Andy Lassner (born December 30, 1966) is an American television producer. He was the executive producer of ''

The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' is an American first-run syndicated talk show that was hosted by Ellen DeGeneres. The show ran for nineteen seasons from September 8, 2003, to May 26, 2022, in which it broadcast 3,339 episodes. It was produced by ...

'' from its inception in 2003 to the final episode in 2022. Lassner was featured in many segments in the show. His career as a producer began in the mid 1990s, including ''

The Jane Whitney Show ''The Jane Whitney Show'' is an American talk show that was hosted by Jane Whitney. The show ran for two seasons from March 30, 1992, to 1994. It was placed in first-run syndication until its cancelation in January 1994; however, NBC picked up ...

'', ''

The Richard Bey Show ''The Richard Bey Show'' is a syndicated American talk show hosted by Richard Bey which aired from September 28, 1992 (although the show originally started off as a combination of ''People are Talking'' 982 - 1989 an NBC/ Chris-Craft/Fox stati ...

'', ''The List'', and ''

The Rosie O'Donnell Show ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show'' is an American daytime variety show, variety television talk show created, hosted, and produced by actress and comedian Rosie O'Donnell. It premiered on June 10, 1996, and concluded after six seasons on June 27, 200 ...

''. Lassner has won 18

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NA ...

s. He is currently the executive producer of ''

The Jennifer Hudson Show ''The Jennifer Hudson Show'' is an American syndicated daytime talk show. Hosted by singer and actress Jennifer Hudson, the NAACP Image Award winning series premiered on September 12, 2022. Production In November 2021, ''Deadline'' reported t ...

''.

Early life

Andy Lassner was born to American

Orthodox Jew Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tran ...

ish parents in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

, Colombia. His mother, Danièle G. Lassner, was a foreign language expert. His father, Jules Lassner, was a captain in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

who was born in New York City to

Ukrainian Jew The history of the Jews in Ukraine dates back over a thousand years; Jews, Jewish communities have existed in the modern territory of Ukraine from the time of the Kievan Rus' (late 9th to mid-13th century). Important Jewish religious and cultura ...

ish parents. His parents moved to Bogotá after their marriage for his father's job at

Seagram The Seagram Company Ltd. (which trade name, traded as Seagram's) was a Canadian multinational beverage and during the last few years of its existence, entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate formerly headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. ...

. They lived there for nine years during which they founded a

Talmud Torah Talmud Torah (, lit. 'Study of the Torah') schools were created in the Jewish world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic, as a form of religious school for boys of modest backgrounds, where they were given an elementary education in Hebrew language, H ...

Hebrew school at the local ''

shtiebel A shtiebel (, pl. ''shtibelekh'') is a place used for communal Jewish prayer. In contrast to a formal synagogue, a shtiebel is far smaller and approached more casually. It is typically as small as a room in a private home or a place of business ...

'', before returning to New York where they raised their two sons.

Career

Lassner started his career in the mid-1990s as a line producer for ''

''. In the boom of talk shows in the 1990s, he later produced ''

'' as well as '' The Carnie Wilson Show''. In 2001, Lassner was the co-executive producer of ''The List''. He began working at ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show'' in 2002. Andy began working at ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' in 2003. He was the main role in the segment ''Average Andy'' where he plays an average person contrasting with experts in their fields. Another recurring segment featured host

Ellen DeGeneres Ellen Lee DeGeneres ( ; born January 26, 1958) is an American former comedian, actress, television host, writer, and producer. She began her career in stand-up comedy in the early 1980s, gaining national attention with a 1986 appearance on '' ...

sending Lassner with a celebrity to haunted houses every Halloween; this is due to him being easily frightened. He also served as an executive producer on ''

Ellen's Game of Games ''Ellen's Game of Games'', also known as ''Game of Games'' and stylized as ellen's GAME OF GAMES, is an American television game show that aired on NBC. In March 2017, NBC ordered six (later eight) hour-long episodes of the series. Ellen DeGenere ...

'' and '' Family Game Fight!''.

Personal life

Lassner is married to Lorie and has three children: a daughter and twin sons who were born in 2006. The family resides in Los Angeles. Lassner, a New Yorker, was previously a

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

fan, but is now a supporter of the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The Kings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. ...

, where he has season tickets. He is friends with the team's captain

Anže Kopitar Anže Kopitar (, born 24 August 1987) is a Slovenian professional ice hockey centre and captain of the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). The 11th overall pick in the 2005 NHL entry draft, Kopitar became the first Slovene ...

, hosting him on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' to raise donations for

Breast cancer awareness month Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM), also referred to in the United States as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM), is an annual international health campaign organized by major breast cancer charities every October to increase aware ...

. He supports

gay rights in the US ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

. In 2017, Lassner was critical of Donald Trump's "America First" policy. Lassner has struggled with

alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...

and

drug addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

in his past. He became

sober Sober usually refers to sobriety, the state of not having any measurable levels or effects from alcohol or drugs. Sober may also refer to: Music * Sôber, Spanish rock band Songs * "Sober" (Bad Wolves song), from the 2019 album ''Nation'' * " ...

for six years, until, while working on ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show'', he took home a case of free

Listerine Listerine (, ) is an American brand of antiseptic mouthwash that is promoted with the slogan "Kills germs that cause bad breath". Named after Joseph Lister, who pioneered antiseptic surgery at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary in United Kingdom, L ...

(which has a high alcohol content) and began drinking it to get drunk. He soon relapsed into other forms of addiction. He entered rehab a number of times in 1999 and has been clean ever since.

Awards

Lassner has won 18

s for ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lassner, Andy Living people 1966 births American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent Colombian people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent Colombian people of American descent Daytime Emmy Award winners Television producers from California Television producers from New York City Mass media people from Bogotá Colombian Jews Colombian television producers