Biographie
In 1977, at just fifteen years old, the Southern California native made his debut on the notorious Gong Show. Midway through his stand-up routine, which he read from a paper, a man dressed as a nun wielding a net pulled him off the stage. Eleven years later, he returned triumphantly as a celebrity judge, marking the beginning of over 100 national television appearances. In 1981, while attending Mt. San Antonio College, he applied for a newscaster position at the campus radio station but was rejected. Later that year, he auditioned for the owner of The Ice House in Pasadena. The audition took place in the afternoon in a 300-seat club, where the only occupied chair belonged to the owner, who said, "You're not ready." Zany glanced around the empty venue and replied, "Neither is your club!" Undeterred, he convinced the owner to let him produce his own show to gain stage time, giving the owner an audience. This led to The Bob Zany Show, which featured future stars like Garry Shandling, Yakov Smirnoff, Robert Wuhl, Kevin Nealon, and Nia Peeples. After one performance, Frazier Smith, host of a top-rated KLOS/LA radio show, approached him. Following some guest spots, Zany was hired by KLOS as a personality with his own Saturday morning show. Among his achievements are founding Bob Zany's Comedy Outlets, with over 50 locations across California and Nevada; releasing the comedy album "Hi Home, I'm Honey" on Laff Records; authoring a soon-to-be-published diet scrapbook, "Laugh at Fat, Bay-bee!"; and the career highlight of being hired by his idol, Steve Martin, to appear on George Burns' Comedy Week. Over the years, Zany's stage persona has evolved, but a dramatic weight loss in 1991 necessitated a major revamp—along with shedding 175 pounds, he lost 30 minutes of material. He spent the next year performing late-night sets at Hollywood clubs, reinventing himself. The result is the cigar-smoking, audience-interactive crowd favorite Bob Zany known today. He is married to comedienne and actress Erin O'Connor, and they live in Los Angeles with their three dogs and three cats.
