Steve Patterson is a Canadian stand-up comedian, actor, writer, television and radio host. He is also a

television producer A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of a television show, television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television networks, but upon acce ...

and known for his

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of exposin ...

and

observational comedy Observational comedy is a form of humor based on the commonplace aspects of everyday life. It is one of the main types of humor in stand-up comedy. In an observational comedy act, the comedian makes an observation about something which is common eno ...

Career

Patterson has been on the comedy circuit full-time since 1996. He draws material from observation of daily/current events and what goes on at the venue during a show. He was first on the stage at the age of 18 on a dare from his dorm mates. However, he spent the next few years away from comedy, as he finished his university degree in business from the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...

. He earned a post-graduate

diploma A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offi ...

media Media may refer to: Communication * Means of communication, tools and channels used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Interactive media, media that is inter ...

copywriting Copywriting is the act or occupation of writing text for the purpose of advertising or other forms of marketing. Copywriting is aimed at selling products or services. The product, called Copy (publishing), copy or sales copy, is written content t ...

and performed comedy part-time while earning a living as a full-time

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...

copywriter from 1994-1996. Patterson was fired from his copywriting job in 1996. and started performing comedy full-time. Later that year, he joined the touring roster of Canadian comedy booking agency Funny Business, for which he started as the opening act. In 1999, Patterson got a chance to perform at the Just for Laughs comedy festival in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

for the first time. His Irish-influenced set made it possible for him to tour Ireland. Between 1999 and 2004, Patterson performed across

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and the United Kingdom. He also appeared for a few shows in the United States and the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

. In 2004, he made his first Just for Laughs gala appearance. Also in 2004, Patterson performed at the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of Arts festival, arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the ...

Edinburgh, Scotland Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. In 2006, he was the host of the Just for Laughs Road Tour throughout

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, and was part of the Just for Laughs festival in

that summer. In September 2007, Patterson became a host of

CBC Radio One CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent o ...

's '' The Debaters'', and gained some notoriety in 2007 as being the first comic to say no to ''

Last Comic Standing ''Last Comic Standing'' is an American reality television talent competition show on NBC that aired from June 1, 2003, to August 9, 2010, and again in 2014 and 2015. Each season a comedian from an initially large group of hopefuls was picked as ...

'' when he qualified for their Canadian finals in

. He turned down NBC to honour a local show commitment. In July 2010, Patterson performed again at the Just for Laughs comedy festival in

on a Gala hosted by Steve Martin. After his performance, Martin said "If I knew he was going to be THAT good, I would have canceled him." With growing success as host of The Debaters on CBC Radio One, The Debaters began airing on

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...

in the fall of 2011 Patterson was nominated for a Gemini Award for his JFL performance, on the Steve Martin Gala, and hosted the Industry Gala in 2011. His success continued that October when he was awarded "Best Male Stand-up" at the Canadian Comedy Awards, an industry event which he also hosted. Publishing rights to Patterson's debut novel, ''The Book of Letters I Didn’t Know Where to Send'', were sold to Goose Lane Editions in 2015. Goose Lane published the book in 2016.

Partial filmography

Television

* '' Just for Laughs: Montreal Comedy Festival'' (2001) * '' Comedy Now!'' (1 episode, 2003) * '' Halifax Comedy Festival'' (6 episodes, 2003-2010) * ''Stranger at the Door'' (2004) * '' You Bet Your Ass'' (2006) * '' Just for Laughs'' (2006) * ''Great Canadian Laugh Off'' (2 episodes, 2007-2008) * '' CBC Winnipeg Comedy Festival'' (1 episode, 2008) * '' The Debaters'' (16 episodes, 2011) * '' I Wrecked My House'' (15 episodes, 2014–15)

Recognition

Awards and nominations

* 2007, Nominated for 'Best Male Stand-up' at the Canadian Comedy Awards * 2008, Nominated for 'Best Male Stand-up' at the Canadian Comedy Awards * 2011, Won, 'Best Male Stand-up' at the Canadian Comedy Awards * 2011, Nominated for

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's English-language television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in t ...

for ''Just for Laughs'' * 2013, Won 'Best Male Stand-Up' at the Canadian Comedy Awards Note: The 2008 winner of 'Best Series Writing' (for The Jon Dore Show) at the Canadian Comedy Awards is a different comedian, actor, writer of the same name, now known as Steve Dylan.http://www.funnybusiness.ca/roster.php?id=106 Steve Dylan aka Steve Patterson

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Steve Canadian stand-up comedians People from Richmond Hill, Ontario Living people Canadian people of Irish descent 20th-century Canadian comedians 21st-century Canadian comedians Year of birth missing (living people) Canadian male comedians Comedians from Ontario Canadian Comedy Award winners