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'''Sarah Kate Silverman''' (born [[December 1]], [[1970]]) is an [[United States|American]] [[comedienne]], [[writer]] and [[actress]]. Although usually credited as ''Sarah Silverman'', she is sometimes credited by her [[nickname]] ''Big S''.<ref name="imdb">{{imdb name|0798971}}</ref> <!-- Before adding to this list, please see the discussion on the talk page! Thanks! --> Her [[satire|satirical]] comedy addresses social [[taboo]]s and [[controversy|controversial]] topics such as [[racism]], [[sexism]] and [[religion]].
'''Sarah Kate Silverman''' (born [[December 1]], [[1970]]) is an [[United States|American]] [[comedienne]], [[writer]], [[singer]], [[guitarist]], and [[actress]]. Although usually credited as ''Sarah Silverman'', she is sometimes credited by her [[nickname]] ''Big S''.<ref name="imdb">{{imdb name|0798971}}</ref> <!-- Before adding to this list, please see the discussion on the talk page! Thanks! --> Her [[satire|satirical]] comedy addresses social [[taboo]]s and [[controversy|controversial]] topics such as [[racism]], [[sexism]] and [[religion]].


She often performs her act as a [[caricature]] of a [[Jewish-American princess]], mocking [[bigotry]] and [[stereotype]]s of [[ethnic group]]s and [[religious denomination]]s, by endorsing them [[irony|ironically]].<ref>{{cite web
She often performs her act as a [[caricature]] of a [[Jewish-American princess]], mocking [[bigotry]] and [[stereotype]]s of [[ethnic group]]s and [[religious denomination]]s, by endorsing them [[irony|ironically]].<ref>{{cite web

Revision as of 18:15, 18 June 2008

Sarah Silverman
Sarah Silverman at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2007
PseudonymBig S
Birth nameSarah Kate Silverman
Born (1970-12-01) December 1, 1970 (age 53)
Bedford, New Hampshire, United States
MediumStand-up, television
Years active1993 – present
Subject(s)American culture, bigotry, racism, sexism
Notable works and rolesSarah Silverman on The Sarah Silverman Program

Sarah Kate Silverman (born December 1, 1970) is an American comedienne, writer, singer, guitarist, and actress. Although usually credited as Sarah Silverman, she is sometimes credited by her nickname Big S.[1] Her satirical comedy addresses social taboos and controversial topics such as racism, sexism and religion.

She often performs her act as a caricature of a Jewish-American princess, mocking bigotry and stereotypes of ethnic groups and religious denominations, by endorsing them ironically.[2][3][4] Silverman was first noticed as a writer and occasional performer on Saturday Night Live. She now stars in and produces The Sarah Silverman Program, which debuted February 1, 2007, on Comedy Central.[5]

Biography

Early life

Silverman, the youngest of four daughters, was born in Bedford, New Hampshire. Her mother, Beth Ann Silverman, was George McGovern's personal campaign photographer and founded the theater company New Thalian Players. Her father, Donald Silverman, was a social worker by training who ran the discount clothing store Crazy Sophie's Outlet. Her family is Jewish, the descendants of immigrants from Russia and Poland. Sarah appeared in community theater at age twelve. Her high school was The Derryfield School in Manchester, New Hampshire. At seventeen, she performed stand-up comedy in a restaurant, singing a song she called "Mammaries". She then attended New York University and continued her stand-up in Greenwich Village.[6][7][8][9]

Career

Silverman first received national attention in the 1993–94 season of Saturday Night Live, as a writer and featured player. She was fired after one season because only one of the sketches she wrote survived to dress rehearsal, and none aired. Bob Odenkirk, a former SNL writer explained:

I could see how it wouldn't work at SNL because she's got her own voice, she's very much Sarah Silverman all the time. She can play a character but she doesn't disappear into the character -- she makes the character her.[6]

Silverman claims being fired by SNL via fax upset her greatly. She parodied the situation when she appeared on The Larry Sanders Show episode "The New Writer" (1996), playing Sanders' new staff writer, whose jokes are not used because of the chauvinism and bias of the male chief comedy writer, who favors the jokes of his male co-writers. She had a recurring role on Larry Sanders for its last two seasons.[1]

Silverman was a featured performer on the HBO sketch comedy show Mr. Show (1995-97). She made TV program guest appearances on Seinfeld, in the episode "The Money" (1997); on Star Trek: Voyager, in the two-part time travel episode "Future's End" (1996); on Greg the Bunny as a series regular (2002); and on the salacious puppet television comedy Crank Yankers, as the voice of Hadassah Guberman (2003, 2007). She had small parts in the films There's Something About Mary, Say It Isn't So, School of Rock, The Way of the Gun, Overnight Delivery, Screwed, Heartbreakers, Evolution, School for Scoundrels, and Rent, playing a mixture of comic and serious roles. Her stand-up comedy act, a one-woman show, was released in 2005 as a feature film, Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic. As part of the film's publicity campaign, she made several high profile appearances, including online in Slate, as the cover subject of Heeb magazine, and performing in roasts on Comedy Central of Pamela Anderson and Hugh Hefner. In 2005, Silverman played a therapist in a skit for a bonus DVD of the album Lullabies to Paralyze by the band Queens of the Stone Age.

Silverman was a guest star in a second season episode of the USA cable program Monk, a television show about an obsessive-compulsive detective. She played an obsessed fan of a fictional television detective. Thus the plot was an implied meta-reference to the show itself, and a meta-joke about Monk's characteristic obsessiveness.[10] She returned in the sixth season premiere. According to the audio commentary on the Clerks II DVD, director Kevin Smith offered her the role that eventually went to Rosario Dawson, but she turned it down out of fear of being typecast in "girlfriend roles". However, she told Smith the role was "really funny" and mentioned that if the role of Randal Graves was being offered to her she "would do it in a heartbeat".

On Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Silverman parodied sketches from Chappelle's Show, replaying Dave Chappelle's characterizations of Rick James and "Tyrone", as well as a Donnell Rawlings character based on the classic miniseries Roots. The parody addressed a popular rumor that Silverman was the planned replacement for Chappelle after he left his popular television show.

In 2006 Silverman placed #50 on Maxim Hot 100 List.[11] In 2007 she placed #29 and appeared on the cover.[12] She made the cover of the The Observer in Britain, with an article naming her "the world's hottest, most controversial comedian".[13]

On June 3 2007, Silverman hosted the MTV Movie Awards. During her opening act, she commented on the upcoming jail sentence of Paris Hilton, who was in the audience:

In a couple of days, Paris Hilton is going to jail... As a matter of fact, I heard that to make her feel more comfortable in prison, the guards are going to paint the bars to look like penises. I think it is wrong, too. I just worry she is going to break her teeth on those things.[14]

Then, on September 9 2007, Silverman appeared at the MTV Video Music Awards. Following the comeback performance of Britney Spears, Silverman mocked her on stage, saying, "Wow, she is amazing. I mean, she is 25 years old, and she has already accomplished everything she's going to accomplish in her life. It's mind-blowing." Silverman called Spears's children "the most adorable mistakes you will ever see" and imitated Spears's vagina with her mouth.[15]

On her boyfriend's show Jimmy Kimmel Live!, on January 31 2008, Silverman appeared to show him a special video. The video turned out to be a song called "I'm Fucking Matt Damon", in which she and Damon, a frequent target of Kimmel's jokes, sang a duet about having an affair behind Kimmel's back. The video reportedly created an "instant YouTube sensation".[16] Kimmel exacted his video revenge, on February 24 2008, by enlisting a panoply of stars to record his song "I'm Fucking Ben Affleck".[17]

Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic

Main article: Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic

Silverman's concert film, Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic, based on her one-woman show of the same name, was released in 2005. Liam Lynch directed the movie, distributed by Roadside Attractions.

Rotten Tomatoes gave Jesus Is Magic a "fresh" rating of 64 percent with 54 positive reviews and 30 negative ones, with the "cream of the crop" giving it a rating of 67 percent.[18] It made US$124,475 on its opening weekend, showing on seven screens. The box office performance led to an expanded release in as many as 57 theaters, resulting in a box office take of more than US$1.3 million.[19]

The movie was released on DVD on June 6 2006. The soundtrack featured songs and standup from the movie, and previously unreleased songs.[20]

The Sarah Silverman Program

Main article: The Sarah Silverman Program

Silverman's television sitcom, The Sarah Silverman Program, debuted on Comedy Central on February 1 2007. The show proved to be a ratings success, scoring the highest premiere ratings that a Comedy Central show had in three years, with 1.81 million viewers and the highest 18–49 rating of the night on cable.[5][21] It portrays the day-to-day adventures of an oblivious "Sarah", her sister, and friends. A number of comedic actors from Mr. Show have reappeared on The Sarah Silverman Program.

Controversies

Sarah Silverman with Jesus Dress Up magnets, April 28, 2006.

Silverman caused a brief controversy after using the ethnic slur "chink" in an interview on the July 11, 2001, episode of Late Night with Conan O'Brien. In the interview, Silverman explained that a friend had advised her on how to avoid jury duty by writing a racial slur on the selection form, "something inappropriate, like 'I hate chinks'". However, Silverman said that she ultimately decided that she did not want to be thought of as a racist, so she said, "I wrote 'I love chinks' – and who doesn't?" Silverman said that the joke satirizes the racist thought process. Guy Aoki, of the Media Action Network for Asian Americans (MANAA), objected to her use of the slur, saying that NBC's airing of it was inexcusable.[22][23] NBC and O'Brien issued an apology, but Silverman did not, later appearing on Politically Incorrect on July 26, and August 22, 2001. On the July episode, actress Kelly Hu stated that she understood the point of the joke, and did not object to it. Silverman questioned Aoki's sincerity, accusing him of exploiting the opportunity for publicity. On the August episode, Aoki appeared with Silverman, and stated that he did not accept Silverman's explanation, saying that it was not successful satire, that she should have substituted "chink" with "Chinese person", and that comedians should consult with groups such as his before performing such material. Silverman stated in an interview on NPR's Fresh Air that she was asked to repeat the joke on Politically Incorrect, among other places, but she eventually dropped the joke from her act because she felt it was becoming stale.[20] Silverman has since turned the complaint into grist for her stand-up act, saying that the experience helped teach her the important lesson that racism is bad: "And I mean bad, like in that black way."

Silverman also caused a minor controversy due to her highly acclaimed performance in the documentary film The Aristocrats. The film, in which numerous comedians tell a famously ribald improvisational joke, featured Silverman giving an apparently autobiographical account of her life as a child sex performer. During the course of the act she mentions how Joe Franklin would ask her to perform privately for him in his apartment. The act finished with Silverman looking at the camera and, in a deadpan voice, accusing Franklin of having raped her. After the film came out Franklin took offense to Silverman's performance, concerned that it would negatively impact his reputation. He considered suing Silverman until he was convinced by friends that the performance was merely a joke.[citation needed]

Personal life

Silverman talked about having dated Dave Attell on one of her appearances on The Howard Stern Show. Silverman and Colin Quinn joke about having been romantically linked during her Saturday Night Live career. In her first appearance on the Stern show in June 2001, she said she was dating someone named Tom who wrote for SNL.

Since 2002, Silverman has been in a relationship with Jimmy Kimmel, host of Jimmy Kimmel Live![24] She refers to the relationship in some of her comedy:

I'm Jewish, but I wear this Saint Christopher medal sometimes; my boyfriend is Catholic -- but you know... it was cute the way he gave it to me. He said if it doesn't burn a hole through my skin it will protect me.[6]

Silverman is a fan of Jenny Lewis and appeared in one of Lewis' music videos. She is also a fan of comedian Steve Martin, who was one of her major inspirations as a younger comedian.[13]

Silverman has said that she does not consume alcohol, because it nauseates her. She can be seen smoking marijuana ostensibly in the movie Super High Me. She is open about her lifelong battle with clinical depression, crediting her current emotional health to her use of prescription drug Zoloft.[8][25][26] She struggled with bedwetting when she was a teenager, and has said the last time she wet her bed was when she was fired from Saturday Night Live.[20][26][27]

Silverman says she does not want to get married until same-sex couples are able to.[28] She also says she doesn't want to have biological children to avoid the chance that they might inherit her depression.[29]

She enjoys playing Scrabble on the Internet. One of her regular opponents is Alyssa Milano, who lives in the same building.[25][30]

She credited comedian Tig Notaro as one of her best friends in an interview in The Advocate.[28]

Fellow Sarah Silverman Program actor Laura Silverman is her sister, both fictionally and in real life.

Filmography

Television work

References

  1. ^ a b Sarah Silverman at IMDb
  2. ^ Musto, Michael (2007-01-16). "Sarah Silverman Is My Kind of Cunt". The Village Voice. pp. 16–20. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  3. ^ Anderson, Sam (2005-11-10). "Irony Maiden". Slate. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  4. ^ Epstein, Daniel Robert (2005-11-16). "Sarah Silverman". Suicide Girls. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  5. ^ a b Crupi, Anthony (2007-02-05). "Comedy Central's Silverman Spells Ratings Gold". Mediaweek. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  6. ^ a b c Goodyear, Dana (2005-10-24). "Quiet Depravity: The demure outrages of a standup comic". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  7. ^ Silverman, Rabbi Susan (2007-11-16). "My Sister Sarah". The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  8. ^ a b Grigoriadis, Vanessa (2005-11-03). "Dirty Rotten Princess". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  9. ^ Solomon, Deborah (2007-01-21). "Funny Girl". The New York Times Magazine. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  10. ^ This footnote further explains the meta- aspect of the Monk plot. The meta-reference was implied unless the characters explicitly broke the fourth wall. Since the self-reference was a humorous commentary on the comedic obsessiveness of the title character, it was also a meta-joke. The object of Silverman's character's obsession was a fictional fictional character, a type of fictional character found in metafictional work.
  11. ^ "Maxim 2006 Hot 100". Maxim. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  12. ^ "Maxim 2007 Hot 100". Maxim. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  13. ^ a b Renton, Alex (2006-03-12). "If women aren't funny, how come the world's hottest, most controversial comedian is female?". The Observer. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  14. ^ "2007 MTV Movie Awards" (Video). MTV. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  15. ^ "2007 VMA" (Video). MTV. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  16. ^ Jordan, Julie (2008-02-02). "Behind Matt Damon's Raunchy Payback to Jimmy Kimmel". People. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  17. ^ Silverman, Stephen M. (2008-02-25). "So Long, Sarah! Jimmy Kimmel Is, Well, 'Dating' Ben Affleck". People. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  18. ^ "Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic (2005)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  19. ^ "Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic (2005)]". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  20. ^ a b c Gross, Terry (2005-11-09). "Sarah Silverman: 'Jesus Is Magic'". Fresh Air. Retrieved 2007-06-21.
  21. ^ Stropoli, Rebecca (2007-02-08). "Silverman Scores on Comedy". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  22. ^ Grossberg, Josh (2001-07-18). "PC Police Bust Conan O'Brien Show". E!. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  23. ^ "Asian-Americans Protest "Inappropriate" Term On Late Night". Studio Briefing. Internet Movie Database. 2001-07-18. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  24. ^ Sagar, Mike (2007-02-20). "What I've Learned: Sarah Silverman & Jimmy Kimmel". Esquire. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  25. ^ a b Paul, Pamela (2005-11-10). "Sarah Silverman". Slate. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  26. ^ a b Hancock, Noelle (2007-05-15). "Sarah Silverman's Depression Confession". Us Weekly. p. 10. Issue 642. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  27. ^ "The Gossip Game With Guest Sarah Silverman". Stern Show News. MarksFriggin.com. 2001-06-15. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  28. ^ a b Voss, Brandon (2007-03-13). "Sarah Silverman". The Advocate. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  29. ^ Abcarian, Robin (2005-11-14). "Almost nothing is off-limits for Sarah Silverman". South Coast Today / Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  30. ^ "Comedian Sarah Silverman Visits". Stern Show News. MarksFriggin.com. 2007-01-30. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
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