Del Close was an American actor, writer, and teacher (1934-1999). Close's film credits include American Graffiti, Beware the Blob, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Next of Kin alongside Liam Neeson and Patrick Swayze, The Big Town, and The Public Eye. He worked with the cast of Saturday Night Live when hired by NBC producer Jean Doumanian to run improv and acting sessions from 1980 to 1982. Close also oversaw the ImprovOlympic in Chicago with Charna Halpern until his death in March 1999.