Jay Mohr

A hotwired presence on television and features, Jay Mohr's lengthy career as a stand-up comic translated into acting roles in films like "Jerry Maguire" (1996) and series like "Action" (Fox, 1999-2000) and "Gary Unmarried" (CBS, 2008-10), as well as numerous side ventures into radio, publishing and recording. Born Jon Ferguson Mohr in Verona, New Jersey, he began pursuing a career in stand-up comedy in the late 1980s, and soon became a staple of the club circuit and television showcases for comics. His popularity in that scene translated into acting roles on television and a two-year stint as a cast member on "Saturday Night Live" (NBC, 1975-), which, as he detailed in his 2004 memoir Gasping for Air: Two Years in the Trenches of Saturday Night Live, proved to a demoralizing and physically debilitating experience. But his brash, motormouthed stage persona eventually translated into an acting career, playing insincere young men with little to no filter in films like "Jerry Maguire" and the short-lived but critically beloved Fox comedy "Action," which cast him as a film producer clawing his way back from a costly failure. In 2003, he created and hosted the reality television series "Last Comic Standing" (NBC, 2003-2010, 2014-16) for three seasons before its abrupt cancellation, but returned to serve as consultant in subsequent iterations. By the end of the 2000s, Mohr had settled into a regular routine of character turns in features and on television, including a lengthy run as a sarcastic professor on "The Ghost Whisperer" (CBS, 2005-2010) and two years as the lead on "Gary Unmarried," about a divorcee navigating single life. He was also a regular presence on radio, both as a guest on programs like "The Jim Rome Show" and his own show, "Jay Mohr Sports," on Fox Sports Radio. He issued a second book about life as a stand-up comic, No Wonder My Parents Drank: Tales from a Stand-Up Dad, in 2010, and released a comedy album, Happy. And a Lot, which earned a Grammy nomination in 2012. That same year, he launched his own podcast network, Fake Mustache Studios, which broadcast his weekly podcast, "Mohr Stories." His comedy album generated a special for Showtime in 2015. Later that year, he appeared in the film "Road Hard" (2015), co-written and directed by his longtime friend Adam Carolla. This was followed by guest shots on the sitcoms "American Housewife" (ABC 2016-) and "The Mick" (Fox 2017-18).