Anna Daniels
Inaugurated in 2003, the NBC talent competition Last Comic Standing has given the spotlight to a lot of very funny people over the years. The series has fielded a total of nine seasons, with a four-year hiatus between 2010 and 2014, and among the comedians to find stardom as a result of their appearances on the show are Amy Schumer, Tig Notaro, Ralphie May, Gabriel Iglesias, and Nikki Glaser. Only one woman has ever won the competition, though, and that’s Shlesinger, who in 2008 dispatched such formidable competitors as Jeff Dye, Sean Cullen, and Jim Tavare to take home the season 6 crown.
Only 25 at the time, Shlesinger was also the youngest comic to ever win the competition, and she has since confirmed that, while she was struggling to find her place in stand-up comedy before the win, her career took off like a rocket in the aftermath. Speaking with Parade in 2016, Shlesinger said, “It’s the only part of my Hollywood story that reads like a Hollywood story — because I quit [my day job] very soon after I got on Last Comic Standing, and then I won, and the rest is history.”
Shlesinger parlayed her big win into a number of gigs, such as hosting the syndicated reality dating series Excused and appearing in the 2013 feature Paradise, the directorial debut of screenwriter Diablo Cody. Her profile as a comic had also been substantially raised by her victory and, if you’ve streamed any comedy specials in the last several years, you’ve probably seen her doing what she does best.
Written by: Looper
