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Ed Helms

Ed Helms Biography

Actor

Ed Helms, born on January 24, 1974, is an American actor. He gained widespread popularity for his role as Michael Scott in 'The Office'. He has also starred in several films, further solidifying his career in the entertainment industry.

Ed Helms, born on January 24, 1974, is an American actor. He gained widespread popularity for his role as Michael Scott in 'The Office'. He has also starred in several films, further solidifying his career in the entertainment industry.

Related Quotes

“I've been to Indonesia, but I've never been to Thailand. I hear the people are lovely, the food is delicious, and that the heat and humidity are lethal.”

People Lovely Heat Delicious Indonesia Thailand Humidity Heat And Humidity

Author:Ed Helms

“Probably my favorite thing about watching a movie that I'm in the first time is to see all the things I didn't know were happening in a scene around me.”

Knows Firsts Scene Happenings First Time My Favorite Favorites Things

Author:Ed Helms

“With the tiger you're always on edge, and you always have to keep your distance. The monkey is far less threatening so you're more relaxed around the monkey, and I think that's actually hazardous.”

Thinking Distance Edges Monkeys Tigers Threatening Relaxed

Author:Ed Helms

“April is tax month. If you are having trouble filing your taxes, then you should hire an accountant. They'll give you the same advice that they've given hundreds of corporations - taxes are for douche bags.”

Ifs Giving Should Given Trouble Advice Months Taxes Corporations Bags April Accountants Filing Douches Douche Bag

Author:Ed Helms

“There is something beautiful in the mundane if you take enough microscope to it and focus in on something that seems innocuous to begin with.”

Ifs Enough Seems Beautiful Focus Mundane Something Beautiful Microscopes

Author:Ed Helms

“Vulnerability is huge. I love to see that in characters. It's something I feel like a lot of my comedic heroes have always done.”

Feels Done Character Huge Hero Vulnerability Comedic

Author:Ed Helms

“When you're in New York City or Los Angeles, even if you're not dealing with show business, there's still this sense that it's the center of the universe. And I think that's a really dangerous, limiting mindset.”

Ifs Thinking Stills Shows Universe Cities Dangerous New York Mindset Los Angeles New York City Show Business Center Of The Universe

Author:Ed Helms

“I had envisioned doing comedy since childhood. For sure.”

Comedy Childhood

Author:Ed Helms

“This may come as a surprise, given the nature of my job, but I am very guarded and contemplative. I'm not a naturally boisterous person.”

May Persons Jobs Given Surprise Guarded Contemplative Boisterous

Author:Ed Helms

“It's incredibly fun to play someone that you don't like. It exorcises your own demons in a way. It's cathartic. We all have things that we don't like about ourselves, little things. And I get to amplify those things and put them out there. It's fun and it has a cleansing effect.”

Way Littles Play Fun Effects Demon Little Things Cleansing Amplify Cathartic

Author:Ed Helms

“I happen to think singing is hilarious, especially when it pops out at the wrong time.”

Thinking Happens Singing Pops Wrong Time

Author:Ed Helms

“I'm a very jaded and cynical person.”

Persons Cynical Jaded

Author:Ed Helms

“It has been said that a rolling stone gathers no moss. I would add that sometimes a rolling stone also gathers no verifiable facts or even the tiniest morsels of journalistic integrity.”

Has Beens Said Sometimes Facts Integrity Stones Add Rolling Rolling Stones Moss Journalistic

Author:Ed Helms

“I think that music at inappropriate times with inappropriate volumes can be the funniest thing ever.”

Thinking Volume Inappropriate

Author:Ed Helms

“I've always been into toys and kits and models. I'm kind of a toy nerd.”

Kind Models Toys Nerd

Author:Ed Helms

“As a hobbyist, there's something about miniature anything that captures my imagination.”

Imagination Capture My Imagination Miniatures

Author:Ed Helms

“Whenever I've messed around with radio-controlled things, there's always been a part of me that's thought, I wonder if there might actually be a little guy piloting these vehicles.”

Ifs Littles Might Guy Wonder Radio Controlled Vehicle

Author:Ed Helms

“I told personal stories the way [Bill] Cosby would spin a yarn for ten minutes. I think in hindsight it works better as a long story than as a condensed monologue.”

Thinking Way Long Stories Minutes Ten Bills Hindsight Monologues Yarn Long Story Personal Stories

Author:Ed Helms

“[I read news] because no one's going to tell me what they really think of something.”

Author:Ed Helms

“I found myself often asking the question, "Who deserves to be made fun of?" Depending on your mood, the answer can be no one or everyone. It took me a while to understand the math of how those field pieces came together. I don't think that ridicule is ever funny, but there are times when that gets the biggest response.”

Thinking Made Together Found Fun Answers Pieces Fields Deserve Asking Response Math Mood Ridicule

Author:Ed Helms

“I have profound respect for Sacha Baron Cohen, but Borat is not a particularly comfortable movie for me to sit through.”

Comfortable Profound

Author:Ed Helms

“I loved the show Lost, in part because the writers were so nimble in how they would take things from previous episodes, that probably weren't created with any intent towards a larger narrative, and they would get woven into narratives in a really elegant and exciting way.”

Way Shows Lost Exciting Narrative Episodes Elegant Woven Nimble

Author:Ed Helms

“I love travel. I love to go spend time in new places. And even though I got horribly sick in Thailand, and it was the sickest I may have ever been in my life, I still loved the trip.”

May Stills Sick End Times Spend Time New Places Thailand

Author:Ed Helms

“I'm kind of embarrassed by how quickly I adjusted to L.A. I really love it. It's so pleasant.”

Kind Pleasant Embarrassed

Author:Ed Helms

“Improvisation is about finding the best joke or the silliest way to get something across. Improvising conflict is always fun because you can just go for it.”

Way Fun Conflict Findings Jokes Improvisation Improvising

Author:Ed Helms

“Getting any movie made is just like trying to push a giant boulder up a mountain, and there's so many moving parts. Obviously, there's the creative side, and then there's the logistical side, and they're both colossal.”

Trying Made Moving Sides Creative Mountain Giants Colossal Boulders Moving Parts

Author:Ed Helms

“I feel like I'm worried about my later years in life because I feel like I'm using up so much good karma right now. There's going to be some sort of karmic backlash somewhere down the road.”

Feels Years Right Now Karma Worried Down The Road Backlash Good Karma Somewhere Down The Road

Author:Ed Helms

“That's actually a rare thing to be on a set full of people that you admire and make you laugh all the time.”

People Laughing Admire Make You Laugh Rare Things

Author:Ed Helms

“As an actor, you can really play the intensity and gravity and seriousness of the moment, and just rely on the circumstances being funny. The joke is kind of the situation you're in, or the way you're reacting to something, as opposed to the characters just saying something witty.”

Way Kind Play Moments Character Actors Situation Circumstances Jokes Witty Rely Intensity Gravity Seriousness Reacting Just Saying Being Funny

Author:Ed Helms

“You make adjustments according to the specifics of the character.It's something I feel like a lot of my comedic heroes have always done. It's not even necessarily vulnerability, always, but it's an earnestness, a genuine desire to actually do the right thing, but then still make really misguided, stupid decisions along the way.”

Way Feels Stills Done Character Desire Decision Stupid Hero Genuine Right Thing Vulnerability Adjustment Comedic Misguided Earnestness Specifics Stupid Decision

Author:Ed Helms

“I worked as an assistant editor, actually, for a few years. That was right when I was just starting to get out at night and do a lot of stand-up, improv, and sketch work in New York. It really is invaluable. I think it pounded into me an awareness of what an editor wants and needs, in terms of clarity of a moment, where and when to start and stop a line.”

Thinking Want Needs Years Moments Night Term Lines Awareness New York Starting Clarity Editors Assistants Invaluable Wants And Needs

Author:Ed Helms

“As an editor, you're constantly dealing with the best way to convey an exchange between two people. So when I'm shooting that, I'm just aware in the back of my head what an editor might want. And also, the problems editors run into when trying to edit performances - it helps me head that off at the pass a little.”

People Way Want Trying Littles Two Helping Problem Might Running Performances Best Way Shooting Help Me Editors Edits

Author:Ed Helms

“I'm sure I cause just as much consternation for editors as any other actor, but it definitely makes me feel more comfortable understanding how and why all the different camera setups exist.”

Feels Different Actors Causes Understanding Comfortable Cameras Editors Setups Consternation

Author:Ed Helms

“Working on The Daily Show, I co-produced all those field segments, and that's another huge thing.I probably did more than 100 field segments.”

Shows Fields Huge Daily Show

Author:Ed Helms

“Sometimes you just create a joke out of thin air in the editing room. So I'm really glad I've had that experience. It gives me a little more confidence in front of the camera.”

Giving Littles Sometimes Rooms Air Fronts Jokes Give Me Cameras Glad Editing Thin Air

Author:Ed Helms

“I went to Oberlin College, and they don't have a film major, but they do have what's called an individual major, where you can sort of pitch to a committee your own course study, and if they approve it, you have essentially just designed your own major. So Oberlin doesn't have a film major; they do have a film minor... And then my spring semester of my junior year, I went off to NYU film school as a visiting student - they have a program for kids from other schools to come in for a semester.”

Ifs Years Kids School Film Courses Individual Study Students College Majors Spring Program Minors Committees Juniors Visiting Film School Semester Nyu Junior Year

Author:Ed Helms

“To be totally candid, it was really born out of a panic attack the summer between my sophomore and junior years, when I realized I wasn't going to graduate in four years unless I somehow managed to glue together all the courses I'd taken. That said, I'm really glad I did it, 'cause it was really fun, and I was able to just take whatever the hell I wanted.”

Years Said Able Wanted Together Courses Fun Causes Born Hell Taken Four Summer I Realized Glad Four Years Graduates Panic Juniors Glue Candid Panic Attacks Sophomore Junior Year

Author:Ed Helms

“All I knew is that I loved movies and comedy and TV, and I wanted to perform. I made a bunch of shorts and movies in college, and that was always fun too. I directed some plays in college. It was taking it all in and trying to immerse myself in as much of it as possible.”

Trying Made Play Wanted Fun Comedy College Tvs Bunch Shorts

Author:Ed Helms

“Going into editing when I got to New York was part of that. I guess I just kind of wanted to know as much as possible. But I have a real love of the whole process, from start to finish. So right now, I fit into the acting part of the process, but I wouldn't rule anything out. I'm enamored with how the whole thing works.”

Knows Kind Real Whole Wanted Process Acting New York Fit Right Now Real Love Editing Enamored

Author:Ed Helms

“People who grew up in New York City or Los Angeles tend not to even understand what goes on in the rest of the country. I'm really glad to have grown up in an environment where I actually was kind of a weirdo because I was obsessed with comedy and movies and stuff.”

People Kind Country Stuff Cities Environment Comedy New York Grew Goes On Grew Up Glad Obsessed Los Angeles New York City Weirdo

Author:Ed Helms

“I'm glad to always have that connection to a part of the country that doesn't really have anything to do with what I do. That said, there seems to be a lot of production drumming up in Atlanta these days. It would be kind of a dream come true to go back to Atlanta to work on a movie, but we'll see what happens.”

Kind Said Country Dream Seems Happens Would Be Connections Productions Glad These Days Be Kind Dreams Come True Atlanta Drumming

Author:Ed Helms

“I lived in New York for 10 years, I loved it, I never second-guessed it. There were definitely times when I thought, "I will never leave this place." And I kind of got into that center-of-the-universe mindset.”

Years Kind Universe New York Mindset Center Of The Universe

Author:Ed Helms

“You take a vacation to a place like Thailand and you're ready for the excitement of something new and foreign. But when you're working 14-hour days, all you want is something familiar to ground you. And there's just nothing there.”

Want Hours Ready Familiar Excitement Something New Vacation Thailand

Author:Ed Helms

“Shouldn't EVERY week be Infection Control Week?”

Author:Ed Helms

“Who among us wouldn't rush out and buy a Pepsi if we thought it would make the Osborne's disappear?”

Ifs Disappear Pepsi

Author:Ed Helms

“I cannot stress this enough - if you try to install an HDTV in a non-HDTV compatible house, you may tear the space-time continuum.”

Ifs Trying May Enough House Space Tears Stress Compatible Continuum Space Time Space Time Continuum

Author:Ed Helms

“Alcohol causes conflicts, firearms resolve conflicts.”

Causes Conflict Alcohol Resolve Firearms

Author:Ed Helms

“It's kind of hard to win most elections on anti-family, immorality, and Satan-worship.”

Kind Hard Winning Worship Election Satan Immorality

Author:Ed Helms

“There are currently more political parties in Iraq than unbombed buildings to hold them.”

Political Party Building Iraq Political Parties

Author:Ed Helms

“When you're playing a fictional character reacting to the real world, it's incredibly difficult and confusing and kind of messes with your values a bit.”

World Kind Real Character Values Bits Difficult Mess Real World Confusing Reacting Fictional Character

Author:Ed Helms

About the Author

Born: January 24, 1974
Known for: Actor
Quotes: 104

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