Barry Rothbart

{{short description|American comedian, actor and writer (born 1983)}}

{{Infobox person

|name = Barry Rothbart

|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1983|5|25}}

|birth_place = Forest Hills, New York, US

|image = Barryrothbartwiki.jpg

|caption = Rothbart backstage at comedy show

|occupation = {{flatlist|

Comedian
actor
writer}}

|website = {{URL|www.barryrothbart.com}}

}}

Barry Rothbart (born May 25, 1983{{citation needed|date=January 2015}}) is an American comedian, actor and writer. He currently splits his time between Los Angeles and New York City. He was named one of Variety magazine's "10 Comics to Watch" in 2013.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2013/film/features/how-barry-rothbarts-ad-lib-skills-impressed-scorsese-1200564542/|title=How Barry Rothbart's Ad Lib Skills Impressed Martin Scorsese|work=Variety|first=Iain|last=Blair|date=July 17, 2013}} He played the role of Peter Deblasio in 2013's The Wolf of Wall Street , played Kevin on ABC's Downward Dog and currently appears on Showtime's Kidding.

Early life

Rothbart was born in Forest Hills in Queens, New York.{{cite web|title=BA #240: Barry Rothbart|url=http://boxangeles.com/2018/08/13/ba-240-barry-rothbart/|website=the Box Angeles podcast|date=August 13, 2018}} He is Jewish.{{cite tweet|number=62570851157024768|user=barryrothbart|title=If you feel sort of Jewish, do you have to say Jewish-ish? Cause that's how I feel. |date=April 25, 2011}}

Rothbart's father was fired from his job for embezzling money, and later bet his life savings on the Red Sox, losing it all in the 1986 World Series, at which his point his mother left his father. As a result, Rothbart said on This Is Not Happening with Ari Shaffir that his father was a bookie for the Gambino Crime Family but claimed to be a music producer.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0zDGie5jpo|title=This Is Not Happening - Barry Rothbart - Going to Atlantic City with Papa - Uncensored|last=Comedy Central|date=February 13, 2015|publisher=|via=YouTube}} Rothbart would late do random jobs for his father's illegal sports betting office.

Rothbart briefly attended University of Massachusetts Lowell and started doing stand up there. He later transferred to Pace University to study business, but left there after a year to focus on film at Hofstra University. Rothbart then took classes at Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, before focusing on stand-up. After seven years performing around New York City, he decided to move to Los Angeles.

Career

Rothbart started out in commercials and found some early success there.

In 2011, Rothbart made his stand up television debut on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.{{cite web|url=http://splitsider.com/2013/08/talking-to-barry-rothbart/|title=Talking to Barry Rothbart about Leno|work=Splitsider|first=Phil|last=Davidson|date=August 27, 2013|accessdate=June 28, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140504004930/http://splitsider.com/2013/08/talking-to-barry-rothbart/|archive-date=May 4, 2014|url-status=dead}} In 2013, he was named one of the "Top Ten Comics to Watch" by Variety magazine.{{cite web|url=http://www.barryrothbart.com |title=Barry Rothbart |publisher=Barry Rothbart |accessdate=September 5, 2013}}

In 2012, Rothbart landed a role on the revival of Punk'd but was fired after four episodes as a result of his management team leaking he had landed the role.

In 2013 he landed the role of Peter Deblasio in Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street. In June 2014, a show he wrote, 300 Sunnyside, was picked up by Comedy Central to air on their fall schedule of that year.{{cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/comedy-central-renews-inside-amy-710369 |title=Comedy Central Renews 'Inside Amy Schumer,' Orders Two Series |work=The Hollywood Reporter|first=Lesley|last=Goldberg|date=June 9, 2014|accessdate=June 28, 2014}} Later that year, he released an album, Streets of Fire, on AST Records.{{cite web|url=http://splitsider.com/2014/12/keeping-busy-with-barry-rothbart/|title=Keeping Busy with Barry Rothbart|work=Splitsider|first=Phil|last=Davidson|date=December 1, 2014|access-date=January 23, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150120003953/http://splitsider.com/2014/12/keeping-busy-with-barry-rothbart/|archive-date=January 20, 2015|url-status=dead}} He later played Kevin in the new ABC comedy Downward Dog.

Podcasts

Rothbart has hosted or been featured in a number of podcasts. He hosted Saving The World with Barry and Lucas,{{Cite web|url=https://starburns.audio/podcasts/saving-the-world/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180903124354/https://starburns.audio/podcasts/saving-the-world/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=September 3, 2018|title=Saving the World with Barry and Lucas|website=Starburns Audio|access-date=2019-02-07}} a free-flowing conversation about people who want to save the world. He was a guest on the Shoot This Now Podcast where he tells a story of being a videographer at a nudist colony for gay men over fifty.{{Cite web|url=https://www.thewrap.com/barry-rothbart-gay-nudist-colony-shoot-this-now-podcast-hot-mic/|title=Barry Rothbart Explains His Job at a Gay Nudist Colony (Shoot This Now Podcast)|date=2018-01-27|website=TheWrap|language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-07}}