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Jon Stewart

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Jon Stewart
Jon stewart.jpg
Birth name Jonathan Stuart Liebowitz
Born November 28, 1962 in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, USA
Notable Shows The Daily Show: Host
Notable Episodes The Daily Show: Post 9/11 Clip Show
Awards 10 Emmys
1 PGA Award
2 TCA Awards

Jon Stewart is an American comedian, actor, writer and producer best known for his work as second host of The Daily Show, where he has become a pop culture icon.

Contents

Biography

Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Liebowitz to physicist Donald Liebowitz and elementary school teacher Marian Liebowitz, who has since become an educational consultant and one of the leading minds on special education in America. When Stewart was eight years old, his parents divorced, so Stewart and his brother Larry were raised by their mother. Stewart has since referred to a strained relationship with his father in his comedy act, although his mother downplays the tension as jokes. (That notwithstanding, Stewart filed a petition to have his name legally changed on June 19th, 2001, citing several reasons, some of which include: "To protect loved ones from embarrassment (they signed a petition)," "Too many syllables," and "Too mispronounceable." However, some observers have suggested the distance from his father as the true underlying cause, and they point to Stewart's claim Donald Leibowitz has never seen him perform.)

He attended Lawrence High School in Lawrence Township, New Jersey, where he played French horn. At high school (which he described as "a bit leftist,") he felt out of place as the only Jew in the student body. At 17, Stewart attended the College of William and Mary in Virginia, where he studied chemistry and graduated with a bachelors in psychology. He played soccer there, and the team still gives a "Liebo" Award in honor of him to the team clown/sweetheart.

After college, Stewart returned to New Jersey, where he worked as a bartender, a waiter, even as an employee of the state government. He also put on puppet shows for mentally disabled children (no doubt inspired by his mother's work). In April 1987, he took up stand-up comedy with his first gig at the Bitter End in Manhattan, for the first time using the name "Jon Stewart." His first joke was, "What do they call lunch hour in the Diamond District when all the Hasidim are causing a traffic jam in the streets? Yidlock." For the next decade, he would rise quickly in the New York and national comedy scene, while making a name for himself as a cerebral, historically and socially conscious comic who was not above lowbrow and absurdist humor.

In 1993, he was one of NBC's top choices to replace David Letterman as host of the post-Tonight Show timeslot. (The job went to Conan O'Brien.) He also hosted Short Attention Span Theatre and The Jon Stewart Show, which first aired on MTV on October 25th, 1993. The latter show was a critical darling but a favorite target of parental and obscenity watchdog groups. Audiences reaction was lukewarm, and it lasted less than two years, even after a move to syndication.

The critical success of the show, however, led to a six-picture deal with Miramax. While filming the first of these—1997's Wishful Thinking—a production assistant offered to hook him up with her friend, a veterinary assistant named Tracey McShane. Stewart and McShane's first blind date was, according to Stewart's descriptions, awkward, but it at least led to a second date. After a few more dates, the two found they were hitting it off. On June 30th, 1999, on an episode of The View, Stewart publicly announced his engagement to McShane. He also described his unique proposal: He asked The New York Times puzzle editor, Will Shortz, to create a crossword puzzle in which Stewart asked her to marry him. They were married in November of that year.

In 1998, Stewart's career took off. He co-starred in the film Half Baked, the marijuana cult comedy classic which also boosted the career of its star and co-writer, Dave Chappelle. For his role as Enhancement Smoker, Stewart drew on his own past as a marijuana-smoking college student. He also guest hosted The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder for Snyder. Although it seemed an odd fit—the sardonic, self-deprecating, boyish Jewish comic sitting in for the WASP-y, venerable, wry, 60-something radio announcer with the booming voice—Stewart was a surprise hit who had a previously unnoticed gift for perceptive, intelligent interviews. At the same time, he wasn't a guest host, but he played one on TV on HBO's behind the scenes look at a Tonight Show-like talk show, The Larry Sanders Show.

He also wrote a book, Naked Pictures of Famous People. While most comedians' books of the era were their comedy act in book form, Naked Pictures was a collection of essays, short stories and—appropriately enough—fake news stories. It was a tour-de-force of world history, religion and popular culture. In the haphazard order of the pieces, Stewart leapt with glee from a pre-Camelot John F. Kennedy to Hanson to Gerald Ford to Martha Stewart in the first four essays, as though the 20th century were a deck of cards he could shuffle and deal out one at a time. (In later essays, he threw in pre-20th century wild cards with Leonardo da Vinci's "lost notebooks", an eyewitness account of Jesus Christ's Last Supper and Vincent Van Gogh's letters to an AOL chatroom.) In Stewart's comic mind, Judaism took the recently discontinued Joe Camel as its mascot, the Last Supper was a bunch of arrogant Hollywood celebrities heaping abuse on a waiter and the phenomenon of suicide cults (as exemplified by the Heaven's Gate cult) was reduced to worshipers in Stewart's apartment awaiting the return of their savior, Cap'n Crunch. The book also turned archetypes of good and evil upside down. In the first piece, the Kennedy family—considered a tragic fairy tale by many Americans—masked a dark secret out of an H.P. Lovecraft story, while in one of the last pieces, Adolf Hitler—a name synonymous to most with "evil"—found redemption in a Larry King interview. Ironically for one less than three years away from becoming one of television's biggest icons, Stewart also lambasted the business of television. In one of the book's funniest and best remembered pieces, a series of memos detailed ABC's failed attempt to give beatnik comic Lenny Bruce his own sitcom. ("Not crazy about Lenny's original suggestion of a show about a Jewish Davy Crockett with a coonskin yarmulke, although we could give further consideration to the marketing aspects. My opinion is that kids won't buy coonskin yarmulkes, even if we call them beanies, as Mr. Bruce suggested.")

In 1999, Snyder retired from his post-Letterman spot on CBS. Although Stewart, as guest host, was rumored to be his replacement, CBS instead chose Craig Kilborn, then host of Comedy Central's The Daily Show. Within days, Comedy Central announced it would take Stewart as Kilborn's replacement. The result would become legendary. What had once been a local news parody—considered by many a lightweight companion, then replacement for Politically Incorrect, which moved to ABC in 1997—became a razor-sharp and biting contemporary satire which eclipsed even Politically Incorrect. By 2001, the former filler show had become, along with South Park, its network's flagship show, and Stewart had become a national figure. Stewart and his crew were amongst the most popular and respected names on television, and awards took notice, as did audiences. By 2004, the show had hit its peak with its coverage of the presidential race between President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry; the correspondent crew of Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Ed Helms and Samantha Bee; and the release of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a parody of social studies textbooks co-written by Stewart and The Daily Show's writing staff. Stewart was featured on the cover of Newsweek. Rolling Stone also featured him on the cover with a headline trumpeting the (entirely true) claim the satirical The Daily Show was considered the first source of news by 18- to 35-year-olds, even above CNN, FOX News and NBC, ABC and CBS. Stewart also made appearances on The O'Reilly Factor and 60 Minutes, amongst other news shows.

Due to the coverage, some declared Stewart as one of the most powerful men in American politics. This was an exaggeration. Despite Stewart's vocal support of Democratic candidates (he even had Sen. Kerry as a guest on his show), Kerry narrowly lost the race, and Republicans maintained control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives. That notwithstanding, he seemed to have some influence, at least over the media. On October 15, 2004, Stewart was the guest on the CNN debate show Crossfire. In a legendary exchange, Stewart called the show "partisan hackery" to host Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala's faces. "Stop, stop, stop, stop hurting America," he told them. He also dismissed questions regarding Bill O'Reilly's recent scandals and conspiracy theories surrounding Bush's debate with Kerry. At last, Carlson said, "You're more fun on your show. Just my opinion." Stewart paused, then shot back, "You know what's interesting, though? You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." The clip became an Internet phenomenon as one of the rarest moments in television—an unpaid commentator as a guest on a show speaking the truth as he saw it to the hosts. Less than three months later, on January 6, 2005, CNN announced it was canceling Crossfire. While Stewart's telling the emperor he had no clothes was certainly not the only factor in this decision, observers noted it was almost certainly a factor.

In 2005, Stewart executive produced a spin-off of The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, a parody of Crossfire-styled punditry shows. In 2006, he hosted the Academy Awards Ceremony. Later that year, he hosted and, with his company Busboy Productions Inc., co-executive produced the Comedy Central telethon Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit for Autism Education, no doubt inspired by his mother's work and his own work in that field. Stewart is also developing a second Daily Show spin-off with Demetri Martin, Important Things with Demetri Martin.

He lives in New York with his wife, Tracey McShane, and their children Nathan Thomas Stewart (born July 3, 2004) and Maggie Rose Stewart (born February 4, 2006).

Roles

Starring Roles

Series Role Year(s) Season(s)
Short Attention Span Theater Host 1990–1992
The Jon Stewart Show Host 1993–1995
The Daily Show Host 1997–2015

Guest Starring Roles

Series Role Episode Airdate
The Larry Sanders Show Jon Stewart 5x01 - Everybody Loves Larry November 13, 1996
Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist Jon Stewart 3x06 - Guess Who January 5, 1997
The Nanny Dr. Bob Fellow 4x13 - Kissing Cousins January 15, 1997
The Larry Sanders Show Jon Stewart 5x12 - The Roast February 19, 1997
NewsRadio Andrew Brock 3x18 - Twins March 12, 1997
Mr. Show with Bob and David Jon Stewart 3x09 - "A White Man Set Them Free" November 28, 1997
The Larry Sanders Show Jon Stewart 6x01 - Another List March 15, 1998
The Larry Sanders Show Jon Stewart 6x02 - The Beginning of the End March 22, 1998
The Larry Sanders Show Jon Stewart 6x06 - Adolf Hankler April 19, 1998
The Larry Sanders Show Jon Stewart 6x11 - Flip May 31, 1998
Spin City Parker 3x24 - Wall Street May 11, 1999
Saturday Night Live Host 27x14 - Jon Stewart/India.Arie March 9, 2002
The Colbert Report Himself 4x17 - Jacob Weisberg (February 4, 2008) February 4, 2008
Late Night with Conan O'Brien Himself 15x56 - Show 2521 February 4, 2008

Specials

Title Role Airdate Series/Banner
The 14th Annual Young Comedians Special Comic December 14, 1991 Young Comedians Special
Third Annual Rock N' Jock B-Ball Jam Announcer November 1, 1993 Rock N' Jock B-Ball Jam
In a New Light: Sex Unplugged Himself June 1, 1995
George Carlin: 40 Years of Comedy Host February 27, 1997
Elmopalooza! Host February 20, 1998
Since You've Been Gone Todd Zalinsky April 18, 1998
Comic Relief VIII Stand-Up Comic June 14, 1998 Comic Relief (USA)
25 Lame Himself May 29, 1999
43rd Grammy Awards Host February 21, 2001 Grammy Awards
44th Grammy Awards Host February 27, 2002 Grammy Awards
54th Primetime Emmy Awards Himself September 22, 2002 Primetime Emmy Awards
Uncensored Comedy: That's Not Funny! Himself June 8, 2003
MTV Bash: Carson Daly Basher July 13, 2003
55th Primetime Emmy Awards Himself September 21, 2003 Primetime Emmy Awards
The GQ Men of the Year Awards Himself October 21, 2003
Richard Pryor: I Ain't Dead Yet, #*%$#@!! Himself November 30, 2003
Comedy Central Presents: The Commies Himself December 7, 2003
56th Primetime Emmy Awards Winner September 19, 2004 Primetime Emmy Awards
React Now: Music & Relief Himself September 10, 2005
Last Laugh '05 Performer December 11, 2005
78th Academy Awards Host March 5, 2006 Academy Awards
58th Primetime Emmy Awards Winner August 27, 2006 Primetime Emmy Awards
Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit for Autism Education Host October 15, 2006
80th Academy Awards Host February 23, 2008 Academy Awards
Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Concert for Autism Education Host April 13, 2008
A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All Jon Stewart November 23, 2008 The Colbert Report

Talk Show Appearances

Series Episode Airdate
Late Night with Conan O'Brien Show 28 October 20, 1993
Late Show with David Letterman Show 91 January 11, 1994
Dennis Miller Live The Dumbing of America June 16, 1995
Howard Stern February 5, 1996
Late Show with David Letterman Show 591 May 14, 1996
Late Show with David Letterman Show 656 September 10, 1996
The Rosie O'Donnell Show September 17, 1996
Late Night with Conan O'Brien Show 654 September 17, 1996
Late Show with David Letterman Show 761 March 3, 1997
Dennis Miller Live Bad Habits April 4, 1997
Late Show with David Letterman Show 815 June 11, 1997
Space Ghost Coast to Coast Mayonnaise September 19, 1997
Late Show with David Letterman Show 918 November 28, 1997
Maury April 23, 1998
Dennis Miller Live Hypochondria August 14, 1998
The Howard Stern Radio Show October 3, 1998
Late Night with Conan O'Brien Show 1001 October 9, 1998
The Rosie O'Donnell Show December 22, 1998
Late Night with Conan O'Brien Show 1065 February 26, 1999
The Howard Stern Radio Show May 1, 1999
The Charlie Rose Show May 20, 1999
Late Night with Conan O'Brien Show 1169 October 15, 1999
Late Night with Conan O'Brien Show 1239 March 17, 2000
The Rosie O'Donnell Show June 5, 2000
Dennis Miller Live Hillary Clinton June 9, 2000
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire November 12, 2000
Late Show with David Letterman Show 1520 November 29, 2000
Late Show with David Letterman Show 1625 June 15, 2001
The Rosie O'Donnell Show June 18, 2001
Larry King Live June 19, 2001
The Charlie Rose Show August 15, 2001
The Rosie O'Donnell Show February 21, 2002
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno February 26, 2002
Dennis Miller Live Religious Zealots March 1, 2002
Late Show with David Letterman Show 1773 March 19, 2002
Politically Incorrect April 5, 2002
The Charlie Rose Show August 9, 2002
The Charlie Rose Show May 21, 2003
Primetime Glick Brad Garrett / Jon Stewart June 5, 2003
The Oprah Winfrey Show April 15, 2004
Larry King Live June 25, 2004
The O'Reilly Factor September 17, 2004
The Charlie Rose Show September 29, 2004
Crossfire October 15, 2004
The Oprah Winfrey Show April 18, 2005
Costas Now August 12, 2005
Late Show with David Letterman Show 2437 October 6, 2005
The Oprah Winfrey Show November 14, 2005
This Week December 15, 2005
Larry King Live February 26, 2006
The Oprah Winfrey Show March 2, 2006
Sit Down Comedy with David Steinberg Jon Stewart March 14, 2007

Writer

Staff Writer

Series Year(s) Credit Season(s)
The Sweet Life 1989 –1990 Staff Writer 1
The Jon Stewart Show 1993 –1995 Staff Writer 1 2
The Daily Show 1999 –2015 Staff Writer 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Specials Written

Title Credit Airdate Series/Banner
Jon Stewart: Unleavened 1996
43rd Grammy Awards February 21, 2001 Grammy Awards
78th Academy Awards March 5, 2006 Academy Awards
80th Academy Awards February 23, 2008 Academy Awards

Producer

Series Produced

Series Year(s) Credit Season(s)
The Jon Stewart Show 1993 –1995 Co-Producer 1 2
The Daily Show 1999 –2002 Co-Executive Producer 4 5 6 7
The Daily Show 2003 –2015 Executive Producer 8 9 10 11 12 13
The Colbert Report 2005 –2012 Executive Producer 1 2 3 4
Important Things with Demetri Martin 2009 –2010 Executive Producer 1

Specials Produced

Title Credit Airdate Series/Banner
Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit for Autism Education Executive Producer October 15, 2006

Awards and Accolades

Primetime Emmy Awards

(20 Nominations, 10 Wins)

  • Nominated: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2001)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program (2001)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (2002)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2002)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program (2002)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (2003)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2003)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program (2003)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2004)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program (2004)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (2005)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2005)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program (2005)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2006)
The Colbert Report
  • Won: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2006)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program (2006)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program (2007)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2007)
The Colbert Report
  • Won: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (2007)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (2007)
The Daily Show

Producers Guild Awards

(1 Nomination, 1 Win)

  • Won: Individual Achievement in Comedy (2008)
The Colbert Report

Television Critics Association Awards

(5 Nominations, 2 Wins)

  • Won: Individual Achievement in Comedy (2003)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Individual Achievement in Comedy (2004)
The Daily Show
  • Won: Individual Achievement in Comedy (2005)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Individual Achievement in Comedy (2006)
The Daily Show
  • Nominated: Individual Achievement in Comedy (2007)
The Daily Show

Writers Guild of America Awards

(1 Nomination)

  • Nominated: Comedy/Variety - (Including Talk) Series (2007)
The Daily Show

Other Awards

American Comedy Awards, USA

(1 Nomination)

  • Nominated: Funniest Male Performer in a TV Special (Leading or Supporting) Network, Cable or Syndication (2001)
The Daily Show Indecision 2000 Special

People's Choice Awards

(2 Nominations)

  • Nominated: Favorite Funny Male Star (2005)
  • Nominated: Favorite Late Night Talk Show Host (2005)

Teen Choice Awards

(1 Nomination)

  • Nominated: TV - Choice Personality (2001)

Trivia

  • Was briefly a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity at William and Mary. He voluntarily dropped out and has no interest in the fraternity now.