Ari Sharrif American comedian, actor, podcaster, writer and producer Date of Birth: 12.02.1974 Country: USA

1. Early Life and Education
2. Career Beginnings
3. Stand-Up Comedy and Viral Success
4. Podcasts and Special Releases
5. Controversies and Acting

Early Life and Education

Ari David Shaffir was born in New York City to Romanian Jewish Holocaust survivors. His family was raised Conservative until Ari was nine, when they moved to Maryland and embraced Orthodox Judaism. He attended high school in Rockville, Maryland, and later studied English literature at Yeshiva University and the University of Maryland, graduating in 1999.

Career Beginnings

Shaffir's first and only on-stage comedy performance before moving to Los Angeles was at an open mic night in his early twenties. After graduating, he relocated to pursue stand-up comedy. He initially worked as a phone room employee at The Comedy Store, which eventually led to gigs at the sign-up booth and as a doorman. Four and a half years later, owner Mitzi Shore hired him full-time.

Stand-Up Comedy and Viral Success

His early comedy influences included televised comedy specials and comedians on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson." He cites Bill Burr as his favorite live performer. Shaffir became known to a wider audience through his viral video series "Amazing Racist." He toured as an opener for Joe Rogan and other comics like Joey Diaz, Duncan Trussell, Tom Segura, and Brian Redban. In 2010, he created the monthly live show "This Is Not Happening" with Eric Abrams, featuring stand-up comedians sharing real-life stories on a specific theme. The show became a regular at comedy festivals, debuted as a web series in 2013, and premiered on Comedy Central in 2015.

Podcasts and Special Releases

Shaffir launched his podcast "Skeptic Tank" in 2011. The show features comedians as guests discussing various topics as experts. While often comedic, Shaffir has also explored serious issues like mental health, suicide, rape, and prison. Every 50 episodes, the comedy duo Danish and O'Neill appear as guests. In 2013, Shaffir co-hosted the sports podcast "Punch Drunk Sports" with Sam Tripoli and Jason Thibodeau.

He has released several stand-up albums and specials, including "Revenge for the Holocaust" (2012), "Passive Aggressive" (2013), "Paid Regular" (2015), and "Double Negative" (2017) on Netflix.

Controversies and Acting

Shaffir has worked as a commercial actor, appearing in ads for Subway, Dominos, and Bud Light. He has also performed in the comedy feature film "Keeping Up with the Joneses" (2016). However, he has stated that he is not interested in pursuing acting that would take time away from stand-up.

In 2020, Shaffir faced backlash after posting a video on Twitter about the death of Kobe Bryant. The New York comedy club where he was scheduled to perform canceled his appearance after receiving threatening phone calls.