The son of an alcoholic New Jersey truck driver and a manic-depressive mother, Nathan Lane threw himself into the theater to escape his "bad Eugene O'Neill" childhood. Skipping college to pursue acting professionally, he made his debut in "Jerz" (1976) and knocked around the New York theater scene for a few years before trying his luck in Los Angeles, where he formed the comedy team Stack and Lane with friend Patrick Stack. After landing a small role as the stage manager in "Jacqueline Susann's 'Valley of the Dolls 1981'" (CBS, 1981), he returned to NYC and caught his first break when he was
