In addition to eight appearances on Saturday Night Live between 1981 and 1985, Anderson had a recurring guest role as con man Harry "The Hat" Gittes on Cheers (1982–1993).

[2] He spent much of his youth performing magic on the streets of Chicago, New York, St. Louis and New Orleans before landing in California at the age of 16.

[3][4] After moving to Los Angeles,[4] he joined the Dante Magic Club and worked as a street magician in San Francisco when he was 17.

[14] Together with longtime friend Turk Pipkin, Anderson wrote a book called Games You Can't Lose: A Guide for Suckers, a collection of gags, cons, tricks and scams.

[11] First published in 1989 (ISBN 978-1-58080-086-0, 2001 reprint), it also contains a survey of "Games You Can't Win" told from an insider's perspective.

[17] In 2005, Anderson opened a nightclub in the French Quarter, Oswald's Speakeasy, at 1331 Decatur Street at the corner of Esplanade Avenue.

[21] In November 2008, Anderson played himself on an episode of 30 Rock, along with fellow former Night Court cast members Markie Post and Charles Robinson.

[12] Night Court creator Reinhold Weege said that Anderson and his character both being Tormé fans was completely coincidental.

On April 16, 2018, at age 65, he died in his sleep of a stroke due to influenza and heart disease at his home in Asheville, North Carolina.