Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf

One of the producers from E! started managing Hank, and soon he was being offered various paying gigs to make appearances at bachelor parties, bars, strip clubs, etc. His manager related in an interview that "Hank was diligent in finding out every fine detail about his appearances and treated them with the utmost professionalism." Hank would be hired to sing karaoke, bartend, or hurl insults. He also started merchandising a line of T-shirts and key chains. Hank, once dependent on disability checks, was now making $5,000–7,000 per month. He had bought himself a new stereo, and was most excited about almost being out of credit card debt. When Hank was asked if he wasn't worried that he was being exploited he replied: "No, and even If I am I don't care, I'm making money."

Talk of Hank's death in the media was cut short by the events of 9/11. Early in the 8 O'Clock hour of the Stern Show on 9/11, Stern was interviewing an executive from the E! channel who said that they were going to produce an E! True Hollywood Story about Hank and that Hank actually had quite a few friends in the entertainment industry. (The first plane crashed into the World Trade Center at 8:46am). The episode, "Hank the Angry Dwarf", aired February 20, 2002, according to TV Guide.

Despite his physical limitations and alcohol-related troubles, Hank was intelligent and had an exceptional knowledge of rock music trivia, especially 1960s-70s rock music. In what many fans consider to be one of his most memorable appearances, on April 25, 2001 Hank competed against Stern producer Gary Dell'Abate in a rock music trivia contest (Dell'Abate was scheduled to be a contestant on VH1's Rock & Roll Jeopardy!). Despite being so inebriated that it was difficult for him to sit fully upright in his chair, Hank easily won the contest. Among the questions that Hank answered correctly included, "Who played keyboards on 'Let It Be'?"; and "Which group sang the song, 'Green-Eyed Lady'?" After the match was over, Hank insisted on lying down in the studio and passed out for several minutes. The segment was televised on the Howard Stern Show on E!, and has since aired on Howard TV on demand. During a later Stern show, Hank also competed against Sugar Ray lead singer Mark McGrath in a rock trivia contest, which Hank also won.

In 2001 Hank had a guest starring role in an episode of the FX network comedy Son of the Beach.

On the afternoon of September 4, 2001, Hank died in his sleep at the home he shared with his parents in Fall River. His mother discovered that he had died when she went to wake him. He was 39 years old. His death certificate listed his immediate cause of death as a seizure disorder, with ethanol abuse and chondrodystrophy as contributing factors. Hank is buried at the Notre Dame Cemetery in Fall River, Massachusetts. The next day, Howard Stern devoted most of the show to Hank.

Hank's mother, Claudette, called into the Stern Show on September 10, 2001, to publicly thank everyone who attended Hank's funeral and wake. She also thanked everyone who e-mailed, and sent their condolences. She told an anecdote about how someone in the family had put a can of beer in Hank's casket. She said that "someone else slipped a bottle of Jack Daniel's in under Hank's coat." She ultimately left the items in the casket because she said that's what Hank would have wanted.

In 2000 Hank was hired by Interplay Entertainment to promote the developer's upcoming video game Messiah. Hank donned an angel costume and wandered the streets of various cities with a sign promoting the game. Several videos of these public events were eventually released as commercials to advertise the game.

In 2000, Hank played the role of "God" in the movie Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV.

In 2000, Hank had a supporting actor role in the film Shoe Shine Boys playing a mustached felon named Leo Henry Williams. Actor Martin Landau saw the film and was so impressed with Hank's performance that he arranged a meeting and met Hank. (the film's title was later changed to Prank).

Hank would occasionally cut down on his drinking. During a Stern Show segment in August 1999 in which Howie Mandel was the guest, Hank explained that when he reduced his intake of alcohol it precipitated him to go into a seizure during an appearance in California.

Hank received widespread media coverage in 1998 when he won a People magazine online poll asking the public to vote for the most beautiful person in the world as part of the run up promotion for the magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People" issue. When the public was given the option to submit a write-in candidate, the magazine had not counted on 230,169 votes for Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf—beating out assorted celebrities by a wide margin. In third place was Leonardo DiCaprio with 14,471 votes. In the early years of public participation on the Internet, media critics responded by wondering whether this was evidence of an emerging digital democracy.

In May 1998, People Magazine conducted an online poll on their website asking the public to vote to determine the "Most Beautiful People" in the world as part of the promotion for their annual Spring issue. The film Titanic had been released the previous winter, and had a prominent position in American popular culture. There were indications that People's editors simply assumed that the film's leading star, Leonardo DiCaprio, would automatically garner the most votes.

On March 4, 1998, Hank dressed in a pink rabbit suit, took a succession of phone calls from Stern listeners, sang karaoke to Led Zeppelin songs, and blew a .375 on a breathalyzer test. During another appearance dressed in the same costume, Hank made a visit to illusionist David Blaine, who was encased in a large block of ice outside on the street in New York City. Speaking to Hank remotely, Stern wanted Hank to urinate on the ice. Hank wasn't willing to do that, but he did give Blaine the finger.

After the publicity generated by the online poll, Hank started appearing more often on the Stern Show. In June 1998, Hank was followed by the cameras of E! Entertainment Television as he was given a make-over. Hank had his 1970s-era hair cut at a salon; had a manicure; received an eye exam and new glasses; got fitted for a tuxedo; and was supposed to have his teeth cleaned at a dentist, but was too inebriated.

Hank met Howard Stern on August 16, 1996, after driving to New York City with a friend from the Boston dinner theatre. After a night of drinking, Hank was waiting outside the K-Rock studios in Manhattan at 5:30am. He never had a doubt that he would make it onto the air. Stern's producer Gary Dell'Abate recalled arriving at work and encountering an obviously intoxicated dwarf who aggressively demanded that he be permitted to meet Stern:

Hank was friends with actor Billy Barty and had auditioned for a part in the 1988 movie Willow in which Barty had a role as a benevolent wizard, but Hank did not get the part. Because of his friendship with Barty, Hank raised money every year for the Billy Barty Foundation to Benefit Little People.

Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf (born Henry Joseph Nasiff Jr.; April 20, 1962 – September 4, 2001) was an American entertainer. Hank appeared numerous times on The Howard Stern Show and on the televised studio segments which aired on the E! channel. He was a member of the show's Wack Pack. His career began August 16, 1996, when he entered Stern's studio at radio station WXRK (K-Rock) in New York City. Hank was 4 ft 1 in (1.24 m) tall, and weighed 95 lb (43 kg; 6.8 st).

Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf was born Henry Joseph Nasiff Jr. on April 20, 1962 in Fall River, Massachusetts. He was diagnosed with achondroplasia dwarfism a week after he was born. His mother, Claudette, taught him from a young age that he could do whatever he set his mind to do, and Hank learned to ride a bike and participated in Little League Baseball for several seasons. When Hank was twelve he had an operation on his legs to straighten them. Although doctors had said that he would eventually require more surgery, Hank put off doing it and ultimately opted to not undergo another operation.