Pete Holmes
![]() | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (March 2020) |
Pete Holmes | |
---|---|
![]() Holmes in May 2019 | |
Birth name | Peter Benedict Holmes |
Born | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. | March 30, 1979
Medium | Stand-up, television, film, podcast |
Years active | 2001–present |
Genres |
|
Spouse | Valerie Chaney
(m. 2017) |
Children | 1 |
Website | PeteHolmes.com |
Peter Benedict Holmes (born March 30, 1979) is an American comedian, actor, writer, producer, and podcaster. Holmes is known for his cheerful personality, self-aware humor, and musings on spirituality and religion, which are all frequent themes across his works.
Early life[]
Peter Benedict Holmes was born in Boston on March 30, 1979, the son of a Lithuanian refugee mother and an American father of Irish descent.[1] He has a brother who composes music under the name Dr. Holmes. He attended Lexington High School and Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts, during which time he played in a punk rock band. In college, he majored in English and communications and participated in an improvisational comedy troupe called The Sweaty-Toothed Madmen. Partly at the behest of his mother, he had plans to become a youth pastor. This gave way to public speaking, and his love for comedy and his devolving faith in God eventually won over his need to preach; he now refers to himself as "Christ-leaning" or jokingly a "hooratheist".[2] Finding little success as a comedian in his home state, he lived in Sleepy Hollow, New York, before moving to Chicago and then Los Angeles.
Career[]
Early in his career, Holmes performed on the Christian comedy circuit.[3]
Holmes has appeared on Comedy Central's Premium Blend, as a regular panelist on VH1's Best Week Ever, and on VH1's All Access.[4] His cartoons have appeared in The New Yorker.[5] In 2010, he performed on John Oliver's New York Stand Up Show as well as Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. On February 26, 2010, he performed his first television special on the series Comedy Central Presents. On March 21, 2011 and on November 17, 2011, he appeared on the TBS talk show Conan.
Holmes has provided the voices for several of the characters on Comedy Central's cartoon Ugly Americans. He was the voice of the E-Trade baby on several television commercials and was credited as a writer for those commercials.[6]
He wrote for the NBC primetime sitcom Outsourced and for the Fox sitcom I Hate My Teenage Daughter prior to its cancellation in May 2012.[7]
Holmes released his first album, Impregnated With Wonder, on iTunes on November 15, 2011.[8] In 2013, he released his second album, Nice Try, The Devil.[9] He released his third album, Faces and Sounds, in 2016. In 2019, he released his fourth album, "Dirty Clean."[10]
Holmes has created a comedic portrayal of Batman in CollegeHumor's internet series Badman. He ran a YouTube channel which was focused around skits alongside Matthew McCarthy called frontpagefilms.[citation needed]
Holmes created and stars in the HBO series Crashing. The pilot was written by Holmes and directed by Judd Apatow. After the season three finale, it was announced that HBO had canceled the series.[11]
On May 14, 2019, Holmes released his book Comedy Sex God, which is described as, "Part autobiography, part philosophical inquiry, and part spiritual quest."[12]
On March 29, 2021, Holmes was selected to play the lead role of a laid-off auto worker-turned-professional bowler (based on the life of Tom Smallwood) in a CBS sitcom pilot.[13] On May 14, 2021, the pilot for Smallwood was ordered to series, with a mid-season debut planned for 2021–22 television season.[14][15]
You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes[]
Holmes hosts a podcast, You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes. It has featured guests such as Garry Shandling, Judd Apatow, Aziz Ansari, John Mulaney, and Dana Carvey. Topics typically discussed in each episode are the guests' views on comedy, sexuality, and religion.
The Pete Holmes Show[]
On August 21 and 23 in 2012, Holmes recorded three episodes of a talk show pilot for TBS, produced by Conan O'Brien, entitled The Midnight Show with Pete Holmes.[16][17] Holmes's guests on the unaired pilots included Nick Offerman, Joel McHale, T. J. Miller, and Bill Burr. On February 26, 2013, TBS picked up the show and began airing in late 2013. It showcased "the comedian's incredible skill set, combining sketches, short films, live comedy, field pieces and in-studio guest interviews into a fast-paced half hour."[18] As of July 10, 2013 the name of the show was The Pete Holmes Show.[19] The series premiered on October 28, after Conan.
The show was picked up for a second season by TBS. On December 9, 2013, Gabe Liedman performed the show's first stand-up routine.[20] On May 23, 2014, TBS canceled the talk show after two seasons following poor audience ratings. The show ended its run on June 19, 2014.[21][22]
Crashing[]
Crashing is a semi-autobiographical show on HBO that revolves around Holmes' character Pete, a young comedian who pursues a career in stand-up comedy after his wife cheats on him, leaving him homeless.[23] Holmes successfully pitched the idea of the show to Judd Apatow and it was picked up by HBO for filming in September 2015, with Apatow as director. The success of the pilot led HBO to give the green-light to the first season in January 2016. After four episodes had aired, HBO renewed the series for a second season which premiered on January 14, 2018.
On February 21, 2018, HBO renewed the series for a third season. Although season three was praised by critics, HBO canceled Crashing in March 2019.[24]
Badman[]
Holmes portrays the lead character Batman in this parody web series. The series recreates scenes from Christopher Nolan's Batman films with a comedic twist, such as Batman appearing completely incompetent or sex-obsessed.
Influences[]
Holmes has listed Weird Al, Brian Regan, Sinbad, Steve Martin, Gallagher, Jackie Martling, Conan O'Brien, Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Farley,[25] Dane Cook,[26] and Ray Romano[27] as his biggest comedic influences.[28]
Personal life[]
Holmes married his first wife, whose name has never been disclosed, when he was 22 years old.[29] After she had an affair, they divorced when he was 28.[23][30] He married Valerie Chaney in late 2017.[31] Their daughter, Lila Jane, was born in September 2018.[32][33]
Discography[]
- Impregnated with Wonder (2011)
- Nice Try, The Devil (2013)
- Faces and Sounds (2016)
- Dirty Clean (2018)
Filmography[]
Film[]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2014 | I Am Road Comic | Himself | |
2016 | Don't Think Twice | Pete Holmes | |
2019 | The Secret Life of Pets 2 | Chuck (voice) | |
TBA | Home Sweet Home Alone | Blake | Filming |
TBA | Gutbuster | Himself | Post-production |
Television[]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2005 | Premium Blend | Himself | Episode: "8.6" |
2007 | Scott Batman Presents Scott Batman Presents | Earth's New Robot Overlord (voice) | Episode: "One" |
2010–2011 | Outsourced | Writer | |
2010–2012 | Ugly Americans | Toby (voice) | 20 episodes |
2010–2013 | John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show | Himself | 3 episodes |
2011 | Pete Holmes: Impregnated With Wonder | Himself | Stand-up special |
2011–2012 | I Hate My Teenage Daughter | Writer | |
2013 | The Jeselnik Offensive | Himself | Episode 1.9 |
2013 | Maron | Himself | Episode: "Marc's Dad" |
2013 | Pete Holmes: Nice Try, the Devil | Himself | Stand-up special |
2013 | American Dad! | Toby (voice), Millionaire Matt Davis (voice) | Episode: "Lost in Space" "The Longest Distance Relationship" |
2013–2014 | The Pete Holmes Show | Himself (host) | Also creator, writer, and executive producer |
2014 | Mulaney | Trey | Episode: "In the Name of the Mother, and the Son, and the Holy Andre" |
2016 | Animals. | Patrick (voice) | Episode: "Rats." |
2016 | Pete Holmes: Faces and Sounds[35] | Himself | Stand-up special |
2016–17 | Mighty Magiswords | Teri Gargantuan, Thaddeus Thirdwell III (voice) | 4 episodes |
2017 | Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero | Ryan (voice) | Episode: "A Tale of Two Wizards" |
2017–2019 | Crashing | Pete | Also creator, writer, and executive producer |
2018 | Bob's Burgers | Connor (voice) | Episode: "Something Old, Something New, Something Bob Caters For You" |
2018–2020 | The Simpsons | Matthew / Bode Wright (voice) | Episodes: "Bart's Not Dead", "Warrin' Priests"; also writer |
2019 | Star Wars Resistance | Flobb / Fleez (voice) | Episode: "From Beneath" |
2018 | Pete Holmes: Dirty Clean | Himself | Stand-up special |
2021 | Green Eggs and Ham | TBA (Voice) | Episode: TBA |
2022 | Smallwood | Tom Smallwood | Lead role (upcoming sitcom) |
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Crashing star Pete Holmes on creating comedy out of his divorce". Stuff.
- ^ Burke, Daniel (May 24, 2019). "Comedian Pete Holmes was a good Christian guy. Then his wife left him, and things got weird". CNN. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- ^ "Pete Holmes on Christian jokes - YMH Highlight". Retrieved February 2, 2019.
- ^ Pete Holmes at IMDb
- ^ Kharakh, Ben. Interview, "Pete Holmes, Comedian" Archived 2008-04-18 at the Wayback Machine, Gothamist, 26 October 2006.
- ^ Steinberg, Don (2011-02-18). "The Funny People Behind the Famous Ads". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
- ^ Murthi, Vikram (2016-11-22). "'Crashing' Trailer: Pete Holmes' HBO Sitcom Shows The Comic Adjusting To Divorced Life". IndieWire. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
- ^ Harris, Will (2011-12-08). "The best comedy albums of 2011 | Music | Best of". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2013-10-22.
- ^ McFarland, Kevin. "The best comedy albums and specials of 2013". avclub.com.
- ^ Kozell, Isaac. "The 3 Stages of Pete Holmes's New HBO Stand-up Special Dirty Clean". Vulture. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ^ Littleton, Cynthia (2017-03-15). "HBO Renews Pete Holmes Comedy 'Crashing' for Second Season". Variety. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
- ^ Holmes, Pete (2019). Comedy Sex God. New York, NY: Harper Wave. pp. Back cover. ISBN 978-0062803979.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (March 29, 2021). "Pete Holmes Set As The Lead Of CBS' Tom Smallwood Comedy Pilot". Retrieved March 30, 2021.
- ^ Low, Elaine (May 14, 2021). "CBS Orders 'Smallwood' and 'Good Sam' to Series". Retrieved May 17, 2021.
- ^ "Pete Holmes To Star In New CBS Comedy Smallwood Debuting Mid-Season". cbs.com. May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 20, 2021.
- ^ "Get Free Tickets For The Pilot Of "The Midnight Show With Pete Holmes"". Retrieved 20 August 2012.
- ^ Luippold, Ross (July 25, 2012). "Pete Holmes To Follow Conan O'Brien? Talk Show Pilot In Development At TBS". Huffington Post.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (February 26, 2013). "TBS Greenlights Conan O'Brien-Produced Late-Night Show Starring Pete Holmes As 'Conan' Companion".
- ^ "You Made It Weird #166: Johnny Pemberton « Nerdist". Nerdist.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-21. Retrieved 2013-10-22.
- ^ "Gabe Liedman Was 'Pete Holmes Show's First-Ever Standup Last Night – Splitsider". Splitsider. Archived from the original on 19 October 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
- ^ "TBS Cancels 'The Pete Holmes Show' After Two Seasons (Exclusive)", The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ "TBS Cancels 'The Pete Holmes Show'". Deadline.com. 23 May 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Swidey, Neil (January 17, 2018). "How Lexington's Pete Holmes got Judd Apatow's attention and became a comedy star – The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
- ^ "Paste Magazine". pastemagazine.com.
- ^ "#MeetPete Facebook Questions". YouTube. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
- ^ "You Made It Weird". Nerdist. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
- ^ "You Made It Weird". Nerdist. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ Sam Jones. "130. Pete Holmes". Off Camera with Sam Jones (Podcast). Quote by Pete Holmes. Sam Jones Pictures. Event occurs at 17:31–18:08. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
For the first five years, maybe ten, most comedians are just doing, it’s like they have a vita[min] mix and they just put in—like me, it was like, Steve Martin and Seinfeld, and you put in, like Brian Regan and you blend it up and you can—you reek of it.
- ^ Ryan, Patric. "How divorce led Pete Holmes to HBO's 'Crashing'". USA Today. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
- ^ Jordan Zakarin. "Pete Holmes's Life Blew Up. His New HBO Show Is His Therapy". Inverse. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
- ^ Baraka Kaseko and Marah Eakin. "Pete Holmes says being married changes things". AV Club. Retrieved January 11, 2018.
- ^ "Pete Holmes Thinks Expectant Dads Should "Woman Up" @ Team Coco". TBS/Conan O'Brien. October 2, 2018.
- ^ The A.V. Club, Let's watch Pete Holmes rate baby names, retrieved 2019-01-21
- ^ https://podcasts.apple.com/il/podcast/rob-zombie/id475878118?i=1000512363735
- ^ "Pete Holmes HBO Standup Special Faces and Sounds". Splitsider. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
External links[]
- 1979 births
- 21st-century American male actors
- 21st-century American comedians
- American comedy writers
- American people of Lithuanian descent
- American men podcasters
- American podcasters
- American stand-up comedians
- American male television actors
- American male voice actors
- American television talk show hosts
- American television writers
- Comedians from Massachusetts
- Gordon College (Massachusetts) alumni
- Late night television talk show hosts
- Lexington High School alumni
- Living people
- People from Lexington, Massachusetts
- Screenwriters from Massachusetts
- American male television writers
- 21st-century American screenwriters
- 21st-century American male writers