back	Isaac	Uncredited
1999	External Affairs	Harry Raymond
2001	Legally Blonde	Professor Callahan
	Call Me Claus	Taylor
2002	Tuck Everlasting	Robert Foster
	Home Room	Det. Martin Van Zandt
2008	Milk	Mayor George Moscone	Critics Choice Award for Best Acting Ensemble Nominated"?Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
2009	Green Lantern: First Flight	Sinestro	Voice role
	Star Trek	Klingon Interrogator	Deleted scene
2010	You Again	Mark
	'	Assistant Bank Manager	Uncredited
2011	Kung Fu Panda 2	Master Thundering Rhino	Voice role
	'	Bob Vincent
	Take Me Home	Arnold
2012	Argo	Ken Taylor	Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Hollywood Film Award for Ensemble of the Year Palm Springs International Film Festival for Best Ensemble Nominated"?Central Ohio Film Critics Association for Best Ensemble Nominated"?Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards for Best Ensemble Acting Nominated"?San Diego Film Critics Society Awards for Best Ensemble Performance
	Moving Day	Wilf Redmond
2013	I'll Follow You Down	Sal
2014	Big Game	Vice President
2015	Self/less	Martin ONeill
	Sicario	Dave Jennings
2017	Rebel in the Rye	Sol Salinger
	The Gettysburg Address	William L. Saunders	Voice role; post-production

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1974	Jack: A Flash Fantasy	Jack of Hearts	Television film
	ABC Afterschool Special	Christian de Neuvillette	Voice role, Episode: "Cyrano"
1975	Hallmark Hall of Fame	Marquis de Lafayette	Episode: "Valley Forge"
1977	'	Teddy Wheeler	Miniseries
1978	Tartuffe	Valere	Television film
1983	Charley's Aunt	Jack Chesney	Television film
1985	I Had Three Wives	Jackson Beaudine	Lead role, 5 episodes
	Tales from the Darkside	Ambrose Cavender	Episode: "The Tear Collector"
	Private Sessions	Jerry Sharma	Television film
1986	The Twilight Zone	Dr. Kevin Carlson	Episode: "A Day in Beaumont / The Last Defender of Camelot"
	Roanoak	John White	Television film
	Guiding Light	Det. Frank Minnelli	Unknown episodes
1987-91	'	Dennis Widmer	10 episodes
1988	Liberace: Behind the Music	Liberace	Television film
1991	Grand Larceny	Judge Keeler	Television film
	E.N.G.	Adam Hirsch	10 episodes (1991-1993)
1992	'	Lew Rubin	Television film Nominated"?Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
	I'll Fly Away	Warren	Episode: "Fragile Truths"
	'	Mack Novitz	Episode: "Oh, Mack"
1993	Alex Haley's Queen	Digby	Miniseries
	Dieppe	Lord Louis Mountbatten	Television film Nominated"?Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
	Woman on the Run: The Lawrencia Bembenek Story	Frank Marrocco	Television film
1994	Kung Fu: The Legend Continues	Blackwell	Episode: "The Innocent"
1995	Law & Order	Paul Sandig	Episode: "Savages"
	Almost Perfect	Howard Guthrie	Episode: "You Like Me, You Really Like Me"
1996	Hostile Advances	Jack Gilcrest	Television film
	F/X: The Series	Andrew Price	Episode: "The Brotherhood"
	'	Dr. Ben McCormick	Episode: "Out of Body"
1997	Cinderella	King Maximillian	Television film
	Liberty! The American Revolution	John Dickinson	6 episodes
1999	Summer's End	Narrator	Voice role, television film
	Invisible Child	Tim Beeman	Television film
	Annie	Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks	Television film
	External Affairs	Harry Raymond	Nominated"?Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series
2000	Love and Murder	Inspector Philip Millard	Television film
	Frasier	Ferguson	Episode: "Taking Liberties" Nominated"?Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
	'	Dr. Edward Normandy	Episode: "Glitch"
2001	Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows	Sidney Luft	Television film Nominated"?Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
	'	Inspector Philip Millard	Television film
	'	Inspector Philip Millard	Television film
	Laughter on the 23rd Floor	Kenny Franks	Television film
	Call Me Claus	Taylor	Television film
2001-2006	Alias	Jack Bristow	Main cast (Season 1-5): 105 episodes Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor - Series, Miniseries or Television Film (2003) Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television (2003) Nominated"?Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television (2004) Nominated"?Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (2002-04) Nominated"?Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Parental Units (2005)
2002	Torso: The Evelyn Dick Story	J.J. Robinette	Television film
2003	'	Mayor Shinn	Television film
	It's All Relative	Jerry / Joffrey	Episode: "The Doctor Is Out"
2004	Will & Grace	Peter Bovington	Episode: "Saving Grace, Again: Part 2" Nominated"?Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
2006	Justice	Ron Trott	13 episodes
2007	American Masters	Narrator	Episode: "Novel Reflections: The American Dream"
	Ugly Betty	Professor Barrett	Episode: "Grin and Bear It"
	ReGenesis	Oliver Roth	5 episodes (2007-2008)
2008	Eli Stone	Jordan Wethersby	26 episodes
2009	'	Monsignor De Angelis	Miniseries
	Everything She Ever Wanted	Walter Allanson	Miniseries
	Glee	Will's Father	Episode: "Acafellas"
	Nurse Jackie	Neil Nutterman	2 episodes
	Rex	Paul	Television film
	Web Therapy	Kip Wallice	Web series, 8 episodes (2009, 2013-2014)
	National Geographic: America Before Columbus	Narrator
2010	Ice Quake	Colonel Bill Hughes	Television film
	Republic of Doyle	Garrison Steel	3 episodes (2010-2012)
2011	Stargate Universe	Ambassador Ovirda	Episode: "Seizure"
	Suits	Phillip Hardman	Pilot (scenes cut in US release)
	Murdoch Mysteries	Detective Malcolm Lamb	Episode: "Tattered and Torn"
	Flashpoint	Dr. Larry Toth	Episode: "Fault Lines" Episode:"Personal Effects" / Episode: "Priority of Life"
	30 Rock	Eugene Gremby	Episode: "Respawn"
	Law & Order: LA	Walter Calvin	Episode: "Angel's Knoll"
	William & Catherine: A Royal Romance	Charles, Prince of Wales	Television film
	Charlie's Angels	Charles Townsend	Voice role
	Web Therapy	Kip Wallice	Main role, 19 episodes (2011-2015)
2012	'	Willie Wanker	Episode: "Family Matters"
	Damages	Bennett Herreshoff	3 episodes
	The Firm	Judge Walter A. Dominic	Episode: "Chapter 6"
2013	Deception	Robert Bowers	Main role (11 episodes)
	The Hunters	Mason Fuller	Television film
2014	The Good Wife	Judge Loudon Spencer	Episode: "We, the Juries"
	Sleepy Hollow	Mr. Crane	Episode: "Bad Blood"
	Louie	Louie's Lawyer	Episode: "Model"
	Blue Bloods	Donald Stein	Episode: "Under the Gun"
2014-2017	Power	Simon Stern	11 episodes
2015	Motive	Neville Montgomery	Episode: "6 Months Later"
	The Slap	Narrator	Miniseries, 8 episodes
2015-2017	The Flash	Martin Stein/Firestorm Digsy's Husband	10 episodes Nominated"?Saturn Award for Best Guest Starring Role on Television
2016-present	Legends of Tomorrow	Martin Stein/Firestorm Eobard Thawne	Main role
2016	Vixen	Martin Stein/Firestorm	Voice role, web series, Episode: "Episode #2.1"
2017	Modern Family	Charles Dumont	Episode: "Do It Yourself"
	Difficult People	John Passias	Episode: "Cindarestylox"
	The Orville	Admiral Halsey	Recurring role

Stage

Broadway

Source: Playbill

• The Shadow Box - 1977
• Tartuffe - 1977
• Deathtrap - 1978 (Tony Nomination, Featured Actor in a Play)
• Sweeney Todd - 1979 - as Anthony Hope
• They're Playing Our Song - 1981
• Little Me - 1982 (Tony Nomination, Actor in a Musical)
• Noises Off - 1983
• You Never Can Tell - 1986
• The Devil's Disciple - 1988
• Lend Me a Tenor - 1989 (Tony Nomination, Actor in a Play)
• Two Shakespearean Actors - 1992
• Damn Yankees - 1994 (Tony Nomination, Actor in a Musical)
• Arcadia - 1995
• 'Art' - 1998
• Present Laughter - 2010
• Hello, Dolly! - 2018

Off Broadway

• Godspell - 1972
• Ghosts - 1973
• Joe's Opera ? 1975
• Cracks - 1976
• Wenceslas Square - 1988
• Love Letters - 1989
• Assassins - 1990 as John Wilkes Booth