Jon Stewart
From LoveToKnow Celebrity
| ||||||||||
Jon Stewart’s unique blend of intelligence and humor has made the “fake news” format of The Daily Show a huge success. Read on for more details about Stewart’s rise to fame.
Early Years
Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz was born on November 28, 1962 in New York, NY. He was raised in Lawrence Township, New Jersey. His father, Donald Leibowitz, is a physicist at The College of New Jersey, and his mother is an educational consultant.
Donald left the family in 1971, and Stewart no longer has contact with his father. There is speculation that Jon changed his last name from Leibowitz to Stewart (a slightly different spelling of his middle name) because of his fractured relationship with his father. Stewart, however, has joked that he changed his name because it was too difficult to pronounce Leibowitz and that it “sounded too Hollywood.”
Stewart attended Lawrence High School, where he played french horn in the band. He was also the only Jewish student at the school and was often harassed.
Stewart majored in psychology at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. He was a member of the college soccer team, where an annual award called the “Leibo” is given to the team member who shows the most personal growth and adds comedic value to the team. While attending college, he also coached the Gloucester High School soccer team.
Stewart’s list of jobs before going into stand-up included being a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator, puppeteer, construction worker, caterer, shelf stocker at Woolworth’s, and a bartender.
Early Work
Jon Stewart got his start as a stand-up comedian after moving to New York City in 1986. His first stage appearance was in 1987 at The Bitter End, where his idol, Woody Allen, got his start.
His first job with Comedy Central was in 1991 as host of Short Attention Span Theater.
In 1992, he hosted You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV where viewers sent in stories to be acted out by a comedy troupe.
In 1993, Stewart seemed poised to replace David Letterman on Late Night; instead, Conan O’Brien landed the job.
Stewart later hosted his own show on MTV, appropriately titled The Jon Stewart Show. The show marked the first talk show for MTV and was very successful. It was the second highest-rated program for the network, just behind Beavis and Butthead. The show was shifted to a late-night talk show in 1994, airing at 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning. The new timeslot didn’t do well, and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Despite his cancellation, he did win the respect of David Letterman, who signed Stewart to his Worldwide Pants production company. Stewart guest hosted for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, a program airing after Letterman’s Late Show. Although it was rumored that Stewart would take over for Snyder, he was instead offered a later timeslot, which he turned down.
The Daily Show
It seemed Stewart had spent a large part of his career in various hosting roles, so he was a perfect fit when The Daily Show job came calling. Craig Kilborne left The Daily Show in 1999 to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show. The Daily Show took off once Stewart took over, eventually going on to earn Emmy Awards for both the show and Stewart.
Personal Life
Jon Stewart married veterinarian Tracey McShane, his long-time girlfriend, in November 1999. He romantically asked her to marry him through a crossword puzzle that he created with The New York Times crossword editor. They have two children, Nathan Thomas Stewart (born July 3, 2004) and Maggie Rose Stewart (born February 4, 2006)
Actor, Author
While Stewart has appeared in a number of films, he does not consider himself to be an actor. Film appearances include:
- Half Baked
- Playing by Heart
- The Faculty
- Big Daddy
- Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
- Death to Smoochy
- Doogal
- The Aristocrats
His television roles include a recurring guest spot on The Larry Sanders Show, where he played himself, as well as guest roles on Mr. Show, 'The Nanny, Spin City, and NewsRadio. He hosted Saturday Night Live in March 2002.
Additionally, Jon Stewart has written two books: Naked Pictures of Famous People and America (The Book). Naked Pictures is a compilation of short humor essays on various subjects that made its way to The New York Times best-seller list. America (The Book) serves as an offbeat history textbook, taking a comedic look at government and politics. The book was released in 2004, sold millions of copies, and was a top 15 best-seller.
Jon Stewart Facts
- Stewart was named one of People magazines "50 Most Beautiful People" in 1999.
- Stewart hosted the Grammys in 2001 and 2002.
- He hosted the 78th Annual Academy Awards in 2006.
- Stewart has won nine Emmy awards for The Daily Show.
- In 2006, he received an honorary All-America award from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.
- Stewart spoke at the 2004 commencement ceremonies at William and Mary, where he was also presented with an honorary Doctor of Arts degree.
- He was named one of 2005’s "Time 100," Time Magazine’s listing of the 100 most influential people of the year.
- Stewart was named 2004’s "Entertainer of the Year" by Entertainment Weekly.
Learn More
This page has been accessed 2,139 times. This page was last modified 15:02, 16 January 2007.
© 2006-2009 LoveToKnow Corp.
Print this page
Email to friend
Follow ltk on twitter
