Neil Patrick Harris

Trivia

• "She's like the coolest, nicest chick ever. She's an absolute catch, and I thought if I'm not going to feel the super sparks with her, then it probably means that I'm gay." [Harris speaking to Howard Stern about having dated actress Christine Taylor in his early 20s].
• Enjoys Red Bull so much on and off the set of "How I Met Your Mother" (2005) that he was given a lifetime supply of it and a mini-refrigerator by the company that makes the drink because of the amount of free advertising he has given it.
• Harris's closest friends include his companion David Burtka, Amy Acker, Lori and Lex Medlin, Becky Baeling, and Brandon Boyce.
• Has been in a committed relationship with stage and screen actor David Burtka, his companion since 2004.
• He is credited using all three names because there was already a different actor named Neil Harris in the Screen Actors Guild by the time he first got his SAG card. Harris joked on NPR's "Fresh Air with Terry Gross" that he uses all three names because it's "far more theatrical," and that he and his parents considered using names like "Neil Danger Harris" or "Neil Patrick Rocket".
• According to an oral history of "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog" (2008) published in July 2008 in Entertainment Weekly, he auditioned to play the doctor role on "Firefly" (2002) that was eventually filled by Sean Maher.
• Typically, actors playing themselves on film are listed "as Himself" in the film's credits. Due to the over-the-top, outlandish nature of his role in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004) and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), he requested that his credit read "Neil Patrick Harris" instead of "as Himself". This was to make clear that he was playing a fictional character that was in no way a true representation of himself.
• He is an amateur magician, which he once demonstrated on the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon.
• He was the "Not My Job" guest on the April 5, 2008, episode of the National Public Radio quiz show "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!".
• Is an avid Les Miserables fan, and performed the song "The Confrontation" with his co-star Jason Segel (both of "How I Met Your Mother" (2005) fame) live on "The Megan Mullally Show" (2006). He performed the role of Javert, to wild cheers from the audience.

Quotes

• "Comedy is way more difficult than drama. What I might find funny, the editor might not find funny. They might choose the reaction shot from Take 4 with my line from Take 1 with my next line from Take 7, and then the timing that I was trying to do does not come across."
• "I heard through the grapevine that they'd written this movie and that I was in it, and that I had to call my attorneys and make it stop -- that it was a bad thing, and I read it and thought it was hilarious. A friend was auditioning for a different part in the movie and said, 'do you know about this movie that you're in?' - on playing "Neil Patrick Harris" in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)"
• "Rather than ignore those who choose to publish their opinions without actually talking to me, I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest and feel most fortunate to be working with wonderful people in the business I love."