Jeff Dunham

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Jeff Dunham and his character Achmed the dead terrorist

Jeff Dunham (born April 18, 1962 in Dallas , Texas ) is an American ventriloquist and stand-up comedian , who is best known for his various hand puppets made by himself, which he gives a voice.

His dolls include a woozle called Peanut , a grouchy old man called Walter , a dead terrorist called Achmed , Jeff's African-American manager Sweet Daddy Dee , a superhero called Melvin , a southerner called Bubba J. with a taste for beer and NASCAR and José Jalapeño - a talking chilli on a stick. In his performances, Dunham likes to play the morally perfect human being towards his puppets, who normally do not behave particularly well.

Life and Publications

Dunham began performing in front of audiences at a young age, e.g. B. at school, in church and as an employee at Six Flags . While still in school, he drew attention to himself by performing at banquets for local celebrities by letting the dolls say things that would have been too risky for himself.

Dunham made his first television appearance as a student in a Datsun commercial. During this time he developed such enthusiasm for his craft that he and one of his dolls wrote articles in the school newspaper and his characters could even be found on the covers of yearbooks. During his studies, he flew around the country on the weekends to give private presentations to wealthy customers, for example at General Electric , whose chairman Jack Welch he liked to target in his program. After graduating from Baylor University in 1986, Dunham moved to Los Angeles without ever starting real work.

On July 18, 2003, Dunham had his first solo appearance on the television show Comedy Central Presents . During his half-hour appearance he presented his dolls José Jalapeño, Walter, Peanut and a first version of Melvin the superhero to the audience. The performance was successful, but Comedy Central initially refused to provide more airtime. With the support of his manager Judi Brown-Marmel and as part of a new broadcasting concept, Dunham was allowed to record the one-hour special Jeff Dunham: Arguing with myself in Santa Ana in 2006 (Peanut insists that the city is called “Sa-Nata-A-Na”). The broadcast reached an audience of millions and made Dunham famous for good. His second special, Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity , was recorded a year later at the Warner Theater in Washington and released on DVD that same year. The Christmas Edition Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special from Milwaukee was followed on the television screen in their broadcasting of 6.6 million people in 2008 and gave Comedy Central so that a record rate.

In addition to his appearances, Dunham released his first music CD Don't Come Home for Christmas in 2005 , which contains original Christmas songs as well as Jingle Bombs , a parody of Jingle Bells by Achmed, the dead terrorist. All songs except Jingle Bombs were written and accompanied by Brian Haner . Haner appeared noticeably for the first time in the Very Special Christmas Special .

In March 2009, Dunham signed an extensive deal with Comedy Central. This included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer product partnership, a 60-city tour starting in September 2010 and a commission for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show , which premiered on October 22, 2009. The series was the most-watched premiere show in Comedy Central history.

Jeff Dunham was married from 1990 to 2009. From this marriage he has three daughters. He has been married for the second time since October 12, 2012.

The dolls

Walter

Walter is an old, grouchy man who has been married since 1960. He is a Vietnam War veteran and has a very sarcastic view of the world today. He doesn't really like his wife. A part of every gig with Walter is answering questions from the audience. The questions are either asked directly by the audience or, as on the DVD Arguing with myself, written down by the audience beforehand and answered spontaneously by Walter during the performance. Walter is happy to announce a clear “I don't give a damn!” (I don't care!).

Peanut

Peanut is a woozle , a fictional character who also appears in Winnie the Pooh ; the name is based on "Wiesel" (English weazle ). Peanut has a tiny tuft of green hair on his head and only one shoe he found. He comes from Micronesia ; in reality it was made in Salem, Virginia . Peanut is the only doll that cannot move the eye area, which restricts facial expressions somewhat, but gives more freedom of movement. His trademark is sweeping through the tuft of hair with his left hand and saying "Noooooo!" Peanut always claims that Jeff Dunham would be pronounced "Jeff-afa Dun-Ham". The word he probably uses the most is "freaking". As with Walter, the interaction with the audience is very high.

José Jalapeño

José Jalapeño is a chilli pepper on a stick that apparently comes from Mexico. He himself claims, however, that he is Cuban and from Florida. José is more of the passive part in the stage show, who only answers questions and comments on everything with an “on a stick!” (On a stick). In addition to Jeff himself, José is the preferred target for Peanut.

Achmed, the dead terrorist

Achmed is a skeletonized suicide bomber who describes himself in the appearances in this way: "I am a suicide bomber!". He was never able to do his job because he died when he was talking on his cell phone at a gas station and the gas station exploded. He was killed by his own bomb for setting the timer incorrectly. Whenever someone makes a joke at his expense, he replies with “Silence - I kill you!” (“Silence - I will kill you!”). Achmed also has a son who was also killed in the incident at the gas station. He accompanied Achmed on the "Take your Daughters and Sons to Work Day".

Melvin, the superhero

Melvin is a superhero whose most outstanding quality is his nose. His only superpower is the X-ray vision, with which he can see through clothing: “I love looking at boobies!” (I like to look at breasts!). However, he cannot see through silicone. His costume comes from eBay, but this should remain a secret: "that is a superhero secret". Like every superhero, he also has weak points, according to his own statements, these are muffins and pornography . He can fly, but only as far as Jeff Dunham can throw him. Melvin is married. His wife also claims that she has a superpower, and that she gets angry once a month. Not even Melvin can stop them during this time. He also has a super powered dog, but actually he just borrowed Jeff's Chihuahua.

Bubba J.

Bubba J. is a Nascar fan. He only has two hobbies: Nascar and drinking beer, and he does not prefer any brand: "What is your favorite beer?" - "An open one." The J. stands for " Junior " - he has a brother whose first name is also "Junior" is, his name is "Junior J." He met his wife at a family reunification. They got married at Wal-Mart because you can exchange gifts that way. He also claims to have been kidnapped by aliens.

Sweet Daddy D.

Sweet Daddy D. is a successful African-American and the "new" manager of Jeff Dunham. He describes himself as a pimp: " P layer in a M anagement P osition" = Pimp. Jeff Dunham is what he calls a whore: “You're the hoe.” His trademarks are the smacking pulling up of the upper lip and the comment: “That is funny shit!” (That's pretty funny!).

The Jeff Dunham Show

From October 22nd to December 10th, 2009 Comedy Central ran the first and so far only season of The Jeff Dunham Show (Thursdays, pilot + 6 episodes). The show is a mixture of stand-up comedy and clips that send Dunham's puppets into real life, so to speak: Dunham and Walter were in the first show with a psychiatrist and Bubba J. learned to shoot at a shooting range. Since September 12, 2010, the series can also be seen in the German version of Comedy Central.

Discography

  • 2006: Arguing With Myself, CD and DVD
  • 2007: Spark of Insanity, CD and DVD
  • 2008: Don't Come Home for Christmas, CD
  • 2009: The Jeff Dunham Collection, DVD (USA and UK only )
  • 2011: Controlled Chaos, CD and DVD
  • 2012: Minding the Monsters, CD and DVD
  • 2013: Identity Crisis
  • 2014: All over the map
  • 2015: Unhinged in Hollywood

Filmography (selection)

bibliography

  • 2010: All By My Selves

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ "The Jeff Dunham Show Not Returning for Second Season" TVGuide.com; December 29, 2009
  2. ↑ Belinda Luscombe: The Puppet Master ; in: Time , June 8, 2009 issue.
  3. ↑ Jeff Dunham: "Marriage Video" ; on YouTube , accessed October 19, 2013.
personal data
SURNAME Dunham, Jeff
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American ventriloquist and stand-up comedian
DATE OF BIRTH April 18, 1962
PLACE OF BIRTH Dallas