Bob Newhart is perhaps the only man in the world who can talk to himself on the phone without people looking at him strangely. He of the world-famous one-way phone conversations is also a household name to generations, thanks to his two extremely successful, long-running television series. And he is picking up new fans every day, from youngsters to college students, who watch him nightly on "Nick At Nite" and who attend his comedy concerts in large numbers.
Bob still performs in comedy concerts, opting to continue to live performances before sellout audiences all over the country and the world. With routines created by Bob from today's newspapers in his unique style, and some of his early classic routines (which audiences demand he perform), he is garnering critical raves and pleasing audiences at the same time.
And now, he has entered another arena in the world of comedy, with the release of his very first video, filmed at a live performance where an appreciative audience got to see him perform his greatest one-man telephone comedy classics, including "Abe Lincoln's PR Man," "The Nervous Driving Instructor," Sir Walter Raleigh Explains Tobacco," "King Kong and the New Security Guard," and many more.
"The Bob Newhart Show debuted in 1972 on CBS, marking the beginning of a six-year run. It co-starred Suzanne Pleshette as Bob's wife, Emily, and one of the finest casts of feature players ever on television. But by 1978, Bob felt it was time to move on to other projects.
He was cast in a number of films with some of the biggest stars in Hollywood: "Hell Is For Heroes" with Steve McQueen; "On A Clear Day You Can See Forever" with Barbra Streisand; "Catch 22" with Jon Voight and "First Family" with Gilda Radner.
In 1982 he returned to television with "Newhart," playing a New York do-it-yourself book author turned Vermont innkeeper. Again surrounded by an exceptional ensemble of quirky characters, the series went on to enormous success for eight seasons, ending against the wishes of the network, but only because Bob felt it was better to put the show to rest while it was at its peak.
Television fans remember the final episode of "Newhart," in which he "awoke" in his old bedroom from the "Bob Newhart Show," with his "wife," Suzanne Pleshette, next to him, when he proclaimed he had the strangest dream! Critics and fans alike have called this the single best and most surprising episode in television comedy history, including Entertainment Weekly Magazine, which put it at the top of its "Best All-Time Episodes" list.
Bob and his wife, Virginia, live in Bel Air, California. They have four children, Rob, Tim, Jennifer and Courtney. An avid golfer, he spends as much time as he can on the links.