While writing for Roseanne (1988), he was noticed by Lorne Michaels, who liked Russell Brand was born on June 4, 1975, in Grays, Essex, England, the son of Barbara Elizabeth (Nichols) and Ronald Henry Brand, a photographer. He went to East High School, and college in Washington, D.C. Her brother is musician and producer Vance DeGeneres Donald Jay Rickles was born May 8, 1926 in New York. He performed in the NYC comedy club circuit before landing a guest spot on The Letterman Show. Had she only written and starred in the Emma Thompson film Late Night, theres a good chance shed make the list. Before experiencing success as a stand-up comic, she worked Paula Poundstone was born on December 29, 1959 in Huntsville, Alabama, USA. was born on September 12, 1967 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for the best live shows from the funniest stand-up comedians, ranging from witty and irreverent to deeply raunchy. PF, Chris Rock was already a star at the turn of the millennium but the 21st century turned him into a megastar. And, in 2001, he wrote the worlds best op-ed on baldness. Before she hosted the sex comedy and talk show, "Not Safe with Nikki Glaser,". At the age of 14, he began performing stand-up comedy in nightclubs. He has denied claims, no charges were pressed, but Ansari is now tackling the subject in his work; a review described his new tour as a cry against extreme wokeness. As if that werent enough, one-third of the team, the morose Yorkshireman Liam Williams, launched a voice-of-his-generation solo career, which blazed across the standup stage and brought us the hit BBC4 YouTube spoof Pls Like, and People Time, made with peers Claudia ODoherty, Jamie and Natasia Demetriou and Ellie White. He died on December 24, 1940 in San Francisco, California, USA. He was the son of Ruth E. (Hook) and Homer Lloyd "Kit" Carson, a manager of Jerry Seinfeld was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Betty (Hesney) and Kalman Seinfeld. Its status and Chappelles no-compromise reputation was secured when the star mysteriously quit the programme mid-recording in 2006, triggering a seven-year sabbatical from showbiz. Blue humor was very dirty, too dirty for white audiences. 9 in their "50 Best, Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman (; January 17, 1949 May 16, 1984) was an American entertainer, actor, writer, and performance artist. All Stand-Up Comedians | Dead-Frog Comedy Database Between them theyve survived a triple heart bypass and a visit to the Im a Celebrity Jungle, to remain the reigning champions of surreal comedy. He is an actor and writer, known for Trolls (2016), Jexi (2019) and 6 Underground (2019). But whats consistent through both incarnations and into her recent show about motherhood is a personality that fizzes with fun and Tories be damned! PF, The Glasgow comic, real name Brian Limond, is a rare thing in comedy: a comedian not known for panel show appearances or TV roles but rather for his online notoriety. It looks at how that individual experiences the world, and how they relate those experiences to the audience. Her sets are a free-associated cavalcade of broken logic and weird voices, and it often takes full concentration just to figure out whats going on. Perpetually glum standup comedian Joey Bishop was born Joseph Abraham Gottlieb on February 3, 1918, in the Bronx, New York. Bridging the gap between 90s standup and the present (his influence is clear on bright, bizarre young things like James Acaster), Lees recent show, Content Provider, tackled Brexit with brilliant amounts of bathos (Ooh no, he coos on stage, I only wanted bendy bananas, and now theres this chaotic inferno of hate!). He disdained telling jokes and engaging in comedy as it was traditionally understood, once saying in a rare introspective interview, "I am not a comic, I have never told a joke. Vote up the best stand up comedians of 2023, and help decide who are the funniest comedians this year! He was previously married to Cookie Mackenzie and Lovenia Patricia (Peaches) Wilson. His parents Lenny Bruce was born Leonard Alfred Schneider on October 13, 1925, in Mineola, Long Island, New York. Dov Davidoff is known for Invincible (2006), Hustlers (2019) and Shades of Blue (2016). The result was a series of cracking standup shows applying Pascoes loveably nervy intelligence to pair bonding, Nietzschean philosophy, sperm selection all the big questions, in other words, and never a hack gag in sight. Moved to Los Angeles in 1994. He is an actor and writer, known for Two Weeks Notice (2002), One Fine Day (1996) and The Back-up Plan (2010). HJD, Most SNL performers simply slope off when their time is up, but not Kristen Wiig. Her final episode, after seven years on the show, ended with a Lorne Michaels slow-dance as Mick Jagger sang Ruby Tuesday to her. He is an actor and writer, known for The Muppets (2011), Old School (2003) and Trunk'd (2014). (Actor & Comedian Best Known for His Roles in 'Mork & Mindy ', 'Popeye' and 'Good Will Hunting') 100. He was previously married to Barbara Dobbs Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Concert for Autism Education, Anthony Jeselnik: Fire in the Maternity Ward, Mike Birbiglia: What I Should Have Said Was Nothing, Mike Birbiglia: My Girlfriend's Boyfriend. Goaded on by friends to try out, a producer spotted him, hired him for an appearance on a MacDonald was born Norman Gene MacDonald in Quebec City, Quebec on October 17, 1959. He has been married to Ali Espley since April 10, 1988. The Best Male Stand Up Comedians of the '70s - Ranker Comedian and heart attack waiting to happen. The show aired on NBC from 1989 until 1998, becoming one of the most acclaimed and popular sitcoms of all time. Born in New York City on January 17, 1949, the first son of Stanley and Janice Kaufman, Andy grew up on New York in Brooklyn-born Buddy Hackett was known mainly as a nightclub comic, especially in Las Vegas, where he first performed in 1952 and wound up being one of the biggest headliners in that city's history. The appearance of Ayoade in any show is a seal of quality. Surely thats enough by itself. This has been corrected. Every Key show was an event, designed to upend and expand expectations of live comedy, and seduce us all with Keys coy and slippery humour. Dick Gregory was born on October 12, 1932 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. Inexplicably, she has not created a dud in her career. Since then, the former maths teacher has done everything from presenting a travelogue with his mum (BBC3s Asian Provocateur) to making a sitcom based on the real-life story of inheriting his dads pub (The Reluctant Landlord) to presenting a hip-hop podcast, as well as being a Mock the Week fixture. Acaster feels like an utterly uncompromised act: his shows can be elaborate metaphors and his stage presence has a sort of Dylan-ish prickliness on TV panel shows hes the grit that cuts through the chumminess. Brian Doug Stanhope was born on March 25, 1967 in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. His father was of Hungarian Jewish descent, while Jerry's maternal grandparents, Salha and Selim Hosni, were Syrian Jewish immigrants (from Aleppo). Lenny's parents were divorced when he was a child. He was previously married to Teddie Lee Tillett. He was previously married to Melissa Schimmel and Vicki Schimmel. In two brief decades, Hicks worked his Sam Kinison was a popular stand-up comedian from Yakima, Washington, mainly active in the 1980s and the early 1990s. !, Nothing to Lose, Life and Blue Bill Maher was born William Maher in New York City, New York, and grew up in River Vale, New Jersey. Hes barely put a foot wrong since, and now rivals Michael McIntyre as Britains finest exponent of that much-maligned form, observational comedy. Stick a pin anywhere in her filmography, though, and youll strike gold. She voiced Dot Matrix from Mel Brooks' Spaceballs. Highly influential, and always controversial, African-American actor/comedian who was equally well known for his colorful language during his live comedy shows, as for his fast paced life, multiple marriages and battles with drug addiction. The Best Shows That Star Stand-Up Comedians, Jerome Allen Seinfeld (born April 29, 1954) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, producer, and director. Stand up comics like those on this list have worked hard to become the best that they can be, so if you're a guy aspiring to be a stand-up comedian then the comedian names below should give you inspiration. He was a writer and actor, known for The Larry Sanders Show (1992), It's Garry Shandling's Show. In addition to co-creating and starring on the critically-acclaimed NBC series, Mad About You (1992), which garnered him Emmy, Golden Globe, American Comedy Award and Screen Cedric the Entertainer is an African-American comedian and actor known for being one of the Original Kings of Comedy. He was the youngest of five children of Chana "Anna" (Siegel) and Jacob Gottlieb, a bicycle repairman. They fell in love and were married in 1947. White Male Comedians - Conference Keynote Speaking and HR Compliance Everything Davis has written has been soaked in the worst excesses of human misery, but with a worrying degree of relatability, showing up the vulnerabilities of all of us. A list of the over 500 comedians in the Stand-Up Comedy Database. On stage, where he can control how the narcissism, verbosity and new age philosophy come across and where theyre spliced with wit, self-mockery and a palpable love of people and life Brand is a presence to conjure with, one of our most unique and charismatic comic talents. He was a writer and actor, known for Gallagher: The Maddest (1983), Gallagher: Over Your Head (1984) and Gallagher: Overboard (1987). But his career before becoming host of the show was quite an interesting and long one.Letterman was born in Broad Ripple, a neighborhood in Indianapolis, to Dorothy Marie (Hofert), a church secretary Producer | Born Aaron Chwatt in New York City's Lower East Side, Buttons (who got his name from a uniform Bernard Jeffrey McCollough was born in 1957 in Chicago, the son of Mary McCullough and Jeffery Harrison. if you havent already. PF, From Ali G to Borat to Brno, Sacha Baron Cohens audacious trolling and timely satire has made him one of comedys best-known provocateurs. No one denies he delivered some brilliant standup in his pomp but all those cynical gags about predatory maleness no longer sound quite so funny. Afterward, Jonathan Harshman Winters III was born on November 11, 1925 in Dayton, Ohio.