Wikipedia

Tony Sam

Tony Sam (also credited as A.W. Sam)[1] is an American stand-up comedian, writer, actor, and Emmy-winning television producer from Chicago, now living in Los Angeles. In 2015, LA Weekly named him one of 12

Tony Sam
Tony Sam
Born
Chicago, Illinois
Alma materFlorida Atlantic University
Occupation(s)TV producer, stand-up comedian, author, actor
Years active2003-present

Comedy Acts To Watch.[2]

His debut comedy album, Scaredy Cat, was released on Stand Up! Records in 2014.

Early life

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Sam was born and raised in Chicago.[3] He has a degree in molecular and marine biology from Florida Atlantic University.[4][5] He worked for several years as a scientist at various jobs, including studying cranio-facial defects in developing zebrafish embryos at Chicago's Children's Memorial Hospital.[3][6] In 2006, he co-authored a paper in the prestigious medical journal, Nature Medicine.[7]

Career

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Comedy and television

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Sam began performing stand-up around 2003 in Chicago,[8] and studied improv and sketch at iO Theater and The Second City Training Center.[9] He became known as an alternative-comedy scenemaker, co-founding (with Brooke Van Poppelen) Chicago Underground Comedy in 2005, a weekly rotating showcase of alternative comics designed to forefront stand-up as opposed to sketch comedy and improv.[10][11][12] Kumail Nanjiani was one of the original cast members.[13] Chicago's NewCity called Sam one of the city's most interesting comics in 2009, and praised ChUC as a "mainstay of alternative comedy"[14] and "one of the two best places to perform in Chicago".[15]

Several critics have praised the comic range of Sam's voice; Jake Kroeger of website The Comedy Bureau wrote that it "is so unique, drastically wandering up and down in frequency, that he makes [his] characters exceptionally hilarious and absolutely unforgettable".[16]

Sam's television credits include co-executive producer for Cooking Channel's Food: Fact or Fiction? with Michael McKean and a producer for Josh Gates Tonight, Expedition Unknown, Jay Leno's Garage, Girl Meets Farm, Storage Wars: Barry Strikes Back, Brandi & Jarrod: Married to the Job, MTV's Ridiculousness[17] and the Netflix hit home-renovation show, Instant Dream Home,[17] which in 2023 was nominated and won the Daytime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Instructional and How-To Program".[18]

Sam has also written for Smosh [9] and MTV News.[19] McKean praised Sam's work on Food: Fact or Fiction? in an interview on Andy Richter's podcast, Three Questions with Andy Richter, calling Sam "a very funny writer".[20]

As an actor, Sam has appeared on truTV's Hack My Life, Conan,[17] G4's Attack of the Show!, Food: Fact or Fiction?, and Josh Gates Tonight.[21][22]

Sam has performed frequently at the Hollywood Improv,[9] and at festivals including the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival,[23] Bridgetown Comedy Festival,[24][25] San Francisco Comedy & Burrito Festival,[26] Bumbershoot, SF Sketchfest, Chicago Sketch Fest, New York International Fringe Festival, and New York Underground Comedy Festival.[9]

Podcasts

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Sam has hosted several podcasts, including Tony Sam's Word of the Day, a podcast about language begun in 2014.[27][28] In 2017, he began co-hosting the podcast Legally Insane with Matt Ritter, a lawyer turned comedian.[29][30]

He has also guested on many other podcasts, including Jackie Kashian's The Dork Forest,[3] Josh Adam Meyers' The 500,[31] Probably Science,[32] Dumb People Town and Sklarboro County with the Sklar Brothers,[33] and The Space Cave with David Huntsberger.[4][5]

Albums

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Sam's debut album, Scaredy Cat, was recorded May 24, 2014 at Acme Comedy Company in Minneapolis and released later that year on Stand Up! Records.[34] It received generally positive reviews and praise from several high-profile comics including Kyle Kinane, Michelle Buteau, The Sklar Brothers, Beth Stelling, Jason Nash, former SNL cast member, Brooks Wheelan, Brody Stevens and Eddie Pepitone.[35] Jake Krueger of the Los Angeles based review site, The Comedy Bureau, called the album one of the best of 2014,[36] saying it "strikes a great balance between a genuine silliness and unfiltered candor".[37] Ed Placencia of the website Comedy Reviews said "Sam gleefully adds a touch of fun and whimsy to each of his bits. ... Scaredy Cat wonderfully displays that he has decided to embrace the simple tactic of just having a good time."[38] Richard Lanoie of The Serious Comedy Site called it "smart".[39] Huffington Post reviewer Tony Bartolone called the album "refreshingly silly".[40] Chris Spector of Midwest Record wrote that "Sam does a fine job of being that normal guy that lives next door that suddenly, unexpectedly goes nuts."[41]

Four segments from the CD were turned into cartoons by animator Alex Clark.[42][43][44][45]

Author

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In 2021, under the name A.W. Sam, he published a book of poetry, Waste[LA]nd: Poems For L.A., about Los Angeles.[1] In 2022, Sam released his second collection of poetry, Toil. The book was praised by actors Jonah Ray and James Urbaniak.[46]

Discography

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Books

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Year Title Publisher ISBN Pages Note
2020 WASTELAND: POEMS FOR LA GRAVEL YARD BOOKS 978-1737893806 79
2021 TOIL 978-1737893844 97
2022 THE PERPETUAL PLUMMET OF IMPERFECTION 978-1-7378938-5-1 101

References

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  1. ^ a b Sam, Tony (2021-10-04). "Waste[LA]nd: Poems For LA: Sam, A W: 9781737893806". Tony Sam. Tumblr. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  2. ^ Seabaugh, Julie (2014-12-26). "10 Comedy Acts To Watch in 2015". LA Weekly. Los Angeles. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  3. ^ a b c Jackie Kashian (2014-11-25). "TDF 261 – Tony Sam". The Dork Forest (Podcast). Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  4. ^ a b David Huntsberger (November 7, 2017). "113 – Marine & Molecular Biology with Tony Sam pt. 1". The Space Cave (Podcast). Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  5. ^ a b David Huntsberger (November 14, 2017). "114 – Molecular & Marine Biology with Tony Sam pt. 2". The Space Cave (Podcast). Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  6. ^ McQuern, Elizabeth (2006-11-02). "Inside With: Tony Sam, Comedian, Producer, Scientist". The Apiary. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  7. ^ Topczewska, Jolanta M.; Postovit, Lynne-Marie; Margaryan, Naira V.; Sam, Anthony; Hess, Angela R.; Wheaton, William W.; Nickoloff, Brian J.; Topczewski, Jacek; Hendrix, Mary J.C. (2006-07-30). "Embryonic and tumorigenic pathways converge via Nodal signaling: role in melanoma aggressiveness". Nature Medicine. 12 (8): 925–932. doi:10.1038/nm1448. PMID 16892036. S2CID 31906174. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  8. ^ Johnson, Allan (2005-04-08). "Stand up and deliver: Thriving underground scene puts the edge back in comedy". Chicago Tribune. Chicago. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  9. ^ a b c d "Quick Dish: TONY SAM Headlines at The Hollywood Improv". Comedy Cake. September 24, 2015. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  10. ^ Canon, Ramsin (2010-06-01). "Chicago Underground Comedy Celebrates 5 Years, Telfer CD Release". Gapers Block. Chicago. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  11. ^ Ryan, Kyle (2005-09-15). "Interview: Tony Sam". The Onion A.V. Club (Chicago print edition). Vol. 41, no. 37. Chicago.
  12. ^ Holm, Kelsey (2005-09-01). "Underground comics stand up at Jokers". The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. Waterloo, Iowa/Cedar Falls, Iowa.
  13. ^ Shively, Colin (2010-06-08). "Comedy group marks anniversary". The Columbia Chronicle. Chicago. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  14. ^ Kowarski, Ilana (2009-05-17). "Ten Rising Comics to Look For And Five Places to Go See Them…". Newcity Stage. Chicago. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  15. ^ Schramm, Mike (2007-05-17). "Solo System: Mike Schramm looks at the current state of stand-up comedy in Chicago". Newcity. Chicago. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  16. ^ Kroeger, Jake (2011-06-12). "Tony Sam-Tip of the Hat 6/11/11". The Comedy Bureau. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  17. ^ a b c Tony Sam at IMDb
  18. ^ "IMDB - INSTANT DREAM HOME (TV SERIES 2022-) AWARDS". IMDb. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  19. ^ "Author: Tony Sam". MTV News. Archived from the original on September 5, 2014. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  20. ^ Andy Richter (2020-01-27). "Michael McKean". The Three Questions with Andy Richter (Podcast). Retrieved 2021-04-01.
  21. ^ "HAHAJK.com Head Writer and Chicago Underground Comedy Co-Founder to Host Showcase at Just For Laughs Chicago Festival". PRWeb. 2011-05-19. Archived from the original on June 3, 2011. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  22. ^ Wenzel, John (2012-07-26). "Tony Sam's "Persona!" draws characters out of stand-up comics". Denver Post. Denver, Colorado. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  23. ^ McCarthy, Sean L. (May 19, 2011). "The Full Schedule For The 2011 TBS Just For Laughs Chicago Comedy Festival". The Comic’s Comic. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  24. ^ Kroeger, Jake (May 23, 2016). "The 2016 Bridgetown Comedy Festival Is Happening Next Week". The Comedy Bureau. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  25. ^ Kroeger, Jake (April 26, 2011). "The Last Day of Bridgetown". The Comedy Bureau. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  26. ^ Kroeger, Jake (August 15, 2012). "Tickets and the Line-up for The San Francisco Comedy & Burrito Festival is Here". The Comedy Bureau. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  27. ^ Sam, Tony. "Tony Sam's Word of The Day Podcast". Soundcloud. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  28. ^ Kroeger, Jake (February 17, 2014). ""Learn" More Words with Tony Sam's Dictionary Word of the Day Podcast". The Comedy Bureau. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  29. ^ "New Podcast "Legally Insane" Dives Into Crazy Legal History". PR Newswire. 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  30. ^ Ritter, Matt; Sam, Tony. "Legally Insane Podcast". Cascade Media. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  31. ^ Josh Adam Meyers (2019-07-03). "Episode 465: Magnetic Fields' 69 Love Songs with Tony Sam". The 500 with Josh Adam Meyers (Podcast). Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  32. ^ Matt Kirshen (June 19, 2012). "Episode 25 with Tony Sam!". Probably Science (Podcast). Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  33. ^ The Sklar Bros. (2014-10-04). "Episode 220.5 Sklarboro County 125". Earwolf (Podcast). Earwolf. Retrieved 2014-10-04.
  34. ^ Tony Sam, Scaredy Cat at AllMusic. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  35. ^ Sam, Tony (November 12, 2014). "Comedian Testimonials". Tony Sam Tumblr. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  36. ^ Kroeger, Jake (January 2, 2015). "The 100 Best Things in Comedy We Were Witness To In No Particular Order of 2014". The Comedy Bureau. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  37. ^ Kroeger, Jake (October 7, 2014). "Tony Sam's Scaredy Cat Out Now from Stand Up! Records". The Comedy Bureau. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  38. ^ Placencia, Ed (2019-04-18). "Tony Sam's Scaredy Cat". Comedy Reviews. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  39. ^ Richard Lanoie (2018-04-09). "Tony Sam – Scaredy Cat". The Serious Comedy Site. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  40. ^ Bartolone, Tony (2014-10-28). "Tony Sam Is a Big, Fat Scaredy Cat". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  41. ^ Chris Spector (2014-11-12). "Volume 37/Number 12". Midwest Record. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  42. ^ Tony Sam (comedian), Alex Clark (animator) (2020-10-28). Tony Sam: Haunted House (cartoon). Stand Up! Records. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  43. ^ Tony Sam (comedian), Alex Clark (animator) (2020-09-16). Tony Sam: Beard Jokes (cartoon). Stand Up! Records. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  44. ^ Tony Sam (comedian), Alex Clark (animator) (2020-09-30). Tony Sam: Death Jokes (cartoon). Stand Up! Records. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  45. ^ Tony Sam (comedian), Alex Clark (animator) (2020-09-30). Tony Sam: Lost Dog Poster (cartoon). Tony Sam. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  46. ^ Sam, Tony (2022-02-01). "I'm proud to announce the release of my newest..." Tony Sam. Tumblr. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
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