B: November 29, 1955 in Toronto, Ontario
Howie Michael Mandel II dropped out of school and began his working life as a carpet salesman. By 1979 he owned a number of stores throughout the greater Toronto area. And then, in a flash, everything changed. While in Los Angeles on a business trip, he performed an off-the-cuff set during an “amateur night” at the Comedy Store club. A producer for the comedic game show Make Me Laugh was in the audience and booked Mandel for several appearances during the show`s run. A successful stand-up career followed. His first really big break came when he was signed for what turned out to be 6 years on the hit TV hospital drama, St. Elsewhere. He also did movies, including his role as the voice of Gizmo in the 1984 hit Gremlins, and the role of “Maurice” in the 1989 movie Little Monsters. He was also the creator and executive producer of the Emmy-nominated children’s animated series Bobby’s World which ran for eight seasons on Fox and was later syndicated. In October 2005, he was named host of Deal or No Deal which became a highly rated show in both the United States and Canada. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program for his work that the show, for which he also served as Producer. He was Executive Producer and host of the 1 season series, Howie Do It. Also see: Howie Mandel hosts 2017 Canadian Screen Awards.
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