Laura Swisher | |
|---|---|
 Swisher on Our Place Out Loud by Louise Palanker in 2013 | |
| Occupation | Stand-up comedian |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Website | www |
Laura Swisher is a stand-up comedian based in Los Angeles, California, best known for her role as co-host of the former TechTV program Unscrewed with Martin Sargent from 2003 to 2004. [1]
Swisher acted as the comedic sidekick to Martin Sargent on Unscrewed with Martin Sargent, which aired late-nights on TechTV from May 26, 2003, until its cancellation on November 11, 2004. The show was cancelled less than six months after G4 took over TechTV and eliminated much of that channel's programming.
Before moving to San Francisco and joining TechTV, Swisher worked in Los Angeles as a stand-up comedian. She earned TV appearances on Comedy Central's Premium Blend , as well as the first season of NBC's Last Comic Standing in 2003, in which she was a semi-finalist. [2] In addition to her stand-up work, she appeared as a contestant on the Game Show Network program Russian Roulette in 2002.
Swisher also appeared in the music video "Strange New Element" by the band Low Water. Near the end of the video, she makes an appearance with fellow TechTV personalities, including Cat Schwartz, Morgan Webb, Sarah Lane, Chi-Lan Lieu and Sumi Das. [3]
For two years, from 2005 to 2007, Swisher co-hosted a podcast with comedian Louise Palanker titled Weezy and the Swish, but that show ended in July 2007 due to Laura's increasing lack of involvement in the show after moving to San Francisco. [4] In 2011, she relocated back to Los Angeles. [1]
Swisher has also co-hosted Dailies on ReelzChannel, and has hosted a number of daily and weekly programs for TV.com.
The Screen Savers is an American TV show that aired on TechTV from 1998 to 2005. The show launched concurrently with the channel ZDTV on May 11, 1998. The Screen Savers originally centered on computers, new technologies, and their adaptations in the world. However, after it was taken over by G4, the show became more general-interest oriented and focused somewhat less on technology. The final episode of The Screen Savers aired on March 18, 2005. Repeat episodes continued to air until March 25, 2005 when its replacement program Attack of the Show! began 3 days later on March 28, 2005. Two spiritual successors to The Screen Savers, This Week in Tech on the TWiT Network with Leo Laporte and Tekzilla on Revision3 with Patrick Norton, were started after the original show concluded. On April 19, 2015, Leo Laporte announced The New Screen Savers, which began airing on TWiT network May 2, 2015.
Morgan Ailis Webb is a former co-host and senior segment producer of the G4 show X-Play. She was previously the host of the podcast WebbAlert and a monthly columnist for the United States edition of FHM, where she contributed a monthly video game column titled "Tips from the Gaming Goddess". She began working at independent game studio Bonfire Studios in March 2017 in a production role.
TechTV is a defunct 24-hour cable and satellite channel based in San Francisco featuring news and shows about computers, technology, and the Internet. In 2004, it merged with the G4 gaming channel which ultimately dissolved TechTV programming. At the height of its six-year run, TechTV was broadcast in 70 countries, reached 43 million households, and claimed 1.9 million unique visitors monthly to its website. A focus on personality-driven product reviews and technical support made it a cultural hub for technology information worldwide, still existing today online through its former hosts' webcasts, most notably the TWiT Network.
Martin Paul Sargent is an American television personality and was co-host of the This WEEK in FUN podcast with Sarah Lane. He is most well known from his time as a Segment Producer on TechTV's The Screen Savers and later as the host of his own late night talk show Unscrewed with Martin Sargent.
Catherine Michelle Schwartz is an American television presenter. She was formerly a co-host on the TechTV television program Call for Help with Chris Pirillo and Leo Laporte.
Xplay is a TV program about video games. The program, known for its reviews and comedy skits, airs on G4 in the United States and had aired on G4 Canada in Canada, FUEL TV in Australia, Ego in Israel, GXT in Italy, MTV Russia & Rambler TV in Russia, Solar Sports in the Philippines, and Adult Swim and MuchMusic in Latin America.
G4techTV was a short-lived American cable and satellite channel resulting from a merger between Comcast-owned G4 and TechTV. The network officially launched on May 28, 2004.
Arena is a G4/G4techTV TV show about competitive gaming which aired from 2002 to 2005. The program's format featured teams taking on each other in the multiplayer video games of the time in the form of a LAN party. Many episodes of the series revolved around a continuing tournament format.
Carla Collins is a Canadian comedian, actress, television host, and writer.
Blair Butler is an American stand-up comic, television host and screenwriter, known for her work on the "Fresh Ink" and other segments on the G4 program Attack of the Show!.
Guy Branum is an American comedian, writer, and actor best known as the head writer of, and a sketch performer on, X-Play on the G4 network and as a regular panelist on Chelsea Lately on the E! network. He used to host the podcast Pop Rocket on the Maximum Fun network, and hosted TruTV's Talk Show the Game Show.
Martin Olson is an American comedy writer, television producer, author and composer. He is known for his unusual subject matter, and is an original member of the Boston Comedy Scene. He is the father of actress Olivia Olson.
Joseph Glenn Herbert Sr, known professionally as Jo Koy, is an American stand-up comic. He was a frequent panelist on E!'s late night show Chelsea Lately. He has since had a number of Comedy Central and Netflix specials.
Iliza Vie Shlesinger is an American comedian, actress and television host. She was the 2008 winner of NBC's Last Comic Standing and went on to host the syndicated dating show Excused and the TBS game show Separation Anxiety.
Alessandro Liborio Madrigal is an American comedian, writer, actor and producer. He is a co-founder of the All Things Comedy podcast network, alongside Bill Burr. He rose to fame on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as a regular correspondent for five seasons. Outside of the standup world, he is known for his co-starring roles in the film Night School, Showtime's dark comedy I'm Dying Up Here, NBC's About A Boy, as well as CBS sitcoms Gary Unmarried and Welcome to The Captain. He has also performed on Conan and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
Mitzi Shore was an American comedy club owner. Her husband, Sammy Shore, co-founded The Comedy Store in Los Angeles in 1972 and Mitzi became owner two years later. Through the club, she had a huge influence on the careers of up-and-coming comedians for decades.
Bonnie McFarlane is a Canadian-American comedian and writer. She is best known for appearing on the second season of the TV reality show Last Comic Standing and for co-hosting the podcast My Wife Hates Me with her husband Rich Vos.
Revision3 was a San Francisco-based multi-channel television network that created, produced and distributed streaming television shows on niche topics. Founded in 2005, it operated as a subsidiary of Discovery Digital Networks since 2012. The network produced technology and gaming oriented programming in tandem with traditional comedic, political, DIY, and movie-related content. On March 31, 2017, Discovery Communications closed the website.
Dhaya Lakshminarayanan is a comedian, performance artist, TV host, and storyteller. She has performed at venues such as San Francisco's Asian Art Museum, the San Jose Museum of Art, the Siren Theater, San Francisco's Punchline Comedy Club and Cobb's Comedy Club, the Brava Theatre, Throckmorton Theatre, and others. She has also performed at comedy festivals such as SF Sketchfest 2015 and SF Sketchfest 2020; the Desi Comedy Fest, America's only South Asian comedy festival; and the Out of Bounds Comedy Festival. In 2019, Lakshminarayanan, Will Durst, and W. Kamau Bell appeared as guests on KQED in regard to the controversial proposed closure of the historic San Francisco Punchline Comedy Club. The same year, she regularly opened for Greg Proops at the Punchline.
