Chelsea Joy Handler was born on February 25, 1975 in Livingston, New Jersey. She was the youngest of six children. Handler’s family practiced Reform Judaism. Her mother was a Mormon, and her father was Jewish. When she was 19-years-old, Handler moved to Los Angeles in the hopes of becoming an actress and decided to begin working as a stand-up comic two years later. Her comedy routine was well received and she eventually began performing to sold-out audiences across the nation.
Chelsea Handler’s celebrity status rose after she made regular appearances on the “Girls Behaving Badly” television show. Over the years, Handler has made appearances on many popular TV shows including The Bernie Mac Show, Weekends at the D.L., My Wife and Kids, The Practice, Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld and The View. She is also one of the regular commentators on the show E! Entertainment.
In 2007, she became the host of her own late night talk show “Chelsea Lately.” The groundbreaking show is the first late night talk show to have a strong team of female writers and has recently been renewed to run until 2012. Handler has dabbled in film acting, co-starring in the comedy film “National Lampoon Presents Cattle Call” and the dramatic film “Steam.”
Handler appeared on the cover of Playboy Magazine in 2009. The sexy star decided not to pose nude for Playboy, choosing instead to be featured in a sexy pictorial. Chelsea Handler had the opportunity to appear on season six of “Dancing with the Stars” but she declined the invitation.
Handler has written three books to date and is a best-selling author. She released a memoir in 2005, titled, “My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands.” In 2008, she released her second book “Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea?” Her third book, “Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang” hit book stores in 2010.
Chelsea Handler’s talent and beauty has been recognized by several top magazines. Entertainment Weekly named Handler one of the “Top 10 Breakout Stars” of 2008. In 2009 People magazine listed Chelsea Handler as one of the “100 Most Beautiful People” and that same year Handler was also included in the Maxim magazine “Hot 100” list.
In 2007, Handler began co-starring in the Internet program “In the Motherhood” with Leah Remini. Actress and comedian Jenny McCarthy joined the series in 2008. The successful MSN online web series led to an ABC television series starring Jessica St. Clair, Cheryl Hines and Megan Mullally. Chelsea Handler chose to drop out of the series project due to work schedule demands.
In April of 2010 Chelsea Handler appeared on the cover of “Shape” magazine and in March 2010 she began a 21-city comedy tour called “Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang," which was sponsored by Belvedere Vodka. Handler has many celebrity friends, including Jason Biggs, Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy. She began dating Ted Harbert, who is the CEO and president of Comcast Entertainment in 2006. She announced her break-up with Ted Harbert in 2010.
During the summer of 2010, Chelsea Handler was named as the celebrity host of the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. Handler was the second female to be named sole host of the MTV Awards show. Roseanne Barr was the first female host of the show in 1994. Chelsea Handler’s work as a stand-up comedian, model, TV host, humorist and author has landed her on the Forbes Celebrity 100 list, with a number 98 ranking.
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