An entertainment career was virtually pre-ordained for Pauly Montgomery Shore. At age 4, he sat on the lap of The King himself in the company of his father, comedian Sammy Shore, who opened for Elvis during the early ’70s. Around the same time, Pauly’s mother, Mitzi, and father opened The Comedy Store on Hollywood’s Sunset Strip, giving their son the rare opportunity to hang out and be inspired by such rising talents as Robin Williams, David Letterman and the late Sam Kinison, who became Pauly’s mentor. At 17, Pauly began writing and performing his own material, creating the persona of “The Weizel,” a character that quickly appealed to young audiences. While playing small roles in such movies as 18 AGAIN and PHANTOM OF THE MALL, Pauly honed his comedy routine to a frenetic level, gaining the attention of MTV. In 1990, the network gave him his own show, TOTALLY PAULY. Pauly rose to national attention during a strong four-year run on MTV, also revealing his comedy chops on the 1993 HBO special “Pauly Does Dallas.” His initial success on television led to a three movie deal with Disney, beginning with the box-office hit ENCINO MAN, co-starring Sean Astin and Brendan Fraser.
THEN: Pauly Shore was an MTV host from 1989-1994
Pauly followed up ENCINO MAN with the comedies SON-IN-LAW, IN THE ARMY NOW, JURY DUTY and BIO-DOME. In 1997, FOX cast him as the freeloading son of a wealthy businessman in the sitcom PAULY.
Shore’s first comedy album, “The Future of America,” was named Best Comedy Album by the College Music Journalists, while his second album, “Scraps from the Future,” earned a Best Comedy Album nomination from The National Association of Record Merchandisers. He followed up with albums “Pink Diggly Diggly” and “Hollywood, We Have a Problem.”
In 2003, Pauly produced, wrote, directed and starred in the critically acclaimed, PAULY SHORE IS DEAD, a semi-autobiographical mockumentary in which he satirizes the perils of Hollywood. In the film, Pauly loses everything and decides to fake his death in a quest for post-mortem adulation. He called in a lot of favors to get the project made and managed to wrangle star cameos from the likes of Sean Penn, Whoopi Goldberg, Ellen DeGeneres, Dr. Dre, Clint Howard, Perry Farrell, Fred Durst, Verne Troyer, Andy Dick, Mark McGrath, Jerry Springer, Montel Williams, Sally Jessy Raphael, Kurt Loder and Paris Hilton, to name a few.
Next, Pauly returned to TV in the TBS reality series, MINDING THE STORE, which he produced as well as starred in. This was followed by a notable recurring part, as himself, on the hit HBO series, ENTOURAGE. Pauly is featured in the soon to be released studio movie OPPOSITE DAY.
Pauly once again stepped into producer, director and star roles with the sketch comedy movie NATURAL BORN KOMICS, for which Pauly received the 2008 Entertainer of the Year Award from the Entertainment Merchants Association. In 2008 Pauly also expanded into the worlds of cyberspace and journalism with the Ripe TV VOD series PAULY SHORE’S AMERICA, in which Pauly explores various news stories with his own unique and irreverent style. For his first assignment Pauly went to Texas to cover the polygamist scandal.
Pauly Continues to tour the world with his stand-up comedy. He can be seen in the comedy special PAULY SHORE AND FRIENDS this Fall on Showtime. He has just finished filming the upcoming Happy Madsion film BORN TO BE A STAR featuring Nick Swardson.
Pauly continues to produce and direct, with his latest feature Adopted, having just been released in June, 2010. In the film, satirizes the phenomenon of celebrity adoptions as he travels to Africa to adopt an African baby. In addition, he has several short subject films and multiple projects in the works such as his MTV pilot called “The Shores” and Various projects with Will Farrell’s website FUNNY or DIE .
Bruce Ayers opened the Comedy Club Stardome in
Hoover in 1993. (The Birmingham News/Linda Stelter)
We are excited to share an article published in The Birmingham News this past Thursday.
Learn what one performer requested in his dressing room every night, how we handled drugs in the 80's, and why we banned smoking a year before it was required.
Rising from the streets of New York's ghettos to television superstardom, Jimmie Walker personifies the great American success story. His catch phrase "Dyn-o-mite!" is part of the modern vernacular, and he became such a major celebrity in the 1970's that Time Magazine named him "Comedian of the Decade.
Walker was born on June 25th, 1947, on the mean streets of New York's South Bronx. At the time it was a poverty-ridden area notorious for its burned-out buildings, graffiti and crime, but to a very young boy, it was nothing more than "the neighborhood." Jimmie didn't grow up with thoughts of performing as a potential occupation. His life in the Projects centered around the basketball courts and ignoring school. Basketball was his first love, but at age fifteen, Jimmie only carried 129 pounds on his six foot frame, and the NBA wasn't calling.
He left high school before graduating and joined the workforce, holding a number of odd jobs, including working as a vendor at Yankee Stadium. Walker eventually landed a delivery job at the Grand Union Market at a salary of $47 per week - before taxes. Even though he was working all day, Jimmie wanted to continue his education, so he made an arrangement with his boss to end his shift a little early and attend Theodore Roosevelt High School at night. He entered into the federally funded SEEK program, short for Search for Education, Evaluation and Knowledge, which accepted students who needed an educational "half-way house" as they climbed the educational ladder. His studies at SEEK focused on mathematics and literature. At age 19, Walker had some catching up to do with his grammar lessons, but his writing skills became stronger when he began writing for a class in Oral Interpretation—and along the way, he discovered he was funny. When he delivered one piece he'd penned to his SEEK classmates, they howled! When asked by one appreciative teenager, "Are you a comedian?" Walker answered, "I guess I am." And with that, the first seeds were sown for Jimmie Walker's comedic fame.
Upon completion of the SEEK program, Jimmie began to learn about the world of radio at the RCA Technical Institute. He started as an engineer, which required a first-class license that was available only through hours of study and by passing a test. Within a year he had earned his first-class ticket to the future. Jimmie walked into a small local radio station, WRVR, and was immediately hired as a part-time engineer at a salary of $100 per week.
In 1967, he improved his "day job" by moving up to WMCA radio for $250 a week, but performing comedy was still something he wanted to try. A mutual friend introduced him to The Last Poets, a group dedicated to performing militant poetry. They needed an opening act and after a successful audition, Walker opened for the Poets at the East Wind in Harlem on New Year's Eve. He did five minutes of standup, floored the crowd of 350, and stayed with the Poets for 18 months while he built his act and gained confidence as a performer. By 1969, Jimmie was on stage at the African Room in Manhattan along with a few other up and coming talents, including Bette Midler, David Brenner and Steve Landesberg. Brenner was the first to get his big break and then helped Walker and the others, moving them all to Budd Friedman's Improv in New York where they occasionally got some valuable stage time. Brenner and his "disciples" soon turned into crowd favorites and became regulars onstage. To top it all off, Walker spent a year as the youngest MC in the history of the world famous Apollo Theater in Harlem.In those early days, doing "The Tonight Show" was a direct line to the Big Time. Brenner made it first, followed by Landesberg, Midler and Freddie Prinze, but by 1972 Jimmie still hadn't landed that "big break." Then Brenner, Landesberg and Midler, scheduled for the powerhouse "Jack Paar Show", refused to appear unless Walker was also given a spot. The Paar staff gave in, and were glad they did. Jimmie's first guest shot was successful beyond anyone's expectations. Dan Rowan, who had seen the show, immediately flew Jimmie to Los Angeles to guest on a "Laugh In" special. That was followed by a second guest spot on "Jack Paar", and a contract with CBS to perform each week as the audience warm-up for the sitcom "Carlucci's Department."The series of successes gave Walker the confidence to give up his day job, and in 1972 he was working as the main attraction in all the top comedy clubs. His soaring popularity prompted Time Magazine to name him "Comedian of the Decade".
Spotted by the casting director for Norman Lear of "All in the Family" fame, Jimmie accepted a part in Lear's new urban-styled comedy series, "Good Times." The role of the broadly strutting, wisecracking J.J. Evans would launch him into television superstardom. "Dyn-o-mite!" was the phrase that made him famous nationwide. As "Good Times" enjoyed a six year run, Walker's fame grew exponentially. He was the first winner of the NAACP Image Award, and won a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. He appeared on The Mac Davis Show, Donny and Marie, The John Davidson Show, The Merv Griffin Show, Dinah, The Mike Douglas Show, The Hollywood Squares, and the Match Game. Clothing, tee-shirts and even a talking doll that blurted out his signature catch phrase were soon on store shelves everywhere.
Even with his demanding schedule, Jimmie continued to appear as the headliner at top comedy clubs, including the world famous Comedy Store in Los Angeles. His joke writing team included a young David Letterman, Jay Leno and Byron Allen.
Walker's television work would lead to movie roles, like boxer Bootney Farnsworth in "Let's Do it Again," co-starring with entertainment luminaries Sidney Poitier and Bill Cosby. Jimmie also released a smash comedy album, "Dyn-o-mite!" that went gold. When "Good Times" ended in 1979, Aaron Spelling offered Walker a starring role in the short-lived "B.A.D. Cats" and returned to cast him again in 1983 in "At Ease", an ABC series about a bunch of United States Army misfits. He also landed choice roles in films like "Airplane!" and "Airport '79", and was a regular on television shows like "The Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island". In recent years he's made scene-stealing appearances on "The George Lopez Show", "Everybody Hates Chris" with Chris Rock, and "Scrubs".
But despite all Jimmie's success on the big and small screens, stand-up comedy remains his first love. Walker currently tours the country 35 to 45 weeks a year performing live, and appearing as a guest on game shows and late night television. In his spare time he writes scripts for TV and movies, and continues to enjoy a comedy career now approaching five decades.
John began his stand-up career in the comedy clubs of Cleveland and Pittsburgh in 1997. After graduating from Kent State University, he left behind a lucrative career patching potholes to take his talent to the left coast. There, he spent the next four years working the door at the world famous Comedy Store by night and cutting grass at a local golf course by day.
Cap’s first big break came at the 2003 Just For Laughs Festival in Montreal, where he impressed the industry observers enough to offer him a sitcom deal. It was then he was able to officially trade in his weed whacker for a microphone full-time. John is now applying his blue-collar work ethic to the stage, where he performs nearly 365 nights a year. He shares, “I wanted to be a comedian because it’s the best way to tell the world how you really feel. I also figured it was the only way I was ever going to be laid.” In retrospect though, he states, “Now I wish I had learned how to play guitar.”
John has made multiple appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, done a half-hour Comedy Central Presents and performed as part of Blue Collar Comedy: The Next Generation in 2007 with Bill Engvall. The problem now is that John is often compared to Larry the Cable Guy. He shares, “I love all my blue-collar comedy fans because I can relate to them, and that's pretty cool. But the next jackass who yells ‘Git 'er dun’ at me is gonna git 'er throat punched!”
In 2008, John’s first feature film, Vince Vaughn’s Wild West Comedy Show (also starring Jon Favreau and Justin Long), was released by New Line. The comedy documentary followed Vince and 4 stand-up comics as they toured the country. Moving forward, John went on to host the CMT series Mobile Home Disaster and his one-hour special Meet Cap premiered to great numbers on Comedy Central and Warner Bros. just released his CD/DVD.
Most currently in addition to touring nationwide, John can be seen alongside his pal Chelsea Handler as a regular on her E! hit show Chelsea Lately. John shares, “It's like hanging out at my buddy's house and getting a check for it! It really is the most fun I've had since I got into comedy. I've known Chelsea since we were both doing 6-minute spots in the attic at The Comedy Store. I never thought she really liked me. Come to think of it... I'm still not sure.” Now, through his success on the show, John will be hitting the road in 2010 with The Comedians of Chelsea Lately national tour.
In addition to his work as a comedian, John, to many known as Cap, is starting to make his mark in animation. He will voice the role of “Headphone Joe” in the upcoming Disney Channel series Fish Hooks. He’s also got supporting roles in two upcoming 20th Century Fox features, Marmaduke and Rio.
The future has never looked brighter for this talented, young comedian who has always been proud that his fans come from all different walks of life. John believes that honesty is universal and the essence of comedy is being able to tell the world how you really feel in a funny way. Amen to that.
Emmy-nominated actor Rob Schneider, well known for his trademark blend of character and comedic acting, has broadened his focus to include directing, producing and writing.
Schneider recently completed principal photography on “The Chosen One,” a drama he co-wrote. He stars as a man whose life is about to change after reaching the end of his rope. Schneider also co-produces with John Schneider through their production company From Out of Nowhere.
Earlier this year, Schneider made his directorial debut in “Big Stan.” He also starred in the comedy as a con man sentenced to prison alongside David Carradine.
Schneider is well known for his longtime relationship with Adam Sandler and Sandler’s production company, Happy Madison. Schneider has starred in several Happy Madison projects, including “Bedtime Stories,” “You Don’t Mess With The Zohan,” “The Benchwarmers,” “50 First Dates,” “The Longest Yard,” “Eight Crazy Nights,” “Little Nicky” and “Mr. Deeds.” Also for Happy Madison, Schneider co-wrote and starred in “Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo,” “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo,” “The Hot Chick” and “The Animal.” Other film credits include “Shark Bait,” “The Waterboy” and “Big Daddy.”
Schneider began writing jokes as a teenager, appearing at local venues. After opening for comedians such as Jay Leno and Jerry Seinfeld, he made his major network television debut in 1987 on “The David Letterman Show.” In 1990 Lorne Michaels saw Schneider’s appearance on HBO’s “13th Annual Young Comedians Special” and hired him to be a regular on “Saturday Night Live.” During his four seasons at “SNL,” Schneider was nominated for three Emmys and a Peabody Award.
Schneider is an active supporter of several charities. He founded “The Rob Schneider Music Foundation,” which helps provide music education for middle school and high school students. Schneider was born and raised in San Francisco. He lives in the Los Angeles area.
