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

Tony Sam(also credited asA.W. Sam)[1]is an Americanstand-up comedian,writer, actor, and Emmy-winning television producer from Chicago, now living in Los Angeles. In 2015,LA Weeklynamed him one of 10 Comedy Acts To Watch.[2]

His debut comedy album,Scaredy Cat,was released onStand Up! Recordsin 2014.

Early life

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Sam was born and raised in Chicago.[3]He has a degree in molecular and marine biology fromFlorida Atlantic University.[4][5]He worked for several years as a scientist at various jobs, including studying cranio-facial defects in developingzebrafishembryos at Chicago'sChildren'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 atiO TheaterandThe Second City Training Center.[9]He became known as an alternative-comedy scenemaker, co-founding (withBrooke 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 Nan gian iwas one of the original cast members.[13]Chicago'sNewCitycalled 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 forCooking Channel'sFood: Fact or Fiction?withMichael McKeanand a producer forJosh Gates Tonight,Expedition Unknown,Jay Leno's Garage,Girl Meets Farm,Storage Wars: Barry Strikes Back,Brandi & Jarrod: Married to the Job,MTV'sRidiculousness[17]and theNetflixhit home-renovation show,Instant Dream Home,[17]which in 2023 was nominated and won theDaytime Emmy Awardfor "Outstanding Instructional and How-To Program".[18]

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

As an actor, Sam has appeared ontruTV'sHack My Life,Conan,[17]G4'sAttack of the Show!,Food: Fact or Fiction?,andJosh Gates Tonight.[21][22]

Sam has performed frequently at theHollywood 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,andNew York Underground Comedy Festival.[9]

Podcasts

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

He has also guested on many other podcasts, includingJackie Kashian'sThe Dork Forest,[3]Josh Adam Meyers'The 500,[31]Probably Science,[32]Dumb People Town and Sklarboro County with theSklar Brothers,[33]andThe Space CavewithDavid Huntsberger.[4][5]

Albums

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Sam's debut album,Scaredy Cat,was recorded May 24, 2014 at Acme Comedy Company inMinneapolisand released later that year onStand Up! Records.[34]It received generally positive reviews and praise from several high-profile comics includingKyle Kinane,Michelle Buteau,The Sklar Brothers,Beth Stelling,Jason Nash,formerSNLcast member,Brooks Wheelan,Brody StevensandEddie 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 Catwonderfully 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 Postreviewer Tony Bartolone called the album "refreshingly silly".[40]Chris Spector ofMidwest Recordwrote 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 actorsJonah RayandJames 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. ^abSam, Tony (2021-10-04)."Waste[LA]nd: Poems For LA: Sam, A W: 9781737893806".Tony Sam.Tumblr.Retrieved2021-10-04.
  2. ^Seabaugh, Julie (2014-12-26)."10 Comedy Acts To Watch in 2015".LA Weekly.Los Angeles.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  3. ^abcJackie Kashian(2014-11-25)."TDF 261 – Tony Sam".The Dork Forest(Podcast).Retrieved2021-03-04.
  4. ^abDavid Huntsberger(November 7, 2017)."113 – Marine & Molecular Biology with Tony Sam pt. 1".The Space Cave(Podcast).Retrieved2021-03-04.
  5. ^abDavid Huntsberger(November 14, 2017)."114 – Molecular & Marine Biology with Tony Sam pt. 2".The Space Cave(Podcast).Retrieved2021-03-04.
  6. ^McQuern, Elizabeth (2006-11-02)."Inside With: Tony Sam, Comedian, Producer, Scientist".The Apiary.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  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.PMID16892036.S2CID31906174.Retrieved2021-03-12.
  8. ^Johnson, Allan (2005-04-08)."Stand up and deliver: Thriving underground scene puts the edge back in comedy".Chicago Tribune.Chicago.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  9. ^abcd"Quick Dish: TONY SAM Headlines at The Hollywood Improv".Comedy Cake.September 24, 2015.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  10. ^Canon, Ramsin (2010-06-01)."Chicago Underground Comedy Celebrates 5 Years, Telfer CD Release".Gapers Block.Chicago.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  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.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  14. ^Kowarski, Ilana (2009-05-17)."Ten Rising Comics to Look For And Five Places to Go See Them…".Newcity Stage.Chicago.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  15. ^Schramm, Mike (2007-05-17)."Solo System: Mike Schramm looks at the current state of stand-up comedy in Chicago".Newcity.Chicago.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  16. ^Kroeger, Jake (2011-06-12)."Tony Sam-Tip of the Hat 6/11/11".The Comedy Bureau.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  17. ^abcTony SamatIMDb
  18. ^"IMDB - INSTANT DREAM HOME (TV SERIES 2022-) AWARDS".IMDb.Retrieved2023-06-04.
  19. ^"Author: Tony Sam".MTV News.Archived fromthe originalon September 5, 2014.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  20. ^Andy Richter(2020-01-27)."Michael McKean".The Three Questions with Andy Richter(Podcast).Retrieved2021-04-01.
  21. ^"HAHAJK Head Writer and Chicago Underground Comedy Co-Founder to Host Showcase at Just For Laughs Chicago Festival".PRWeb.2011-05-19. Archived fromthe originalon June 3, 2011.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  22. ^Wenzel, John (2012-07-26)."Tony Sam's" Persona! "draws characters out of stand-up comics".Denver Post.Denver, Colorado.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  23. ^McCarthy, Sean L. (May 19, 2011)."The Full Schedule For The 2011 TBS Just For Laughs Chicago Comedy Festival".The Comic’s Comic.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  24. ^Kroeger, Jake (May 23, 2016)."The 2016 Bridgetown Comedy Festival Is Happening Next Week".The Comedy Bureau.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  25. ^Kroeger, Jake (April 26, 2011)."The Last Day of Bridgetown".The Comedy Bureau.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  26. ^Kroeger, Jake (August 15, 2012)."Tickets and the Line-up for The San Francisco Comedy & Burrito Festival is Here".The Comedy Bureau.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  27. ^Sam, Tony."Tony Sam's Word of The Day Podcast".Soundcloud.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  28. ^Kroeger, Jake (February 17, 2014).""Learn" More Words with Tony Sam's Dictionary Word of the Day Podcast ".The Comedy Bureau.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  29. ^"New Podcast" Legally Insane "Dives Into Crazy Legal History".PR Newswire.2017-10-10.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  30. ^Ritter, Matt; Sam, Tony."Legally Insane Podcast".Cascade Media.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  31. ^Josh Adam Meyers (2019-07-03)."Episode 465: Magnetic Fields' 69 Love Songs with Tony Sam".The 500 with Josh Adam Meyers(Podcast).Retrieved2021-03-04.
  32. ^Matt Kirshen(June 19, 2012)."Episode 25 with Tony Sam!".Probably Science(Podcast).Retrieved2021-03-04.
  33. ^The Sklar Bros. (2014-10-04)."Episode 220.5 Sklarboro County 125".Earwolf(Podcast). Earwolf.Retrieved2014-10-04.
  34. ^Tony Sam, Scaredy CatatAllMusic.Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  35. ^Sam, Tony (November 12, 2014)."Comedian Testimonials".Tony Sam Tumblr.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  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.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  37. ^Kroeger, Jake (October 7, 2014)."Tony Sam's Scaredy Cat Out Now from Stand Up! Records".The Comedy Bureau.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  38. ^Placencia, Ed (2019-04-18)."Tony Sam's Scaredy Cat".Comedy Reviews.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  39. ^Richard Lanoie (2018-04-09)."Tony Sam – Scaredy Cat".The Serious Comedy Site.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  40. ^Bartolone, Tony (2014-10-28)."Tony Sam Is a Big, Fat Scaredy Cat".Huffington Post.Retrieved2021-03-04.
  41. ^Chris Spector (2014-11-12)."Volume 37/Number 12".Midwest Record.Retrieved2021-03-05.
  42. ^Tony Sam (comedian), Alex Clark (animator) (2020-10-28).Tony Sam: Haunted House(cartoon).Stand Up! Records.Retrieved2021-03-16.
  43. ^Tony Sam (comedian), Alex Clark (animator) (2020-09-16).Tony Sam: Beard Jokes(cartoon).Stand Up! Records.Retrieved2021-03-16.
  44. ^Tony Sam (comedian), Alex Clark (animator) (2020-09-30).Tony Sam: Death Jokes(cartoon).Stand Up! Records.Retrieved2021-03-16.
  45. ^Tony Sam (comedian), Alex Clark (animator) (2020-09-30).Tony Sam: Lost Dog Poster(cartoon).Tony Sam.Retrieved2021-03-16.
  46. ^Sam, Tony (2022-02-01)."I'm proud to announce the release of my newest..."Tony Sam.Tumblr.Retrieved2022-05-05.
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