Casey Wilson

Cathryn Rose "Casey" Wilson (born October 24, 1980) is an American actress, comedienne and screenwriter. She was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 2008–2009 and currently stars as Penny Hartz in the ABC comedy series Happy Endings.

Craig Ferguson 4/11/11E Late Late Show Casey Wilson


Happy Endings Penny (Casey Wilson) Scene's 1x02


Black Best Friend with Casey Wilson

Casey Wilson & Paul Rust in Dirtiest Valentine Sketch


Casey Wilson on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson : April 11, 2011


Casey Wilson at Archlight in Hollywood





Early life and background

Wilson was born and raised in Alexandria, Virginia, along with her younger brother Fletcher Todd Wilson, an engineer. She graduated from T. C. Williams High School in 1998 and studied theater at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting.[1] Her father, Paul O. Wilson, is a political consultant who runs campaigns for moderate Republicans.
Her late mother, Kathy Wilson, was chair of the National Women's Political Caucus, and attended her last Republican National Convention in 1980, while pregnant with Casey. Under her leadership, the NWPC endorsed Walter Mondale in the 1984 election, and Kathy eventually became a Democrat.[2] After retiring from politics, Kathy became involved in early childhood education, serving for 11 years as director of the "Abracadabra Child Care and Development Center", a non-sectarian preschool operated by the Baptist Temple Church of Alexandria. Kathy died unexpectedly of a heart attack at age 54 in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware on September 1, 2005.[2]
[edit]Career

After graduating from New York University, Wilson started her comedy career writing and performing with the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCBT) in New York and later in Los Angeles.[1] At UCBT, she was a member of the Harold improv teams "Sentimental Lady" and "Hey, Uncle Gary!", and continues to perform regularly in shows such as "Worst Laid Plans" and Comedy Death-Ray. Among her best known work at UCBT was the long running two-woman sketch show "Rode Hard and Put Away Wet", written and performed alongside her comedy partner and best friend June Raphael. The successful stage show was also a hit with audiences when it was showcased as an official selection at HBO's 2005 US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado and was hailed as a "Critic's Pick" in Time Out New York magazine and won Wilson & Raphael the ECNY Award for "Best Comedy Duo" in 2005. The comedy duo's writing partnership has since branched out into films, they co-wrote the screenplay for the 2009 comedy Bride Wars,[3] which they also appeared in with supporting roles. In addition, they have also worked on script rewrites for upcoming comedic films starring Anna Faris and America Ferrera.[4]
As a film actress, Wilson has appeared with small and supporting roles in films such as Julie & Julia, Killers, The Brothers Solomon, The Great Buck Howard and the upcoming My Mother's Curse, as well as in the Bob Odenkirk directed short film Derek & Simon: A Bee and a Cigarette, and made her film debut with a small role as an acting student in the final scene of the 2006 Christopher Guest film For Your Consideration. In early 2007, Wilson and June Raphael worked as writers and story editors on the Americanized version of Creature Comforts on CBS. Wilson is a frequent contributor to the popular humor website Funny or Die, where she has written and starred in a number of viral videos. Shortly after joining the cast of Saturday Night Live, she made Variety magazine's "Ten Comics to Watch in 2008" list.
Wilson and writing partner June Raphael most recently wrote and starred together in the 2011 indie-comedy "Ass Backwards", which was filmed in Upstate New York in August 2010.[5] Raphael and Wilson also recently contributed short stories to the 2010 book "Worst Laid Plans", based on the long-running stage show, which they frequently performed in. Wilson joined the rotating cast of the Off-Broadway play "Love, Loss, and What I Wore" (written by Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron) at Manhattan's Westside Theatre throughout the month of January 2010.[6] Wilson and June Raphael are currently starring in the comedic stage show "The Realest Real Housewives", which they created with co-stars Jessica St. Clair, Melissa Rauch, Danielle Schneider and Morgan Walsh. The show has run monthly at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre throughout 2011.[7]
Wilson is currently starring as Penny Hartz, one of the lead characters in ABC's ensemble comedy series Happy Endings alongside Elisha Cuthbert, Zachary Knighton, Adam Pally, Damon Wayans, Jr. and Eliza Coupe. The series is currently in it's second season, which began airing on September 28, 2011. Wilson has also recently made guest appearances on Bored to Death, NTSF:SD:SUV:: and Retired at 35, as well as recurring voice roles in the animated comedy programs Glenn Martin, DDS and The Life & Times of Tim.
Wilson and June Raphael are currently developing a comedy series called Walk of Shame, which was bought by ABC in September 2011, with Will Gluck attached as producer. They also recently worked on script re-writes for numerous features currently in development, such as the upcoming Universal Pictures comedy The Bachelorette Party and the romantic comedy You Complete Us.
[edit]Saturday Night Live

After auditioning in late 2007, Wilson was hired in January 2008 to join the cast of Saturday Night Live, replacing departing cast member Maya Rudolph. However, because of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, she did not make her first appearance as a cast member until the show returned in February 2008; she was the first new addition to the cast in over two years, and was also the first SNL cast member to have been born in the 1980s. Wilson's most memorable work on SNL included impressions of Rachael Ray, Katy Perry, and Jennifer Aniston, as well as original characters such as Dusty Velvet, "the paralyzed stripper", and Toni Ward, co-host of "The Cougar Den".
After spending two seasons on SNL, Wilson was let go from the show before the start of the 2009–2010 season. When asked how she felt about her recent SNL departure in an October 2009 interview, Wilson said: "My mindset is good. I did it for a year and a half. I don’t think it will ultimately define my career. And it wasn't the best fit for me."[8]
[edit]Impressions on SNL
Rachael Ray
Kristy Joe Muller
Mariam Budia (as one of the "Dakota Fanning Show" writers)
Scarlett Johansson (as Mary Boleyn from The Other Boleyn Girl)
Snow White (from Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)
Chelsea Clinton (dress rehearsal cold opening from April, 5 2008)
Debralee Scott (in a Match Game parody)
One of the Deal or No Deal (US) models
Daughter from the "Hot Friends" T-Mobile commercial
Jackie Glass
Marion Sandler
Karen Dotrice (as Jane Banks from Mary Poppins)
Katy Perry
Sara Quin (as a Tegan and Sara parody)
Christina Hendricks (as Joan Holloway from Mad Men)
Jennifer Aniston
Carolyn Maloney
Elizabeth Dole
Roxie Hart (from Chicago on Broadway)
Elizabeth Taylor
Ginnifer Goodwin (as Margene Heffman from Big Love)
Helga the Horrible
Alyson Reed (as Ms. Darbus from High School Musical)
[edit]Notable characters on SNL
Dusty Velvet, a paralyzed strip club dancer who is only able to perform her "erotic moves" with the assistance of Donnie (played by Ashton Kutcher) the strip club emcee. Before joining SNL, Wilson often performed this act at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre and other "alt-comedy" venues under the name Mandy De'tour.[9] She had also performed the sketch after being cast as an ensemble player on the 2007 FOX late-night sketch comedy pilot The Right Now! Show, as well as eventually showcasing the character as part of her SNL audition.
Nora Merryll, part of the singing sisterly quartet The Merryll Sisters who are regularly featured on The Lawrence Welk Show. Their otherwise flawless performances are always ruined by 4th sister, Dooneese, (played by Kristen Wiig) because of her off-key singing and freakish appearance.
Toni Ward, one of the cougars who co-hosts The Cougar Den. She is distinguished by her deep voice and offbeat methods for pursuing younger men. For example, she says that for Valentine's Day, "I'm going to suck down some Jello shooters and wander around USC's campus wearing a T-shirt that says "I'll pay you and this won't get messy".
[edit]Personal life

Casey and her brother Fletcher serve as the Vice Presidents of the "Kathy Wilson Foundation" (kathywilsonfoundation.org) founded in 2005, established to honor their late mother's work in helping pre-school children with special needs.
Wilson currently lives in Los Angeles.
[edit]Film and television credits

Year Film Role Notes
2005 Sports Central Correspondent Comedy Central pilot
2006 Derek & Simon: A Bee and a Cigarette Anna Short film
For Your Consideration Young Actress
2007 The Brothers Solomon Fertility Clinic Worker
Creature Comforts America Writer and Story Editor
The Definition of Sex Abby Short film
Human Giant Various
Revenge Sarah FOX sitcom pilot
The Right Now! Show Cast Member FOX sketch show pilot
The Very Funny Show Cast Member TBS Online Sketch Series
2008–2009 Saturday Night Live Cast Member 30 episodes (2 seasons)
2008 The Great Buck Howard Charity
Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday Various 2 episodes
2009 Bride Wars Stacy Screenwriter
Julie & Julia Regina
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Neighbor Lady ("Pie Sniffer" sketch) 1 episode
2010 Freak Dance Rich Lady
Glenn Martin, DDS Various Voices 2 episodes
Killers Kristen
The Life & Times of Tim Various Voices 2 episodes
2011– Happy Endings Penny Hartz Series Regular
2011 Bored to Death TBA 1 episode
NTSF:SD:SUV:: Ghost Gabber 1 episode
Retired at 35 Amy Robbins 1 episode
2012 Ass Backwards Chloe Screenwriter
My Mother's Curse Amanda Post-Production

References from Wikipedia.com