Ernie Sabella (Born September 19, 1949) is an American actor known for his roles on shows such as Saved by the Bell, It's Your Move, and Perfect Strangers, as well being the voice of Pumbaa in the original The Lion King movie and its sequels.
On Married...with Children, he played Ernest Pond, Peggy's supervisor in the season 1 episode "Peggy Sue Got Work"
Early Life[]
Born in Westchester New York, he graduated from Westlake High School in 1968 and attended Univeristy of Miami, studying at the Department of Theatre Arts.
He began his career as a stage actor, starring in plays such as The Robber Bridegroom, Little Johnny Jones, Guys and Dolls , A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Chicago, Man of La Mancha, Sweet Charity (which also starred MWC actress Christina Applegate) and Curtain.
On television, he often plays a security guard, a landlord or manager of a business. He started off on shows such as St. Elsewhere, Newhart, Punky Brewster and Knots Landing. He had a recurring role on the Leavitt-Moye show It's Your Move as Lou Donatelli, the landlord of the the apartment where the main characters live. Later on, he would play Donald 'Twinkie' Twinkacetti, the landlord of Balki and Larry on Perfect Strangers during its first two season. By the late 1980s, he had roles on shows such as Hunter, Hill Street Blues, Quantum Leap, Mr. Belvedere, My Two Dads and A Fine Romance.
During the early 90s, he had a memorable role on Saved By The Bell as Leon Carosi, the owner of the Malibu Sands Beach Club where Zach and his friends work at during their summer break.
In 1994, he would provide the voice of Pumbaa, the warthog who sings with his friend Timon in the film "The Lion King". He would continue to portray Pumbaa in the various sequels and as of 2016, is still portraying him in the animated series The Lion Guard.
He would also continue acting in roles on shows during the 1990s such as Major Dad, Seinfeld, A Diff'rent World, Encore! Encore! and Coach as well as movies such as Quiz Show, Mousehunt and In & Out, often reuniting with his Broadway and Lion King co-star Nathan Lane, who played Timon.
In the 2000s, he appeared on shows such as The Practice, That's So Raven, Ed, Providence and Blue Bloods.
In addition to TV shows and stage plays, he has appeared in commercials for Mastercard, Nyquil and Infinity automobiles .