Last Comic Standing is an American reality television talent competition show on NBC that aired from June 1, 2003, to August 9, 2010, then again in 2014 and 2015. The goal of the program was to select a comedian from an initially large group of hopefuls. For the first seven seasons, the winner received a cash prize and a television special; for season eight in 2014, the winner won a cash prize, a talent deal with NBC, and a half-hour scripted project developed by Universal Television.
William Michael "Bil" Dwyer is an American stand-up comedian, game-show host, actor, and writer. He is perhaps most well known as the host or play-by-play announcer on series such as BattleBots,I've Got a Secret, and Extreme Dodgeball, as well as several iterations of VH1's I Love the '70s, I Love the '80s, and I Love the '90s, and a 2006 appearance on Last Comic Standing. His debut comedy album, Am I Yelling?, was released in September 2020 by comedy label Stand Up! Records.
Regina Obedapo Iyashere is a British comedian, actress and writer who has made numerous appearances on British and American television. She co-created the sitcom Bob Hearts Abishola, on which she plays a supporting role.
Douglas Steven Benson is an American comedian, marijuana rights advocate, television and podcast host, and actor, best known for hosting the podcasts and TV series Doug Loves Movies (2006–present), The Benson Interruption (2010-2013), Getting Doug with High (2013-2019) and The High Court with Doug Benson (2017). As a comedian, he has released 10 comedy albums, starting with Professional Humoredian in 2008, and has regularly appeared on TV shows including Comedy Central Presents, Best Week Ever and @midnight. In 2007, he was a contestant on the 5th season of the reality competition show Last Comic Standing.
On May 30, 2006, competitive reality show Last Comic Standing began airing its fourth season on NBC with a two-hour special and a new host, Anthony Clark.
Comedy Now! is a Canadian comedy television series which debuted in 1997 and ended in 2014 featuring the newest in Canadian comedic talent. The show has won numerous Gemini Awards as well as many international awards. It is broadcast in Canada on The Comedy Network and CTV while in the United States, the program airs on Comedy Central.
The Newbury Comedy Festival was a festival of comedy which took place every July in the West Berkshire town of Newbury, in England. The last festival took place in 2012 although the You Must Be Joking new act competition continues on its own steam.
Comic Relief Does Fame Academy is a spin-off of the original Fame Academy show where celebrities students sing as students of the Academy. The programme was launched in 2003 to help raise money for the charities supported by Comic Relief, with the final of the show occurring on Red Nose Day.
Joke theft is the act of performing and taking credit for comic material written or performed by another person without their consent and without acknowledging the other person's authorship. This may be a form of plagiarism and can, in some cases, be copyright infringement. A comic who is known to steal jokes may be labelled with the epithet "hack" by other comics. A "hack comic" uses material that is unoriginal or which is blatantly copied from its original author.
Amy Beth Schumer is an American stand-up comedian, actress, writer, producer, and director. Schumer ventured into comedy in the early 2000s before appearing as a contestant on the fifth season of the NBC reality competition series Last Comic Standing in 2007. From 2013 to 2016, she was the creator, co-producer, co-writer, and star of the Comedy Central sketch comedy series Inside Amy Schumer, for which she received a Peabody Award and was nominated for five Primetime Emmy Awards, winning Outstanding Variety Sketch Series in 2015.
Lavell Maurice Crawford is an American comedian and actor, known for playing Huell Babineaux in Breaking Bad (2011–2013) and its spin-off Better Call Saul (2017–2022). He also played the role of Gus Patch in the Netflix original film The Ridiculous 6 (2015). The album version of his 2021 Comedy Vaccine special was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.
The 6th season of Last Comic Standing began airing in May 2008. This competitive reality show on NBC was hosted by Bill Bellamy and a new co-host, Fearne Cotton. The contest was won by Iliza Shlesinger from Dallas, Texas.
The first series of Dancing on Ice aired from 14 January to 4 March 2006 on ITV. It was presented by Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, and judged by the "Ice Panel", consisting of Nicky Slater, Karen Kresge, Jason Gardiner, Karen Barber and Robin Cousins. Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean coached and trained the contestants.
Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break is a 2012 reality TV series created by GMA Network. This show is the second season of Protégé where Krizza Neri won in 2011. Unlike the previous season, the age limit was set from 13 to 21 years old to find new acting talent. The show premiered on July 23, 2012 and hosted by Jennylyn Mercado and under the direction of Albert Langitan, while the Protégé Gala Night premiered on August 5, 2012, and presented by Dingdong Dantes, together with Carla Abellana and Maxene Magalona. The gala nights were directed by Rommel Gacho.
The NATYS: New Acts of The Year Showcase, previously known as The Hackney Empire New Act of the Year, is an annual industry showcase that promotes new waves of emerging Comedy and Variety acts. It ran at the Hackney Empire Theatre from 1988 until 2010. Since then it has toured round London theatres and performance spaces, playing the Barbican Theatre, Stratford Circus, Bloomsbury Theatre, Leicester Square Theatre and The Bernie Grant Arts Centre.
Rory J. Scovel is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He released his first stand-up comedy album Dilation in 2011. He has since released the stand-up specials The Charleston Special (2015), Rory Scovel Tries Stand-Up for the First Time (2017), Live Without Fear (2021), and Religion, Sex, and a Few Things in Between (2024).
The ninth series of Dancing on Ice aired from 5 January to 9 March 2014 on ITV. It was announced on 22 October 2013 that this series would be the show's last, and would be an 'All-Star' series featuring former winners and previous contestants. Phillip Schofield and Christine Bleakley returned to present, with Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean returning as mentors. Robin Cousins, Jason Gardiner, Karen Barber, and Ashley Roberts returned to The Ice Panel. Cousins was unable to appear on the ice panel during weeks 6 and 7 due to him commentating the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, and was replaced by original judge Nicky Slater, while Barber acted as head judge.
The USA Water Polo Hall of Fame, located in Irvine, California, is a hall of fame dedicated to honoring players, coaches and officials who have contributed greatly to the game of water polo in the United States of America. It was established in 1976 by the USA Water Polo, which is the national governing body in the country.