Jump to content

Jena Friedman

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jena Friedman
Friedman performing Nerdmelt Theater inLos Angeles,January 2017
BornHaddonfield, New Jersey
MediumStand-up, television
NationalityAmerican
GenresDark comedy

Jena Friedmanis an American comedian and writer. She is the host of the comedic true-crime seriesIndefensible[1]onAMC+.She has been a field producer[2]atThe Daily Show with Jon Stewartand has written forLate Show with David Letterman.[3]She is the creator ofSoft Focus with Jena FriedmanforAdult Swim,the first installment of which premiered in February 2018.[4]

Early life

[edit]

Friedman was born inHaddonfield, New Jersey.She studiedanthropologyatNorthwestern University.After graduation, she worked as a healthcare consultant for consulting firmBooz Allen Hamilton.[5]

Career

[edit]

She has appeared in 2020 moviePalm Springs,and on TV shows includingConan,The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,and others.[6][7][8][9]She has also been a contributing writer toThe New Yorker.[10]

In 2007, she wroteThe Refugee Girls Revue,a satire inspired byAmerican Girldolls. The play earned critical acclaim in the 2008New York International Fringe Festival[11]and had a successful runOff-Broadway.In 2010, she received acease-and-desistletter fromThe New York Timesfor parodying their wedding videos. The parody, titledTed and Gracie,has since become a popular web series.

In 2015, Friedman's solo showAmerican Cuntpremiered in theEdinburgh Festival Fringeto critical acclaim.[12][13][14]The magazinePastenamedAmerican Cuntone of the 10 Best Stand Up Comedy Specials of 2016.[15]She createdSoft Focus with Jena Friedman,a series of Adult Swim specials that she also co-executive produces, directs, and hosts. The specials include interviews withJohn McAfee,the American software entrepreneur and Presidential hopeful,[16][17]as well asGilberto Valle,a New York City police officer who was convicted of a conspiracy to kidnap, cook, and eat women, better known as the "Cannibal Cop".[18][19]The second installment premiered in January 2019.

In 2020, Friedman contributed to the screenplay ofBorat Subsequent Moviefilm,earning her a nomination for theAcademy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.[20][21]She directed and starred inTrue Crime Story: IndefensibleonSundance TVin 2021.[22][23]Her latest comedy special,Ladykiller,premiered onPeacockin September of 2022.[24][25]

On a May 2023 episode ( "EP. 813 — Winkers and Blinkers" ) of the comedy podcastComedy Bang! Bang!,Friedman recalled how she was asked to write for therevivalof the TV showRoseannein 2018 afterRoseanne Barrhad enjoyed a stand-up set by Friedman.[26][27]On the day she was scheduled to start her new job, Barr went on a racist Twitter rant that resulted in the show being swiftly cancelled.[26]

Bibliography

[edit]
  • Friedman, Jena (December 21, 2020)."Your monthly horoscope".Shouts & Murmurs.The New Yorker.96(41): 31.[a]
  • Friedman, Jena (April 18, 2023).Not Funny.Simon & Schuster.ISBN9781982178284.RetrievedApril 15,2023.

———————

Notes
  1. ^Title in the online table of contents is "A pandemic horoscope for December".

References

[edit]
  1. ^"Jena Friedman's True Crime Story: Indefensible is a jaw-dropping twist on the true crime formula".The Pitch.October 29, 2021.RetrievedNovember 8,2021.
  2. ^Irvin, Zuri."Writing Jokes with Jena Friedman".Medium.Medium.com.RetrievedAugust 8,2015.
  3. ^McGlynn, Katla (July 18, 2011)."David Letterman Hires Jena Friedman, 'The Late Show' Gains Second Female Writer".HuffPost.RetrievedSeptember 1,2011.
  4. ^Kozell, Isaac (February 16, 2018)."Taking a 'Soft Focus' with Jena Friedman".Vulture.RetrievedOctober 20,2021.
  5. ^Loughrey, Clarisse (March 15, 2016)."Jena Friedman: The star of 'The Daily Show' on abortion jokes, her Ebola comedy film, and her serial-killer spoof".The Independent.RetrievedFebruary 7,2017.
  6. ^Bradley, Laura (November 9, 2016)."The Moment Election Night Stopped Being Funny".Vanity Fair.RetrievedDecember 12,2017.
  7. ^"Panel - What's Driving the Hillary Clinton Haters? - The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore".Comedy Central.Archived fromthe originalon December 30, 2019.RetrievedDecember 12,2017.
  8. ^Outsourced With Jena Friedman,March 8, 2017, archived fromthe originalon May 19, 2017,retrievedDecember 12,2017
  9. ^"Comedy in the age of Trump".MSNBC.March 5, 2017.RetrievedDecember 12,2017.
  10. ^Friedman, Jena (January 2, 2017)."A Recipe".The New Yorker.ISSN0028-792X.RetrievedDecember 12,2017.
  11. ^Otto, Emily (August 17, 2008)."The Refugee Girls Revue: A Musical Parody".Nytheatre.com.RetrievedSeptember 1,2011.
  12. ^"Comedy review: Jena Friedman – American C*** (From Herald Scotland)".Heraldscotland.com. August 23, 2015.RetrievedFebruary 14,2016.
  13. ^Arsenault, Bridget (September 3, 2015)."7 Comedians from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival You Need to Know About Now".Vanity Fair.RetrievedFebruary 14,2016.
  14. ^"Jena Friedman - American C*nt - Edinburgh Festival 2015".Edinburghfestival.org. August 30, 2012.RetrievedFebruary 14,2016.
  15. ^"The 10 Best Stand-up Comedy Specials of 2016".Paste.December 21, 2016.RetrievedDecember 12,2017.
  16. ^Leah, Rachel (January 25, 2019)."Jena Friedman's 'Soft Focus': Dark feminist comedy, aimed at young men".Salon.
  17. ^"Jena Friedman Talks Her Adult Swim Special, 'Soft Focus with Jena Friedman 2'".www.msn.com.
  18. ^Larimer, Sarah (July 1, 2014)."New York's 'cannibal cop' released after judge overturns 2013 conviction".The Washington Post.RetrievedOctober 20,2021.
  19. ^Yang, Linda (March 1, 2018)."Jena Friedman Helps the 'Cannibal Cop' Find Love in Her New Show".Vice.com.RetrievedMarch 3,2019....The show's second segment... focus on finding love for... the 'Cannibal Cop.'... she helps Valle select a lady by asking them questions like, 'How fast do you run?'....
  20. ^Vilas-Boas, Eric (October 21, 2020)."'Borat Subsequent Moviefilm' Is a Targeted Takedown of America's Worst ".observer.com.RetrievedOctober 27,2020.
  21. ^Tudor, Jim (October 23, 2020)."Review: BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM Ambushes Amazon".ScreenAnarchy.com.RetrievedOctober 27,2020.
  22. ^"SundanceTV Launches True Crime Story Franchise w/Hilarie Burton Morgan, Jena Friedman".AMC Networks.August 5, 2021.RetrievedOctober 11,2022.
  23. ^"'True Crime Story: Indefensible' Host Jena Friedman Is Not Trying To Make True Crime Murderporn ".Decider.October 21, 2021.RetrievedOctober 11,2022.
  24. ^"Jena Friedman Sharpens Her Jokes in Ladykiller".Paste.September 28, 2022.RetrievedOctober 11,2022.
  25. ^"The Three Questions with Andy Richter #167: Jena Friedman".Earwolf.October 10, 2022.RetrievedOctober 11,2022.
  26. ^ab"Winkers and Blinkers".Earwolf.RetrievedOctober 27,2023.
  27. ^Goldberg, Lesley (May 18, 2018)."'Roseanne' Co-Showrunner Whitney Cummings Exits ".The Hollywood Reporter.RetrievedOctober 27,2023.
[edit]