Janette Barber
Encyclopedia
Janette Barber is an American stand-up comic, television producer
, and writer
. She has won six Emmy Award
s, including five that she shares with the writers and producers of The Rosie O'Donnell Show
. After that show ended, Barber continued to work with O'Donnell on The View and on O'Donnell's blog "JaHeRo
". Barber is also known for her recovery from chronic pain
, and her story was reported on 20/20, Larry King Live
and elsewhere. In addition, Barber acts as the food
expert and spokesperson for Molly McButter.
. She shared five Emmy Awards with the producers of the show. Following that she was executive producer
and co-host of Lighten Up!, a series she created for the Food Network
. Barber won her sixth Emmy Award for writing on The View. She currently works with the on-air team for Rosie's XM Radio Show.
In late 2010, Rosie O'Donnell announced she would be leaving radio to go back to television. Many wondered what would become of Janette Barber and the other people from Rosie's radio show. On May 19, 2011, Barber announced on her Facebook
page that, after a massive write in campaign, she would be starring in "Janette's Show," the replacement to the defunct Rosie show.
Barber also has 12 years of stand up comedy experience. She was a nationally touring headliner who made regular appearances on many of the cable comedy shows, such as Showtime Comedy Club Network, VH1
Stand Up Spotlight, and A&E
's Comedy on the Road.
In addition, Barber is a best selling author. She is the co-author, along with Laura Banks, of the humorous work titled Breaking the Rules, Last Ditch Tactics for Landing the Man of your Dreams (Career Press Publishers). Her latest book with Banks, Embracing Your Big Fat Ass, was released in June 2008 by Atria, a division of Simon and Schuster.
Barber is also the food
expert and spokesperson for Molly McButter, a non-fat
butter
-flavored seasoning
.
began creating video blog
s for her website
. She made the video blogs while getting her hair and makeup done by Helene Macaulay
in preparation for going on-air for the television show The View. As viewers began submitting questions directed towards or about Macaulay, she became a regular contributor to O'Donnell's video blog. Barber, who acts as O'Donnell's producer, would show up in the video occasionally to speak with O'Donnell. Within a few weeks, people were directing questions and comments towards Barber as well, and she also became a regular contributor to the video blog. The trio are collectively referred to as Jahero
.
In May 2008, Barber started her own video and written blogs on her website www.janettesblog.com and at "Janette Barber Maximized" at MaxMouth.com.
had a significant fight that caused O'Donnell to leave the show three weeks earlier than her one-year contract specified. Barber, a close friend of O'Donnell, drew a moustache on a magazine tear sheet
of Elisabeth Hasselbeck that was tacked up in The View offices. It was mistakenly reported by the New York Post
and TV media outlets that Barber was escorted out of the building.
, and later ankle pain diagnosed as tendinitis. She said that the severity of the pain eventually prevented her from walking, so she used a wheelchair instead. After a segment about Barber's pain on The Rosie O'Donnell Show, many viewers wrote in with suggestions. As a result, Barber saw the controversial Dr. John E. Sarno
, who diagnosed her as having tension myositis syndrome
(TMS). Barber said that, after treatment for TMS, she was able to walk and run again. Barber's story was covered by 20/20 and Larry King Live
.
, a disaster relief and humanitarian aid agency. Between 1999 and 2001, she participated in three airlifts to Albania
, Kosovo
and the Republic of the Congo
. Barber produced segments for The Rosie O'Donnell Show about these airlifts.
Barber now sits on the Board of Directors of The Bridge Foundation.
In March 2009, Barber traveled to Rwanda
with the Massachusetts based relief group Medical Missions for Children
. She serves as Ambassador at Large for the group and is producing video content to promote the mission.
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
, and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
. She has won six Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
s, including five that she shares with the writers and producers of The Rosie O'Donnell Show
The Rosie O'Donnell Show
The Rosie O'Donnell Show is an Emmy Award-winning American daytime television talk show hosted and produced by actress and comedian Rosie O'Donnell. It aired for six seasons from 1996 to 2002...
. After that show ended, Barber continued to work with O'Donnell on The View and on O'Donnell's blog "JaHeRo
Jahero
JaHeRo is the video blog started by Rosie O'Donnell on her website Rosie.com answering fans questions, giving behind the scenes information and serving as a video diary. Originally featuring only O'Donnell and her hair and make-up artist Helene Macaulay they were soon joined by her writer from The...
". Barber is also known for her recovery from chronic pain
Chronic pain
Chronic pain has several different meanings in medicine. Traditionally, the distinction between acute and chronic pain has relied upon an arbitrary interval of time from onset; the two most commonly used markers being 3 months and 6 months since the initiation of pain, though some theorists and...
, and her story was reported on 20/20, Larry King Live
Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
and elsewhere. In addition, Barber acts as the food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
expert and spokesperson for Molly McButter.
Career
At The Rosie O'Donnell Show, Barber was the supervising producer and head writerHead writer
A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera genre, as well as with sketch comedies and talk shows that feature monologues and comedy skits, but in prime time series this function is generally performed by an...
. She shared five Emmy Awards with the producers of the show. Following that she was executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
and co-host of Lighten Up!, a series she created for the Food Network
Food Network
Food Network is a television specialty channel that airs both one-time and recurring programs about food and cooking. Scripps Networks Interactive owns 70 percent of the network, with Tribune Company controlling the remaining 30 percent....
. Barber won her sixth Emmy Award for writing on The View. She currently works with the on-air team for Rosie's XM Radio Show.
In late 2010, Rosie O'Donnell announced she would be leaving radio to go back to television. Many wondered what would become of Janette Barber and the other people from Rosie's radio show. On May 19, 2011, Barber announced on her Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
page that, after a massive write in campaign, she would be starring in "Janette's Show," the replacement to the defunct Rosie show.
Barber also has 12 years of stand up comedy experience. She was a nationally touring headliner who made regular appearances on many of the cable comedy shows, such as Showtime Comedy Club Network, VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
Stand Up Spotlight, and A&E
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
's Comedy on the Road.
In addition, Barber is a best selling author. She is the co-author, along with Laura Banks, of the humorous work titled Breaking the Rules, Last Ditch Tactics for Landing the Man of your Dreams (Career Press Publishers). Her latest book with Banks, Embracing Your Big Fat Ass, was released in June 2008 by Atria, a division of Simon and Schuster.
Barber is also the food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
expert and spokesperson for Molly McButter, a non-fat
Fat
Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and generally insoluble in water. Chemically, fats are triglycerides, triesters of glycerol and any of several fatty acids. Fats may be either solid or liquid at room temperature, depending on their structure...
butter
Butter
Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
-flavored seasoning
Seasoning
Seasoning is the process of imparting flavor to, or improving the flavor of, food.- General meaning :Seasonings include herbs and spices, which are themselves frequently referred to as "seasonings"...
.
The blog
In March 2007, Rosie O'DonnellRosie O'Donnell
Roseann "Rosie" O'Donnell is an American stand-up comedian, actress, author and television personality. She has also been a magazine editor and continues to be a celebrity blogger, LGBT rights activist, television producer and collaborative partner in the LGBT family vacation company R Family...
began creating video blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
s for her website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
. She made the video blogs while getting her hair and makeup done by Helene Macaulay
Helene Macaulay
Helene Macaulay is a celebrity makeup artist. She grew up in the Town of Tonawanda, a suburb of Buffalo, New York, and moved to New York City in 1979. She is related to the essayist, poet and British MP Thomas Babington Macaulay, Zachary Macaulay, the historian G.M. Trevelyan and the British...
in preparation for going on-air for the television show The View. As viewers began submitting questions directed towards or about Macaulay, she became a regular contributor to O'Donnell's video blog. Barber, who acts as O'Donnell's producer, would show up in the video occasionally to speak with O'Donnell. Within a few weeks, people were directing questions and comments towards Barber as well, and she also became a regular contributor to the video blog. The trio are collectively referred to as Jahero
Jahero
JaHeRo is the video blog started by Rosie O'Donnell on her website Rosie.com answering fans questions, giving behind the scenes information and serving as a video diary. Originally featuring only O'Donnell and her hair and make-up artist Helene Macaulay they were soon joined by her writer from The...
.
In May 2008, Barber started her own video and written blogs on her website www.janettesblog.com and at "Janette Barber Maximized" at MaxMouth.com.
Last day at The View
Barber was Hot Topics Writer of The View and was in the ABC studios on the day Rosie O'Donnell and Elisabeth HasselbeckElisabeth Hasselbeck
Elisabeth Hasselbeck is an American television talk show host and television personality. She was a contestant on Survivor: The Australian Outback and is a current co-host on the daytime talk show The View .-Early life:...
had a significant fight that caused O'Donnell to leave the show three weeks earlier than her one-year contract specified. Barber, a close friend of O'Donnell, drew a moustache on a magazine tear sheet
Tear sheet
In advertising, a tear sheet is a page cut or torn from a publication to prove to the client that the advertisement was published. Media buying agencies are often required by clients to provide tear sheets along with a post analysis of any advertising campaign. The publishers of any periodical are...
of Elisabeth Hasselbeck that was tacked up in The View offices. It was mistakenly reported by the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
and TV media outlets that Barber was escorted out of the building.
Chronic pain
Barber is also well known for her dramatic improvement from chronic pain. Barber said that she suffered from back painBack pain
Back pain is pain felt in the back that usually originates from the muscles, nerves, bones, joints or other structures in the spine.The pain can often be divided into neck pain, upper back pain, lower back pain or tailbone pain...
, and later ankle pain diagnosed as tendinitis. She said that the severity of the pain eventually prevented her from walking, so she used a wheelchair instead. After a segment about Barber's pain on The Rosie O'Donnell Show, many viewers wrote in with suggestions. As a result, Barber saw the controversial Dr. John E. Sarno
John E. Sarno
John E. Sarno is Professor of Clinical Rehabilitation Medicine, New York University School of Medicine, and attending physician at the Howard A. Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, New York University Medical Center. He graduated from The Columbia University College of Physicians and...
, who diagnosed her as having tension myositis syndrome
Tension myositis syndrome
Tension myositis syndrome , also known as tension myoneural syndrome, is a name given by John E. Sarno to a condition he describes as characterized by psychosomatic musculoskeletal and nerve symptoms, most notably back pain...
(TMS). Barber said that, after treatment for TMS, she was able to walk and run again. Barber's story was covered by 20/20 and Larry King Live
Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
.
Humanitarian aid
After her chronic pain improved, Barber began doing volunteer work on behalf of AmeriCaresAmeriCares
AmeriCares is a non-profit disaster relief and humanitarian aid organization providing immediate response to emergency medical needs and supporting long-term health care initiatives for people in the United States and around the world. Since its founding in 1982, AmeriCares has provided more than...
, a disaster relief and humanitarian aid agency. Between 1999 and 2001, she participated in three airlifts to Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
and the Republic of the Congo
Republic of the Congo
The Republic of the Congo , sometimes known locally as Congo-Brazzaville, is a state in Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Angolan exclave province of Cabinda, and the Gulf of Guinea.The region was dominated by...
. Barber produced segments for The Rosie O'Donnell Show about these airlifts.
Barber now sits on the Board of Directors of The Bridge Foundation.
In March 2009, Barber traveled to Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
with the Massachusetts based relief group Medical Missions for Children
Medical Missions for Children
Medical Missions for Children is an independent, non-profit organization that works to improve health outcomes of the world's critically ill children by providing individual telemedicine consultations and implementing education programs focused on narrowing the knowledge gap between healthcare...
. She serves as Ambassador at Large for the group and is producing video content to promote the mission.
External links
- Imdb entry
- Official website - Janette's Blog
- Rosie O'Donnell's blog - Where the "Jahero" video blogs are located
- http://www.embracingyourbigfatass.com Official site for Janette's book co-authored with Laura Banks