Paula Poundstone: Difference between revisions
ce |
Violet Fae (talk | contribs) Undid revision 452863126 by CutOffTies (talk) Undid ongoing BLP violation |
||
| Line 75: | Line 75: | ||
=== Arrest === |
=== Arrest === |
||
In 2001, |
In 2001, Poundstone was charged with [[child endangerment|endangering]] two unidentified girls and two boys. Few details were released, but the prosecutor indicated that the charges were a result of an incident in which Poundstone was driving her children while intoxicated. She accepted a [[plea agreement]] and pleaded [[Nolo contendere|"no contest"]] to felony child endangerment and a [[misdemeanor]] charge of inflicting injury on a child. <ref>[http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,174882,00.html Paula Poundstone avoids trial (retrieved 6 February 2009)]</ref> |
||
Poundstone was sentenced to five years [[probation]] and 180 days in an alcohol rehabilitation program. Following completion of the program, she was granted full custody of her adopted children but permanently lost custody of two other children who |
Poundstone was sentenced to five years' [[probation]] and 180 days in an alcohol rehabilitation program. Following completion of the program, she was granted full custody of her adopted children, but permanently lost custody of two other children who she had been caring for through the [[foster care|foster care system]].<ref>[http://archives.cnn.com/2002/LAW/11/01/poundstone.hearing/index.html CNN.com - Paula Poundstone custody battle on hold - Nov. 2, 2002]</ref><ref>[http://archives.cnn.com/2002/LAW/12/11/poundstone.children/index.html CNN.com - Comedian Poundstone gets custody of children - Dec. 11, 2002]</ref> |
||
== References == |
== References == |
||
Revision as of 03:33, 1 October 2011
| Paula Poundstone | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | December 29, 1959 Huntsville, Alabama, U.S. |
| Medium | Stand-up, television |
| Nationality | American |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Genres | Observational comedy, improvisational comedy |
| Subject(s) | Everyday life, motherhood |
| Notable works and roles | Cats, Cops and Stuff Tonight Show The Rosie O'Donnell Show Mother Jones Science Court Home Movies |
| Website | PaulaPoundstone.com |
Paula Poundstone (born December 29, 1959) is an American stand-up comedian.
Early life
Poundstone was born in Huntsville, Alabama, and her family moved to Sudbury, Massachusetts.[1] Poundstone attended Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School, but dropped out to pursue a show business career. Her jobs have included busing tables and working as a bicycle messenger.
Career
She started doing stand-up comedy on open-mic nights in Boston in 1979, eventually relocating to California. She usually performs dressed in a suit and tie. In 1984, Poundstone was cast in the movie Hyperspace but she did not follow through on a potential acting career. Instead she became better known as a comedian and began appearing on several talk shows. In 1989, she won the American Comedy Award for "Best Female Stand-Up Comic." In 1990, she wrote and starred in an HBO special called Cats, Cops and Stuff, for which she won a CableACE Award. She worked as a political correspondent for the Tonight Show during the 1992 US Presidential campaign and did the same for The Rosie O'Donnell Show in 1996.
In 1993, Poundstone won a second CableACE Award, began writing a regular column, "Hey, Paula!" for Mother Jones (1993–1998), and had a variety show, The Paula Poundstone Show, on ABC (which lasted only two episodes). She was also a regular panelist for the game shows Hollywood Squares and To Tell the Truth.
She has also done some voiceover work, voicing Judge Stone on Science Court (also known as Squigglevision), an edutainment cartoon series done in the Squigglevision style and aired on Saturday mornings on ABC Kids in 1997. Staying with Tom Snyder Productions (makers of Science Court) she was also made the voice of Home Movies mom character Paula Small for the show's first five episodes, which aired on UPN. Between the show's 1999 UPN cancellation and 2000 revival on Cartoon Network she chose to leave the show, being replaced by Janine Ditullio. The character's name and some of her appearance were modeled after Poundstone.[citation needed]
She is number 88 on Comedy Central's 2004 list of the 100 greatest stand-ups of all time,[2] and number 7 on Maxim magazine's list of "Worst Comedians of All Time."[3]
She had her own Bravo special as part of their three-part Funny Girls series, along with Caroline Rhea and Joan Rivers, titled "Look What the Cat Dragged In."
Around the same time as her Bravo special, Poundstone also released her first book, There Is Nothing in this Book That I Meant to Say. Described as an autobiography that is "part memoir, part monologue," the book intertwines historical biographies with anecdotes from her own life.
She has appeared frequently as a panelist on the radio news quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! on National Public Radio.[4] Also, she is a regular guest on A Prairie Home Companion, often appearing in shows in Los Angeles or at joke shows.
Poundstone released her first comedy CD, "I Heart Jokes," in 2009.
Personal life
Poundstone adopted her first child, Thomas, in 1993. In 1997, she adopted two girls, Toshia and Allison. Later, she adopted another son, to whom she refers as "Thomas E."[5]
Poundstone was a foster mother to several other children until 2001, when she was barred from the foster care program following a conviction of child endangerment for driving under the influence with a child passenger.[6] Since then she has used the incident—and the resulting publicity—as the source for some of her comedic material.
Poundstone labels herself asexual.[7] She stated her asexuality in an interview with the Dallas Voice in June 2007, saying "I'm totally an asexual human being. I haven't dated anyone".[8] In her memoirs she wrote,
I am not, at this time, a virgin myself, but I don't like sex, so I abstain, which should certainly be at least a cousin to virgin, perhaps deserving something in an honorary title. Should I become a beloved hero in my time, my followers could refer to me as "virginish." ...The idea that I'd get to my bed and there'd be someone in there with whom I was supposed to have an activity is horrifying to me. It's a safe bet that I'm not good at sex, that I do it wrong.[9]
Poundstone frequently refers to cats in her comedy and on her website. She shares her home with numerous cats and supports Alley Cat Allies,[10] a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to transforming communities to protect and improve the lives of cats.
On her website, Poundstone states that she is an atheist.
Arrest
In 2001, Poundstone was charged with endangering two unidentified girls and two boys. Few details were released, but the prosecutor indicated that the charges were a result of an incident in which Poundstone was driving her children while intoxicated. She accepted a plea agreement and pleaded "no contest" to felony child endangerment and a misdemeanor charge of inflicting injury on a child. [11]
Poundstone was sentenced to five years' probation and 180 days in an alcohol rehabilitation program. Following completion of the program, she was granted full custody of her adopted children, but permanently lost custody of two other children who she had been caring for through the foster care system.[12][13]
References
- ^ Paula Poundstone - Notable Names Data Base
- ^ "Comedy Central Top 100 Greatest Standups of All Time". listology.com. Retrieved 2009-12-02.
- ^ The Worst Comedians of All Time on Maxim
- ^ "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!". Retrieved 2009-01-26.
- ^ Poundstone, Paula (2007). There Is Nothing in this Book That I Meant to Say. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0307382281.
- ^ The Hard Road Back For Paula Poundstone from The New York Times
- ^ http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:U4wM8WHo-DwJ:www.nndb.com/people/340/000022274/+Paula+Poundstone+asexual&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
- ^ http://www.dallasvoice.com/artman/publish/article_5954.php#
- ^ Poundstone, Paula (November 27, 2007). There is Nothing In This Book That I Meant To Say. Berlin: Three Rivers Press. p. 288. ISBN 0307382281.
- ^ http://www.alleycat.org/NetCommunity/Document.Doc?id=486
- ^ Paula Poundstone avoids trial (retrieved 6 February 2009)
- ^ CNN.com - Paula Poundstone custody battle on hold - Nov. 2, 2002
- ^ CNN.com - Comedian Poundstone gets custody of children - Dec. 11, 2002
External links
- Official website
- Paula Poundstone at IMDb
- Poundstone's first column in Mother Jones
- Los Angeles Times interview by Candace A. Wedlan
- Radio interview with Poundstone on The Sound of Young America:MP3 Link
- Interview with Poundstone on the Feast of Fools (podcast)