Billy Gardell June 18, 2009

Although a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Gardell attended Winter Park High School in the mid 1980s and was a member of International Thespian Society Troupe 850 (other notable alums include Amanda Bearse and Ben Rock from The Blair Witch Project) where he was known for comedic roles. Beginning as a touring comedian at the age of nineteen, Gardell has opened for famous comedians including George Carlin and Dennis Miller, later appearing on Miller's show Dennis Miller on CNBC conducting "man-on-the-street" interviews. Notably, he created & staged an SNL style performance of a piece called "Winter Park Live" with all the funds received going to Comic Relief. He makes weekly appearances on hometown local radio station WDVE on the Jim and Randy morning show.

Gardell has performed in several feature films including Bad Santa with Billy Bob Thornton, You, Me, and Dupree with Owen Wilson, and Avenging Angelo with Sylvester Stallone and Anthony Quinn, as well as numerous "series regular" or recurring roles in several television series including NBC's Heist, Yes, Dear, Lucky, and The King of Queens. He also appeared as himself on the Comedy Central series Make Me Laugh. In many of his appearances, he plays a character named "Billy"

In 2006, he released his first comedy album, Billy Gardell: Throwback, and as of 2007 he still continues to tour as a standup comedy headliner. He taped a special for Comedy Central Presents that aired on April 4, 2008. He also appeared in the Desperate Housewives episode, "The Gun Song" in a small role as Gabrielle Solis' handyman.