“I am very into making up my own rules. Like, I don’t want to play the game and succeed at it. I want to redefine it. That’s the only way I can deal with it,” Amy Schumer recently told Vogue. She broke Forbes top ten list for highest paid comics in the biz for 2016. With such a saturated market, this is not easy to do, and it’s even more rare for women. Looking at her resumé and her wallet, the comedian invented her own game.
Schumer was raised in Long Island along with her brother and her sister. Her parents had a baby furniture store, and when the comic was 9, they declared bankruptcy. Not long after, a divorced follow, and later, her father was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. As a young age, she would make up characters including Madame Lavitchky who revealed devastating fortunes about death. The decision to study theater in college started early.
After graduating from Towson University in 2003, Schumer moved to New York City. By a year in the city, she enrolled in acting classes and began doing open mics. By 2007, she finished fourth on Last Comic Standing. After the season ended, the other contestants and her undertook a 42 city tour which lasted for three months on the road. As they continued from place to place, she bombed more and more. Finally, one night after no one laughed at what she thought was a solid punchline, she called out the audience. The crowd loved it. Her confidence became the saving grace.
Schumer’s voice has been described time and time again as the “drunk slut.” The idea of this persona is not a slam. It is more affectionate though than it appear. The point of view is that a woman can drink and have sex, and everyone can be cool about it. As obvious as it may be, the comic’s act is not known for being clean. A recent joke from Amy Schumer: Live at the Apollo explains UTIs, “I just got my first UTI at 33 and nobody tells you how embarrassing it’s going to be. Like, ‘How’d you get it?’ You know how I got it! I had sex and then I was too lazy to pee right after. I chose to lay there like a cum dumpster just… a receptacle. Was I savoring the moment? What was I doing?” As comfortable as the topic sounds, she delivers with frankness and charm.
Amy Schumer is in control. Her film debut, Trainwreck, was the first film Judd Apatow directed that he did not write. Her TV show, Inside Amy Schumer, not only has two Emmys, but it also has a Peabody Award. This achievement goes to programming geared towards Public Service. Yeah, this series has educated folks. Chris Rock directed her latest comedy special. In addition to all of this, she written films in order to perform with some of Hollywood’s best, such as Goldie Hawn and Jennifer Lawrence, and they are into it. Hate her or love her, this woman has made comedy her bitch.
