Saturday Night Wit

Background:

"I was obsessed with Saturday Night Live, and I use to impersonate everybody on the show. I use to pray that I'd be on it one day. I'd cut my birthday cake and wish that I was on Saturday Night Live. I'd see a falling star and wish I was on Saturday Night Live. I don't know how, but one of those worked. When I got on the show at 23, I thought, 'Wow, I should be a motivational speaker! It really can happen!' " Jimmy Fallon

Comedian, TV host, and actor Jimmy Fallon received wide recognition while performing song spoofs and impersonating famous celebrities for 6 years on the hit show Saturday Night Live (1998-2004). On the big screen, Fallon played roles in such films as Almost Famous (2000, starring Billy Crudup), Anything Else (2003, with Christina Ricci), and Taxi (2004, opposite Queen Latifah). More recently, Fallon portrayed Drew Barrymore's boyfriend in the romance-comedy Fever Pitch.

Of Irish descent and 5' 11" inches tall, Jimmy Fallon was listed as one of People's 50 Most Beautiful People in the World (2002) and 50 Most Eligible Bachelors. As for romance, Fallon has been linked to actresses Winona Ryder and Tara Subkoff (also a fashion designer).


Saugerties Night Live

Childhood and Family:

On September 19, 1974, James Thomas Fallon, who would later be known as Jimmy Fallon, was born to parents Jim and Gloria Fallon. Born in Brooklyn, Jimmy and her sister Gloria Fallon (writer) later grew up in Saugerties, New York.

Jimmy attended Saugerties High School and graduated in 1992. While in high school, avid guitarist Jimmy joined several extra curricular activities, including drama clubs, improvisation clubs, and performing at school talent shows, which he named Saugerties Night Live. He also performed on stage at a show in Poughkeepsie, New York, in which he was hailed as the best comedian of the night.

At the College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York, Jimmy continued his studies. Just a semester before graduation, he left college and packed for Los Angeles to pursue his dream career, performing on his favorite show, Saturday Night Live.


Fever Pitch Man

Career:

"I've wanted to be on the show since I was a baby. Anytime I ever cut a birthday cake, if I was throwing a coin in the fountain or saying a prayer, I would always say, 'I want to be on Saturday Night Live.' " Jimmy Fallon

Only weeks after his arrival in Los Angeles, Jimmy Fallon became a regular at the high-profile clubs, Improv in Los Angeles and Caroline's Comedy Club in New York City. Meanwhile, he kept sharpening his comedy talent by signing up with the improv/sketch comedy club, The Groundlings. Jimmy did not miss the chance when an audition for Saturday Night Live was announced. His two years of stand-up performances scored him a tryout for Saturday Night Live.

Performing song satires and impersonating numerous celebrities on the Saturday Night Live show from 1998 to 2004, Jimmy Fallon received wild appreciation from audiences and was named the best SNL feature since Phil Hartman. He also co-hosted with actress Kirsten Dunst for the prestigious MTV Movie Awards in 2001.

As for acting, Jimmy nabbed roles on the TV movies SNL Fanatic (2000, with Ben Affleck and Molly Shannon) and Sex and the Matrix (2000, alongside Sarah Jessica Parker and Kim Cattrall). He also had a cameo appearance on David Frankel and Tom Hanks' adaptation of Stephen Ambrose's book, the HBO's acclaimed war-drama miniseries, Band of Brothers (2001, starring Damian Lewis and Donnie Wahlberg).

Fallon won his foremost big screen role as a band's road manager, Dennis Hope, in Cameron Crowe's Oscar-Award winning feature film, Almost Famous (2000, with Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, and Kate Hudson). More roles came in 2003, when he teamed with Jason Biggs and Christina Ricci in Woody Allen's romantic comedy, Anything Else, and appeared in Marcus Gautesen's comedy, The Entrepreneurs (starring Nathan Anderson and Brian Hooks).

Jimmy later tried his hand in music and writing. In August of 2002, he released the Grammy-nominated comedic album, "The Bathroom Wall," which consisted of the soul parody, "Idiot Boyfriend." Together with sister Gloria, Jimmy co-wrote the book, "I Hate This Place: The Pessimist's Guide To Life," in 1999 and is currently penning a kids' book titled "Snowball," which is adapted from his songs on "The Bathroom Wall."

Portraying green and inept cop Washburn in Tim Story's action comedy Taxi (2004, teamed with Queen Latifah), was Fallon's big screen breakout role. He then starred as Drew Barrymore's boyfriend, the Boston Red Sox's big fan Ben, in the romance comedy Fever Pitch (2005). The movie is helmed by the Farrelly brothers and based on Nick Hornby's novel with the same title. Fallon, who launched his "Best of Jimmy Fallon" DVD in January 2005, will play the lead role in the upcoming comedy, Timothy.

Awards:
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