Demetri Martin
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| Demetri Martin | |
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| Martin at Northeastern University, April 11, 2007 | |
| Born | May 25, 1973 New York City, New York, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Genres | Observational comedy, surreal humor, musical comedy |
| Influences | Steven Wright |
| Notable works and roles | Demetri Martin. Person.; Correspondent on The Daily Show Important Things with Demetri Martin |
| Website | demetrimartin.com |
Demetri Martin (born May 25, 1973) is an Emmy Award–nominated and Perrier comedy award–winning Greek-American comedian, actor, artist, musician, writer, and humorist. Martin is best known for his work as a standup comedian and as a contributor on The Daily Show. Currently, he is hosting his own show on Comedy Central entitled Important Things with Demetri Martin.
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[edit] Early life
Martin was born in New York City, New York, the son of Lillian, a nutritionist, and Dean Martin, a Greek Orthodox priest.[1][2] His family also ran a Greek diner,[1] the Sand Castle, in Beachwood, New Jersey. Martin graduated from Yale University in 1995. Despite objections from his family, he dropped out a year before graduating NYU School of Law to pursue a career in comedy. Regarding the event, Martin has said:
| “ | It’s weird to make a decision where everyone in your life disapproves, pretty vocally and directly. They said, 'You've got one year left. Just do it.' I had a full scholarship so I didn’t have to pay for it. I ignored them. They asked, 'Why don’t you just get the degree so you can have it?' And I said, 'You don’t understand. I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do and now I know. I have the answer and it’s dumb to waste any more time.'[3] | ” |
His hobbies include constructing palindromes like "Dammit I'm Mad". He has even made one that is 113 words long which he shared with The Onion's AV Club in 2006.[4]
| “ | Wow. O.K.
A still animal sits afoot. Tones I ring. I sing (i.e. ride it, nuts open). On or off, I riff. Uh… I, to lasses, say, "Oh aha, hah, all!" It's tops. It is a Tao, bro, to my baby demo. Can one poet arise so rosy? As "D" I star. Comedy, baby. My my, a show. Oh say "my my," baby. Democrats? I'd say so. (Roses irate.) Open, on a comedy baby motorboat. As "it" I spot still a "ha hah!" ahoy. Assess a lot. I huff, I riff, or on one post untied, I reign. I sign. I rise, not too fast. I slam. In all, it's a K.O. wow. |
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[edit] Career
In 2001, Martin caught his first big break in stand-up comedy when he appeared on Comedy Central's stand-up showcase Premium Blend. At the 2003 Edinburgh Festival Fringe he won the Perrier award with his show If I....[5] The show was turned into a British television special in 2004. From 2003 to 2004, Martin wrote for Late Night with Conan O'Brien.[6] In 2004, Martin had his own Comedy Central Presents stand-up special. His special was divided into three parts. In the first, he performed in traditional stand-up comedy fashion. In the second segment, he used humorous drawings as visual aids, which would serve either as the punchline or a background. During the third segment, he played a guitar and put on a pseudo-play where he would strum his guitar while talking; some of his comedian friends dressed as fairies and dragons acted according to the story he was telling, detailing the magical land where the jokes he told came from. Martin's mother and grandmother also appeared.
Since late 2005, he has been credited as a contributor on The Daily Show, on which he has appeared as the named "Senior Youth Correspondent" and on which he hosts a segment called "Trendspotting". He has used this segment to talk about so-called hip trends among youth such as hookahs, wine, guerilla marketing and Xbox 360. A piece about social networking featured his profile on MySpace.[7] On March 22, 2007, Demetri made another appearance on The Daily Show, talking about the Viacom lawsuit against Google and YouTube.
Martin wrote and starred in Clearification, a seven part run of five minute on-line episodes about a man suffering from, and being treated for a condition which causes him to "behave like an ass". The filming was funded by Windows and includes some Vista branding
He has recorded a comedy CD/DVD titled These Are Jokes, which was released on September 26, 2006. This album also features Saturday Night Live member and personal friend Will Forte on the track "Personal Information Waltz".
He has cited comedian Steven Wright as an important influence. Both use deadpan one-liners in their acts.[8]
Martin returned to The Daily Show on March 22, 2007, as the new Youth Correspondent, calling his segment "Professional Important News with Demetri Martin". He recently starred in a Fountains of Wayne music video for "Someone to Love" as Seth Shapiro, a character in the song.[9] He also starred in the video for the new Travis single "Selfish Jean", in which he wears multiple t-shirts with lyrics written on them.[10]
On September 2, 2007, Martin appeared on the season finale of the HBO series Flight of the Conchords. He appeared as a keytar player named Demetri.[11]
He also had a small part in the movie The Rocker starring Rainn Wilson. Martin played the part of the videographer when the band in the movie was making their first music video.
Martin starred in the Ang Lee film Taking Woodstock, which premiered at the 2009 Cannes Festival. In the film Martin plays Elliot Tiber, a closeted gay artist who has given up his ambitions in the city to move upstate and help his old-world Jewish family run their Catskills motel. The film is based on the book written by Tiber.
[edit] Comedic style
Martin is known for being an unconventional stand-up comic. He uses extensive wordplay (particularly paraprosdokians), one-liners, drawings on a "large pad", as well as accompanying his jokes with music on either guitar, harmonica, piano, keyboard, glockenspiel, toy bells, or tambourine — sometimes all at once.[12] His style is based on one-liners.
[edit] Future plans
Martin sold his movie concept Will to DreamWorks; he is expected to play a key supporting role.[13] He will play the lead in the film Moon People, a pitch that he sold to Columbia Pictures. He will also be appearing in the upcoming film Young Americans, in which he will play a Goldman Sachs employee.
He also had signed on to play Paul DePodesta in the film adaptation of the book Moneyball. The project is now on hold.
[edit] Discography
- Invite Them Up (2005)
- These Are Jokes (2006)
- Demetri Martin. Person. (2007)
[edit] Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Other notes |
| 2002 | Analyze That | Personal Assistant | credited as "Demitri Martin" |
| 2003 | If I | Himself | British television special, also writer |
| 2004 | 12:21 | Himself | short film, also writer |
| 2007 | "Someone to Love" | Seth Shapiro | Fountains of Wayne music video |
| 2007 | Flight of the Conchords (TV series) | Demetri | Season 1, Episode 12 |
| 2008 | The Rocker | Kip (a music video producer) | |
| 2009 | Young Americans | Goldman Sachs Employee | supporting role |
| 2009 | Post Grad | Ad Exec | |
| 2009 | Moon People | lead role and writer | |
| 2009 | Taking Woodstock | Elliot Tiber | lead role |
| 2009 | Important Things with Demetri Martin | Himself / Various | lead role, writer, series creator, executive producer, and composer |
[edit] Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | For | Category | Result | Other notes |
| 2003 | Perrier Comedy Award | If I | Won | At the Edinburgh Festival Fringe | |
| 2004 | Emmy Awards | Late Night with Conan O'Brien | Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program | Nominated | Shared with Mike Sweeney (head writer), Chris Albers, Jose Arroyo, Andy Blitz, Kevin Dorff, Daniel J. Goor, Michael Gordon, Brian Kiley, Michael Koman, Brian McCann, Guy Nicolucci, Conan O'Brien, Allison Silverman, Robert Smigel, Brian Stack, Andrew Weinberg |
| 2005 | Writers Guild of America Award | Late Night with Conan O'Brien | Comedy/Variety (Including Talk) - Series | Won | Shared with Mike Sweeney (head writer), Chris Albers, Jose Arroyo, Andy Blitz, Kevin Dorff, Daniel J. Goor, Michael Gordon, Brian Kiley, Michael Koman, Brian McCann, Guy Nicolucci, Conan O'Brien, Allison Silverman, Robert Smigel, Brian Stack, Andrew Weinberg |
| 2006 | Barry Award | Dr. Earnest Parrot Presents Demetri Martin | Won | Award for best show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival |
[edit] References
- ^ a b http://www.nj.com/entertainment/tv/index.ssf/2009/02/sepinwall_on_tv_important_thin.html
- ^ http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-106769338.html?refid=gg_x_02
- ^ Dremousis, Litsa. "Interview with Demetri Martin". The Believer. http://www.believermag.com/issues/200602/?read=interview_martin. Retrieved 2007-02-24.
- ^ O'Neal, Sean (2006-11-29). "Demetri Martin". The Onion AV Club. http://www.avclub.com/content/node/55840. Retrieved 2007-02-24.
- ^ Martin, Demetri (2004-05-25). "Diary: A Weeklong Electronic Journal". Slate. http://www.slate.com/id/2101150/entry/2101158/. Retrieved 2007-02-24.
- ^ "Demetri Martin Bio". Comedy Central. http://www.comedycentral.com/comedians/browse/m/demetri_martin.jhtml. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
- ^ "News Team: Demetri Martin". The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Comedy Central. http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_daily_show/news_team/contributors/demetri_martin.jhtml. Retrieved 2007-02-24.
- ^ Huang, Keith (2005-05-11). "Word Games". Gelf Magazine. http://www.gelfmagazine.com/mt/archives/word_games.html. Retrieved 2007-02-24.
- ^ youtube
- ^ youtube
- ^ "The Flight of the Conchords" The Third Conchord (2007) - Full cast and crew
- ^ http://www.dailytexanonline.com/1.1370449-1.1370449
- ^ Gardner, Chris (2006-03-27). "'Will' fills D'Works bill"". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117940457.html?categoryid=1948&cs=1. Retrieved 2007-02-24.
[edit] External links
[edit] Official sites
[edit] Interviews
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This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (April 2009) |
- Interview from November, 2006, in Onion AV Club
- Interview from October 2006, in The DePaulia
- Article, in The Scotsman
- Article, in Gelf Magazine
- Interview by Brian M. Palmer
- MP3 Audio Interview on The Sound of Young America public radio show and podcast
- Interview Believer Mag
- New Jersey Monthly Magazine
- Fresh Air, NPR.org
[edit] Other sites
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