# John O'Hurley

John George O'Hurley Jr. (born October 9, 1954) is an American actor and game show host. He played J. Peterman on the NBC sitcom Seinfeld, provided the voice for King Neptune on SpongeBob SquarePants, and hosted the game show Family Feud from 2006 to 2010. O'Hurley also hosted To Tell the Truth from 2000 to 2002 in syndication.

## Early life

O'Hurley was born in Kittery, Maine, the son of Jean (February 14, 1930 – February 9, 2017), a housewife, and John George O'Hurley (January 18, 1928 – February 1, 2020), an ear, nose, and throat surgeon. O'Hurley attended Natick High School in Natick, Massachusetts, and Kingswood-Oxford School in West Hartford, Connecticut, but moved to DuBois, Pennsylvania, in ninth grade. He attended Cardinal Gibbons High School senior year, and graduated in 1972. O'Hurley graduated from Providence College in 1976 with a BA in Theatre.
O'Hurley performs charitable work for the Epilepsy Foundation due to the fact that his older sister, Carol O'Hurley, died in 1970 at the age of 17 due to epileptic seizures.

## Career
### Seinfeld

On Seinfeld, O'Hurley played J. Peterman, a fictionalized version of catalog-company entrepreneur John Peterman, from 1995 until the show's end in 1998. O'Hurley invested in the relaunch of The J. Peterman Company, and since 1999 has been a part-owner and member of the board of directors.

### Dancing with the Stars

O'Hurley was a contestant on the first season of the television show Dancing with the Stars, which aired during mid-2005. O'Hurley and his dance partner Charlotte Jørgensen made it to the final competition, which they lost to ABC soap opera star Kelly Monaco.
After fans alleged that Monaco's victory was a set-up, the network announced that O'Hurley, Monaco and their professional dancing partners would face off in a special "grudge match" episode broadcast September 20, 2005. Unlike the first episode, viewer vote solely determined the outcome as opposed to a combination between the three professional judges and the viewer votes.
O'Hurley and Jørgensen emerged as the winners. The rematch earned $126,000 for Golfers Against Cancer charity. Afterward the duo produced a dance instruction video called, "Learn to Dance with John and Charlotte".
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' score | Judges' score | Judges' score | Result |
| Week # | Dance / Song | Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | Result |
| 1 | Cha-Cha-Cha/ "September" | 7 | 7 | 6 | No Elimination |
| 2 | Quickstep / "Let's Face the Music and Dance" | 8 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 3 | Tango / "Dance with Me" | 9 | 8 | 7 | Safe |
| 4 | Samba / "Just the Two of Us" | 7 | 8 | 6 | Bottom Two |
| 4 | Viennese Waltz / "I Got You Babe" | No scores given | No scores given | No scores given | | Bottom Two |
| 5 Semi-finals | Foxtrot / "Let There Be Love" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 5 Semi-finals | Pasodoble / "Bamboléo" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 6 Finals | Quickstep / "Let's Face the Music and Dance" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Runner-up |
| 6 Finals | Freestyle / "I'm So Excited" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Runner-up |
| 7 Dance-Off | Rumba / "The Look of Love" | 7 | 8 | 7 | Winner |
| 7 Dance-Off | Waltz / "You Light Up My Life" | 10 | 10 | 10 | Winner |
| 7 Dance-Off | Freestyle / "I Am What I Am" | 8 | 8 | 9 | Winner |

### Other roles

O'Hurley made two guest appearances on Baywatch in 1992 and 1994, in two different roles. The first was as villainous yacht club president Fred Adler in "Masquerade," and again as a grieving father named Bill in "Red Wind." In 2003, he played the role of Roger Heidecker on the UPN television series The Mullets.
O'Hurley returned to the Baywatch universe in a 1995 Baywatch Nights episode "Bad Blades," playing the villainous Kemp, in a roller hockey themed episode. He also co-starred on the short-lived sitcom A Whole New Ballgame, had a role as Ralph Stafford on the Murder She Wrote episode "Nailed", and guest-starred in an episode of Drake & Josh.
O'Hurley has been the host of Purina's annual National Dog Show every Thanksgiving since 2002.
In March 2007, O'Hurley took the lead role in the Wynn Las Vegas's production of Spamalot, in which he plays King Arthur. In July 2008, O'Hurley reprised his role as King Arthur in the Los Angeles production of Spamalot at the Ahmanson Theatre. In June 2013, he once again reprised the role of King Arthur in Spamalot at The Muny Theater in St. Louis, Missouri. O'Hurley starred on Broadway and on National Tour as Billy Flynn in Chicago. He has hosted the Mrs. America and Mrs. World Pageants.
O'Hurley is one of the guest speakers in the Candlelight Processional at Epcot in Walt Disney World. He is the voice of the owner of the Cow and Corset bar in the Fable II videogame for the Xbox 360. O'Hurley also replaced Frank Welker as the "Phantom Blot" for Mickey Mouse Works and House of Mouse. He has also provided the voice of King Neptune XIV on SpongeBob SquarePants and done voice-over work for radio stations, including WBEN-FM in Philadelphia, KPKX in Phoenix (as "Jim Peakerman"), KMAX in San Francisco (as "J.J. Maxwell"), and WARH in St. Louis (as "Simon Archer"). O'Hurley is also the voice of Coors Light commercials for more than 10 years.
O'Hurley guest-starred in an episode of The Emperor's New School called "Malina's Big Break", in 1999 as a cult leader in the Family Guy episode "Chitty Chitty Death Bang", and in 2010, guest-starred on Wizards of Waverly Place as Captain Jim-Bob Sherwood.
From 2008 to 2015, O'Hurley voiced Mayor Roger Doofenshmirtz, Heinz Doofenshmirtz's brother, in Phineas and Ferb. He also played in the award-winning 2000x dramatic series produced by the Hollywood Theater of the Ear for National Public Radio.
O'Hurley was a guest star on multiple episodes of the soap opera All My Children during its last month on ABC, in September 2011, playing Kit Sterling, a producer who approaches Erica Kane to make a movie based on the new book she has just written. O'Hurley previously appeared as Dr. James R. Grainger on The Young and the Restless from 1989-90, and acted in the soap opera Loving as Keith Lane / Jonathan Matalaine.
In 2015, O'Hurley had a recurring role as Dr. Christopher Neff on Devious Maids. He also provided the voice for Victor the Villain on the children's animated TV series Wallykazam!.

#### Game show host

From 2000 to 2002, O'Hurley hosted a revival of To Tell the Truth. In 2004, he hosted the limited-run game show The Great American Celebrity Spelling Bee. On September 11, 2006, he replaced Richard Karn as the fifth individual to host Family Feud. O'Hurley hosted the show for four seasons, before leaving the show at the beginning of 2010. He was replaced by fellow comedian and film star Steve Harvey. In a 2017 interview with Fox News, O'Hurley agreed that the show became less family-friendly and admitted that as one of the reasons for leaving. He went on to explain:
   I got tired of people writing to me saying: 'I can't watch your show. It's a misnomer calling it that because, it's not family. It feels like everything became a penis joke' and I got a little tired of that. I just felt that there are other ways to be more interesting on television and always trying to push that style of family entertainment. I had a great time doing it, but it was time to move on.

## Personal life

O'Hurley is a self-taught pianist and classically trained vocalist, and has been composing since his teen years. In 2004, in tandem with cellist Marston Smith, he released a two-album project entitled Peace of Our Minds, a compilation of his original piano compositions. The piece "For Lisa" was written for O'Hurley's wife for their wedding day in 2004. O'Hurley was featured on the March/April 2009 cover of Making Music magazine.
O'Hurley was married to Eva LaRue from 1992 to 1994. Since August 14, 2004, he has been married to Lisa Mesloh. Together they have a son.
In May 2011, O'Hurley received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.
O'Hurley identifies politically as a conservative, and is a longtime fan of the Boston Red Sox.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Billy the Kid | Dolan | Television film |
| 1991 | White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd | Pat DiCicco | Television film |
| 1991 | Night Eyes 2 | Detective Turner | |
| 1995 | The Power Within | Lt. Cabrell | Direct-to-video |
| 1997 | The Killing Secret | Ted Dunleavy | Television film |
| 1997 | Murder Live! | Hal Damon | Television film |
| 1998 | Tempting Fate | Stewart | Television film |
| 1999 | Love Stinks | Walter Drooz | |
| 2001 | Race to Space | Barnett, PR Official | |
| 2002 | Teddy Bears' Picnic | Earle Hansen | |
| 2002 | Buying the Cow | Tim "Timbo" Chadway | |
| 2002 | Tarzan & Jane | Johannes Niels (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2006 | Holidaze: The Christmas That Almost Didn't Happen | Kringle (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2008 | An American Carol | Silvano | |
| 2010 | High School | Drug PSA (voice) | |
| 2011 | Beethoven's Christmas Adventure | Mr. Rexford | Direct-to-video |
| 2013 | Scooby-Doo! Stage Fright | The Great Pauldini (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2014 | Christian Mingle | Donny De Bona | |
| 2015 | The Flintstones & WWE: Stone Age SmackDown! | Mr. Slate (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2016 | Swing Away | Glenn | |
| 2019 | 7 Days in Vegas | Walter | |
| 2020 | Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe | Mayor Roger Doofenshmirtz (voice) | Streaming film |
| 2020 | Charlie's Christmas Wish | God (voice) | Post-production |
| 2020 | Christmas in New England | Mr. Trowel | Pre-production |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1983–84 | The Edge of Night | Greg Schaeffer | |
| 1984–86 | Loving | Keith Lane, Jonathan Matalaine | |
| 1988 | As the World Turns | Douglas Prescott | |
| 1988 | Something Is Out There | Remar | Miniseries |
| 1989 | Heartbeat | James Thompson | Episode: "Gestalt and Battery" |
| 1990 | The Young and the Restless | Dr. James Grainger | 3 episodes |
| 1990–91 | Santa Barbara | Stephen Slade | 75 episodes |
| 1991 | Nurses | Dave Grady | Episode: "Coming to America" |
| 1992 | General Hospital | Greg Bennett | |
| 1992 | Scorch | Howard Gurman | 6 episodes |
| 1992–94 | Baywatch | Fred Adler, Bill Cooper | 2 episodes |
| 1993–94 | Silk Stalkings | Dan Borson, Dr. Scott Waverly | 2 episodes |
| 1994 | Thunder in Paradise | Bryden Chubshaw | Episode: "Changing of the Guard" |
| 1994 | Valley of the Dolls | Allen Cooper | 65 episodes |
| 1994 | Frasier | Thomas Jay Fallow | Episode: "Slow Tango in South Seattle" |
| 1995 | Sisters | Pizza Guy | Episode: "No Pain, No Gain" |
| 1995 | Platypus Man | Rance | Episode: "Lou's the Boss" |
| 1995 | Pig Sty | Rance Erik St. Damian | Episode: "Party!!!" |
| 1995 | A Whole New Ballgame | Tad Sherman | 7 episodes |
| 1995 | Murder, She Wrote | Ralph Stafford | Episode: "Nailed" |
| 1995 | Living Single | Jean Luc Gerard | Episode: "Rags to Riches" |
| 1995 | Baywatch Nights | Kemp | Episode: "Bad Blades" |
| 1995–98 | Seinfeld | J. Peterman | 20 episodes |
| 1996 | Ned and Stacey | Kyle Roberts | Episode: "Promotional Rescue" |
| 1996 | Melrose Place | John Marshall | Episode: "The Bobby Trap" |
| 1996 | Coach | Dr. Salters | Episode: "Quarantine" |
| 1996 | Weird Science | Mr. President | Episode: "Lisarella" |
| 1996 | Mad About You | Dr. VonDerphal | Episode: "Dr. Wonderful" |
| 1996 | Boy Meets World | Cal, Grant | 2 episodes |
| 1997 | Over the Top | Robert McSwain | 11 episodes |
| 1997 | Life with Roger | Dr. Noble | Episode: "The Apartment" |
| 1997 | Lost on Earth | Brand Shaw | 1 episode |
| 1997 | Men Behaving Badly | Johnny on TV Show (voice) | Episode: "Playing Doctor" |
| 1997 | Temporarily Yours | Dulles Lee | Episode: "Temp-tation" |
| 1997 | Something So Right | David | Episode: "Something About New Beds and Old Friends" |
| 1997 | Smart Guy | Hugh Sterling | Episode: "A Little Knowledge" |
| 1997 | 101 Dalmatians: The Series | Director (voice) | Episode: "Swing Song/Watching for Falling Idols" |
| 1997 | The X-Files | Dr. Pollidori | Episode: "The Post-Modern Prometheus" |
| 1998 | Style & Substance | Mr. Ferber | Episode: "The Boss and Other Disasters" |
| 1998 | Diagnosis: Murder | David Coopersmith | Episode: "Rain of Terror" |
| 1998 | Damon | Woody Woodson | Episode: "The Actor" |
| 1998 | Ellen | Announcer #2 | Episode: "Ellen: A Hollywood Tribute: Part I" |
| 1998 | The Angry Beavers | Snooty Narrator (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 1998 | The Lionhearts | Additional voices | Episode: "The Poem" |
| 1998 | Hercules | King Cinyras (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 1999 | Sunset Beach | Pete | 1 episode |
| 1999 | Family Guy | Cult Leader (voice) | Episode: "Chitty Chitty Death Bang" |
| 1999 | Mickey Mouse Works | Phantom Blot (voice) | 1 episode |
| 1999 | For Your Love | Roger Bakely | Episode: "The Couple's Court" |
| 2000 | Hey Arnold! | Councilman Gladhand (voice) | Episode: "Helga's Masquerade/Mr. Green Runs" |
| 2000 | The Weber Show | Mr. Bill Erlicht | 3 episodes |
| 2000 | Buzz Lightyear of Star Command | King Nova (voice) | 5 episodes |
| 2000–02 | To Tell the Truth | Himself/host | |
| 2000–2018 | SpongeBob SquarePants | King Neptune (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 2001 | Lloyd in Space | Brock Rockman (voice) | Episode: "The Hero of Urbit-Knarr" |
| 2001 | Son of the Beach | Dr. Merlot | Episode: "The Island of Dr. Merlot" |
| 2001–03 | The Legend of Tarzan | Johannes Niels (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 2002-04 | Teamo Supremo | Captain Excellent (voice) | 3 episodes |
| 2002 | Sabrina the Teenage Witch | Professor Beltran | Episode: "Guilty!" |
| 2002 | Kim Possible | King Wallace II, Ancient King (voices) | Episode: "Royal Pain" |
| 2002 | House of Mouse | Phantom Blot (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 2003 | Odd Job Jack | Dr. Renfield (voice) | Episode: "Fatal Extraction" |
| 2003 | Stripperella | Fireman, Skip Withers (voices) | 2 episodes |
| 2003–04 | The Mullets | Roger Heidecker | 11 episodes |
| 2003–05 | What's New, Scooby-Doo? | Beavis Bottomczek, Mayor Snipper (voices) | 2 episodes |
| 2003–05 | Duck Dodgers | Captain Star Johnson (voice) | 12 episodes |
| 2004 | Come to Papa | Anderson Miller | Episode: "The Salad" |
| 2004 | The Great American Celebrity Spelling Bee | Himself/host | |
| 2004 | Quintuplets | Buck Reynolds | Episode: "Working It" |
| 2004–05 | Father of the Pride | Blake (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 2005 | Drake & Josh | Dr. Carlson | Episode: "Paging Doctor Drake" |
| 2006 | Hope & Faith | Peter (voice) | Episode: "Charley Shoots Faith" |
| 2006–10 | Family Feud | Himself/host | |
| 2007 | Higglytown Heroes | Uncle Zeke, Freight Train Conductor Hero (voices) | 2 episodes |
| 2008 | The Emperor's New School | Editor of Inca Teen Magazine (voice) | Episode: "Malina's Big Break/Hotel Kuzco" |
| 2008–present | Phineas and Ferb | Mayor Roger Doofenshmirtz/Rodrigo, Additional Voices | 36 episodes |
| 2010 | Wizards of Waverly Place | Captain Jim Bob Sherwood | Episode: "Captain Jim Bob Sherwood" |
| 2010 | The Super Hero Squad Show | Grandmaster (voice) | Episode: "Whom Continuity Would Destroy!" |
| 2010 | Big Time Rush | Announcer (voice) | Episode: "Big Time Christmas: Part I" |
| 2010–13 | Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated | Skipper Shelton, Pirate Couple, Ska Zombie (voices) | 8 episodes |
| 2011 | Retired at 35 | Dan | Episode: "Rocket Man" |
| 2011 | Pair of Kings | Narrator | Episode: "King of Thieves" |
| 2011 | All My Children | Kit Sterling | 5 episodes |
| 2011–13 | The Looney Tunes Show | Walter Bunny (voice) | 6 episodes |
| 2013 | The Mentalist | Buddy Hennings | Episode: "Red Velvet Cupcakes" |
| 2014 | Wallykazam! | Victor the Villain (voice) | Episode: "Victor the Villain" |
| 2014 | Gravity Falls | Knight Lilliputian (voice) | Episode: "The Golf War" |
| 2015 | Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja | P.J. McFlubusters Manager (voice) | Episode: "McCluckerbusters" |
| 2015 | Devious Maids | Dr. Christopher Neff | 7 episodes |
| 2015 | Moonbeam City | Vex Mullery (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 2016 | American Dad! | Dentyne Executive, Pilot (voices) | Episode: "Widow's Pique" |
| 2016 | Archer | Ellis Crane (voice) | 3 episodes |
| 2016 | K.C. Undercover | Buck Marshall | Episode: "Spy of the Year Awards" |
| 2017, 2019 | The Lion Guard | Hadithi (voice) | 3 episodes |
| 2017 | The Powerpuff Girls | Additional voices | Episode: "Memory Lane of Pain" |
| 2018 | Mickey Mouse | Additional voices | Episode: "The Fancy Gentleman" |
| 2019 | The Tramp | Chip Turner | 1 episode |
| 2019 | Pawn Stars | Himself | Episode: "A Show About Nothing" |
| 2020 | That Totally Made Up Comedy Show | Network Executive | |
| 2023 | The Patrick Star Show | King Neptune (voice) | Episode: "Neptune's Ball" |
| 2023 | Monster High | Hades Burns (voice) | Episode: "Best Fiends/Scareer Day" |
| 2024 | The Really Loud House | Prescott Moneygreen | Episode: "The Boyfriend Stays in the Picture" |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role |
| 2003 | SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom | King Neptune |
| 2006 | Family Guy Video Game! | Additional Voices |
| 2008 | Fable II | The Cow & Corset Owner |
| 2010 | Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet | Grandmaster |
| 2010 | SpongeBob's Boating Bash | Seymour Scales |
| 2020 | SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated | King Neptune (archival recordings) |
| 2023 | SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake | King Neptune, Glovey Glove |

## Books

* It's Okay to Miss the Bed on the First Jump (2006) (New York Times best-seller)
* Before Your Dog Can Eat Your Homework, First You Have to Do It (2007)
* The Perfect Dog (2013)

## Discography

* A medley (with Sarah Rice) of three songs ("You Found Me and I Found You," "Not Yet" and "Before I Met You") from the musical Oh, Lady! Lady!! on Ben Bagley's Jerome Kern Revisited, Vol. II, released 1990
* Peace of Our Minds (double-CD), released 2005
* Secrets from the Lake, released 2008