Dennis Dugan Biography (2)

Director Dennis Dugan is a talented filmmaker whose diverse career in entertainment spans more than two decades. Most recently, he directed the Columbia Pictures comedy Saving Silverman starring Steve Zahn, Jack Black, Jason Biggs and Amanda Peet. Dugan is considered one of the industry's top feature film comedy directors, earning his reputation with hits such as Big Daddy and Happy Gilmore, both of which starred Adam Sandler, and Beverly Hills Ninja starring Chris Farley.

On the small screen, Dugan has directed dozens of television projects including NYPD Blue and Ally McBeal, as well as the telepics Columbo: Butterfly in Shades of Gray and The Shaggy Dog.

Dugan is an actor-turned-filmmaker who began his career in the New York theater scene and first made his mark in Hollywood in front of the camera. He starred in his own 1978 NBC series Richie Brockelman, Private Eye, and also guest-starred on such award-winning television programs as M*A*S*H, Columbo, The Rockford Files and Moonlighting. It was during a guest-star stint on Moonlighting that he first stepped behind the camera, directing the final season of the critically lauded show.

In addition to small, yet memorable, acting roles in his own films, the most recent being the reluctant trick-or-treat giver in Big Daddy, Dugan's feature film acting credits include roles in Parenthood, She's Having A Baby, Can't Buy Me Love and The Howling.

In late 2001, Art Echo, the company Dugan formed with his wife and producing partner Sharon O'Connor Dugan, inked a two-year development deal with Sony Pictures.

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