Russell Peters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Russell Peters | |
|---|---|
 Just for Laughs Street Festival in Toronto |
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| Birth name | Russell Dominic Peters |
| Born | 1970 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Medium | stand-up, television, film |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Genres | Satire, Improvisational comedy, Observational comedy |
| Subject(s) | racism, race relations, stereotypes, human sexuality, multiculturalism, Indian culture |
| Influences | George Carlin, Steve Martin, Cheech and Chong,[1] Don Rickles,[2] Eddie Murphy[3] |
| Notable works and roles | Russell Peters: Outsourced |
| Website | RussellPeters.com |
Russell Dominic Peters [4] (born 1970 in Toronto, Ontario[5]) is a Canadian stand-up comic, and actor.
Contents |
[edit] His work
Russell Peters was born in Toronto and grew up in Brampton, Ontario. Peters began performing in Toronto in 1989[4]. He has since also performed in the UK, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Denmark, South Africa, the Caribbean, Vietnam, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, India, UAE and the United States.
He has been nominated for four Gemini Awards,[6] the Canadian television awards. He has also been nominated for Best Male Comic at the Canadian Comedy Awards.[citation needed] Peters has been featured at such shows as Montreal's Just for Laughs (Juste Pour Rire) Comedy Festival, the Winnipeg Comedy Festival, and the Edinburgh Festival. He hosted the Canada Day Comedy Festival 2006.
Peters' comedy focuses largely around his Canadian upbringing and racial stereotypes, as he often parodies his parents and South Asian culture. Much of his material explores the cultural divides between many different ethnicities and upbringings in a way that includes many impressions. One reason for his popularity is that he engages the audience at his shows, by talking to individuals and making some sort of remark at, or about them.
His most recent comedy special Russell Peters: Outsourced, aired on Comedy Central on August 26, 2006. Outsourced is also available on DVD and CD in stores from August 29, 2006. The DVD version features his uncensored performance. The DVD has been popular, especially in Canada, selling over 100,000 copies. Outsourced is Peters' first DVD release and remained on the National DVD Chart over one year after its release.
[edit] Outsourced
Russell Peters: Outsourced is a stage act dedicated to the memory of Peters' father. It showed lots of new material to his viewers. Topics ranged from different types of Asians, the English accent, terrorists, racists, Africans and his own adventures with the Chinese in KFC, Beijing. But the show remained typical of his style. Two of his most popular catchphrases are "be a man", "somebody gonna get hurt a real bad". During the encore for the show, before doing the famous line, he mentions that he would be retiring that joke/line after that show. He has also acted in the film Quarter Life Crisis.
[edit] Monsoon House
Monsoon House is a radio play that Peters performed for CBC Radio One in 2006. It stars Peters as Russell Page, a Hollywood producer.
[edit] New sitcom on FOX
In September 2007, it was confirmed that Peters made a deal with FOX to develop a new sitcom, based on his experience of living in Canada. Peters says, "It's really a snapshot of where my family maybe was ten years ago.", and he ensures that the sitcom is "Something that will be funny and honest."[7][8]
[edit] USO tour
Peters participated in a USO tour in November 2007 with Wilmer Valderrama and Mayra Veronica.[9]
[edit] Juno Awards 2008
Peters was the host of the 2008 Juno Awards televised ceremonies in Calgary on April 6, 2008.[10]
[edit] Popularity
Peters' popularity extends to several countries. In Canada, Peters became the first comedian to sell out at Toronto's Air Canada Centre[11], with more than 15,000 tickets in two days for the single show. He ended up selling over 30,000 tickets nationally over the two-day sales period. A total of over 50,000 tickets were sold across six cities.[citation needed]
[edit] Awards and recognitions
- 2004 - Nomination for the Gemini Award in the category "Best Individual Performance in a Comedy Program or Series". This was for Show Me The Funny, from the TV-series Comedy Now! (1997)[12]
[edit] Achievements
- First South Asian to headline and sell-out the Apollo Theater in New York City. The Apollo show was produced by Dan Nainan, a South Asian comedian who also performed at the show.
- First North American based comedian to perform in India (Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, and Kolkata)
- First South Asian on DEF comedy jam.
[edit] References
- ^ Russell Peters Official Bio Press. Russell Peters Official Bio Press.
- ^ Comedy Preview: Russell Peters won't a hurt you real bad. Gauntlet Entertainment.
- ^ Riz Khan - Russell Peters - 07 Jun 07. YouTube.
- ^ a b Russell Peters IMDB profile. IMDB Profile.
- ^ Russell Peters Official FAQ. russellpeters.com - FAQ FAQ.
- ^ http://www.helpms.ca/russellpeters.htm.
- ^ Russell Peters Scores Script Deal with FOX. News Blaze.
- ^ Russell has a new gig. Metro International.
- ^ "USO visits Bagram", United States Department of Defense, November 21, 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-24.
- ^ Russell Peters to Host The 2008 JUNO Awards, April 6 on CTV. CARAS (5 February 2008). Retrieved on 2008-02-05.
- ^ Russell Peters' Homecoming Tour SELLS OUT Across Canada!. News Blaze.
- ^ Russell Peters IMDB profile - awards. IMDB Profile - Awards.
[edit] External links
- RussellPeters.com - Official site
- Russell Peters at MySpace
- Russell Peters at the Internet Movie Database
- College Radio Interview
- Notable Indian Comedians
- The Hour Interview
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Peters, Russell Dominic |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | stand-up comic and actor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1970 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
