Armin Shimerman is an American actor who became famous for playing “Quark” on the TV show “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.” His face was covered up with a lot of prosthetic makeup for that role. Shimerman spent his early years in his hometown of Lakewood, New Jersey, and moved to Los Angeles when he was 15. At first, he didn’t want to be an actor. But fate had other ideas! He started acting on stage because his mother pushed him to, and he was one of eight people chosen out of almost 900 to be an apprentice at the Old Globe Theater in San Diego, CA. He moved to New York City in the hopes of making it big on Broadway. He got parts in the musicals “Threepenny Opera” and “I Remember Mama” and the drama “Saint Joan.” Still, he moved back to Los Angeles and was a guest star on TV shows like “The Facts of Life,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Remington Steele,” “Cagney and Lacey,” “L.A. Law,” and “Who’s the Boss?” In the long-running sci-fi TV show “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” he got the part of “Quark,” a Ferengi bartender. After playing Quark in two more Star Trek spinoffs, “Deep Space Nine” and “Voyager,” he became one of only five actors to play the same character in three different Star Trek series. Shimerman has also become known for his work in a number of movies, as a voice actor, and as a co-author of a book series.
Early years and childhood
Armin Shimerman was born in Lakewood Township, New Jersey, on November 5, 1949. His parents, Herbert Shimerman and Susan Shimerman were Jewish immigrants from Poland. His father, Herbert, made a living by painting houses, and his mother, Susan, was a bookkeeper. At the age of 15, he moved to Los Angeles with his family.
Armin’s mother put him in a drama school after they moved to Los Angeles so that he could make his own friends. He went to Santa Monica High School, where he played the trumpet in the school band. He finished his studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, and got his degree.
Work as a professional theater artist
Armin Shimerman was one of eight people chosen out of about 900 applicants to be an apprentice at the Old Globe Theater in San Diego, California. As a trainee, he did small parts in a number of local plays, which gave him acting experience.
But he knew that if he wanted to become a highly sought-after stage actor, he would have to move to New York City, which was the best place for young theater actors to learn their craft. So, after getting some professional experience at the Old Globe Theater, he finally moved to Broadway.
Armin didn’t have to wait too long to get parts in Broadway shows because he was both naturally talented and had learned a lot about acting. He was chosen to be part of the ensemble cast for the Broadway musical “Threepenny Opera,” making his debut as a substitute.
Roy Brocksmith, who later worked with him in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation called “Peak Performance,” was also in the cast of “The Threepenny Opera.” From May 1, 1976, to January 23, 1977, the musical drama was performed 306 times.
Shimerman was then cast in the play “Saint Joan,” which ran from December 1977 to February 1978 for about three months. He was also in the cast of the musical “I Remember Mama,” which was put on in 1979. He played Mr. Thorkelson in that show.
Acting on small screens as a job
Armin Shimerman moved back to Los Angeles and tried his hand at working in the small screen business. He was able to get guest spots on a number of TV shows, such as “The Facts of Life,” “Remington Steele,” and “Cagney and Lacey.”
From 1987 to 1989, he and his Star Trek co-star Tony Jay and Ron Perlman made guest appearances on the TV show “Beauty and the Beast.” He has been on popular TV shows like “Ally McBeal,” “Brooklyn Bridge,” “Civil Wars,” “Judging Army,” “Married… With Children,” and “L.A. Law” more than once.
He has also had small parts in shows like “Stargate SG-I,” “Sliders,” “Charmed,” “The Practice,” “ER,” “The West Wing,” “Warehouse 13,” and “Nip/Tuck.” He also acted in “Women at West Point,” “Tricks of the Trade,” “She Knows Too Much,” “Miracle Landing,” “Meet the Santas,” “Looking for Lola,” and “Dead and Deader.”
In one episode of “Seinfeld,” he was seen with Jason Alexander, who played his co-star on “Star Trek: Voyager.” He also appeared on TV shows like “I Had Three Wives,” “Baby Girl Scott,” “Bulba,” “Drexell’s Class,” “Great Scott!,” “Invisible Man,” “Citizen Baines,” “Boston Public,” “The Handler,” “Crossing Jordan,” and “Joan of Arcadia.”
As an actor, Shimerman is best known for playing Quark, the Ferengi bartender, in a number of TV series of “Star Trek.” “Star Trek: The Next Generation” (1987, 1989, 1994), “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” (1993–1999), and “Star Trek: Voyager” are the most well-known of these shows (1995). His favorite episode was “Little Green Men” from Deep Space Nine. In that episode, he was the captain of a spaceship.
In addition to Star Trek, he is known for playing Principal Snyder in “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” providing the voice of Dr. Nefarious in “Ratchet & Clank,” and playing Pascal in “Beauty and the Beast.” In the TV show Boston Legal, he worked with Ethan Phillips, Rene Auberjonois, and William Shatner, all of whom played Star Trek characters.
Big Screen Adventures
Armin Shimerman has made a name for himself not only on TV but also in the world of movies. His roles as Dr. Potter in “Atlas Shrugged” (part I), Hawthorne in “Insanitarium,” Gerald in “The Works,” Detective Blank in “The Auteur Theory,” and Dr. Gottesman in “Death Warrant” were all very well received.
People also liked the parts he played in the movies “Dangerous Curves,” “Gangland,” “Like Father, Like Son,” “Stoogemania,” “The Hitcher,” “Stardust Memories,” “Eye for an Eye,” “The Urn,” and “The Sublime and the Beautiful.”
Armin Shimerman has been praised for how well he stands out as a voiceover artist. He has been the voice of several bad guys in video games, such as General Scar in “The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy,” Toad in “X-Men Legends,” and BioWare in “Mass Effect” and “Jade Empire.”
In “StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty” and “StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm,” he keeps doing the voices of Mohandas and Emil Narud. He was the voice of Wilmer in an audio version of “The Maltese Falcon,” and he was Mr. Phillips in a Focus on the Family Radio Theater production of “Anne of Green Gables.”
Armin did the voice of Raanu in the DVD animation “Bionicle: The Legend Reborn.” In the video game “Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2,” he is still the voice of the Green Goblin.
He got the most praise for his voice work as Dr. Nefarious in several “Ratchet & Clank” episodes, such as “Deadlocked,” “Up Your Arsenal,” “Quest for Booty,” “All 4 One,” and “A Crack in Time.”
As a contributor, Armin Shimerman is also the co-author of a book series called “The Merchant Prince,” which describes and explains the made-up adventures of Dr. John Dee. Armin and Michael Scott, an Irish writer, worked together to finish writing “The Merchant Prince” series.
His Personal Life
Actress Kitty Swink is married to Armin Shimerman. As a guest star, Kitty has been on the TV show DS9. The two of them have been in some TV movies together, like “Like Father, Like Son” (1987) and “Just Ask My Children” (2001)
Estimated Net worth
American actor, voice actor, and author Armin Shimerman has a net worth of $3 million. Armin Shimerman was born in November 1949 in Lakewood Township, NJ. He has been in more than 180 movies and TV shows. From 1987 to 1990, he played Pascal on the TV show Beauty and the Beast.