Josh Peck

Joshua Michael Peck (November 10, 1986) is an American actor. He started out as a child actor in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and became known to young audiences after his roles on the The Amanda Show and in the films Snow Day and Max Keeble's Big Move. He also starred as a main character in the very successful sitcom, Drake & Josh.

Biography

Early life

Peck was born in the Hell's Kitchen area of New York City, New York. His parents were unmarried at the time of his birth and Peck never knew his father. He grew up with his Jewish mother, Barbara, a career coach, and maternal grandmother.^[1][2] Peck had asthma during his childhood, and often stayed indoors watching old sitcoms. He was inspired and became involved in stand-up comedy when he was eight years old; Peck subsequently appeared in local kid's theater, as well as performed stand-up comedy at the Caroline's Comedy Club for the Audrey Hepburn foundation. In 1999, he was offered a role on Nickelodeon's The Amanda Show and, at his mother's suggestion, accepted the part and moved to San Francisco to further pursue an acting career.

Career

Peck made his film debut in the 2000 film, Snow Day, and appeared regularly on The Amanda Show until the end of its run in 2002. He also starred opposite Alex D. Linz and Zena Grey in the theatrical film, Max Keeble's Big Move, which was released on October 5, 2001. During this time period, Peck appeared in several independent films, including Spun and 2004's Mean Creek, for which he received critical praise. He was cast as Josh Nichols, opposite Drake Bell's Drake Parker, in another Nickelodeon sitcom, Drake & Josh, which began airing in 2004 and gained Peck recognition among young audiences. In 2006, Bell and Peck starred in their own TV movie called Drake & Josh Go Hollywood, which was a huge success, and in 2007, they starred in a sequel called Drake & Josh: Really Big Shrimp. Peck also made his debut as a director in the Drake & Josh episode, Battle of Panthatar. More recently, Peck appeared in the independent film, Special, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2006, and voiced Eddie, one of two possum twins, in the animated sequel, Ice Age: The Meltdown, which was released on March 31, 2006. He also made an appearance in the New Line Cinema 2005 film Havoc as Emily's younger brother.

Personal life

Peck's favorite actors and inspirations are Richard Pryor, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Lewis, Bill Cosby, Ben Kingsley, and Morgan Freeman.^[2] Peck, who is friends with his Drake & Josh co-star, Drake Bell, plays the piano and ice hockey in his spare time. In the third season of Drake & Josh, Peck appeared to be significantly thinner than he used to be and by the fourth and final season of the show, he had lost even more weight. According to a 2006 interview, Peck stated that, "I made a conscious effort to lose weight because I knew I could be happier as well as being healthier. I started by going on a diet a year and a half ago and I got a personal trainer, but I definitely have a healthier lifestyle now. Also I feel that because I do so much television, I am a better role model. I don’t really understand why I should be a role model but I know that kids do look up to me, so it is my responsibility to motivate people and be inspiring. I hope that I can do that for kids. It doesn't matter what you look like really though, it is who you are that matters of course".^[3]

Filmography

References

External links

• Josh Peck at the Internet Movie Database