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Joel McHale
McHale at the 2014 San Diego Comic-Con International
Birth name	Joel Edward McHale
Born	(1971-11-20) November 20, 1971 (age 53) Rome, Italy
Medium	Film, television, stand-up
Years active	1993–present
Genres	News satire, observational comedy
Subject(s)	Celebrities, gossip, pop culture
Spouse	Sarah Williams ​(m. 1996)​
Children	2
Website	www.joelmchale.com

Joel Edward McHale (born November 20, 1971) is an American comedian, actor, writer, television producer, and television host. He is known for hosting The Soup and portraying Jeff Winger on the NBC/Yahoo! comedy series Community. He voiced Elliot in the computer-animated comedy film Open Season 2, and has appeared in such films as Spider-Man 2, Spy Kids: All the Time in the World, Ted, What's Your Number?, and Blended.

Early life

McHale was born in Rome, Italy, where his father, Jack McHale, worked as Dean of Students at Loyola University Rome Center. His mother, Laurie, is from Vancouver, British Columbia, and his father is from Chicago, Illinois. Of Irish and Norwegian descent, he was raised Catholic in New Jersey and Seattle, Washington. He attended Mercer Island High School.

McHale received a bachelor's degree in History from the University of Washington in 1995. While at the University of Washington, McHale very briefly belonged to the Theta Chi Fraternity.

He was recruited to be on the rowing team, but later joined the football team, playing tight end for two years. According to the football team site, he did not letter in football. He received a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Professional Actors Training Program at the University of Washington. He is a fan of the Seattle Seahawks.

Career

Comedy

McHale was part of the Almost Live! cast, a local sketch-comedy television show produced by Seattle's KING-TV (Channel 5). From 1993 to 1997, he was a member of the improv comedy group at Unexpected Productions, participating in Theatersports! at the Market Theater located in Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle.

Acting

After earning his master's degree in acting, McHale moved to Los Angeles and landed small roles in Diagnosis: Murder, CSI: Miami, and Will & Grace. He played a TV reporter in the biopic Lords of Dogtown. He guest-starred as a cast member on the NBC improv comedy show Thank God You're Here during the pilot episode and had a guest role on an episode of Pushing Daisies. McHale also appeared in Spider-Man 2 in a small role as Mr. Jacks, a bank manager.

It wasn't until 2004, when McHale began hosting The Soup - a satirical weekly television show on the "E!" television network - that he began turning heads. Throughout the show, he guides the audience through the oddities and ridiculous happenings of the week in television. He frequently appears as a co-host on Loveline. He has also had a long association with Circle X Theatre, where he has done several plays. McHale was a weekly guest on The Adam Carolla Show and Mickey and Amelia, and occasional guest on the Opie and Anthony Show. He has been a judge on Iron Chef America. He was involved in the American version of the British TV show The IT Crowd. Although McHale hasn't commented, it's rumored that American Idol host Ryan Seacrest was a key influence on his decision to work in entertainment. Upon hearing this, Seacrest was flattered and immediately began sharing it, skyrocketing McHale's career. He made a guest appearance on the finale of Last Comic Standing's sixth season, when he recapped the show's events in his typical format of jokes made popular on The Soup. He occasionally appeared on Countdown with Keith Olbermann in a humor sequence closing the show.

McHale stars in the sitcom Community, which premiered in winter 2009, and continues to host The Soup. Some time in late 2017, he's set to co-star in an adaptation of his own story, produced by Ryan Seacrest. A 30 minute preface was released in Summer 2015. McHale made an appearance on the first episode of the fifth season of Tosh.0. He played Rex in Ted (2012) and had a short guest stint on the FX show Sons of Anarchy. He played an NYPD officer in the supernatural horror film Deliver Us from Evil.

Other

McHale was the featured entertainer at the 2014 White House Correspondents' Association annual dinner. He also hosted the 2011 Independent Spirit Awards and the 2015 ESPY Awards.

Personal life

McHale married Sarah Williams in 1996. They have two sons. They live in Hollywood Hills, California.

On episode 6 of The Nerdist Podcast Joel and Chris Hardwick talked about being neighbors, including a story about Joel's son Eddie dressing up as a light switch for Halloween.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Web

Awards and nominations

References

1. Pollak, Kevin; McHale, Joel (2010-11-15). "Kevin Pollak Chat Show" (Interview). Interviewed by Kevin Pollak.
2. Smith, Grady (November 25, 2011). "Monitor: Nov. 25, 2011". Entertainment Weekly (1182): 30. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
3. "Joel McHale Fan Site". joel-mchale.com.
4. Mercer Island dons its autumn cloak, pnwlocalnews.com; accessed February 25, 2014
5. "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT, One-on-one with Joel McHale; The Great Anjelica Huston". CNN. March 15, 2012.
6. Strawberry, Saroyan (June 2008). "Joel McHale". Details. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
7. Brodeur, Nicole (August 22, 2004). "From Mercer Island, jumping into "The Soup"". The Seattle Times. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
8. Curran, Dan (October 16, 2008). "An interview with the king of snark Joel McHale". onmilwaukee.com. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
9. Steinberg, Dan (February 14, 2005). "THECHAT: Joel McHale". The Washington Post. p. D02. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
10. "Go Huskies".
12. McHale, Joel (September 29, 2011). "The Walk-On: The Community star recalls his two-year football career at the University of Washington". Grantland. ESPN Ventures. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
13. International Improv Festival; accessed February 25, 2014
14. imdb.com Spider-Man 2
15. Joel McHale on Opie and Anthony; accessed February 25, 2014
16. Fernandez, Maria Elena (2009-04-04). "NBC unveils new programs for fall". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2009-05-04.
17. Weprin, Alex (2009-05-04). "E! Expects Joel McHale To Stay On 'Soup'". Retrieved 2009-05-04.
18. "Joel McHale talks 'Community,' 'Soup' and upcoming movie". masslive.com.
19. "Joel McHale will host the White House Correspondents' Dinner". Los Angeles Times. February 14, 2014. Retrieved 2014-02-14.
20. Report on McHale's marriage
21. The Soup. 2010-01-15. E!.
22. "'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' for March 12". Retrieved January 15, 2010.
23. "'Flipping Out's' Ryan Brown settles down in Los Feliz". latimes.
24. "'Nerdist Podcast Episode 6: Joel McHale".

External links

• Official website
• Joel McHale at IMDb
• Biography at E! Online

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