Jim O'Heir
James O'Heir (born February 4, 1962) is an American actor and comedian best known for co-starring as Garry (Larry, Terry, Jerry) Gergich on the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation.
O'Heir first became active in Chicago theater and improv during the late 1980s and early 1990s as part of the comedic theater troupe "White Noise", and appeared in such plays as The Book of Blanche, Stumpy's Gang and Ad-Nauseam with the group. O'Heir has appeared in several films and made guest appearances on such shows as Friends, Boston Legal, Malcolm in the Middle, Star Trek: Voyager, 3rd Rock from the Sun, ER, and Parenthood.
In 2000, he starred in a regular role in the Comedy Central series Strip Mall as Harvey Krudup, the unattractive husband of protagonist Tammi Tyler, who was played by Julie Brown. In 2009, O'Heir became a regular supporting cast member of the NBC comedy series Parks and Recreation, playing Garry Gergich.
Early life and theater work
Jim O'Heir is a graduate of the Thornton Fractional South High School in Lansing, Illinois and a graduate of Loyola University Chicago. O'Heir was active in the Chicago theater during the late 1980s and early 1990s, training and performing improvisational comedy at Chicago's Second City and as a member of the six-person sketch comedy troupe "White Noise", which formed in 1987. The group wrote and produced comedic plays that often employed bizarre humor or black comedy. Starting in November 1988, O'Heir appeared in White Noise's production of The Book of Blanche, about a woman who falls through a television screen and ends up in a fantasy world influenced by various television show genres. In July 1989, O'Heir appeared in the Chicago premiere of the Tom Griffin play The Boys Next Door at the Edgewater Theatre Center. O'Heir played Norman Bulansky, a childlike middle-aged mentally-handicapped man who works at a doughnut shop.
