Mark Lonow

Mark Lonow is an American actor, comedian and producer who also co-owned the Improv comedy club franchise. He trained at the Herbert Berghof Studio and the Joffrey Ballet, then began acting on New York stages. He played his first lead in Enter Laughing in 1965 and worked for years with the New York Shakespeare Festival. After moving to Los Angeles in 1976, he took minor television roles, then played Lennie Bellini in the CBS sitcom Husbands, Wives & Lovers and made his credited film debut in Thank God It's Friday (1978). With Budd Friedman he became co-owner of the Improvisation club in 1979 and expanded the Improv franchise and the A&E series An Evening at the Improv. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy as an executive producer of Lewis Black: Red, White and Screwed and co-produced Running on Empty, The Prom and A Christmas Carol. He also directed the 2018 play Jews, Christians, and Screwing Stalin.