Jordan Klepper (original) (raw)

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American comedian

Jordan Klepper
Klepper in June 2015
Born (1979-03-09) March 9, 1979 (age 45)Kalamazoo, Michigan, U.S.
Medium Televisiontheatrefilmbooks
Alma mater Kalamazoo College (BA)
Years active 2011–present
Genres Satireimprovisational comedyblue comedysarcasmsketch comedysurreal humor
Subject(s) American politicsAmerican culturepolitical punditrypopular culturecivil rightscurrent eventsmass media
Spouse Laura Grey ​(m. 2013)​
Children 1[1]
Website https://www.officialjordanklepper.com/

Jordan Klepper (born March 9, 1979) is an American comedian. He began his career as a member of The Second City and Upright Citizens Brigade. From 2014 to 2017, he was a correspondent on The Daily Show. He started his own satirical program, The Opposition with Jordan Klepper, which was canceled in 2018. He then starred in the 2019 docuseries Klepper, before returning to The Daily Show later that year as a contributor. He often appears on a segment entitled "Jordan Klepper Fingers the Pulse."

Jordan Klepper was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on March 9, 1979,[2] the son of Betse, a secretary at Loy Norrix High School, and Mark Klepper. He is primarily of Dutch ancestry.[3] Betse and Mark were introduced to each other by Betse's cousin, the actor and comedian Tim Allen, who was Mark's roommate at Western Michigan University.[4] Klepper attended Kalamazoo Central High School and Kalamazoo Area Mathematics and Science Center, where he was a tennis player and a member of the Mock Trial Team that won Nationals.[3]

After graduating from high school, with a Frederick W. Heyl and Elsie L. Heyl Science Scholarship Fund[5][6] full-tuition scholarship from Kalamazoo College, in 1997,[3] Klepper double-majored in math and theater at Kalamazoo College and received his degree in 2001.[3][7][8] He studied abroad in London during his time there.[3] While at Kalamazoo College, his sister befriended aspiring actor Steven Yeun and took him to see Klepper's improv show, which inspired Yeun to attend his first acting class.[9]

Klepper interviewing protestors against a New York COVID-19 vaccine mandate in August 2021

After graduation, Klepper moved to Chicago, where he performed at The Second City. While there, he also worked for the Big Ten Network as a comedian on the show Big Ten Friday Night Tailgate.[10] He moved to New York City in 2011, where he began performing as a member of the Upright Citizens Brigade.[11][12]

Klepper debuted on The Daily Show on March 3, 2014, four days after his initial audition.[2][11] He received consistently positive reviews for his segments on the show,[13] and filled in as the host in October 2016 when Trevor Noah was sick.

In April 2017, Comedy Central announced that Klepper would host a new show in the fall, which would follow The Daily Show.[14] A special titled Jordan Klepper Solves Guns premiered on Comedy Central on June 11, 2017. The new show was titled The Opposition with Jordan Klepper and premiered on September 25.[15] The show was canceled in June 2018, with Klepper starting a new docuseries, Klepper, which aired in 2019.[16][17] He returned to The Daily Show in December 2019.[18] He also launched a podcast with former Ohio governor John Kasich called Kasich & Klepper.[19]

In October 2021, Klepper appeared in his first role as a voice actor in the Disney Channel animated series The Ghost and Molly McGee, playing Molly's father, Pete McGee.[20]

Klepper has said that his comedy influences include Trevor Noah,[21] Stephen Colbert,[22] and Jon Stewart.[23]

Klepper and his wife, Laura Grey, in March 2009

Klepper married Laura Grey in 2013. The two met as members of The Second City and Upright Citizens Brigade and later wrote, directed, produced, and starred in short films.[24]

Year Title Role Notes
2011 Bone Dry Jordan Short film
2011 TMI Kelen Short film
2012 Poop Brunch Jordan Short film
2012 Engaged Jordan Short film
2012 Ex-Girlfriends Student Short film
2012 Bathroom Party Jordan Short film
2013 Who's On First? Jeremy Short film
2014 Peepers Todd Short film
Year Title Role Notes
2012 I Just Want My Pants Back Manager Episode: "Jerk or Dork"
2014–20172019–present The Daily Show Himself 170 episodes
2015 Halal in the Family Wally Thompson Episode: "Spies Like Us"
2017 Jordan Klepper Solves Guns Himself TV special
2017–2018 The Opposition with Jordan Klepper Himself 128 episodesHost, co-creator, writer, executive producer
2019 Klepper Himself 8 episodesHost, creator, executive producer
2021–2024 The Ghost and Molly McGee Pete McGee (voice) Main role
2023 The Daily Show Guest Host Week of Apr. 17 [25]
Year Association Category Work Result
2018 GLAAD Media Award[26] Outstanding Talk Show Episode The Opposition with Jordan Klepper (episode "Danica Roem") Nominated
2022 Emmy Awards[27] Writing The Daily Show: April 14, 2022 (episode No. 3666) Nominated
  1. ^ Jordan Klepper Has a Hard Time Being Nice to Trump Supporters. Late Night with Seth Meyers. April 19, 2022. Archived from the original on March 26, 2023. Retrieved April 17, 2023 – via YouTube.
  2. ^ a b "Michigan native Jordan Klepper debuts as 'Daily Show' correspondent". Detroit Free Press. March 4, 2014. Archived from the original on March 4, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Jordan Klepper, K-Central and KAMSC Class of 1997, Comedian, Writer and Correspondent" (PDF). Kalamazoo Public Schools Excelsior. November 2014. p. 10. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 31, 2014. Retrieved December 2, 2014.
  4. ^ "New 'Daily Show' correspondent on Kalamazoo, Jon Stewart and why he owes his life to Tim Allen". mlive.com. April 1, 2014. Archived from the original on February 5, 2015. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
  5. ^ "HISTORY – Heyl Scholarships". Kalamazoo College. October 20, 2021. Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  6. ^ "Heyl Scholarships". Kalamazoo College. Archived from the original on April 18, 2022. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  7. ^ Liberty, John (March 4, 2014). "'The Daily Show' debut: Watch Jon Stewart tell Kalamazoo native Jordan Klepper to 'go back to Crimea'". MLive.com. Archived from the original on March 8, 2014. Retrieved March 7, 2014.
  8. ^ "CLASS NOTES". Kalamazoo College. January 2009. Archived from the original on May 27, 2022. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
  9. ^ "ON THE ROAD WITH STEVEN YEUN". Interview Magazine. Archived from the original on April 1, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
  10. ^ Perlman, Jason (March 3, 2014). "'The Daily Show': Get to know new correspondent Jordan Klepper". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  11. ^ a b Snetiker, Marc (March 4, 2014). "'Daily Show' correspondent Jordan Klepper talks about new gig | Inside TV". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on March 5, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  12. ^ Snetiker, Marc (March 3, 2014). "'The Daily Show': Get to know new correspondent Jordan Klepper | PopWatch". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on March 6, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  13. ^ Sims, David (June 12, 2017). "Is Jordan Klepper the Future of Comedy Central?". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on August 29, 2017. Retrieved August 28, 2017.
  14. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (April 4, 2017). "Jordan Klepper of 'The Daily Show' Is Getting His Own Show". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 22, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  15. ^ de Moraes, Lisa (July 25, 2017). "'The Daily Show' Spinoff Starring Jordan Klepper Gets Title & Premiere Date On Comedy Central – TCA". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  16. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (June 15, 2018). "'The Opposition' To End As Comedy Central Orders New Jordan Klepper Weekly Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on September 13, 2018. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  17. ^ Megh Wright (March 26, 2019). "Jordan Klepper's New Comedy Central Show Debuts in May". Vulture. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  18. ^ "JORDAN KLEPPER DRAFTED BACK ON SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT BY..." Comedy Central Press. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  19. ^ Stern, Marlow (February 23, 2022). "Inside John Kasich and Jordan Klepper's Unlikely Marriage". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on October 31, 2022. Retrieved October 31, 2022 – via www.thedailybeast.com.
  20. ^ "Jordan Klepper | Writer, Producer, Actor". IMDb. Retrieved November 17, 2023.
  21. ^ Neophytou, Nadia (December 26, 2017). "Trevor Noah Puts on Executive Producer Hat for New Show". Eyewitness News. Archived from the original on March 24, 2016. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  22. ^ "Jordan Klepper Is Okay With The Stephen Colbert Comparisons". Uproxx. September 25, 2017. Archived from the original on December 12, 2017. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  23. ^ Van Luling, Todd (December 6, 2017). "Jordan Klepper Channels Jon Stewart In His Own Search For Sanity". HuffPost. Archived from the original on March 4, 2022. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
  24. ^ Seikaly, Andrea (March 3, 2014). "'Daily Show' Taps UCB's Jordan Klepper to Replace John Oliver". Variety. Archived from the original on March 7, 2014. Retrieved March 7, 2014.
  25. ^ "The Daily Show Guest Host Lineup". Comedy Central. Archived from the original on April 27, 2023. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  26. ^ Kilday, Gregg (January 19, 2018). "GLAAD Media Awards: The Complete List of Nominees". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2018.
  27. ^ Nordyke, Kimberly (September 12, 2022). "Emmy Awards: The Complete Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on September 12, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2023.