Spencer Nolan "Spenny" Rice (born 1963[2]) is a Canadian screenwriter, filmmaker and television personality. He was the co-star of the reality comedy series Kenny vs. Spenny along with Kenny Hotz.
Spencer Rice | |
|---|---|
 Rice in Kenny vs. Spenny in 2007 | |
| Born | Spencer Nolan Rice[1] 1963 (age 60–61) Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Other names | Spenny |
| Occupation(s) | Filmmaker, screenwriter, television personality, actor |
| Years active | 1993–present |
Personal life
editRice was born to a secular Jewish family, the only son of Vincent Wayne Rice and Corrine Rice (née Gross).[3][4][5]
Rice attended Crescent School, a Toronto boys' independent school, for elementary school and then went to high school at Forest Hill Collegiate Institute. Rice studied film studies at Glendon College, York University in Toronto. Growing up Rice played hockey for his high school.[6]
Career
edit
After graduating from university, Rice worked as a production coordinator and independent filmmaker.
In 1993, Rice directed a short film entitled Telewhore, a documentary about a phone sex girl. It was exhibited at The Toronto International Film Festival and was well-received by critics. In 1994, Rice and Kenny Hotz, who had been friends since childhood, collaborated on the short film It Don't Cost Nothin' to Say Good Morning. Their first feature-length film was Pitch in 1997, which won Best Film Award from the Toronto Independent Arts Festival. In 2000, Rice directed, produced and wrote a short film for TV entitled Something Anything which won a Telefest Independent Television Festival award for best comedy. There was interest from the television station that had broadcast the short film and turn it into a TV series, but the idea was later scrapped.
In 2003, Rice and Hotz created the show Kenny vs. Spenny, which finished its sixth season in 2010 and ended with an hour-long series finale on December 23, 2010. The show aired in many different countries and was nominated for Gemini Awards in 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2008, it even caught the attention of South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone who became executive producers of the show during season 4.
In 2008, Spencer Rice wrote and starred in the mockumentary film Confessions of a Porn Addict in which he played the character Mark Tobias.
Rice's next project was called Single White Spenny. He played himself; it was cancelled after one season due to low ratings.
In November 2020, along with Kenny Hotz, Rice wrote and produced Kenny & Spenny: Paldemic, a CBC Gem special that focused on the pair's friendship and careers since Kenny vs. Spenny ended in 2010.
Filmography
edit| Year | Production | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992[7] | Something Anything | Writer, director, producer | Short film |
| 1993 | Telewhore | Director | Short film |
| 1994 | It Don't Cost Nothin' to Say Good Morning | Director | Short film[8] |
| 1997 | Pitch | Writer, director | As himself[9] |
| 1997 | Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation | Writer[10] | |
| 2002 | Kenny vs. Spenny pilot | Writer, actor, director, executive producer | As himself |
| 2003–2010 | Kenny vs. Spenny | Writer, actor, director, executive producer | As himself[11] |
| 2005 | Lingo | Actor | One episode |
| 2007 | Stump | Executive producer | N/A |
| 2008 | Testees | Actor | Testee Applicant |
| 2008 | Confessions of a Porn Addict | Concept, story, actor, executive producer | As Mark Tobias[12] |
| 2010 | Kenny vs. Spenny Christmas Special | Writer, actor, director, executive producer | As himself |
| 2011 | Single White Spenny | Concept, actor, executive producer | As himself |
| 2012 | X Rayted | Concept, director, writer | As himself |
| 2020 | Kenny & Spenny: Paldemic | Writer, executive producer, actor, composer | As himself |
Soundtrack
edit| Year | Film | Production |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Pitch | Writer, performer[11] |
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Project | Award | Awarding Body | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Kenny vs. Spenny | Best Reality Program or Series | Gemini Awards | Nominated[13] |
| 2006 | Kenny vs. Spenny | Best Comedy Program or Series | Gemini Awards | Nominated[13] |
| 2008 | Kenny vs. Spenny | Best Comedy Program or Series | Gemini Awards | Nominated[13] |
References
edit- ^ Chance, Norman (December 22, 2010). Who Was Who on TV. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 978-1-4568-2164-7.
- ^ @KennyHotz (May 22, 2023). "Did Spenny Actually Do Any Work On The Show?". YouTube. at 2:06. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
- ^ "Vincent Wayne Rice Obituary". The Globe and Mail. August 4, 2003. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
- ^ "Corrine Rice". Peaceful Transitions. March 8, 2021. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
- ^ My Jewish Learning: "Kenny vs Spenny: Who is the Better Jew?" by Jeremy Moses December 10, 2008
- ^ "Homepage – Comedy Central Press". Comedy Central Press.
- ^ spiralmonkey2001 (October 14, 2010). "Something, Anything!". Archived from the original on December 21, 2021 – via YouTube.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ It Don't Cost Nothin' to Say Good Morning (1994). IMDb.com
- ^ Pitch (1997). IMDb.com
- ^ "YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved January 5, 2018.[dead YouTube link]
- ^ a b Spencer Rice. IMDb.com
- ^ Confessions of a Porn Addict (2008). IMDb.com
- ^ a b c "Spencer Rice awards". IMDb. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
External links
edit
- Official website at Spenny.TV (archived)
- Spencer Rice at IMDb