Mohammed Amer

Not to be confused with Mohamed Amer.
Mohammed Amer

Mo Amer at a comedy show in Ramallah, Palestine in 2016
Pseudonym Mo Amer, Mohammed Najjar
Born (1981-07-24) July 24, 1981
Kuwait
Medium Stand-up, improvisational comedy, Character comedy, television, film,
Nationality American
Years active 1999–present
Genres Observational comedy, Satire, Self-deprecation, Storytelling
Subject(s) Satire, Political satire, Racism, American immigration, Geopolitics, Refugees, Arab culture, pop culture, Family, Marriage,
Influences Richard Pryor, Chris Rock, George Carlin, Bill Cosby, Dave Chappelle, Bill Hicks
Website www.moamer.com

Mohammed "Mo" Amer (Arabic: محمد عامر‎‎; born July 24, 1981) is an American stand-up comedian and writer of Palestinian descent. He is best known as one third of comedy trio Allah Made Me Funny.

Early life

Amer is of Palestinian descent, and the youngest of six children.[1] Amer's father worked for a telecommunications engineer for the Kuwaiti Oil Co.[2] In October 1990, at the age of nine, Amer, his sister, Haifa, his brother, Amer, and mother fled his birth country of Kuwait during the Gulf War. They emigrated to the United States and settled in Houston.[3][4]

Two years later his father, a telecoms engineer, joined them in the United States. He attended private school at Piney Point Elementary while his older brothers studied overseas.[3][4] His brother Omer is a pilot, another brother Amer (who later changed the family name to Najjar), has a PhD in biochemistry.[5] In 1995, when Amer was 14 years old his father died.[3]

Career

Amer's elder brother took him to see Bill Cosby perform at the Houston Astrodome when he was 10 years old.[2] At the age of 14, Amer discovered stand-up comedy at a Texas rodeo.[6][7]

After the death of his father, Amer started playing truant and taking unsanctioned trips to Mexico with his friends.[2] An English teacher made a deal with Amer that if he performed a monologue from William Shakespeare in front of her class, she would reinstate his grade before his truancy began and allow him to try comedy in front of the class every Friday. Amer graduated and focused on his passion.[2] He then participated in and had leading roles in high school theatre, and started performing stand-up comedy[8][9] by impersonating family members[10] and developed it over a few years in the comedy club scene.[11] Amer performed at Houston's comedy clubs as often as possible to refine his act while working a day job at a flag manufacturing company owned by a family friend.[2]

In June 1999,[4] Amer entered Houston's Funniest Person Contest and made the finals. There another comedian directed him to The Comedy Showcase as the best guided comedy room. The owner of The Comedy Showcase, Danny Martinez, mentored and taught him about stand-up.[12] At the age of 19, he was being flown out to play to US troops stationed abroad.[3] becoming the first and only Arab-American refugee comic to perform for US and coalition troops overseas.[13]

Amer has performed tours in over 27 countries on five continents, including Germany, Italy, Sicily, Japan, Korea and Bahrain, as well as with other Muslim comedians Preacher Moss and Azhar Usman in the Allah Made Me Funny comedy tour since 2006.[14]

In 2004, he performed at The Comedy Festival in Las Vegas, Nevada.[8][10]

In April 2007, he performed at the Islamic Relief Evening of Inspiration event[15] at the Royal Albert Hall organised by Islamic Relief.[16]

In July 2008, he performed at the Islam Expo in Olympia, London.[17] In October 2008, he performed at the Global Peace and Unity Event in the ExCeL Exhibition Centre in London organised by Islam Channel.[11][18]

As well as with Allah Made Me Funny, he has performed at sold-out shows worldwide, including Royal Albert Hall and Hammersmith Apollo (London), Acer Arena (Sydney), Nelson Mandela Theatre (Johannesburg), Shrine Auditorium (Los Angeles), as well as the Malmö Arts Festival (Sweden), the Amman Stand-up Comedy Festival (Jordan), and the World's Funniest Island Festival (Australia).[13]

Amer has been interviewed on television and radio, including on NPR, BBC, and CNN.[13] He has appeared on television, starred in an independent films, and has been interviewed by over 100 major world media outlets, including The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and The Guardian. He was also featured on Al-Bernameg with Bassem Youssef (The Daily Show of Egypt) as the only Arab-American comedian to appear on the show.[19]

In June 2013, Amer featured on an interfaith special, What's So Funny About Religion?, which was broadcast on the CBS Television Network.[20]

He developed on his first solo feature-length documentary-comedy special, working with long-time standup collaborator Azhar Usman, co-produced by through their jointly owned production entity, Kalijaga Media LLC.[13][19][21] On May 3, 2015, Amer recorded his one-hour special, Legally Homeless, at the Warner Theatre[2] presented by Live Nation Comedy.[22] He became the first Arab-American to star in his own nationally televised one-hour stand-up special.[6][7][23] The show's title is derived from the fact that Amer has traveled to more than 20 countries without a passport, and straddled multiple cultures while growing up in the U.S. Legally Homeless includes appearances by Azhar Usman, Bassem Youssef, Hasan Minhaj, Ramy Youssef, and independent rapper Brother Ali.[21]

From August 10 to 13 2015, Amer joined Bob Alper and Ahmed Ahmed for four nights of comedy in Ramallah, West Bank.[24]

He also co-written an original feature screenplay with award-winning filmmaker Iman Zawahry, and longtime stand-up collaborator Azhar Usman.[13][19]

In 2015, Amer began touring with and opening for Dave Chappelle regularly across the US.[25]

Comedy style

Amer's work promotes art and understanding between the diverse cultures of the world, and his ethnic and family background situates him to speak about the problems of religion, terror, and the politics of our age—through the lens of personal stories about his family and himself.[13] He talks about his Palestinian background,[26] family histories and growing up American.[27]

Personal life

Amer lives in Los Angeles with his Mexican American wife, and step-daughter.[28]

In 2009, Amer became a U.S. citizen which enabled him to travel to Amman, Jordan and visit family he had not seen for almost 20 years.[4] He also returned to Kuwait and Baghdad for the first time since his family fled.[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Donadoni, Serena (2008). "Comedy With a Mission". Dispatches. The Cinema Girl. Retrieved September 25, 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Althoff, Eric (April 29, 2015). "Arab-American comedian breaks down stereotypes". The Washington Times. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Khan, Yasmeen (March 27, 2009). "Mo Amer: an Arab-American standup in Texas". The Guardian. Retrieved January 1, 2013.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Bahmani, Al (December 31, 2012). "Mo Amer: Comic Ambassador". Comedy Scene in Houston. Houston. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  5. ↑ Judell, Brandon (October 4, 2008). "Getting Jocular with Muslims". Spiritual Practice. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  6. 1 2 Dahler, Don; Zingaro, Dina; Banerji, Suvro (August 1, 2015). "Arab-American comedian breaks down stereotypes". CBS News. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Arab-American comedian breaks down stereotypes". Observer Chronicle. August 2, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  8. 1 2 "Biography". Legally Homeless :: Trials of a Refugee. Retrieved September 9, 2011.
  9. ↑ "Comedian-Mo-Amer". Neon Entertainment. Retrieved January 1, 2013.
  10. 1 2 "Mo Amer". Rooftop Comedy. Retrieved January 1, 2013.
  11. 1 2 "Performers". Global Peace and Unity Event 2008. October 2008. Retrieved September 28, 2011. Mo Amer
  12. ↑ "Mo Amer". Campus Activities Magazine. April 2012. Retrieved January 1, 2012.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Biography". MuslimFest. Retrieved January 1, 2013.
  14. ↑ "Performers". Allah Made Me Funny. Retrieved August 28, 2011. Mo Amer
  15. ↑ "Evening of Inspiration 2007 Flyer". Islamic Relief. February 26, 2007. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  16. ↑ "News Concert Schedule 2006–07". : : Awakening Entertainment: :. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  17. ↑ "Attractions – IslamExpo – 11–14 July 2008 – Olympia, London". IslamExpo. July 2007. Retrieved April 1, 2013. Mo Amer
  18. ↑ "Biography". Mo Amer's Official Website. Retrieved August 28, 2011.
  19. 1 2 3 "MOCAfest Alumni Spotlight: Comedian Mo Amer". Aquila Style. July 21, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  20. ↑ "CBS Airs What's So Funny About Religion?". Muslim Entertainment. July 1, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  21. 1 2 "Palestinian-American Comic Mo Amer to Bring LEGALLY HOMELESS to D.C., 5/3". Broadway World. April 3, 2015. p. 2. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  22. ↑ "Palestinian-American Comic Mo Amer to Bring LEGALLY HOMELESS to D.C., 5/3". Broadway World. April 3, 2015. p. 1. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  23. ↑ "US Comedian: Prophet Had Great Sense of Humor". OnIslam. August 2, 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-10-10. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  24. ↑ Johnson, Richard (July 24, 2015). "Jews and Arabs laugh together". Page Six. New York. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  25. ↑ "Review: Dave Chappelle @ Palace Theatre, 10/4/15". Arts Talk. Retrieved 2016-02-03.
  26. ↑ Brussat, Frederic; Brussat, Mary Ann. "Film Review: Allah Made Me Funny: Live in Concert". Spiritual Practice. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  27. ↑ Fry, Ted (October 3, 2008). ""Allah Made Me Funny": Stand-ups riff on being Muslim in America". The Seattle Times. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  28. ↑ "Mohammed "Mo" Amer @ Laff spot". Mohammed Amer. March 25, 2010. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
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