Peter Thomas Scolari (September 12, 1955 – October 22, 2021) was an American actor. He was best known for his roles as Henry Desmond in the ABC sitcom Bosom Buddies (1980–1982) and Michael Harris on the CBS sitcom Newhart (1984–1990), the latter of which earned him three consecutive nominations for Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series from 1987 to 1989.
Scolari had roles as Wayne Szalinski in the Disney sitcom Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show (1997–2000) and as Tad Horvath in the HBO series Girls (2012–2017), the latter of which earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. He had recurring roles as Gillian B. Loeb in the superhero crime series Gotham (2015) and Bishop Thomas Marx in the supernatural series Evil (2019–2021).
He acted in the films The Rosebud Beach Hotel (1984), Corporate Affairs (1990), That Thing You Do! (1996), and The Polar Express (2004). On stage, he portrayed Yogi Berra in the play Bronx Bombers (2014) and acted in the Larry Gelbart's Sly Fox (2004), Eric Simonson's Magic/Bird (2012), and Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy (2013). He also acted in replacement roles in the musicals Hairspray in 2003 and Wicked in 2016.
Early life and education
Scolari was born in New Rochelle, New York, to Arthur and Barbara (née Fay) Scolari, and was raised in Scarsdale along with an older sister and two younger brothers. His father was of Italian descent and played semi-professional baseball before becoming a lawyer. Scolari added that his parents "stayed together for the kids and also because they were hopelessly in love with each other, but they were totally incompatible."
In 1972, he enrolled at Occidental College in Los Angeles as a theater arts major, but left a year later and returned to New York after his father died. He also studied mime and learned to ride a unicycle. His performance in a 1974 production of "Reflections" received a rave review from The New York Times. He played a teenager named Kookie and his performance did not involve nudity. Bosom Buddies started out with good ratings, but failed to hold the public's interest and was canceled after two seasons and 37 episodes. His next starring role was in the 1983 sitcom Baby Makes Five, which was cancelled after only five episodes. That same year Scolari joined the cast of Newhart as Michael Harris, a preppily-dressed, wannabe yuppie, and local TV producer of the fictional talk show "Vermont Today". Harris was a recurring character in the show's second season and the character was so popular with audiences that executive producer Barry Kemp signed Scolari to be a regular cast member in the show's following season, before it was even confirmed that there would be a third season. His role earned Scolari three Emmy nominations for best supporting actor in a comedy and remained with the show until its conclusion in 1990. Scolari plays the role of Troy Chesterfield, the host of a variety show on which the Wonders appear. Actress Gina Hecht was initially selected to play the wife of Scolari's character, but was replaced by Pamela Reed just two days before the show's pilot was shot. Two years later he starred in the series Dweebs, which centers around the employees of a software firm. Scolari plays Warren Mosbey, the company's eccentric, socially-inept, tech-genius owner. In 1996, Scolari also starred as Littlechap in a version of the stage musical Stop the World – I Want to Get Off, produced for the A&E television network.
Scolari appeared in such off-Broadway productions as Old Man Joseph and His Family, The Exonerated, In the Wings, It Must Be Him and White's Lies. Scolari starred in Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show over the show's three seasons. Scolari appeared on Broadway in the musical Hairspray, as Wilbur Turnblad. Scolari and Hanks also provided voices in the 2004 animated film The Polar Express. He played the role of a show business manager in the 2019 biographical FX miniseries Fosse/Verdon, and played Bishop Marx on the series Evil, from 2019 until his death. The couple remained together until Scolari's death. Scolari died from leukemia in Manhattan on October 22, 2021, at the age of 66. He had been diagnosed with the disease two years earlier.
Acting credits
Film
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Title
!Role
!class=unsortable|Notes
|-
|1978
|Take Off
|Kookie
|Segment: "1950s" (Credited as Barney Tramble)
|-
|1984
|The Rosebud Beach Hotel
|Elliot Garner
|
|-
|1990
|Corporate Affairs
|Simon Tanner
|
|-
|1993
|Ticks
|Charles Danson
|Video
|-
|1994
|Camp Nowhere
|Donald Himmel
|
|-
|1996
|That Thing You Do!
|Troy Chesterfield
|
|-
|2002
|Sorority Boys
|Louis
|
|-
|2004
|The Polar Express
|Billy the Lonely Boy
| Motion capture only
|-
|2005
|Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D
|Pete Conrad
|Voice; Documentary
|-
|rowspan=2|2006
|Mentor
|Jonathan Parks
|
|-
|Cathedral Pines
|Father Mike McGary
|
|-
|rowspan=2|2007
|Suburban Girl
|Mickey Lamm
|-
|A Plumm Summer
|Agent Hardigan
|
|-
|2012
|Letting Go
|Bill
|
|-
|2016
|Dean
|Patrick
|
|-
|2018
| All You Can Eat
|Dr. Zakreski
|
|-
|2020
|Looks That Kill
|Paul Richardson
| Final film role
|}
Television
{| class="wikitable"
! Year
! Title
! Role
! class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
| rowspan="2" |1979
|Wally Brown
|Douglas Burdett
|Unknown episode
|-
|Angie
|Kenny
|Episode: "The Thief"
|-
|1980
|Goodtime Girls
|Benny Loman
|13 episodes
|-
|1980–1982
|Bosom Buddies
|Henry Desmond <br /> Hildegarde 'Hilde' Desmond
|37 episodes
|-
| rowspan="3" |1982
|Circus of the Stars #7
| Himself
|TV special
|-
|Remington Steele
|Albie Fervitz
|Episode: "Steele Waters Run Deep"
|-
|Missing Children: A Mother's Story
|Woody
| rowspan="2" |Television film
|-
| rowspan="3" |1983
|Carpool
|Robert Duff
|-
|Happy Days
|Jake
|Episode: "May the Best Man Win"
|-
|Baby Makes Five
|Eddie Riddle
|5 episodes
|-
| rowspan="3" |1984
|Amazons
|Dr. Jerry Menzies
|Television film
|-
|Finder of Lost Loves
|Ted Caton
|Episode: "A Gift"
|-
|Steambath
|Paul
|Episode: "Tandy's Legacy"
|-
|1984–1990
|Newhart
|Michael Harris
|142 episodes
|-
| rowspan="6" |1986
|Hotel
|Tom
|Episode: "Shadows of Doubt: Part 1"
|-
|Family Ties
|Paul Kenter
|Episode "Once in Love with Elyse"
|-
|Mr. Bill's Real Life Adventures
|Mr. Bill
|Television film
|-
|You Are the Jury
|Stephen Best
|Episode: "The State of Ohio vs. James Wolsky"
|-
|'
|Frank Hobbs <br /> Wellington David Rothmeyer
|3 episodes
|-
|Fresno
|Waiter
|Miniseries (uncredited)
|-
| rowspan="3" |1987
|Fatal Confession: A Father Dowling Mystery
|Chris Robinson
|Television film
|-
|The New Mike Hammer
|Andy Shales
|Episode: "Green Blizzard"
|-
|Harry Anderson's Sideshow
|Performer
|Television special
|-
|1988
|'
|Delos of Atlantis <br /> Leonard Randall
|Episode: "The Trance"
|-
| rowspan="3" |1989
|CBS Summer Playhouse
|Morgan
|Episode: "Microchips"
|-
|Trying Time
|Howard LaMotta
|Episode: "Death and Taxes"
|-
|'
|David Day
|Television film
|-
| rowspan="2" |1990
|Encyclopedia Brown
|Bandini
|Episode: "The Case of the Incredible Culpepper"
|-
|World's Greatest Magicians... At the Magic Castle
|Unknown
| rowspan="6" |Television film
|-
| rowspan="4" |1991
|Danger Team
|Police Officer Shields
|-
|Fire: Trapped on the 37th Floor
|Paul DeWitt
|-
|Perfect Harmony
|Derek Sanders
|-
|Perry Mason: The Case of the Glass Coffin
|David Katz
|-
|rowspan=2|1992
|'
|Dr. Zachary 'Zach' Drummond
|-
|Nurses
|George Myrock
|Episode: "Our Fred"
|-
|1992–1995
|Batman: The Animated Series
|John Hamner <br /> Gunther Hardwicke / Shark
|Voice, 2 episodes
|-
|1993
|Fallen Angels
|Clerk
|Episode: "I'll Be Waiting"
|-
|1993–1995
|'
|Ken Ballantine
|2 episodes
|-
|1993
|Family Album
|Jonathan Lerner
|6 episodes
|-
|1993–1994
|Animaniacs
|Wilford Wolf, Driver
|Voice, 2 episodes
|-
|2004
| Sly Fox
| Chief of Police
| Ethel Barrymore Theatre, Broadway
|
|-
|2012
| Magic/Bird
| Pat Riley / Red Auerbach / Jerry Buss / Bob Woolf
| Longacre Theatre, Broadway
|
|-
|2013
| Lucky Guy
| Michael Daly
| Broadhurst Theatre, Broadway
|
|-
|2014
| Bronx Bombers
| Yogi Berra
| Circle in the Square Theatre, Broadway
|
|-
|2016–2017
| Wicked
| The Wonderful Wizard of Oz <small> (replacement) </small>
| Gershwin Theatre, Broadway
|
|-
|}
Awards and nominations
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Award
! Category
! Nominated work
! Result
! class="unsortable" |
|-
| 1987 || rowspan=3|Primetime Emmy Award || rowspan=3|Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series || rowspan=3|Newhart || ||
|-
| 1988 || ||
|-
| 1989 || ||
|-
| 2012
| Critics' Choice Television Award
| Best Guest Performer in a Comedy Series
| rowspan=2| Girls
|
|
|-
| 2016
| Primetime Emmy Award
| Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
|
|
|-
|}