Name: Amy Schumer
Birthdate: June 1, 1981
Birthplace: Manhattan, New York
Claim to fame: Her big break came when she placed fourth on the fifth season of NBC’s Last Comic Standing. It’s there where she was discovered, leading to her getting her own sketch show on Comedy Central, Inside Amy Schumer, which has been a surprise hit.
What we can see her in next: You can catch the third season of Inside Amy Schumer every week on Comedy Central, but she also comes out with her first movie this summer, Trainwreck, which she wrote and stars in.
Interesting fact: Her movie, Trainwreck, came into fruition after Judd Apatow heard her on the Howard Stern Show and scheduled a meeting with her. Judd pushed Amy to come out with a story about her life, which is how the script was born.
Best quotes: “It’s a weird age. They’re like, ‘Amy, I’m pregnant.’ And I still don’t know whether to be like, ‘Congratulations,’ or ‘Do you need a ride?’”
“I usually feel pretty good about myself. I know what I look like. You’d bang me, but you wouldn’t blog about it. You won’t be Twittering ‘You won’t believe who I’m inside,’ It’s fine.”
“I made out with a homeless guy by accident. I had no idea — he was really tan, he had no shoes on, I just thought it was, like, his thang, you know? I was like, ‘He’s probably in a band.’”
Why we love her: While from the outside Amy Schumer may not seem like the obvious choice for the WCW, she sure has been on a run lately. She’s probably the hottest comic on the planet right now — she has her own sketch show on Comedy Central that is killing, she has a stand-up tour selling out, and she wrote and stars in a movie being directed by Judd Apatow. That’s right, she got the attention of Hollywood comedy ringleader Apatow, who after hearing her be hilarious on the Howard Stern Show, practically forced a script out of her. Garnering the attention of Judd is now an unofficial knighting into the comedy community.
If you weren’t sold on Schumer based from her TV show and stand-up act, then you may have seen her absolutely destroy on the Ellen show, not once, but twice. Very rarely do you see Ellen genuinely laugh aloud and lose it, but she had her, and the audience, in absolute stiches as she worked her way through hilarious stories of hanging out with the beautiful Diana Agron at the Laker’s game and meeting the Hemsworth’s at a big fancy Hollywood party. She did it all in her typical self-deprecating manner, using herself and her “I don’t fit into LA because of how I look” angle as a humour punching bag to bring gag after gag. You definitely know you’re doing something right as a comic if you can actually make the even-keeled Ellen lose it, as well as win legions of fans over just by doing two measly interview spots.
Amy Schumer has gained some flack by certain audiences because of her crass, insult-style comedy. But Schumer doesn’t seem to mind. She has her own vision for how a woman should act and isn’t deterred by certain audiences saying her comedy is “unladylike”. Her brand of humour is refreshingly honest and real, taking jokes to the dark corners that make some people uncomfortable. And she’s not just going there, but she’s thriving in those dark corners. Now that’s when you really know how talented a comedian is, when they can lead you into a dark corner, with seemingly no way out, and make the moment digestible and hilarious. Amy Schumer seems to do that every time she opens her mouth on live television.
Now Amy Schumer is set to take her career to even new heights when she stars in her first movie this summer — a script she wrote and worked on with Judd Apatow. The film, Trainwreck, is a semi-autobiographical account of Schumer’s life in New York, which also stars Bill Hader and LeBron James.
Even if Schumer says she doesn’t fit in with the typical Hollywood mold, she’s kind of dominating that place right now. Keep trucking Amy, you beautiful trainwreck.
You can catch Inside Amy Schumer every week on Comedy Central.
Check out Amy Schumer’s hilarious interview on the Ellen show here:
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