Adam Carolla
Encyclopedia
Adam Carolla is an American
radio personality
, television host, comedian
, and actor
. He currently hosts The Adam Carolla Show
, a talk show
distributed as a podcast
on the ACE Broadcasting Network
. The Adam Carolla Show recently claimed the title of the Guinness Book of World Records "Most Downloaded Podcast".
Carolla also hosts The Car Show, which debuted on Speed TV on July 13, 2011. Mixing car reviews, tests and his brand of witty and dry humor, he headlines an eclectic cast on the show.
Carolla was the co-host of the radio show Loveline
from 1995 to 2005 (and its television incarnation on MTV
from 1996 to 2000), the co-host and co-creator of the television program The Man Show
(1999–2004), and the co-creator and one of the regular performers on the television program Crank Yankers
(2002–2007).
In November 2010 Carolla's book In Fifty Years We'll All Be Chicks debuted on the New York Times Best Seller List
for hardcover non-fiction.
, California
to an Italian-American father, Jim Carolla, a psychologist; and his mother, Kris (née
Novello), a perpetually out-of-work welfare recipient with a degree in Chicano studies. Adam's parents did not give him a middle name. As a joke, he wrote "Adam Lakers Carolla" on his driver's license application. His driver's license still gives his full name as "Adam Lakers Carolla."
Adam was raised in North Hollywood
, Los Angeles. He attended Colfax Elementary School, Walter Reed Junior High
, and North Hollywood High School
. Carolla did not receive his high school diploma until years later, claiming he owed the library $19.95 for a copy of We The People (ISBN 0-385-41903-1). Carolla can be seen paying off the book to receive his diploma in an episode of his TLC show, The Adam Carolla Project.
During his earlier years, Carolla played Pop Warner
football
for seven years; he later suggested that being involved in sports saved him from a chaotic home life. During his senior year at North Hollywood High School, Carolla distinguished himself in football. In December 1981, he was named to the First Team Offensive Line, Central Valley League, one of 8 leagues at the time in the LA City Section of the California Interscholastic Federation.
He began living on his own at the age of 18. He briefly attended Los Angeles Valley College
, a community college
, where he was placed on academic probation before dropping out to work in a series of jobs, including carpet cleaner, carpenter, boxing instructor, and traffic school
instructor. Although broke, Carolla and his friends and roommates owned a 1963 Cadillac
limousine
.
Carolla's step-grandfather was László Görög, who wrote The Mole People.
with physician Dr. Drew Pinsky in 1995, alongside Riki Rachtman
. While primarily a call-in show where listeners would ask questions about sex and relationships, Carolla would often spend much of the show ranting about various topics, from his time working as a contractor to incessant radio weather and traffic reports ("How many traffic reports have you listened to? Thousands. How many times have you actually changed your route based on a traffic report? That's right! Never!"). Carolla served as the louder, funnier side of the show in contrast to the reserved, thoughtful Dr. Drew. Carolla left the show in 2005.
On May 13, 2009, Adam returned to Loveline as a guest. During a typical discourse with a caller who was giving short, unaccommodating responses, Carolla snapped jokingly "Oh, Jesus Christ, I don't miss this God-damn show one second!" Adam said being on Loveline was like "visiting your grandfather at the morgue".
—with Stern's approval—in a number of West Coast markets. Adam's last night on Loveline was Nov. 3, 2005, to allow him time to prepare for his morning debut in January 2006. He stated that he'd love to continue to do Loveline by recording it immediately after his morning show, but Westwood One insisted that the show must be broadcast live. On Oct. 25, Infinity Broadcasting officially announced that it would be replacing Stern with Carolla on several radio stations in the western United States
.
On Feb. 18, 2009, The Adam Carolla Show was canceled as part of a format switch at KLSX
to AMP FM, a new top 40 station. The final show was Friday, Feb. 20, 2009.
, the show was downloaded more than 500,000 times. Adam stated that bandwidth
cost more than $9,000 a month as of May 2009.
At the end of 2009, The Adam Carolla Podcast was selected by iTunes for its end-of-the-year awards as the Best Audio Podcast of 2009.
On May 18, 2011, Adam announced on Jimmy Kimmel Live
that the The Adam Carolla Show has taken the Guinness World Record for the most downloaded podcast ever from Ricky Gervais
after receiving 59,574,843 unique downloads from March 2009 to March 16, 2011.
he sometimes makes during unscripted broadcasts, the more notorious being about specific ethnic groups or women.
In late 2003, Carolla stated on the air during Loveline
that Hawaiians
are "dumb." Carolla further elaborated that Hawaiians are "stupid," "in-bred
," "retarded" people who are among the "dumbest people we have." These comments were met with anger in Hawaii, and resulted in the loss of radio affiliates for Loveline there.
On the April 4, 2010 episode of The Adam Carolla Show
, Carolla referred to Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao
as being illiterate, having brain damage
, and being someone who prays to chicken bones. Carolla said of the Philippines, where Pacquiao makes his home, "They got this and sex tours
, that's all they have over there. Get your shit together Philippines. Jesus Christ. I mean, again, it's fine to be proud of your countrymen. But that's it? That's all you got?" Filipino leaders, including the office of President Gloria Arroyo, responded to the incident. Carolla later apologized via Twitter
, saying, "Read your comments. Sorry if I offended many of you. I don't preplan my commentary. I try to be provocative [and] funny but I crossed the line and I'm sorry." Carolla received death threat
s over the incident.
In August 2011, Carolla attracted the ire of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation after a podcast in which, referring to transgendered people, he asked, "When did we start giving a shit about these people?" The segment was in response to a proposed initiative to have the puppet characters Bert and Ernie, from the children's television show Sesame Street
, enter into a "gay marriage." He went on to say that the LGBT
moniker ought to be replaced with "YUCK," and that LGBT activists ought to "shut up," and that they are "ruining [his] life." The GLAAD organization also referred to previous offensive remarks by Carolla, including an assertion that, "all things being equal," heterosexual parents are better than homosexual parents. Carolla responded to GLAAD via TMZ.com
, stating, "I'm sorry my comments were hurtful. I'm a comedian, not a politician." GLAAD responded by identifying Carolla's apology as "empty."
, along with partner and close friend Jimmy Kimmel
, on Comedy Central
from 1999 to 2003. He left The Man Show at the same time as Kimmel, after having been reportedly offered $50,000 per episode to stay on. Carolla has continued his work with Kimmel as a writer and guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live
.
Carolla and partner Daniel Kellison
are the heads of Jackhole Productions
. The two created the television show Crank Yankers
for Comedy Central, which revived the Mr. Birchum character. (The show premiered in 2002 on Comedy Central and returned to MTV2 on February 9, 2007, running again until March 30, 2007. The show screened in Australia on SBS Television and The Comedy Channel between 2003 and 2008.)
on Comedy Central.
Also in 2005, Carolla was featured in a home remodeling program called The Adam Carolla Project
wherein he and a crew of old friends renovated his childhood home. The 13 episodes aired on the cable channel TLC (The Learning Channel) from October through December 2005.
In 2006, Carolla appeared on the special summer series Gameshow Marathon as a celebrity panelist on the Match Game
episode.
On the February 18, 2008 broadcast of his radio show, Carolla announced that he would be one of the contestants on the next season of Dancing with the Stars. Later in the broadcast, it was revealed to Adam that his partner would be Julianne Hough
. He was voted off on the April 8, 2008 episode after his performance of the Paso Doble.
Dancing with the Stars performances
On June 16, 2008 Carolla was selected to host a pilot of an American version of the popular BBC
show Top Gear
for NBC
. In December 2008, NBC
decided not to pick up the show.
was to play his wife and Windell Middlebrooks of the Miller High Life commercial fame will play his best friend. During his March 30, 2009 podcast, Carolla briefly described the show as being "All in the Family
, essentially", with Carolla playing a similar role to that of Archie Bunker
. On the July 23, 2009 episode of the Adam Carolla Podcast, Carolla announced that CBS was not picking up the pilot for the 2009 season, "in any way, shape or form."
On October 22, 2009, it was reported in Variety that Carolla had struck a deal with NBC to produce a half-hour pilot for a sitcom. The report was later confirmed on January 4, 2010, and was the first comedy pilot ordered by NBC for the season. The untitled project, written by Carolla and Kevin Hench, was a single-camera endeavor that starred Carolla as a contractor and father who attempts to rebuild his life after his wife leaves him. Carolla was set to executive produce the NBC project along with frequent collaborators Kimmel and Hench, as well as his agent James "Babydoll" Dixon, Jon Pollack from "30 Rock," Gail Berman, Daniel Kellison, and Lloyd Braun. Universal Media Studios, BermanBraun, and Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel's own Jackhole Industries.
On the February 13, 2010 episode of Carolla's CarCast podcast, he broke the news that The History Channel has picked up Top Gear US, which NBC had decided against in 2008. On the March 26, 2010 episode of CarCast, Carolla said that he would not be co-hosting Top Gear US because of scheduling conflicts with his NBC sitcom project. In June 2010, Carolla said that his NBC pilot has not been picked up, and was now "dead."
, John Salley
, and Matt Farah. It is a similar formula as Top Gear, mixing car reviews, tests and humor. The show has been met with largely positive reviews from car enthusiasts and comedy fans alike. Notably, talk show host and comedian Jay Leno
called The Car Show, "...a lot of fun."
s for cartoon
s, including Commander Nebula on the Disney
animated series Buzz Lightyear of Star Command
, Death
on Family Guy
(replacing Norm Macdonald
who only did one episode) and Spanky Ham on Drawn Together
.
he co-wrote and co-produced, in which he stars opposite Heather Juergensen
. The film is based loosely on his own life and is filmed at a gym he helped build with his co-star, Ozzie, played by Oswaldo Castillo
, his friend in real life whom he met while building the gym when they both worked in construction. The film made its world premiere at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival
in New York City
and shortly thereafter received a positive review in Variety. The film was released on March 21, 2008. The film is rated 75% on Rotten Tomatoes
.
Adam made a short appearance in Jeff Balis
' Still Waiting...
(a sequel to Waiting...) playing a pick-up artist guru.
Adam helped write an unproduced screenplay for a movie entitled Deaf Frat Guy: Showdown at Havasu.
He is the voice of Virgil in the independent short film Save Virgil
.
Adam uncredited announced to Spy Kids: All the Time in the World in 4D
, Aroma-Scope.
On The Adam Carolla Show, Adam repeatedly mentioned the birth was originally scheduled for June 6, but that he and Lynette decided to push it back one day as to avoid the symbolic 666
(06-06-06).
Regarding his religious beliefs, Carolla has stated, "I am not agnostic. I am atheist. I don’t think there is no God; I know there’s no God. I know there’s no God the same way I know many other laws in our universe. I know there’s no God and I know most of the world knows that as well. They just won’t admit it because there’s another thing they know: they know they’re going to die, and it freaks them out. So most people don’t have the courage to admit there’s no God and they know it. They feel it. They try to suppress it. And if you bring it up they get angry because it freaks them out."
Regarding his political views, Carolla has stated, "I guess I would be Republican, in the sense that I want a secure border, I'm not into the welfare state, I'm not into all those freebie lunch programs. It just kind of demeans people." He goes on to state, however, that he is also in favor of some traditionally "liberal" causes such as the legalization of marijuana. Elsewhere he has stated that "My feeling is this whole country is founded on the principle of 'if you are not hurting anyone, and you're not fucking with someone else's shit, and you are paying your taxes, you should be able to just do what you want to do.' It's the freedom and the independence."
Carolla has stated that he consumes alcohol
on a daily basis. He invented 'Mangria', which is red wine with vodka.
Carolla participated in the 2010 Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race
. He previously competed in the race in 2003.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
radio personality
Radio personality
A radio personality is a person with an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality can be someone who introduces and discusses various genres of music, hosts a talk radio show that may take calls from listeners, or someone whose primary responsibility is to give news, weather,...
, television host, comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. He currently hosts The Adam Carolla Show
The Adam Carolla Show (podcast)
The Adam Carolla Show is a free podcast hosted by comedian and radio-television personality Adam Carolla...
, a talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
distributed as a podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
on the ACE Broadcasting Network
ACE Broadcasting Network
The Adam Carolla Entertainment Broadcasting Network is an American podcast network. The flagship program of the network is the Adam Carolla Show, which is released daily. The network also produces several other shows that are released on a weekly basis....
. The Adam Carolla Show recently claimed the title of the Guinness Book of World Records "Most Downloaded Podcast".
Carolla also hosts The Car Show, which debuted on Speed TV on July 13, 2011. Mixing car reviews, tests and his brand of witty and dry humor, he headlines an eclectic cast on the show.
Carolla was the co-host of the radio show Loveline
Loveline
Loveline is a syndicated radio call-in program in North America, offering medical and relationship advice to listeners, often with the assistance of guests, typically actors and musicians. Its flagship station is KROQ-FM in Los Angeles....
from 1995 to 2005 (and its television incarnation on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
from 1996 to 2000), the co-host and co-creator of the television program The Man Show
The Man Show
The Man Show is an American comedy television show on Comedy Central. It was created in 1999 by its two original co-hosts, Jimmy Kimmel and Adam Carolla, and their executive producer Daniel Kellison.-Format:...
(1999–2004), and the co-creator and one of the regular performers on the television program Crank Yankers
Crank Yankers
Crank Yankers is an American TV show produced by Adam Carolla, Jimmy Kimmel and Daniel Kellison that featured actual prank calls made by show regulars and celebrity guests, and re-enacted onscreen by puppets for a visual aid to show the viewer what is happening in the call...
(2002–2007).
In November 2010 Carolla's book In Fifty Years We'll All Be Chicks debuted on the New York Times Best Seller List
New York Times Best Seller list
The New York Times Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. It is published weekly in The New York Times Book Review magazine, which is published in the Sunday edition of The New York Times and as a stand-alone publication...
for hardcover non-fiction.
Early life
Carolla was born in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
to an Italian-American father, Jim Carolla, a psychologist; and his mother, Kris (née
NEE
NEE is a political protest group whose goal was to provide an alternative for voters who are unhappy with all political parties at hand in Belgium, where voting is compulsory.The NEE party was founded in 2005 in Antwerp...
Novello), a perpetually out-of-work welfare recipient with a degree in Chicano studies. Adam's parents did not give him a middle name. As a joke, he wrote "Adam Lakers Carolla" on his driver's license application. His driver's license still gives his full name as "Adam Lakers Carolla."
Adam was raised in North Hollywood
North Hollywood, Los Angeles, California
North Hollywood is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the city of Los Angeles, California, along the Tujunga Wash. It is bounded on the south by Moorpark Street and the Ventura Freeway, on the southwest by Burbank Blvd...
, Los Angeles. He attended Colfax Elementary School, Walter Reed Junior High
Walter Reed Middle School
Walter Reed Middle School is located in North Hollywood in Los Angeles, California, United States. Originally called North Hollywood Junior High School, it was later renamed in honor of U.S. Army Major Walter Reed....
, and North Hollywood High School
North Hollywood High School
North Hollywood High School, originally called Lankershim High School when it opened in 1927, is a secondary school in North Hollywood in Los Angeles, California. The school mascot is the husky, and the school colors are blue, white and grey....
. Carolla did not receive his high school diploma until years later, claiming he owed the library $19.95 for a copy of We The People (ISBN 0-385-41903-1). Carolla can be seen paying off the book to receive his diploma in an episode of his TLC show, The Adam Carolla Project.
During his earlier years, Carolla played Pop Warner
Pop Warner Little Scholars
Pop Warner Little Scholars is a non-profit organization that provides youth football, cheerleading, and dance programs for participants in 43 U.S. states and several countries around the world. It is headquartered in Langhorne, Pennsylvania...
football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
for seven years; he later suggested that being involved in sports saved him from a chaotic home life. During his senior year at North Hollywood High School, Carolla distinguished himself in football. In December 1981, he was named to the First Team Offensive Line, Central Valley League, one of 8 leagues at the time in the LA City Section of the California Interscholastic Federation.
He began living on his own at the age of 18. He briefly attended Los Angeles Valley College
Los Angeles Valley College
Los Angeles Valley College is a community college located in the Valley Glen district of Los Angeles, California in the east-central San Fernando Valley. The school is a part of the Los Angeles Community College District....
, a community college
Community college
A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries.-Australia:Community colleges carry on the tradition of adult education, which was established in Australia around mid 19th century when evening classes were held to help adults...
, where he was placed on academic probation before dropping out to work in a series of jobs, including carpet cleaner, carpenter, boxing instructor, and traffic school
Traffic school
Traffic school is the generic common term for remedial courses in traffic safety and safe driving practices. In the United States, these are offered as part of pretrial diversion programs to traffic violators by traffic courts, in the interest of improving general safety.-Incentive:Opting to take...
instructor. Although broke, Carolla and his friends and roommates owned a 1963 Cadillac
Cadillac
Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest...
limousine
Limousine
A limousine is a luxury sedan or saloon car, especially one with a lengthened wheelbase or driven by a chauffeur. The chassis of a limousine may have been extended by the manufacturer or by an independent coachbuilder. These are called "stretch" limousines and are traditionally black or white....
.
Carolla's step-grandfather was László Görög, who wrote The Mole People.
Loveline
Carolla was offered the job of co-hosting LovelineLoveline
Loveline is a syndicated radio call-in program in North America, offering medical and relationship advice to listeners, often with the assistance of guests, typically actors and musicians. Its flagship station is KROQ-FM in Los Angeles....
with physician Dr. Drew Pinsky in 1995, alongside Riki Rachtman
Riki Rachtman
Riki Rachtman is an American television and radio personality.-Rock scene:At the age of 16, Rachtman auditioned to sing in the band the Angry Samoans, and the next year he was in a band called the Fairlanes. In the late 1980s, Rachtman was lead vocalist of the L.A. Metal Act "Virgin"...
. While primarily a call-in show where listeners would ask questions about sex and relationships, Carolla would often spend much of the show ranting about various topics, from his time working as a contractor to incessant radio weather and traffic reports ("How many traffic reports have you listened to? Thousands. How many times have you actually changed your route based on a traffic report? That's right! Never!"). Carolla served as the louder, funnier side of the show in contrast to the reserved, thoughtful Dr. Drew. Carolla left the show in 2005.
On May 13, 2009, Adam returned to Loveline as a guest. During a typical discourse with a caller who was giving short, unaccommodating responses, Carolla snapped jokingly "Oh, Jesus Christ, I don't miss this God-damn show one second!" Adam said being on Loveline was like "visiting your grandfather at the morgue".
The Adam Carolla Show
On Nov. 1, 2005, Carolla announced he would leave Loveline to pursue a position in morning radio, replacing Howard SternHoward Stern
Howard Allan Stern is an American radio personality, television host, author, and actor best known for his radio show, which was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2005. He gained wide recognition in the 1990s where he was labeled a "shock jock" for his outspoken and sometimes controversial style...
—with Stern's approval—in a number of West Coast markets. Adam's last night on Loveline was Nov. 3, 2005, to allow him time to prepare for his morning debut in January 2006. He stated that he'd love to continue to do Loveline by recording it immediately after his morning show, but Westwood One insisted that the show must be broadcast live. On Oct. 25, Infinity Broadcasting officially announced that it would be replacing Stern with Carolla on several radio stations in the western United States
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
.
On Feb. 18, 2009, The Adam Carolla Show was canceled as part of a format switch at KLSX
KLSX
KAMP-FM 97.1 FM, known on-air as 97.1 AMP Radio, is a Rhythmic Contemporary radio station in Los Angeles, California. The station is owned by CBS Radio.The station had long been known as KLSX before the call sign changed on June 30, 2009....
to AMP FM, a new top 40 station. The final show was Friday, Feb. 20, 2009.
The Adam Carolla Podcast
Carolla started a daily podcast on Feb. 23, 2009, at his personal Web site. The first Adam Carolla podcast was downloaded more than 250,000 times in the initial 24 hours, and by the third podcast, it was the number one podcast on iTunes in both the U.S. and Canada. During the debut week, the Adam Carolla podcast recorded 1.6 million downloads. In the second week it recorded 2.4 million downloads. By the fourth episode of the second week, featuring former Adam Carolla Show sidekick Dave DameshekDave Dameshek
Dr. William "Funny" David Dameshek is an American television writer and radio personality. Dameshek is currently a football analyst and writer for NFL.com, appearing on NFL Fantasy Live and hosting the Dave Dameshek Football Podcast.- Early life :Dameshek received his undergraduate degree in...
, the show was downloaded more than 500,000 times. Adam stated that bandwidth
Bandwidth (computing)
In computer networking and computer science, bandwidth, network bandwidth, data bandwidth, or digital bandwidth is a measure of available or consumed data communication resources expressed in bits/second or multiples of it .Note that in textbooks on wireless communications, modem data transmission,...
cost more than $9,000 a month as of May 2009.
At the end of 2009, The Adam Carolla Podcast was selected by iTunes for its end-of-the-year awards as the Best Audio Podcast of 2009.
On May 18, 2011, Adam announced on Jimmy Kimmel Live
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Jimmy Kimmel Live! is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and broadcast on ABC.The nightly hour-long show made its debut on January 26, 2003, following Super Bowl XXXVII. Jimmy Kimmel Live! is produced by Jackhole Productions in association with ABC Studios...
that the The Adam Carolla Show has taken the Guinness World Record for the most downloaded podcast ever from Ricky Gervais
Ricky Gervais
Ricky Dene Gervais is an English comedian, actor, director, radio presenter, producer, musician, and writer.Gervais achieved mainstream fame with his television series The Office and the subsequent series Extras, both of which he co-wrote and co-directed with friend and frequent collaborator...
after receiving 59,574,843 unique downloads from March 2009 to March 16, 2011.
Controversies
Carolla has occasionally stirred up controversy due to sweeping generalizationsHasty generalization
Hasty generalization is a logical fallacy of faulty generalization by reaching an inductive generalization based on insufficient evidence essentially making a hasty conclusion without considering all of the variables...
he sometimes makes during unscripted broadcasts, the more notorious being about specific ethnic groups or women.
In late 2003, Carolla stated on the air during Loveline
Loveline
Loveline is a syndicated radio call-in program in North America, offering medical and relationship advice to listeners, often with the assistance of guests, typically actors and musicians. Its flagship station is KROQ-FM in Los Angeles....
that Hawaiians
Native Hawaiians
Native Hawaiians refers to the indigenous Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands or their descendants. Native Hawaiians trace their ancestry back to the original Polynesian settlers of Hawaii.According to the U.S...
are "dumb." Carolla further elaborated that Hawaiians are "stupid," "in-bred
Inbreeding
Inbreeding is the reproduction from the mating of two genetically related parents. Inbreeding results in increased homozygosity, which can increase the chances of offspring being affected by recessive or deleterious traits. This generally leads to a decreased fitness of a population, which is...
," "retarded" people who are among the "dumbest people we have." These comments were met with anger in Hawaii, and resulted in the loss of radio affiliates for Loveline there.
On the April 4, 2010 episode of The Adam Carolla Show
The Adam Carolla Show (podcast)
The Adam Carolla Show is a free podcast hosted by comedian and radio-television personality Adam Carolla...
, Carolla referred to Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao
Manny Pacquiao
Emmanuel "Manny" Dapidran Pacquiao, PLH is a Filipino professional boxer and politician. He is the first eight-division world champion; having won six world titles, as well as the first to win the lineal championship in four different weight classes. He was named "Fighter of the Decade" for the...
as being illiterate, having brain damage
Brain damage
"Brain damage" or "brain injury" is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. Brain injuries occur due to a wide range of internal and external factors...
, and being someone who prays to chicken bones. Carolla said of the Philippines, where Pacquiao makes his home, "They got this and sex tours
Sex tourism
Sex tourism is travel to engage in sexual activity with prostitutes.The World Tourism Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, defines sex tourism as "trips organized from within the tourism sector, or from outside this sector but using its structures and networks, with the primary...
, that's all they have over there. Get your shit together Philippines. Jesus Christ. I mean, again, it's fine to be proud of your countrymen. But that's it? That's all you got?" Filipino leaders, including the office of President Gloria Arroyo, responded to the incident. Carolla later apologized via Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
, saying, "Read your comments. Sorry if I offended many of you. I don't preplan my commentary. I try to be provocative [and] funny but I crossed the line and I'm sorry." Carolla received death threat
Death threat
A death threat is a threat of death, often made anonymously, by one person or a group of people to kill another person or groups of people. These threats are usually designed to intimidate victims in order to manipulate their behavior, thus a death threat is a form of coercion...
s over the incident.
In August 2011, Carolla attracted the ire of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation after a podcast in which, referring to transgendered people, he asked, "When did we start giving a shit about these people?" The segment was in response to a proposed initiative to have the puppet characters Bert and Ernie, from the children's television show Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
, enter into a "gay marriage." He went on to say that the LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
moniker ought to be replaced with "YUCK," and that LGBT activists ought to "shut up," and that they are "ruining [his] life." The GLAAD organization also referred to previous offensive remarks by Carolla, including an assertion that, "all things being equal," heterosexual parents are better than homosexual parents. Carolla responded to GLAAD via TMZ.com
TMZ.com
TMZ.com is a celebrity news website that debuted on November 8, 2005. It was a collaboration between America Online and Telepictures Productions, a division of Warner Bros., until Time Warner divested AOL in 2009. However, it is still affiliated with AOL News and has the AOL News logo affixed in...
, stating, "I'm sorry my comments were hurtful. I'm a comedian, not a politician." GLAAD responded by identifying Carolla's apology as "empty."
1999 through 2004
Carolla began his first original television series with The Man ShowThe Man Show
The Man Show is an American comedy television show on Comedy Central. It was created in 1999 by its two original co-hosts, Jimmy Kimmel and Adam Carolla, and their executive producer Daniel Kellison.-Format:...
, along with partner and close friend Jimmy Kimmel
Jimmy Kimmel
James Christian "Jimmy" Kimmel is an American television host and comedian. He is the host of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, a late-night talk show that airs on ABC. Prior to that, Kimmel was best known as the co-host of Comedy Central's The Man Show and Win Ben Stein's Money...
, on Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
from 1999 to 2003. He left The Man Show at the same time as Kimmel, after having been reportedly offered $50,000 per episode to stay on. Carolla has continued his work with Kimmel as a writer and guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Jimmy Kimmel Live! is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and broadcast on ABC.The nightly hour-long show made its debut on January 26, 2003, following Super Bowl XXXVII. Jimmy Kimmel Live! is produced by Jackhole Productions in association with ABC Studios...
.
Carolla and partner Daniel Kellison
Daniel Kellison
Daniel Kellison is an American television/film producer and co-founder of Jackhole Productions, an entertainment group formed with partners Jimmy Kimmel and Adam Carolla....
are the heads of Jackhole Productions
Jackhole Productions
Jackhole Productions, also credited as "Jackhole Industries", is an American production company started by Jimmy Kimmel, Daniel Kellison and Adam Carolla. It has produced several comedy shows on television...
. The two created the television show Crank Yankers
Crank Yankers
Crank Yankers is an American TV show produced by Adam Carolla, Jimmy Kimmel and Daniel Kellison that featured actual prank calls made by show regulars and celebrity guests, and re-enacted onscreen by puppets for a visual aid to show the viewer what is happening in the call...
for Comedy Central, which revived the Mr. Birchum character. (The show premiered in 2002 on Comedy Central and returned to MTV2 on February 9, 2007, running again until March 30, 2007. The show screened in Australia on SBS Television and The Comedy Channel between 2003 and 2008.)
2005 through 2008
From August 2005 to November 2005, Carolla hosted the talk show Too Late with Adam CarollaToo Late with Adam Carolla
Too Late with Adam Carolla was a late night talk show hosted by Adam Carolla and produced by Jackhole Industries, a team made up of old collaborators: Carolla, Jimmy Kimmel, and Daniel Kellison. The show, which mixed celebrity interviews, chatty everyday observations, scripted sketches, and phone...
on Comedy Central.
Also in 2005, Carolla was featured in a home remodeling program called The Adam Carolla Project
The Adam Carolla Project
The Adam Carolla Project, which aired Tuesday nights at 10 p.m. ET/PT on TLC, was a home improvement show featuring the comedian Adam Carolla. Before gaining celebrity on Loveline and The Man Show, Carolla worked as a carpenter for several years...
wherein he and a crew of old friends renovated his childhood home. The 13 episodes aired on the cable channel TLC (The Learning Channel) from October through December 2005.
In 2006, Carolla appeared on the special summer series Gameshow Marathon as a celebrity panelist on the Match Game
Match Game
Match Game is an American television game show in which contestants attempted to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
episode.
On the February 18, 2008 broadcast of his radio show, Carolla announced that he would be one of the contestants on the next season of Dancing with the Stars. Later in the broadcast, it was revealed to Adam that his partner would be Julianne Hough
Julianne Hough
Julianne Alexandra Hough is an American professional ballroom dancer, country music singer and actress. She is most widely known for being a two-time champion of ABC's Dancing with the Stars. She earned a Creative Arts Primetime Emmy nomination in 2007 for choreography...
. He was voted off on the April 8, 2008 episode after his performance of the Paso Doble.
Dancing with the Stars performances
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' score | Result | ||
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Foxtrot/ "Mellow Yellow Mellow Yellow "Mellow Yellow" is a song and single release by Donovan. It reached #2 on the Billboard charts in the U.S. in 1966 and #8 in the UK in early 1967.... " |
5 | 5 | 5 | N/A |
| 2 | Mambo Mambo (dance) Mambo .In the late 1940s, Perez Prado came up with the dance for the mambo music and became the first person to market his music as "mambo". After Havana, Prado moved his music to Mexico, where his music and the dance was adopted. The original mambo dance was characterized by freedom and... / "House of Bamboo Andy Williams Howard Andrew "Andy" Williams is an American singer who has recorded 18 Gold- and three Platinum-certified albums. He hosted The Andy Williams Show, a TV variety show, from 1962 to 1971, as well as numerous television specials, and owns his own theater, the Moon River Theatre in Branson, Missouri,... " |
6 | 7 | 6 | Safe |
| 3 | Tango Tango (ballroom) Ballroom Tango is a ballroom dance that branched away from its original Argentine roots by allowing European, American, Hollywood, and competitive influences into the style and execution of the dance.... / "I Can't Tell A Waltz From A Tango I Can't Tell a Waltz from a Tango "I Can't Tell a Waltz from a Tango" is a popular song written by Al Hoffman and Dick Manning and published in 1954.The best known version in the United States was recorded by Patti Page; the best-known version in the United Kingdom by Alma Cogan... " |
7 | 7 | 7 | Safe |
| 4 | Paso Doble/ "Plaza Of Execution James Horner James Roy Horner is an American composer, orchestrator and conductor of orchestral and film music. He is noted for the integration of choral and electronic elements in many of his film scores, and for frequent use of Celtic musical elements... " |
6 | 7 | 6 | Eliminated |
On June 16, 2008 Carolla was selected to host a pilot of an American version of the popular BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
show Top Gear
Top Gear (U.S. TV series)
Top Gear is a motoring television series, based on the BBC series of the same name. The show's presenters are professional racing driver Tanner Foust, actor and comedian Adam Ferrara, and automotive and racing analyst Rutledge Wood. As with the original British version, the show has its own version...
for NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
. In December 2008, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
decided not to pick up the show.
2009 to present
On February 21, 2009, a day after his Los Angeles-based morning radio show was canceled — as part of a format change at KLSX-FM — CBS ordered a comedy pilot starring the actor/comedian. "Ace in the Hole" was to star Carolla as a husband and father who works as a driving instructor. Carolla created and wrote the pilot with Kevin Hench ("Jimmy Kimmel Live"). Carolla stated that Pamela AdlonPamela Adlon
Pamela Fionna Adlon is a Jewish-American actress, voice actress, and producer. She is sometimes credited as Pamela Segall, Pamela S. Adlon and Pamela Segall Adlon...
was to play his wife and Windell Middlebrooks of the Miller High Life commercial fame will play his best friend. During his March 30, 2009 podcast, Carolla briefly described the show as being "All in the Family
All in the Family
All in the Family is an American sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. In September 1979, a new show, Archie Bunker's Place, picked up where All in the Family had ended...
, essentially", with Carolla playing a similar role to that of Archie Bunker
Archie Bunker
Archibald "Archie" Bunker is a fictional New Yorker in the 1970s top-rated American television sitcom All in the Family and its spin-off Archie Bunker's Place, played to acclaim by Carroll O'Connor. Bunker is a veteran of World War II, reactionary, bigoted, conservative, blue-collar worker, and...
. On the July 23, 2009 episode of the Adam Carolla Podcast, Carolla announced that CBS was not picking up the pilot for the 2009 season, "in any way, shape or form."
On October 22, 2009, it was reported in Variety that Carolla had struck a deal with NBC to produce a half-hour pilot for a sitcom. The report was later confirmed on January 4, 2010, and was the first comedy pilot ordered by NBC for the season. The untitled project, written by Carolla and Kevin Hench, was a single-camera endeavor that starred Carolla as a contractor and father who attempts to rebuild his life after his wife leaves him. Carolla was set to executive produce the NBC project along with frequent collaborators Kimmel and Hench, as well as his agent James "Babydoll" Dixon, Jon Pollack from "30 Rock," Gail Berman, Daniel Kellison, and Lloyd Braun. Universal Media Studios, BermanBraun, and Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel's own Jackhole Industries.
On the February 13, 2010 episode of Carolla's CarCast podcast, he broke the news that The History Channel has picked up Top Gear US, which NBC had decided against in 2008. On the March 26, 2010 episode of CarCast, Carolla said that he would not be co-hosting Top Gear US because of scheduling conflicts with his NBC sitcom project. In June 2010, Carolla said that his NBC pilot has not been picked up, and was now "dead."
The Car Show
Carolla's new show entitled The Car Show debuted on Speed TV July 13, 2011. Appearing Wednesdays at 10 PM Eastern, it features Carolla as the host, along with Dan NeilDan Neil
Dan Neil is an automotive columnist for The Wall Street Journal and a former contributor to the Los Angeles Times, AutoWeek and Car and Driver. He is a panelist on The Car Show with Adam Carolla on Speed Channel, which debuted July 13, 2011.In 1999, Neil received the International Motor Press...
, John Salley
John Salley
John Thomas "Spider" Salley is a retired American professional basketball player, actor and talk show host. He was the first player in NBA history to play on three different championship-winning franchises....
, and Matt Farah. It is a similar formula as Top Gear, mixing car reviews, tests and humor. The show has been met with largely positive reviews from car enthusiasts and comedy fans alike. Notably, talk show host and comedian Jay Leno
Jay Leno
James Douglas Muir "Jay" Leno is an American stand-up comedian and television host.From 1992 to 2009, Leno was the host of NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Beginning in September 2009, Leno started a primetime talk show, titled The Jay Leno Show, which aired weeknights at 10:00 p.m. ,...
called The Car Show, "...a lot of fun."
Voiceovers
Carolla has also done voiceoverVoiceOver
VoiceOver is a screen reader built into Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X, iOS and iPod operating systems. By using VoiceOver, the user can access their Macintosh or iOS device based on spoken descriptions and, in the case of the Mac, the keyboard. The feature is designed to increase accessibility for blind...
s for cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
s, including Commander Nebula on the Disney
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
animated series Buzz Lightyear of Star Command
Buzz Lightyear of Star Command
Buzz Lightyear of Star Command is an American animated science fiction/adventure/comedy series produced by Walt Disney Television. The character is from the planet Zurtron. The series originally aired on UPN and ABC from October 2000 to January 2001 as part of Disney's One Saturday Morning...
, Death
Death (personification)
The concept of death as a sentient entity has existed in many societies since the beginning of history. In English, Death is often given the name Grim Reaper and, from the 15th century onwards, came to be shown as a skeletal figure carrying a large scythe and clothed in a black cloak with a hood...
on Family Guy
Family Guy
Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
(replacing Norm Macdonald
Norm MacDonald
Norman Gene "Norm" Macdonald is a Canadian stand-up comedian, writer and actor. He is best known for his five seasons as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, which included anchoring Weekend Update for three years...
who only did one episode) and Spanky Ham on Drawn Together
Drawn Together
Drawn Together is an American animated television series, which ran on Comedy Central from October 27, 2004 to November 14, 2007. The series was created by Dave Jeser and Matt Silverstein, and uses a sitcom format with a TV reality show setting...
.
Film
In 2006, Carolla finished work on The Hammer, a semi-autobiographical independent filmIndependent film
An independent film, or indie film, is a professional film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly or completely outside of the major film studio system. In addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies, independent films are also produced...
he co-wrote and co-produced, in which he stars opposite Heather Juergensen
Heather Juergensen
Heather Julia Juergensen is an American actress and writer.-Life and career:Juergensen was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. She graduated from Stuyvesant High School in 1987. Soon after, she began writing and performing for the stage in both New York and Los Angeles...
. The film is based loosely on his own life and is filmed at a gym he helped build with his co-star, Ozzie, played by Oswaldo Castillo
Oswaldo Castillo
Oswaldo Castillo is a Nicaraguan American gardener/construction worker-turned-actor.Castillo was born in Nicaragua and, in 1986, fled to the United States after being tortured by Somoza militants for suspected opposition activities. He settled in Los Angeles, California and worked in construction,...
, his friend in real life whom he met while building the gym when they both worked in construction. The film made its world premiere at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and shortly thereafter received a positive review in Variety. The film was released on March 21, 2008. The film is rated 75% on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.
Adam made a short appearance in Jeff Balis
Jeff Balis
Jeff Balis is an American filmmaker whose directorial debut was the 2009 independent film Still Waiting..., starring John Michael Higgins. Balis was a producer on the original Waiting....-External links:...
' Still Waiting...
Still Waiting...
Still Waiting... is an American independent film starring John Michael Higgins, and Luis Guzman, and the sequel to Waiting.... Some of the cast of the original film appear in the sequel. Adam Carolla and Justin Long appear in cameo roles...
(a sequel to Waiting...) playing a pick-up artist guru.
Adam helped write an unproduced screenplay for a movie entitled Deaf Frat Guy: Showdown at Havasu.
He is the voice of Virgil in the independent short film Save Virgil
Save Virgil
Save Virgil is a short independent film by Brad Ableson that mixes live action with animation, released on March 3, 2004. It features the voice of Adam Carolla as the title character who is a human cartoon living in real world...
.
Adam uncredited announced to Spy Kids: All the Time in the World in 4D
4-D film
4-D film is a marketing term that describes an entertainment presentation system combining a 3-D film with physical effects in the theatre, which occur in synchronization with the film...
, Aroma-Scope.
Book
On November 4, 2010, Adam Carolla's In Fifty Years We'll All Be Chicks... And Other Complaints from an Angry Middle-Aged White Guy was released by publisher Crown Publishing. Carolla dictated the text, but the book itself was ghost written by Mike Lynch.Personal life
On September 28, 2002, Carolla married Lynette Paradise. Lynette gave birth to their first children, twins Natalia and Santino "Sonny" Richard Carolla on June 7, 2006.On The Adam Carolla Show, Adam repeatedly mentioned the birth was originally scheduled for June 6, but that he and Lynette decided to push it back one day as to avoid the symbolic 666
Number of the Beast
The Number of the Beast is a term in the Book of Revelation, of the New Testament, that is associated with the first Beast of Revelation chapter 13, the Beast of the sea. In most manuscripts of the New Testament and in English translations of the Bible, the number of the Beast is...
(06-06-06).
Regarding his religious beliefs, Carolla has stated, "I am not agnostic. I am atheist. I don’t think there is no God; I know there’s no God. I know there’s no God the same way I know many other laws in our universe. I know there’s no God and I know most of the world knows that as well. They just won’t admit it because there’s another thing they know: they know they’re going to die, and it freaks them out. So most people don’t have the courage to admit there’s no God and they know it. They feel it. They try to suppress it. And if you bring it up they get angry because it freaks them out."
Regarding his political views, Carolla has stated, "I guess I would be Republican, in the sense that I want a secure border, I'm not into the welfare state, I'm not into all those freebie lunch programs. It just kind of demeans people." He goes on to state, however, that he is also in favor of some traditionally "liberal" causes such as the legalization of marijuana. Elsewhere he has stated that "My feeling is this whole country is founded on the principle of 'if you are not hurting anyone, and you're not fucking with someone else's shit, and you are paying your taxes, you should be able to just do what you want to do.' It's the freedom and the independence."
Carolla has stated that he consumes alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
on a daily basis. He invented 'Mangria', which is red wine with vodka.
Carolla participated in the 2010 Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race
Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race
The Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race is an annual 10-lap auto race held each April since 1977 as part of the United States Grand Prix West, and later the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach weekend at Long Beach, California...
. He previously competed in the race in 2003.