Amy Beth Schumer (born June 1, 1981) is an American stand-up comedian, actress, and writer. She placed fourth on the fifth season of NBC's Last Comic Standing, and she placed second on Comedy Central's Reality Bites Back. In 2012, she held a recurring role on the Adult Swim series Delocated. She is the star of the comedy series Inside Amy Schumer, which premiered on Comedy Central on April 30, 2013.



Early life

Schumer was born in Manhattan, the daughter of Sandra (née Jones) and Gordon Schumer. She has a younger sister, Kimberly. Her father is Jewish and her mother is from a Protestant background; Schumer was raised Jewish. She grew up on Long Island, New York. Her family went bankrupt when she was nine, and her parents divorced a few years later. She attended South Side High School in Rockville Centre, New York and was voted both "Class Clown" and "Teacher's Worst Nightmare" upon graduation in 1999. Schumer graduated from Towson University in 2003 with a degree in theater. She moved to New York City after college, where she studied at the William Esper Studio for two years and worked as a bartender and a waitress.

Career

Schumer portrayed a young woman diagnosed with breast cancer in the off-Broadway black comedy Keeping Abreast. She started doing stand-up comedy on June 1, 2004, when she first performed at Gotham Comedy Club. She recorded a special for Comedy Central before appearing on Last Comic Standing; she said in August 2012 that she thought of the special as her "big break".

After not passing an audition for an earlier season, she advanced to the finals of the fifth season of the NBC reality television talent show Last Comic Standing and placed fourth. Schumer said in April 2011, "Last Comic was totally fun. I had a great time because there was no pressure on me; I had been doing stand-up around two years. I wasn't supposed to do well. So every time I advanced it was a happy surprise. I kept it honest on the show and it served me well."

She co-starred in the Comedy Central reality show Reality Bites Back in 2008. In 2009, she appeared in an advertising campaign for Butterfinger.

Schumer is a recurring guest on Fox News late-night program Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld. Her first Comedy Central Presents special aired on April 2, 2010. She served as a co-host of A Different Spin with Mark Hoppus (later titled Hoppus on Music) in 2011. She has also written for Cosmopolitan.

Schumer did an episode (#154) of WTF with Marc Maron podcast on March 3, 2011, in which she discusses her early life in more detail.

She has appeared in roles on the NBC comedy series 30 Rock, Live at Gotham, the Adult Swim mockumentary series Delocated, and the HBO series Curb Your Enthusiasm and Girls. She acted in three films in 2012: the independent comedy Price Check, the comedy-drama Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, and the independent comedy Sleepwalk with Me.

Schumer also appeared on The Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen in September 2011, and The Comedy Central Roast of Roseanne Barr in August 2012.

Her debut standup comedy album Cutting was released on April 25, 2011. Her standup comedy special Mostly Sex Stuff premiered on Comedy Central on August 18, 2012 to positive reviews.

Schumer said in February 2012, "I don't like the observational stuff. I like tackling the stuff nobody else talks about, like the darkest, most serious thing about yourself. I talk about life and sex and personal stories and stuff everybody can relate to, and some can't."

In June 2012, Schumer began work on a sketch comedy series for Comedy Central. The show features single-camera vignettes of Schumer playing "heightened versions" of herself. The vignettes are linked together with footage of Schumer's stand-up. The show, titled Inside Amy Schumer, premiered on Comedy Central on April 30, 2013. Inside Amy Schumer has been picked up for a second season that will begin in 2014. A behind-the-scenes miniseries titled Behind Amy Schumer premiered in 2012.

Personal life

Schumer has dated professional wrestler Dolph Ziggler, and comedian Anthony Jeselnik.

Schumer's father is a cousin of Chuck Schumer, U.S. Senator from New York meaning they are first cousins once removed.

Filmography
Film

Year Title Role Notes
2006 Sense Memory N/A Short film
2012 Sleepwalk with Me Amy Uncredited
2012 Price Check Lila
2012 Seeking a Friend for the End of the World Lacey
2015 Train Wreck N/A Pre-Production

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2007 Live at Gotham Herself Episode "2.6"
2007 Last Comic Standing Herself 7 episodes
2008 Reality Bites Back Herself 7 episodes
2009 Cupid Heather Episode: "The Tommy Brown Affair"
2009 30 Rock Stylist Episode: "Mamma Mia"
2010 John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show Herself Episode: "1.4"
2010 Comedy Central Presents Herself Stand-up Special
2011 Curb Your Enthusiasm Teammate #2 Episode: "Mister Softee"
2011 Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen Roaster TV Special
2012 Delocated Trish 8 episodes
2012 Down and Dirty with Jim Norton Diane (voice) Episode: "Barney/Never"
2012 Comedy Central Roast of Roseanne Barr Roaster TV Special
2012 Amy Schumer: Mostly Sex Stuff Herself Stand-up Special
2012 Dave's Old Porn Herself Episode: "2.3"
2013 Girls Angie 2 Episodes
2014 The Ellen Degeneres Show Herself Episode "1,796"
2013–present Inside Amy Schumer Herself / Various Also Creator, Writer, Executive Producer