Sara Schaefer (born July 10, 1978) is an American stand-up comedian, writer, and author.
Personal life
Schaefer was raised in
Midlothian, Virginia
Midlothian ( ) is an unincorporated area in Chesterfield County, Virginia, U.S. Settled as a coal town, Midlothian village experienced suburbanization effects and is now part of the western suburbs of Richmond, Virginia south of the James Rive ...
, the daughter of Billie and William "Bill" Schaefer. Her mother started the charity Pennies for Heaven, Inc. She attended Maggie Walker Governor's School, and went to college at William & Mary. Schaefer lives in Los Angeles.
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
and began writing, producing and performing comedy. During that time she also worked as a damages analyst at a New York City law firm. In 2006 and 2007, she hosted an on-line comedy/music show for AOL called ''The DL'', for which she made around 350 videos or segments with a varied assortment of noted and upcoming artists, musicians and performers, from
Hulk Hogan
Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 1 ...
and
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the "Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...
to
Jimmy Fallon
James Thomas Fallon (born September 19, 1974) is an American comedian, television host, actor, and writer. He is known for his work in television as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' and as the host of the late-night talk show ''The Ton ...
and Jamie Kennedy. In 2007, she was a featured performer at the HBO Comedy Arts Festival in
Aspen, Colorado
Aspen is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,004 at the 2020 United States Census. Aspen is in a remote area of the Rocky Mo ...
. In 2008, she was an editor for
VH1
VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Commun ...
's ''
Best Week Ever
''Best Week Ever'' is an American comedy series created and executive produced by Fred Graver. The series originally aired from January 23, 2004, to June 12, 2009, on VH1.Harris, Scott"VH1 Cancels 'Best Week Ever'". ''Inside TV''. January 13, 20 ...
'' blog. She has appeared on E!, VH-1, Fuse and ''
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by comedian Jimmy Fallon. About pag ...
''. In 2009
New York Magazine
''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, and with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker' ...
named Schaefer one of the "Ten new comedians that funny people find funny."
She was the Head Blogger for ''
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by comedian Jimmy Fallon. About pag ...
'' from 2009 to 2011, for which she won the Emmy Award for Creative Achievement in Interactive Media (non-fiction) in both 2009 and 2010. In 2011 she wrote for the game show ''
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire
''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' (often informally called ''Millionaire'') is an international television game show franchise of British origin, created by David Briggs, Mike Whitehill and Steven Knight. In its format, currently owned and ...
'' and was named one of the Huffington Post's "53 Favorite Female Comedians".
Sara's accolades include USA Today's "100 People of the Year in Pop Culture," Backstage Magazine Comics to Watch 2011, New York Post "Best Jests 2010," ECNY Award Nominee: Best Female Stand Up 2010, Comedy Central's Comics to Watch Showcase 2010, and New York Magazine's "10 Comedians to Watch" 2010.
From early 2011 to 2014, Schaefer hosted a podcast with comedian Nikki Glaser called ''You Had To Be There.''
''
Nikki & Sara Live
''Nikki & Sara Live'' is an American late night television, late night talk show hosted by comedians Nikki Glaser and Sara Schaefer. Glaser, Schaefer and Kim Gamble served as the show's executive producers. The series premiered on January 29, 2013 ...
'', a weekly talk show television series hosted by Schaefer and Glaser, premiered on January 29, 2013, on MTV. MTV cancelled the show after two seasons.
In 2013, Schaefer made her stand-up comedy television debut on ''
John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show
''John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show'' is a stand-up comedy television series that aired on Comedy Central in the United States. Hosted by British-American comedian John Oliver
John William Oliver (born 23 April 1977) is a British-America ...
''. She has gone on to write for numerous television shows including '' Problematic with Moshe Kasher'', ''The Fake News with Ted Nelms'' starring
Ed Helms
Edward Parker Helms (born January 24, 1974) is an American actor and comedian. From 2002 to 2006, he was a correspondent on Comedy Central's '' The Daily Show with Jon Stewart''. He played paper salesman Andy Bernard in the NBC sitcom '' The ...
, '' The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor'', and ''The History of Swear Words''. In 2017, she created, produced and hosted the digital series ''Woman Online'' for Seriously.TV. Schaeffer's stand up show ''Little White Box'' debuted to a sold-out run at the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Her scripted web series ''Day Job'' was named one of 100 Best Web Series by ''TimeOut New York.'' Her
Comedy Central Stand-Up Presents
''Comedy Central Stand-Up Presents'', formerly known as ''The Half Hour'', is an American stand-up comedy television series that airs on Comedy Central in the United States. The program features various stand-up comedians in each episode. It repl ...
half hour special aired in November 2019.
Schaefer's memoir ''Grand'' was published by Simon & Schuster imprint
Gallery Books
Gallery Publishing Group is a general interest publisher and a division of Simon & Schuster which houses the imprints Gallery Books, Pocket Books, Scout Press, Gallery 13, and Saga Press.
Jen Bergstrom is the Senior Vice President and Publisher. ...