David Paymer (born August 30, 1954) is an Academy Award-nominated American character actor, seen in such films as City Slickers, The In-Laws, Crazy People, State and Main, Payback, Get Shorty, The American President, Amistad, Carpool, City Hall, and Into the West. Paymer was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1992 for Mr. Saturday Night. He played a Mob boss in the short-lived series Line of Fire.
Paymer was born in Oceanside, New York to Sylvia, a travel agent, and Marvin Paymer, a pianist and musical director who originally worked in the scrap metal business. The two divorced in 1973. Paymer's family is Jewish; his mother was born in Belgium and left for the United States because of the Nazi occupation. Paymer has a brother, Steve, and graduated from the University of Michigan with a BA in theater and psychology.
In the television series Angel, there is a running gag about Cordelia Chase socializing with Paymer and his brother, Steve.
