Character Description:
Impressionist Benjy Greenberg, “the man with a hundred voices,” enjoyed a brief taste of fame during an appearance on the Jimmy Kimmel Show, but his talents are largely unknown beyond those passengers lucky enough to step inside his cab.
Story Description:
From an early age impressionist Benjy Greenberg, 57, has been no stranger to the limelight. At his mother and grandmother’s insistence, Benjy entered show business. When Benjy was six-years-old, he was featured in several 1960s toy commercials, including a lucrative campaign for GI Joe and Blippo model trains.
Although he enjoyed childhood success, Benjy’s time on the stage was brief. For years Benjy remained in obscurity, bartending and driving a cab in twelve-hour shifts in Westchester, New York. To pass the time Benjy began imitating his co-workers and quickly discovered his knack for impressions.
The repertoire of characters soon expanded to presidents, comic book villains, Ed Sullivan and every member of the Fab Four, Julia Child, Louis Armstrong, foreigner’s from across the globe, bleating and crowing animals and whatever other voices lived inside Benjy’s head.
In 2004, Benjy auditioned and was cast for the Jimmy Kimmel Show’s Future Talent Showcase, an open call for unknown performers. During his five-minute reacquaintance with stardom, Benjy delivered dozens of impressions and accents and returned home inspired but still largely unknown.
Over the past ten years, Benjy has performed stand-up comedy in clubs throughout the city and booked dozens of gigs at parties for children and adults. He has found a new muse in the political mockery of Donald Trump and is a regular presence at New York Comic Con where he performs as the Joker, Riddler and Penguin. He may still be waiting for his big break, but Benjy’s love for performance and dream of a career in show business remains unfazed.
Transcript:
[00;00;00;00] Show business. That’s where I belong.
[00;00;01;15] [Live on Jimmy Kimmel] Please welcome the many voices of Benjy Greenberg to tonight’s Future Talent Showcase!
[00;00;36;21] I was on Jimmy Kimmel. It’s all on YouTube.
[00;00;46;28] [Passenger] How long have you been doing this for?
[00;00;48;04] Taxi? Long time. Seventeen years.
[00;00;51;05] I’ve actually had somebody tell me, people say to me: “You’re in the wrong business” meaning give up the taxi, I wish I could, to do show business the whole time, which would be wonderful.
[00;01;02;11] Let’s see in 2004, I did like 30 impressions I think and maybe like 15 accents, something like that. I put everything on tape and that’s how I got on Jimmy Kimmel, just by doing that. Now, I have lots more voices. I do more than 100 impressions, accents, animal noises.
[00;01;22;25] I do characters from the Batman TV show. Joker, Riddler and Penguin. I’m probably the only one in the whole country who does all three.
[00;01;28;24] Houhouhaha!That’s the Riddler. Joker: Hahaha! And the Penguin: Wa wa wa wa wa!
[00;01;41;10] My mother and grandmother kinda got me into it.
[00;01;43;27] I had a RemCo toy commercial called Blippo in 1965. It’s just me in a sixty-second spot. One of the biggest toy promotions in history for GI Joe called “Capture Hill 79” and “Contest 2,” in the history of toys at the time, and I’m in it with like four other kids.
[00;01;58;21] When you’re six-years-old, everybody has that all-American look. Your hair’s not messed up. No acne. You know, everything’s like, you didn’t have no worries. Everybody’s a good, happy all-American kid. I guess I was one of them.
[00;02;16;20] Sometimes the long days they drag. Sometimes they don’t.
[00;02;20;26] Driving is definitely not the job for anybody. It has its advantages and disadvantages like any job.I work long hours. Three in the afternoon almost every night till three in the morning.
[00;02;30;08] To me it’s not about money.
[00;02;35;18] I’m gonna build a wall around China and I’m gonna have Mexico pay for it. It’s gonna work. No more immigrants. That’s it. It’s over. Vote for me. I’m your next president.
[00;02;43;23] It’s gonna be huge I swear. I want your vote. It’s gonna be huge!
[00;02;48;02] It’s about ummm…performing. Having people, making people laugh, you know. Have some kind of enjoyment, satisfaction with that.
[00;02;58;20] It gives me something to be happy about, you know. Performing, making people laugh, having a good time. So it’s kinda like a no-lose situation.
Related Links:
Benjy Greenberg’s YouTube Page: youtube.com/channel/UCFYcybYDrUy2Tp0GK2a_2hg
Benjy Greenberg’s Booking Page: gigmasters.com/donald-trump-impersonator/master-of-100-voices
New York ComicCon: newyorkcomiccon.com/
Contact Adam Shrier
