Talk:Diedrich Bader

Untitled

Listed as "doctor" voiceover for king of the hill in 1992. Some sort of typo? King of the hill didn't premiere until 1997. --Tunafizzle (talk) 21:07, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

Played Peggy's doctor in 1999, and Buck's son in 2009 -- 209.148.145.95 (talk) 19:11, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

He was also in the "biker" episode of Quantum Leap as the lead biker dude.

24.20.168.22 (talk) 23:45, 20 February 2009 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 7 November 2020

His voice acting occupation has unexpectedly been removed by another IP user, who keeps vandalizing the article by constantly reverting edits back and fourth, which it’s a violation to the Wikipedia policy. Is there by any chance that it could be restored back in his occupation section again? Because this whole occupation removal thing is kinda getting ridiculous. 2600:1000:B007:5246:25:B1BF:B5EC:1185 (talk) 00:05, 7 November 2020 (UTC)

 Not done for now: Is it possible you could link the diff where this happened? It would help see if it should be added again (or the IP of the user). — Yours, Berrely • ^Talk∕_Contribs 15:18, 8 November 2020 (UTC)

 Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. ‑‑ElHef (Meep?) 21:18, 12 November 2020 (UTC)

Professional comedian

There seems to be some confusion about how to characterize a comedic actor. Per biography guidelines the opening sentence should list the professions of the subject, and moreover as part of the lede, should summarize the article itself. Nothing in this article suggests Bader had made a career of being a comedian. That does not need to mean a stand-up, but the comedian article goes into detail and there is no mention of being an actor in comedies as one of the definitions. On the talk page for the article, the only mention of "actor" is found in discussion on the use of the term "comedienne" vis-a-vis the similar "actor/actress" noun choice.

Further, in this edit dispute, the use of a local news affiliate, WTRV CBS 6 in Richmond, is neither a reliable source for a BLP career entry nor does it get to the matter of the dispute, which was not that the claim he's a comedian is uncited, but that the article as written makes no mention of this career. Another worry is that of self-refrential citing, as if his Wikipedia page is wrong, a dubiously authored ("By: WTVR CBS 6 Web Staff") "news" articile is probably just pulling from internet search top page results, such as this very article making the argument circular. However funny he is as a private citizen musing on social media or how deftly he plays lines for laughs in scripted comedies, there is no substanation in the article to list him as a comedian by occupation and shoe-horning a debatably reliable source doesn't address that. JesseRafe (talk) 19:52, 9 December 2025 (UTC)

Hi Jesse,

I appreciate the clarification you’ve provided about how occupation labels should be handled in biographies. That said, Wikipedia’s usage of the term comedian is broader than just stand-up alone, and includes actors who work primarily in comedic roles when reliable sources describe them that way. In Bader’s case, several entertainment publications and interviews refer to him as a comedian or comic actor, and his body of work overwhelmingly falls within comedy. The goal isn’t to stretch the definition, but simply to reflect how reputable sources already characterize him.

Regarding the sourcing concerns you raised, I agree that weaker citations shouldn’t be relied upon. The straightforward solution, though, is to replace any questionable references with stronger ones rather than conclude the occupation label is unsupported. Since reliable sources do use the term comedian, summarizing that in the lede is consistent with WP:V and WP:OCCUPATION. I’m happy to work collaboratively to identify the best citations so the article accurately reflects the way Bader is described in independent coverage. ~2025-31830-57 (talk) 23:42, 9 December 2025 (UTC)

Hi Jesse, after looking more closely, I’ve found several in-depth interviews where Bader talks about his career in the context of comedy. In the long-form podcasts he’s done with the Kim Possible cast, Craig Ferguson, and John Ross Bowie, he repeatedly frames his work through a comedic lens. On Bowie’s podcast in particular (around the 37-minute mark), he reflects on The Drew Carey Show and says he “loved being part of comedy” and felt he was “in the greatest seat,” while describing the improv-heavy, comedy-focused environment. He also talks about how much he enjoyed his comedic roles and his process in Office Space and Napoleon Dynamite, and while Lawrence and Rex Kwon Do are supporting characters, they’ve become widely remembered comedic performances. These interviews show a consistent pattern in how he talks about his work.

In addition to those conversations, I found a Hollywood Reporter interview where Bader describes how he approaches finding the comedy in his American Housewife role, drawing from his own experience with parenting. Since THR is a strong industry source, that adds meaningful weight beyond the local article previously cited. When you put these sources together, the picture becomes clearer: comedy isn’t incidental to his work, it’s something he identifies with and intentionally incorporates into his roles. With that level of sourcing behind it, including “comedian” in the lede seems like an accurate reflection of how he’s characterized in industry coverage.

One thing that stood out to me while looking through various interviews is that for example, actors like Eric McCormack or Thomas Gibson, while well known for roles in Will & Grace and Dharma & Greg, don’t generally discuss a personal approach to comedy in the same way. Their interviews tend to focus more on the overall experience of working on a sitcom or on their castmates’ comedic strengths, whereas they’re not typically described or self-described — as shaping their careers around comedy. That’s understandable given how much of their later work has been in drama or procedural television.

In contrast, Bader speaks very directly and consistently about comedy as part of his craft. In multiple podcast interviews, he talks about how he approaches comedic roles, what he learned from working in improv-heavy environments like The Drew Carey Show, and why he feels so connected to comedy. Combined with his long-standing body of comedic work, this creates a sharply different career profile, one where comedy isn’t just something he participated in, but something he actively studies, practices, and identifies with. That’s the main reason the “comedian” label seems to fit him more naturally than it would for actors whose involvement with comedy is more situational than career-defining.

Thanks again for the thoughtful discussion. ~2025-31830-57 (talk) 01:10, 10 December 2025 (UTC)

Thanks for responding. Do note that the conversation is to reach a consensus here before changing back. You can propose how you'd go about it, but discussions of comedy do not a comedian make. Again, I've said thrice, no one is limiting "comedian" to stand-up only, but the entire page and talk page for comedian do not list "actors" as types of comedians. Please don't talk past the points already made here and only edit in good faith. Thanks. JesseRafe (talk) 13:35, 10 December 2025 (UTC)