# Cheri Oteri

Cheryl Ann Oteri (/oʊˈtɛri/; born September 19, 1962) is an American actress and comedian. A Primetime Emmy Award nominee, she is best known for her tenure as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from 1995 to 2000.

## Early life

Oteri is the daughter of Gaetano Thomas Oteri and has Italian ancestry.

## Career
### Saturday Night Live (1995–2000)

After moving to Los Angeles at age 25, Oteri worked at A&M Records for four years and eventually joined famed comedy troupe The Groundlings. In 1995, producers of Saturday Night Live (SNL) attended a performance with the intention of auditioning fellow Groundlings member Chris Kattan. Oteri performed a monologue during one of Kattan's costume changes, which led to her own invitation to audition for SNL, along with Kattan and fellow Groundling Will Ferrell. She was hired as a performer in September 1995 as part of an almost entirely new cast, which was brought in after the show's disastrous 1994–1995 season.
Celebrities that Oteri impersonated included Alanis Morissette, Barbara Walters, Cyndi Lauper, Mariah Carey, Marla Maples, Debbie Reynolds, Jennifer Lopez, Lacey Chabert, Ross Perot, Jennifer Tilly, Kelli Williams, Paula Jones, Tori Spelling, Melanie C, Robin Byrd, Jessica McClure, Jessica Simpson, Fran Drescher, Jennifer Aniston, Marisa Tomei, Katie Couric and Gloria Stuart.

#### Original characters

* Arianna, a member of The Spartan Cheerleaders (with Will Ferrell)
* Rita DelVecchio, a grouchy Philadelphia woman who is mean to the neighborhood children, patterned after Oteri's tough-talking grandmother.
* Cass Van Rye, the dim-witted co-host of the "Morning Latte" talk show (with Will Ferrell)
* Mickey "The Dyke", a butch public-access television cable TV host (with Mark McKinney)
* Nadeen, a testy employee whose catchphrase constantly orders everyone to "Simmer down now!"
* Althea McMahonaman, an absurdly hyper child who is an awful passenger and disturbs public servants
* Collette Reardon, a prescription pill-addict
* Joy Lipton, Erotic Attic boutique owner
* Adele, a vulgar and highly sexual office worker whose attempts at sexual innuendos disgust rather than attract her colleagues
* Laura Zimmerman, one half of the Zimmermans, who suddenly break into rough and sexual behavior before returning to casual conversation as if nothing happened (with Chris Kattan)

### 2001–present

Oteri has appeared in a number of movies, including Scary Movie, Inspector Gadget, Liar Liar, Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd, Shrek the Third and Southland Tales.
She starred in two TV pilots that did not make it to air: Loomis and With You in Spirit. Shows on which she made guest appearances include Just Shoot Me!, Strangers with Candy and Curb Your Enthusiasm, in which she portrayed Martine, the emotionally unstable nanny.
In 2009, Oteri became a regular voice cast in the Fox animated comedy series, Sit Down, Shut Up. She voices Helen Klench, the unappreciated librarian who often gets mistaken for objects, such as brooms or toilet brushes. The series premiered on April 19, 2009 and moved to Comedy Central in May 2010.
Oteri played a tooth fairy on Imagination Movers, a regular on the Playhouse Disney block. She starred in the AMC web series Liza Life Coach in 2010. Oteri appeared in the pilot episode of Glory Daze, which premiered on TBS on November 16, 2010. She hosted AXS TV's Gotham Comedy Live on May 26, 2016, in New York City.
Cheri is an occasional guest on Jeff Lewis' talk radio show on Radio Andy, the Andy Cohen channel on SiriusXM.

## Filmography
### Films

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1997 | Liar Liar | Jane | |
| 1997 | Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery | Flight Attendant | Uncredited |
| 1998 | Small Soldiers | Globotech Telephone Operator | Uncredited |
| 1999 | Inspector Gadget | Mayor Wilson | |
| 2000 | Love & Sex | Mary | |
| 2000 | Lured Innocence | Molly | |
| 2000 | Scary Movie | Gail Hailstorm | |
| 2003 | Sol Goode | Bernadette Best | |
| 2003 | Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd | Ms. Heller | |
| 2004 | Surviving Eden | Maria Villanova | |
| 2005 | Smile | Linda | |
| 2006 | Southland Tales | Zora Charmichaels | |
| 2006 | Park | Claire | |
| 2006 | The Ant Bully | Doreen Nickle (voice) | |
| 2007 | Shrek the Third | Sleeping Beauty / Actress (voices) | |
| 2008 | Surveillance | Mom | |
| 2008 | Private Valentine: Blonde & Dangerous | Private Jeter | |
| 2011 | And They're Off | Dee | |
| 2012 | Bad Parents | Melissa | |
| 2013 | Grown Ups 2 | Penny | |
| 2014 | Wishin' and Hopin' | Sister Dymphna | |
| 2017 | F the Prom | Christine Datner | |
| 2019 | Benjamin | Clarice | |
| 2019 | Drama Drama | Miss Macy | |
| 2022 | Out of Office | Janet | TV movie |
| 2022 | Give or Take | Patty King | |
| 2024 | Big City Greens the Movie: Spacecation | Gwendolyn Zapp (voice) | TV movie |
| 2025 | Dog Man | Mayor (voice) | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1995–2000 | Saturday Night Live | Various | Main cast |
| 1997–1999 | Just Shoot Me! | Cindy | 2 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series |
| 1998 | Hercules | Princess Lavina (voice) | Episode: "Hercules and the Jilt Trip" |
| 2000 | Strangers with Candy | Hillary | Episode: "The Last Temptation of Blank" |
| 2001 | Ally McBeal | Melissa | Episode: "Cloudy Skies, Chance of Parade" |
| 2002 | Curb Your Enthusiasm | Martine | Episode: "The Nanny from Hell" |
| 2003 | With You in Spirit | Montana | TV movie |
| 2005 | Stephen's Life | Principal Ainsley | TV movie |
| 2008 | Boston Legal | Martha Headly | Episode: "Kill, Baby, Kill" |
| 2008–2010 | The Life & Times of Tim | Blobsnark | 2 episodes |
| 2008–2012 | Easy to Assemble | Gigi | 4 episodes |
| 2009 | Sit Down, Shut Up | Helen Klench / Parrot (voices) | 13 episodes |
| 2010 | Imagination Movers | Gladys | Episode: "Tooth Fairy" |
| 2010 | Glory Daze | Joel's Mother | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2010 | Glenn Martin, DDS | Kristy | Episode: "Camp" |
| 2012 | Dan Vs. | Honey O'Houlihan (voice) | Episode: "The Cat Burglar" |
| 2012 | The New Normal | Carla | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars | Guest Judge | 1 episode |
| 2013 | Jessie | Mrs. Falkenberg | Episode: "Teacher's Pest" |
| 2013 | Christmas in Conway | Gayle Matthews | TV movie |
| 2014 | Hot in Cleveland | Dr. Deb | Episode: "Bad George Clooney" |
| 2014–2016 | The 7D | Gingersnaps (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 2015 | Comedy Bang! Bang! | Madeline Ferrari | Episode: "Weird Al Yankovic Wears a Different Hawaiian Shirt" |
| 2015 | Miles from Tomorrowland | Dibblex (voice) | Episode: "Unexpected Ally/Skyrise" |
| 2015 | The HOA | Montana Molone | TV movie |
| 2015 | Not Safe for Work | Misty Ridgeport | |
| 2016 | Bad Internet | The Rachel | Episode: "Which of the 'Friends' Are You?" |
| 2016 | Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh | Pauline Pappernacky | 2 episodes |
| 2016–2017 | The Fairly OddParents | Connie Carmichael (voice) | 5 episodes |
| 2016 | Scream Queens | Sheila Baumgartner | Episode: "Handidates" |
| 2016 | Those Who Can't | Cathy Goodman | 7 episodes |
| 2017–2023 | Puppy Dog Pals | Esther / Mouse (voices) | 62 episodes |
| 2017 | Bunsen Is a Beast | Miss Flapp (voice) | 11 episodes |
| 2018 | 9JKL | Patty | Episode: "Stalker Status" |
| 2018 | Animals | Nurse Deb (voice) | Episode: "Dogs. (2)" |
| 2019 | Crazy Ex-Girlfriend | Connie | Episode: "I'm Finding My Bliss" |
| 2019–2021 | Big City Greens | Gwendolyn Zapp (voice) | 5 episodes |
| 2019 | New Year's Eve Live | Barbara Walters | |
| 2020 | The Boss Baby: Back in Business | Multi-Multi-Task CEO Baby (voice) | Episode: "Halloween" |
| 2021–2022 | Inside Job | Dupli-Kate (voice) | |
| 2021 | Scooby-Doo, Where Are You Now! | Lazlo the Mechanic | |
| 2024 | The Great North | Sherry | |