Bill Maher

Biography:

William Maher was born in New York City to William Aloysius Maher Jr., a network news editor and radio announcer, and Julie Maher (née Berman), a nurse. He was raised in his Irish-American father’s Roman Catholic faith, unaware until his early teens that his mother, from a Hungarian Jewish background, was Jewish. At age thirteen, due to his father’s disagreement with the Catholic Church’s stance on birth control, Maher and his sister stopped attending Mass.

He grew up in River Vale, New Jersey, graduating from Pascack Hills High School in Montvale in 1974. Maher then attended Cornell University, double-majoring in English and history, and graduated in 1978. He has credited selling marijuana during college as a way to support himself and start his career in comedy.

Maher began performing as a comedian and actor in 1979 as host of the New York City comedy club Catch a Rising Star. By 1982, he appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and Late Night with David Letterman. His early television appearances included roles in Sara (1985), Max Headroom (1987), Murder, She Wrote (1989, 1990), and Charlie Hoover (1991), with his film debut in D.C. Cab (1983), followed by Ratboy (1986), House II: The Second Story (1987), Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death (1988), Newhart (1988), Midnight Hour (1990), and Pizza Man (1991).

In 1993, Maher became the host of Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher, a late-night political talk show that aired on Comedy Central until 1997 and on ABC until 2002. The show featured a monologue by Maher followed by discussions with four guests from diverse backgrounds, including actors, authors, political commentators, and occasionally news figures. Jerry Seinfeld praised the show for its interactive format reminiscent of 1950s and ’60s talk shows.

Politically Incorrect won multiple awards, including an Emmy for Outstanding Technical Direction, two CableACE awards, and a Genesis Award. Maher himself received numerous nominations for his roles as producer, writer, and host, including ten Emmy nominations. In 2002, ABC canceled the show after Maher’s controversial remark agreeing with guest Dinesh D’Souza that the 9/11 terrorists were not cowardly, which led to advertiser withdrawals and widespread criticism. Maher clarified that his comments were not anti-military. Earlier controversies included comparing his dogs to mentally disabled children, for which he publicly apologized.

After Politically Incorrect, Maher launched Real Time with Bill Maher in 2003 on HBO, serving as host, co-producer, and co-writer. The weekly hour-long show features a comedic monologue, one-on-one guest interviews, and roundtable discussions with pundits, authors, activists, actors, politicians, and journalists. Maher prefers informed guests over random celebrities. Real Time has received critical acclaim, including multiple Emmy and Writers Guild nominations, and Maher holds the record for the most Emmy nominations without a win.

Maher is a frequent commentator on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, and HLN, appearing on shows such as The Situation Room, Hardball, The Rachel Maddow Show, and Countdown with Keith Olbermann. He has written forewords for books, hosted Larry King Live, and co-emceed its final show with Ryan Seacrest in 2010.

In 2004, Maher performed as Satan in Hollywood Hell House, a parody of Christian hell houses, alongside a rotating cast of over 160 celebrities. In 2008, he co-created the documentary Religulous, which satirized religious extremism worldwide.

In 2013, Maher became an executive producer for HBO’s Vice and made headlines by offering $5 million to charity if Donald Trump could produce his birth certificate, in response to Trump’s previous challenge to Barack Obama. Trump later withdrew a lawsuit over the offer.

On March 21, 2022, Maher launched the podcast Club Random, hosting interviews with celebrities including Quentin Tarantino, Jimmy Kimmel, and Mike Tyson. In 2024, he chose not to release a Kanye West interview due to the rapper’s antisemitic remarks and announced plans to start a podcast network, Club Random Studios, with Chris Casey and Chuck LaBella. In May 2024, he revealed on the podcast that he plans to retire from stand-up comedy after this year.