Curated playlist
21st-century American comedians
- Woody AllenWoody Allen failed a film production course at New York University, then went on to direct Annie Hall.
- Adam SandlerAdam Sandler once made a Western comedy that critics almost universally panned. On the 6th of January 2016, Netflix announced that the film, The Ridiculous 6, had been watched more times in thirty days than any other movie in the service's…
- Kevin SmithKevin Smith maxed out credit cards and sold his comic books to make Clerks. The film raised $27,575 and won at Sundance.
- Stephen ColbertAt a 2006 dinner, Stephen Colbert roasted President Bush to a cold room. His show's ratings jumped 37% the next week.
- Ben StillerBen Stiller's films have grossed more than $2.6 billion in Canada and the United States, an average of $79 million per film. Behind that figure stands Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller, an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is known…
- Mel BrooksMel Brooks was 14 years old when he climbed onto a diving board at the Butler Lodge, a second-rate hotel in the Borscht Belt. He worked there as a pool-side tummler, an entertainer hired to keep the guests amused. On this day he wore a…
- Anna FarisAnna Faris, the American actress and comedian, spent part of her childhood imagining that her orthodontic retainer could talk to her. She pictured herself on talk shows, explaining that talking retainer to the host. Today her films as a…
- Queen LatifahQueen Latifah picked her name from a book of Arabic names at age eight. She added the title "Queen" herself.
- Robert Downey Jr.Robert Downey Jr. was too big an insurance risk to hire until Mel Gibson paid his insurance bond.
- David LettermanDavid Letterman got fired from campus radio for treating classical music irreverently.
- Conan O'BrienConan O'Brien went from writing The Simpsons to hosting late night, and critics said he would fail.
- Bill CosbyBill Cosby holds the record for the most Grammy Awards for Best Comedy Album, with seven wins. To a vast television audience, he was also Cliff Huxtable, the father at the center of The Cosby Show. That role earned him a reputation as…
- Eddie MurphyEddie Murphy opened Saturday Night Live on the 11th of December 1982 with a boast: "Live from New York, it's the Eddie Murphy Show!" The host booked for that Christmas episode, Nick Nolte, had become too ill to appear. Murphy stepped in.…
- Jack BlackJack Black is an American actor, comedian, singer and musician, and in 2025 he attached his name to the shortest song ever to reach the Billboard Hot 100. "Steve's Lava Chicken", from A Minecraft Movie, lasts just 34 seconds. It edged out…
- Aubrey PlazaAubrey Plaza once ran onto the stage of the MTV Movie Awards and grabbed Will Ferrell's award for Comedic Genius. The year was 2013. She held a drink in one hand. The title of her new film, The To Do List, was written across her chest. The…
- Julia Louis-DreyfusElaine Benes on Seinfeld was not part of the original show. NBC executives found the pilot too male-centric.
- Robin WilliamsRobin Williams was voted "Most Likely Not to Succeed" by his high school classmates in 1969.
- Donald GloverDonald Glover was voted most likely to write for The Simpsons. At 23 he landed a writing job on 30 Rock instead.
- Lorne MichaelsLorne Michaels once offered The Beatles $3,000 to reunite on live TV. It came in Saturday Night Live's first season.
- John KrasinskiJohn Krasinski hosted a livestreamed prom on the 17th of April 2020. It was meant for high schoolers whose real proms had been cancelled, and 210,000 viewers tuned in. Live performances came from Billie Eilish, Finneas, the Jonas Brothers…
- Catherine O'HaraCatherine O'Hara, the Canadian and American actress and comedian, became the first woman to win an individual Actor Awards trophy after her death. The prize honored her work on the Apple TV+ series The Studio, and the show's co-creator,…
- Diane KeatonDiane Keaton was born Diane Hall, but she gave up that surname before her career took off, because another actress was already registered under it. She chose her mother's maiden name instead. The new name would be credited in films across…
- Rob ReinerRob Reiner, the American filmmaker, actor and political activist, once joked about how firmly a sitcom nickname had attached itself to him. "I could win the Nobel Prize and they'd write 'Meathead wins the Nobel Prize.'" The remark came…
- Jake PaulOn the 15th of November 2024, Jake Paul climbed into a boxing ring in Texas and beat Mike Tyson by unanimous decision. Tyson had once been the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. The judges scored the fight 80-72, 79-73 and 79-73…
- Nick CannonNick Cannon is an American comedian, actor and rapper who once hosted a stunt in which a human cannonball was fired into slime. It happened at Nickelodeon's 2005 Kids' Choice Awards, and the ceremony called it the slime stunt. The moment…
- Dick Van DykeDick Van Dyke walked onto the stage of The Masked Singer in 2023 disguised as a character called Gnome, and he was the first contestant eliminated. The show had promoted his unmasking as "the most legendary, decorated and beloved unmasking…
- Kelsey GrammerKelsey Grammer was meant to play Frasier Crane for only six episodes. He kept the role for 20 years across two shows.
- Bruce VilanchWhen Jack Palance did one-armed push-ups at the 1992 Oscars, Bruce Vilanch wrote new jokes on the spot.
- Jon FavreauJon Favreau named his company after the golem of Jewish folklore. It can protect or destroy, like technology.