Brian Dunkleman (born September 25, 1971) is an American
comedian
A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...
, actor, and
television personality
Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group due to the attention given to them by mass media. The word is also used to refer to famous individuals. A person may attain celebrity status by having great w ...
. He is best known as being co-host with
Ryan Seacrest
Ryan John Seacrest (born December 24, 1974) is an American television presenter and producer. Seacrest is the host of '' Wheel of Fortune'', having hosted since replacing long-time host Pat Sajak in September 2024. Seacrest co-hosted and ser ...
on the
first season of ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...
'', in 2002.
Career
''American Idol''
In 2002, Dunkleman appeared as the co-host with
Ryan Seacrest
Ryan John Seacrest (born December 24, 1974) is an American television presenter and producer. Seacrest is the host of '' Wheel of Fortune'', having hosted since replacing long-time host Pat Sajak in September 2024. Seacrest co-hosted and ser ...
during the
first season of ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...
.'' After the season ended, it was reported that Dunkleman had quit from co-hosting. Various news outlets later on said that he "had his career completely destroyed" for doing so, before it became enormously popular and made Seacrest very wealthy. However, one journalist believes that Dunkleman would have been fired had he not quit earlier, a fact numerous ''Idol'' staffers would eventually admit: Dunkleman had submitted his resignation shortly before news of his firing could reach him.
[Dunkleman, Brian (July 1, 2016)]
Free at last, part two
. ''Ellicottville Times''. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
During his 2008 appearance on the sixth season of the reality television weight loss show ''
Celebrity Fit Club'' on which he lost 15 pounds, and won the grand prize with his team, he spoke about his reasons for leaving ''American Idol'' following its first season. He stated his departure was due to the terrible way they treated the young contestants on the show, staging the fights between the judges and reshooting contestants with producer-provided glycerin tears in their eyes. He went on to say that leaving the show was a mistake. However,
Ian K. Smith, one of the doctors on the panel, opined that he made the right decision.
In appearances on ''
The Howard Stern Show
''The Howard Stern Show'' is an American radio show hosted by Howard Stern that gained wide recognition when it was radio syndication, nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from WINS-FM, WXRK in New York City, between 1986 and 2005. The sho ...
'', he had insisted that he intended to leave ''Idol'' to pursue a career in stand-up comedy and acting, but in 2008, Dunkleman admitted to Stern that he believed leaving the show was a mistake. Dunkleman conceded that he experienced several months of depression, and also still harbored resentment against current show host
Ryan Seacrest
Ryan John Seacrest (born December 24, 1974) is an American television presenter and producer. Seacrest is the host of '' Wheel of Fortune'', having hosted since replacing long-time host Pat Sajak in September 2024. Seacrest co-hosted and ser ...
, but has come to terms with his situation. Stern has compared Dunkleman to
Pete Best
Randolph Peter Best (; born 24 November 1941) is an English retired musician who was the drummer for the Beatles from 1960 to 1962. He was dismissed shortly before the band achieved worldwide fame and is one of several people referred to as a ...
of
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
and several other famous celebrities who chose to leave (or were forced to leave) successful show business careers, only to wind up as has-beens. In 2016, Dunkleman backtracked and said that the mutual decision to part ways was not a mistake on his part.
On April 7, 2016, Dunkleman appeared on the ''American Idol''
fifteenth season and (initial) series finale. In an interview following the show, Dunkleman said "I think I beat them to the punch and I didn't know. I left the show but from what I gather, they weren't going to have me back anyway. So it's kind of a big load off my shoulders. I guess I didn't make a mistake. I didn't do a good enough job and I don't think I handled myself as professionally as I needed to back then."
Other work
In 2000, Dunkleman appeared in "The One with the Ring", a
sixth season episode of ''
Friends
''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane (producer), David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting List of Friends episodes, ten seasons. With an ensemble cast ...
'', as the man who buys the engagement ring
Chandler wants to buy
Monica.
Dunkleman has also appeared in pilots for
ABC and
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
and guest-starred on the
late-night talk show
A late-night talk show is a genre of talk show, originating in the American Media, United States. It is generally structured around humorous monologues about the day's news, guest interviews, comedy sketches and music performances. It is charact ...
''
Talkshow with Spike Feresten
''Talkshow with Spike Feresten'' is an American late-night talk show television program on Fox starring Spike Feresten that aired from September 16, 2006, to May 16, 2009. It was the longest-running late night talk show in Fox's history, with t ...
'', ''
Ghost Whisperer
''Ghost Whisperer'' is an American supernatural television series, which ran on CBS from September 23, 2005, to May 21, 2010.
The series follows the life of Melinda Gordon ( Jennifer Love Hewitt), who has the ability to see and communicate w ...
'' and ''
Las Vegas
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
''. He had a recurring guest role on ''
Two Guys and a Girl'', played a stand-up comic suspected of murder in ''
NYPD Blue
''NYPD Blue'' is an American police procedural television series set in New York City, exploring the struggles of the fictional 15th Precinct detective squad in Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble ca ...
'', and appeared in an independent film called ''Comedy Hell''.
His
voice acting
Voice acting is the art of performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animated, off-stage, off-sc ...
includes voicing himself in an episode of ''
The Proud Family
''The Proud Family'' is an American animated sitcom created by Bruce W. Smith that aired on Disney Channel for two seasons from September 15, 2001, to August 19, 2005. The series centers on the life of the titular family, including the show’s ...
'', in which the show parodied ''American Idol'', did voices for the short-lived animated sitcom ''
3-South'', and playing Ruiga in the English dub of the Japanese
anime
is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...
series ''
Naruto
''Naruto'' is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. It tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja who seeks recognition from his peers and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the leader of his village. T ...
''.
Dunkleman was a co-host with
Eric the Actor on ''The Idol Re-cap Show'' on
Sirius
Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky. Its name is derived from the Greek word (Latin script: ), meaning 'glowing' or 'scorching'. The star is designated Canis Majoris, Latinized to Alpha Canis Majoris, and abbr ...
's
Howard 101. He also did voice over for the 1st season of ''
American Idol Rewind''.
Dunkleman played himself on an episode of ''
My Name Is Earl
''My Name Is Earl'' is an American television sitcom created by Greg Garcia (producer), Greg Garcia for NBC. It aired for four seasons from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, with a total of List of My Name Is Earl episodes, 96 episodes. It wa ...
'', hosting a reality contest show called ''Estrada or Nada'', in which contestants show their skills in an ''
America's Got Talent
''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is an American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distributed by) and ...
''-esque show starring
Erik Estrada. As Dunkleman ended a segment of the show he said, "Dunkleman... out. Hack stole it from me."
Dunkleman was also parodied in the series finale of ''
Drawn Together
''Drawn Together'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Dave Jeser and Matt Silverstein. It aired on Comedy Central from October 27, 2004, to November 14, 2007, spanning three seasons. The series is a parody of house-based reality s ...
''. In the episode, he was shown as an out of work and pretentious alcoholic and his inner dialogue expresses contempt of Seacrest's last name, success and charisma. According to the on-screen captions, he "declined to voice himself".
In 2009, Dunkleman pitched a TV series about his life after ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...
'' entitled ''American Dunkleman''. The series is a fictional account of the actor-comic's life, following the fictional Dunkleman as he tries to work his way back to the television industry, embarrassing himself and disappointing his friends while constantly being reminded that he "could have been a millionaire" had he stuck with ''Idol''.
He does stand up regularly in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
at the
Laugh Factory
Laugh Factory is a chain of comedy clubs in the United States. The chain is owned by Laugh Factory Inc., and the founder and current chief executive is Jamie Masada.
Endurance record
The Laugh Factory keeps track of an endurance record for ...
and
The Improv
The Improv is a comedy club franchise. It was founded as a single venue in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City in 1963, and expanded into a chain of venues in the late 1970s.
History
Originally, it was a 50-seat single venue (whic ...
, and he makes regular appearances as the host of ''Family Feud Live'' in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
and
Atlantic City
Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city in Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.
Atlantic City comprises the second half of the Atlantic City- Hammonton metropolitan sta ...
for
Fremantle Media
Fremantle Limited (), formerly FremantleMedia, is a British Multinational corporation, multinational television production company, production and distribution (marketing), distribution company based in London. The company was founded as Pear ...
.
In November 2019, Dunkleman was on the third episode of Season 1 of the CNBC series ''
Back in the Game'', hosted by
Alex Rodriguez
Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez (born July 27, 1975), nicknamed "A-Rod", is an American former professional baseball shortstop, third baseman and designated hitter and current businessman. Rodriguez played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (ML ...
.
In September 2021, Dunkleman started his own podcast called Dunklevision. His first guest was
Justin Guarini.
Personal life
After a brief return to his hometown of
Ellicottville, New York, in 2016, Dunkleman currently resides in Los Angeles. He is divorced and has one son.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunkleman, Brian
American male comedians
American television personalities
American male television actors
American male voice actors
People from Ellicottville, New York
1971 births
Living people
Comedians from New York (state)
21st-century American comedians
American Idol