Sandler, Adam (1966-…), is an American actor, comedian, musician, and writer. Sandler has acted in dozens of motion pictures. He also has appeared on television programs, most notably the late-night variety show “Saturday Night Live.” In 2023, Sandler received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Adam Richard Sandler was born on Sept. 9, 1966, in the Brooklyn area of New York City. As a child, he moved with his family to Manchester, New Hampshire. Sandler began performing stand-up comedy at the age of 17. In 1988, he graduated from New York University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in drama. He continued to work as a comic while attending college.
Sandler began his acting career in the late 1980’s. In 1987 and 1988, he appeared on several episodes of the TV series “The Cosby Show.” His first movie appearance was in Going Overboard (1989), in which he starred as a young comedian working on a cruise ship. From 1990 to 1995, Sandler worked as a writer and actor for “Saturday Night Live.” He created and played such popular characters as Opera Man and Cajun Man and performed such memorable songs as “The Chanukah Song.”
Sandler became famous for his leading roles in a number of popular comic movies in the 1990’s and early 2000’s. The first of these movies was Billy Madison (1995), about an adult forced to repeat his education from kindergarten through high school. Sandler also starred in Happy Gilmore (1996), a comedy about a hockey player turned professional golfer. Other comedies starring Sandler from this period include The Waterboy and The Wedding Singer (both 1998), Big Daddy (1999), and Little Nicky (2000).
Sandler took on more serious roles in such films as Punch-Drunk Love (2002), Spanglish (2004), and Reign Over Me (2007). His later films include Grown Ups (2010), Blended (2014), The Meyerowitz Stories (2017), Murder Mystery and Uncut Gems (both 2019), and Hustle (2022), among others. Sandler also voiced the character of Dracula in the animated movie Hotel Transylvania (2012) and two of its sequels. In addition, he has worked as a writer on many films, often in collaboration with American screenwriter Tim Herlihy.
Sandler has recorded several comedy albums. His albums They’re All Gonna Laugh At You! (1993), What the Hell Happened to Me? (1996), and Stan and Judy’s Kid (1999) were nominated for Grammy Awards. In 1999, Sandler formed Happy Madison Productions, a motion-picture and television production company.
