Jim Norton (comedian)

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Jim Norton
Jim Norton photo by Josh Alder.jpg
Jim Norton, after a performance at Helium Comedy Club in Portland, Oregon, on Feb 25, 2011
Birth name James Joseph Norton, Jr.
Born Bayonne, New Jersey
Medium Stand-up, radio, television
Nationality American
Years active 1990–present
Genres Cringe humor, black comedy, satire, observational comedy
Subject(s) Human sexuality, self-deprecation
Influences Samuel Beckett, George Carlin, Richard Pryor
Notable works and roles Opie and Anthony
Lucky Louie
Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn
Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld
The Jay Leno Show
Chelsea Lately

James Joseph "Jim" Norton, Jr. (born July 19, 1968) is an American comedian, radio personality, author, and actor. He is an on-air personality, often dubbed the 'third mic' on The Opie & Anthony Show, which airs on Sirius XM Radio. Norton has appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and on the Late Show with David Letterman, filmed an HBO stand-up special for the series One Night Stand as well as his special "Monster Rain", co-starred in the short-lived HBO sitcom Lucky Louie and had cameos in the films Spider-Man, Zack and Miri Make a Porno and Courting Condi.

Norton hosted a four-episode stand-up showcase for HBO titled Down and Dirty with Jim Norton and appeared on The Comedy Central Roast of Bob Saget. He was also in Jerry Seinfeld's 2002 documentary Comedian.[1] Norton is also a regular guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

Contents

Early life [edit]

Jim Norton was born in Bayonne, New Jersey, to a family from the Duncan Avenue area of Jersey City.[2] He grew up in North Brunswick.[3]

Norton dropped out of high school in his senior year. He entered rehab soon after, at age 17. A couple of years later he attended Middlesex County College, where he earned a B in English, an F in Probability and Statistics, an F in Western Civilization and an F in Biology. A year later he obtained his GED, after being sober for around three years.[4]

Career [edit]

Radio [edit]

Norton became a regular guest on The Opie & Anthony Show on WNEW in late 2000 after several guest appearances by himself and along with Andrew Dice Clay. In 2000, Norton was arrested with Lewis Black and show producer Rick Delgado in connection with a stunt named "Voyeur Bus" involving a transparent bus full of topless women driving through Manhattan streets. This bus rode around Manhattan while being broadcast on the "Opie and Anthony" radio show. Radio station management did not inform the O&A show that the bus' route was also the route that President Clinton was taking that same day.[5]

On October 9, 2008, it was reported that Norton was being sued by Roy Den Hollander over his treatment during a phone interview on the Opie & Anthony Show.[6] On August 28, 2009, the New York Post reported that Hollander would drop his suit if Norton would also drop his motion to have Hollander sanctioned for filing a baseless claim, as well as being forced to pay Norton's legal fees.[7]

On December 2, 2009, when The Opie & Anthony Show hosted former Governor of Minnesota Jesse Ventura, an argument between Norton and Ventura erupted while the discussion was on the September 11 attacks (the official account of which Ventura questions) and the "counter-terrorism" measures against illegal immigration. Ventura was arguing against what he claimed was the Border Patrol practice of stopping individuals and asking for ID deep within US borders, claiming that such actions were unconstitutional. At some point, when Norton disagreed with him on this, Ventura suggested that Norton did not believe in the Constitution, to which Norton strongly objected. Soon after, as the argument became more heated, Ventura walked off the air and the two exchanged explicit comments towards each other.[8]

On May 27, 2010, The Jim Norton Show premiered on Raw Dog Comedy. Norton hosts the program, which features other comedians as well as clips of live stand-up.

Television [edit]

For two years, Norton was a regular on Comedy Central's Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn, and he was selected to be among the final twenty contestants for the second season of Last Comic Standing, but had to back out due to contractual obligations.

Norton's first half-hour HBO stand-up special aired on October 21, 2005, as part of the HBO Stand-up Series One Night Stand. In the spring of 2007, Norton filmed his second HBO stand-up special which aired live on October 13, 2007. In 2006, Norton landed the role of Rich on the HBO series Lucky Louie. Rich is a foul-mouthed, perverted, "ill-informed", straight shooting character who lives with his mother and deals pot to high schoolers for a living, departing from the traditionally tamer sitcom model of a supporting character.

In June 2008, Norton appeared in several episodes of The Gong Show with Dave Attell as one of the celebrity judges. Since mid-2007, Norton has been a regular guest on Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld on the Fox News Channel. On June 21, 2010, Norton guest-hosted Red Eye. Norton has also appeared regularly as a correspondent for The Jay Leno Show as Jim Norton: The Uninvited Guest.[9] Starting in 2010, Norton began appearing in Louis CK's FX sitcom, Louie.

Stand-up [edit]

Norton frequently tours the United States, performing at well-known comedy clubs. In 2004, Norton was voted best comedian and breakthrough performer of the year on the Cringe Humor website, which is dedicated to some prominent New York comedians. Norton frequently performs at Caroline's and the Comedy Cellar. Norton was the Best Man at Rich Vos's 2005 wedding to Bonnie McFarlane. Dom Irrera has described Norton as one of today's best comedians. Norton was the headline comedian for some dates of Traveling Virus comedy tour.[10] He returned to the 2007 tour as well.[11]

Norton performed at the 2008 Bonnaroo music festival. [12]

Norton's 2012 special, Please Be Offended on Epix, earned him rave reviews.[13]

Writing [edit]

In February 2007, it was learned on The Opie & Anthony Show that Norton was close to finishing a book believed to be an autobiographical collection of stories and anecdotes from his childhood and his comedy career. The final title of the book was Happy Endings: The Tales of a Meaty-Breasted Zilch. The book was released on July 10, 2007.[14] It reached No. 4 on the New York Times Best Seller list for hardcover nonfiction.[15] The book entered the Amazon.com Top 10 for books on the day it was released, peaking at #7.

Norton's second book I Hate Your Guts came out on November 4, 2008. It reached No. 13 on the New York Times Bestseller list for hardcover nonfiction.[16]

Film [edit]

Norton has had various cameo appearances, such as in the 2002 film Spider-Man and the 2008 film Zack and Miri Make a Porno. Norton described the role in Spiderman as being a quarter-step above being an extra.[17] He has also appeared in the films Furry Vengeance and Cop Out.

Norton had a pivotal role in the film Courting Condi, counseling Devin Ratray on how to win the heart of Condoleezza Rice.[18]

Personal life [edit]

Jim Norton lives in New York [2] and is a fan of Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath and the Undertaker.

Selected works [edit]

Albums

Year Title Notes
2003 Yellow Discipline Recorded at The Stress Factory in New Brunswick, New Jersey
2005 Trinkets I Own Made From Gorilla Hands Recorded at The Stress Factory in New Brunswick, New Jersey
2011 Despicable Recorded at The Stress Factory in New Brunswick, New Jersey
2012 No Baby For You!

DVDs/Specials

Year Title Notes
2005 One Night Stand: Jim Norton 30 minute HBO special
2007 Monster Rain Recorded at The Lincoln Theater in Washington, D.C.
2009 Down and Dirty with Jim Norton Stand-up showcase, hosted by Norton
2012 Please Be Offended 1 hr EPIX special recorded at Ohio Theatre in Cleveland, OH

Books

Year Title Notes
2007 Happy Endings: Tales of a Meaty-Breasted Zilch Foreword by Colin Quinn
2008 I Hate Your Guts A collection of 35 venomous essays

Filmography [edit]

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Actor

Writer

  • 2005: One Night Stand (TV) (unknown episodes)
  • 2007: Jim Norton: Monster Rain (TV)

Self

References [edit]

  1. ^ http://www.fandango.com/jimnorton/filmography/p484711 Retrieved 2009-04-02
  2. ^ a b Robb, Adam (February 26, 2011). "Stand-up comic Jim Norton, a Bayonne native, set to return to New Jersey for show at the Wellmont in Montclair". NJ.com.
  3. ^ Calhoun, Ada. Did You Hear The One About The @&%#! Comic?:By sinking to new lows, comedy in New York is rising., New York (magazine), April 5, 2004. Accessed January 30, 2013. "On his website, Jim Norton has posted dozens of photos of himself with celebrities as varied as Ozzy Osbourne, LL Cool J, and Laura Bush. He also has photos of himself growing up in North Brunswick, New Jersey, under the heading a photographic list of reasons i am obsessed with blowing my brains out."
  4. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RihAQS5sRIY#t=01m39s 2006-07-10 Opie and Anthony: 80-Year-Old Woman Gets GED After 20 Years Part 1 of 2
  5. ^ "'VoyeurBus' performers to sue NYC over arrest". Retrieved December 1, 2007. 
  6. ^ Martinez, Jose (October 9, 2008). "Lawyer sues 'Opie and Anthony's' Jim Norton for x-rated jokes". Daily News.
  7. ^ FOWL 'OPIE' LAWSUIT SETTLED
  8. ^ Huff, Richard. "Jesse Ventura walks off 'Opie & Anthony' show after verbal mud fest with Jim Norton". December 3, 2009. NY Daily News. Retrieved September 16, 2011. 
  9. ^ http://www.nbc.com/news/2009/08/05/the-jay-leno-show-taps-comedians-to-act-as-correspondents/
  10. ^ Foundrymusic.com Headlines: THE OPIE AND ANTHONY TRAVELING VIRUS – 2006 COMEDY FESTIVAL
  11. ^ Foundrymusic.com Headlines: OPIE AND ANTHONY TRAVELING VIRUS COMEDY TOUR 2008
  12. ^ http://bonnaroo.com/artists/2008.aspx
  13. ^ "Jim Norton Please Be Offended special review". TheSpitTake.com. Retrieved 5 April 2013. 
  14. ^ Norton, Jim (2007). Happy Endings: The Tales of a Meaty-Breasted Zilch. Simon Spotlight Entertainment. ISBN 978-1-4169-5022-6.
  15. ^ "Hardcover Nonfiction". The New York Times. July 29, 2007. Retrieved May 6, 2010. 
  16. ^ "Hardcover Nonfiction – List – NY Times". New York Times. November 14, 2008. Retrieved December 4, 2008. 
  17. ^ Opie and Anthony show 03/27/2012
  18. ^ http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/a282e475b7/courting-condi-sizzle-trailer-from-courtingcondi

External links [edit]

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