Hal Sparks

Hal Sparks
Hal Sparks, 2005
Born	Hal Harry Magee Sparks III September 25, 1969 (1969-09-25) (age 40) Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
Occupation	Actor/Comedian/Game show host
Years active	1987–present
Official website

Hal Harry Magee Sparks III (born September 25, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, and one-time game show host, known for his witty additions to VH1 and the role of Michael Novotny on the American television series Queer as Folk. His previous claim to fame was hosting E!'s Talk Soup.

Life and career

Sparks was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and grew up in Peaks Mill, Kentucky until age 14, when he moved to the Chicago area.^[1] He attended New Trier High School^[2] in Winnetka, IL. In addition to acting, Sparks is also the lead singer and guitarist for a rock band, Zero 1 (previously called The Hal Sparks Band Experience II: Electric Boogaloo). Members include Robert Hall (Sparks' friend) on bass and Miles Loretta (Sparks' cousin) on drums. Their first album was produced by King's X's frontman Doug Pinnick. His musical experience paid off as a contestant in the first season of Celebrity Duets. He often joins the Los Angeles cover band Metal Skool to sing Skid Row songs.

Sparks is a regular on VH1's series I Love the '70s, I Love the '80s, I Love the '80s Strikes Back, I Love the '80s 3-D, I Love the '90s, I Love the '90s: Part Deux, I Love the Holidays, I Love Toys, I Love the '70s: Volume II, I Love VH1 Talking Head Clip Show Reviews, and I Love the New Millennium as well as being a contestant on the reality series Celebracadabra.

Sparks was the captain of the Chicago Hitmen team on GSN's Extreme Dodgeball. He has had small roles in a few films, including Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star and Spider Man 2, where he was an elevator passenger with a handful of lines; he co-starred in Spider-Man 2 with current host of E's The Soup Joel McHale. Hal's first significant role was in the movie Dude, Where's My Car?, as Zoltan, the head of a clan of nerds obsessed with outer space. Sparks' on-screen career began when he became the United States' youngest game show emcee, hosting the short-lived game show, Treasure Mall, in syndication. Hal was one of five celebrities to appear in the first episode of VH1's Celebrity Paranormal Project.

Sparks appeared on all episodes, every season, of the Showtime show, Queer As Folk, as Michael Novotny.

He appeared as himself in the video "Beat It," the Michael Jackson cover, by Fall Out Boy.

Sparks was a contestant on the 2008 VH1 television show Celebracadabra, where the celebrities vie to out-perform each other with magic they have learned from their experienced coaches. Other celebrity contestants competing are Ant, Lisa Ann Walter, Carnie Wilson, Christopher "Kid" Reid, Kimberly Wyatt, and C. Thomas Howell. Howell was the winner with Sparks coming in second place.

He currently resides in Los Angeles, California and is single. His prior girlfriend was Samantha Humphreys, a.k.a. "James Suicide", of the Suicide Girls.

Currently, he is the voice of the computer named "Mr. Q" on the US TV adaptation of 20Q, currently airing on GSN as of June 13, 2009.

Hal is a VIP Advisory Board member of the Marijuana Policy Project.

Zero 1

Zero1 is a rock music group made up of Hal Sparks, Robert Hall, and Miles Loretta. The band was originally founded under the name "The Hal Sparks Band".

Robert Hall owns his own Creature/FX company in Hollywood called Almost Human. He was the creator of the creatures for the popular shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. He was involved in some prosthetic work on Talk Soup, where he met Hal and became friends. In 2004, he wrote and directed his own film called Lightning Bug which starred Sparks.

Miles Loretta is the cousin of Hal Sparks and has been playing the drums since he was in the 7th grade. He used to be the drummer in a band called Rosavelt and has drummed for artists such as Tim Easton and Doug Gillard.

The debut, self-titled album by Zero1 was released in December 2006. It is now available on iTunes and Halsparks.com.

Filmography

Sparks in 2007

Television

• 20Q co-host (2009, voice of computer)
• Celebracadabra (Reality Show) (2008) as himself, 1st runner up
• Tak and the Power of Juju (2007) voice of "Tak" and Really, Really Revolting Juju
• America's Funniest Mom 3 (2007) himself/judge
• Survival of the Richest (2006) Host
• Celebrity Duets (2006) Contestant, 3rd runner up
• Celebrity Paranormal Project (2006) in episode "Waverly Hills Sanatorium"
• Las Vegas (2003) in "Cash Springs Eternal" (2006)
• CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000) in episode "Dog Eat Dog" (2005) as Digger James
• Queer As Folk (2000-2005) as Michael Novotny
• Video Game Vixens (2005) as Host/Himself
• Extreme Dodgeball (2004) as a Player for Chicago Hitmen
• Frasier (1993) in episode "Door Jam" (2003) as Receptionist
• One on One (2001) in episodes "Unemployment Up, Pride Down" (2002) and "I Believe I Can Fly: Part 2" (2002) as Danny Davis Jr.
• Rendez-View (2001) in episodes "She Loves Him, Loves Him Not" (2001) and "Belgian Boy Toy" (2002) as a Guest Host
• Talk Soup as Host/Himself (1999-2000)
• Martial Law (1998) in episode "No Fare" (2000) as Ellroy Nelson
• Rock Band 2: The Stars (2008) [guest star]
• Cheap Theatrix (1998)
• Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (1993) in episode "Indian Agent" (1995) as Gentle Horse
• Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993) in episode "Witness" (1994) as Skateboarder

Film

• Dead Space: Downfall (2008) as Ramirez
• Beat It (Fall Out Boy Cover) Music Video (2008) as himself
• "The House That Jack Built" (2007) as Dominic
• Denial (2006) (executive producer)
• Spider-Man 2 (2004) as Elevator Passenger
• Lightning Bug (2004) as Deputy Dale
• Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003) as Publisher
• Bleacher Bums (2002) (TV) as Richie
• Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001) (voice) as School Fish #1
• Dude, Where's My Car? (2000) as Zoltan - Cult Leader
• Lost & Found (1999) as DJ
• Invader (1996) (voice) as Fort Irwin Defense Command
• Signs and Wonders (1995) (TV) as Rocker 2
• Chopper Chicks in Zombietown (1989) as Lance
• Frog (1987) (TV) as Jim

Radio

• Stephanie Miller Show - regular guest, fill-in host

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hal Sparks

• Hal Sparks Official website
• Hal Sparks at the Internet Movie Database
• Hal Sparks Stand Up Videos
• Zero1 Official Website