Robert George "Bob" Schimmel (born January 16,
1950) is an American
stand-up
comedian whose material is often X-rated and controversial. He
is perhaps best known for his comedy albums and his appearances on
HBO and
The
Howard Stern Show. Schimmel's material almost always
pertains to sex, whether he is discussing computers, his daughter,
or animals.
Biography
Early life and career
Schimmel
was born in the Bronx
, New York
, the son of
Betty and Otto Schimmel, Jewish survivors of the
Holocaust. He was voted class clown
during high school and was in the Air Force for one year during the
Vietnam War.
A resident of Scottsdale, Arizona
, his career began when, at the urging of his
sister, he performed at a comedy club's
open-mic night. A club owner in Los Angeles
offered to make him a regular, but when Schimmel
moved there he found that the club had burned down.
Undaunted, and with some help from
Rodney Dangerfield, Schimmel began making
a name for himself. He wrote material for
In Living Color and for comedians such
as
Yakov Smirnoff.
Schimmel
married his first wife, Vicki, in
1977, and they had four children together. They also had a son,
Derek, who died of
cancer at age 11. Schimmel
then married his second wife, Melissa, with whom he has two
children.
Illness
In 1998, Schimmel suffered a
heart
attack, and in June 2000, was diagnosed with
Non-Hodgkins lymphoma. His treatments
included
chemotherapy and required long
stays in the hospital. During one such session, his daughter
Jessica brought her boss, Melissa, to visit him, and the two began
an unlikely
May-December
romance. Schimmel's cancer went into
remission, resulting in his decision to return to
his wife Vicki and break off his relationship with Melissa.
Schimmel later reunited with Melissa, leading to the conception of
their child. Schimmel then divorced his wife Vicki and married
Melissa.
Domestic Violence Arrest
Schimmel was arrested by deputies from the county of Los Angeles
Sheriff's Department, Lost Hills Station, at his residence, in the
city of Calabasas, on allegations of domestic violence in the early
morning hours of May 2, 2009. This was a result of an alleged
confrontation between Schimmel and his wife Melissa. After
concluding there was insufficient evidence to proceed further, the
DA declined to press charges.On May 8, 2009, Melissa Schimmel filed
for divorce citing irreconcilable differences.
Recent work
Schimmel's willingness to frankly and humorously discuss the tragic
events of his life in his act has set him apart from other comics.
Before his illness, his act included a bit about how strange it
might be if a person wore a
wig on their
pubic area. When he lost his body hair
due to chemotherapy treatment, he discovered that there really is
such a thing — these wigs, or
merkins, have
existed for hundreds of years. He updated the comedy bit
accordingly.
Schimmel will incorporate any aspect of his personal life into his
act, even the death of his son. In perhaps his most extreme bit,
Schimmel joked about making obscene suggestions to a lady from the
Make-a-Wish Foundation.
Schimmel cites
Lenny Bruce as his
all-time comedy hero. Like Bruce, Schimmel's raunchy act has gotten
him into trouble from time to time. Schimmel had not been asked to
perform on
Late Night
with Conan O'Brien from 1999 until a 2008 appearance, and
he believed this was because of a particularly dirty sex joke he
told during his last appearance. However, his edgy style has made
him a hit on
The Howard Stern Show.
In his stand-up act and a radio interview with Paul Harris,
Schimmel talked about his November 8, 1999 appearance on "The
Hollywood Squares." The taping was
reportedly stopped at least once when Schimmel ad-libbed jokes
about
Louie Anderson. ("
Family Feud," which Anderson hosted at the time,
and "Hollywood Squares" both taped at CBS Television City.)
Schimmel has released several comedy albums, including
Robert
Schimmel Comes Clean;
If You Buy This CD, I Can Get This
Car;
Unprotected; and
Reserection.
Schimmel is number 76 on
Comedy
Central's list of the 100
Greatest Standups of All
Time.
Schimmel wrote a book titled
Cancer on $5 a Day* *(chemo not
included): How Humor Got Me Through the Toughest Journey of My
Life.
Discography
- Comes Clean, Warner
Bros. Records, 1996.
- If You Buy this CD, I Can Get this Car, Warner Bros.
Records, 1998.
- Unprotected, Warner Bros. Records, 1999.
- Reserection, Warner Bros. Records, 2005.
- Life Since Then, Image Entertainment, 2009.
References
- 'Just a regular guy'
-
http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2009/05/02/2009-05-02_comedian_robert_schimmel_.html
-
http://www.tmz.com/2009/05/08/schimmels-wife-you-hit-me-i-divorce-you/
External links
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