Dean Obeidallah
Encyclopedia
Dean Obeidallah is a Palestinian
-American/Italian-American comedian
, who was born in Lodi
, New Jersey
, and grew up in nearby Paramus
. His father was born in Battir
, Palestine- a small village near Bethlehem
; his mother's parents were born in Sicily
. He is part of a small but growing number of Middle Eastern-American comedians who have increasingly received media attention in the past few years, as they use comedy to both entertain and dispel negative stereotype
s of Middle Eastern-Americans.
Like African-American comedians in the 1960s and 70s, Obeidallah and other Arab-American comics have been compared to the groundbreaking comedians who have used comedy to raise political and social issues in an effort to change them as noted by The Baltimore Sun
' s David Zurawik:
In 2005, Obeidallah received the first “Spirit of Bill Hicks” award, named in honor of comedian Bill Hicks
for “thought provoking comedy” from the NY Underground Comedy Festival and the Hicks’ family. He co-produced with the Emmy Award
winning comedy writer and best-selling author Max Brooks
a new show entitled The Watch List for Comedy Central
's Internet channel. This was the first show ever produced by a major American entertainment company to showcase all Middle Eastern-American performers. Obeidallah has also appeared on Comedy Central on the critically acclaimed "Axis of Evil" Comedy
special.
He is also the co-founder of the New York Arab-American Comedy Festival. This highly-acclaimed, first of its kind festival has received national and international media coverage. It is held annually in New York City
and showcases Arab-American comics, actors, playwrights and filmmakers. The 7th annual Festival was held on May 10–14, 2010.
Obeidallah is the co-creator of Stand up for Peace which he performs across the country with Jewish-American comedian Scott Blakeman. Stand Up for Peace brings Arab-Americans, Muslims and Jews together through comedy in the hopes of fostering understanding and peace in the Middle East.
Dean has also been featured on numerous national and international television programs including Comedy Central's "Axis of Evil" special and The Watch List,
, ABC's The View, "Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen," PBS' Newshour with Jim Lehrer
, ABC's 20/20, CNN's "Inside the Middle East" and Japan's NHK
. He can also be seen on the upcoming PBS' documentary, "Stand Up: Muslim American Comics Come of Age" which aired nationally in May 2008 and on BBC World News. Dean can also be seen in the bonus feature of the DVD version of Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11" in the section entitled: Arab-American comedians. He has also been featured in various publications and radio networks including The New York Times
, Time
, Newsweek
, The Los Angeles Times, NPR
, BBC
, Democracy Now!
with Amy Goodman
, The Associated Press, Vanity Fair
(Italian version) and Air America Radio
.
Dean served as the Executive Producer of the Amman Stand up Comedy Festival held in Amman
, Jordan from December 2–6, 2008. This was the first stand up comedy festival in the history of the Middle East. The third annual Festival was held December 4 to 10, 2010.
In addition to appearing at hundreds of comedy clubs and colleges across the United States, Obeidallah has performed stand-up comedy in Canada and in the Middle East in Amman
, Dubai
, Beirut
, Cairo
, Haifa
, Oman, Sharm El Sheikh and Ramallah
.
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
-American/Italian-American comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, who was born in Lodi
Lodi, New Jersey
Lodi is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 24,136. The borough of Lodi is governed under the 1923 Municipal Manager Law.Lodi owes its name to the Italian city of Lodi...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, and grew up in nearby Paramus
Paramus, New Jersey
Paramus is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 26,342. A suburb of New York City, Paramus is located between 15–20 miles northwest of Midtown Manhattan and approximately west of Upper Manhattan.Paramus is one of...
. His father was born in Battir
Battir
Battir is an ancient town located in the West Bank, 5km west of Bethlehem, and south west of Jerusalem. It has a population of about 4,000 inhabitants. Battir sits just above the railway from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which also served as the armistice line between Israel and Jordan from 1948 to 1967...
, Palestine- a small village near Bethlehem
Bethlehem
Bethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
; his mother's parents were born in Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
. He is part of a small but growing number of Middle Eastern-American comedians who have increasingly received media attention in the past few years, as they use comedy to both entertain and dispel negative stereotype
Stereotype
A stereotype is a popular belief about specific social groups or types of individuals. The concepts of "stereotype" and "prejudice" are often confused with many other different meanings...
s of Middle Eastern-Americans.
Like African-American comedians in the 1960s and 70s, Obeidallah and other Arab-American comics have been compared to the groundbreaking comedians who have used comedy to raise political and social issues in an effort to change them as noted by The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun is the U.S. state of Maryland’s largest general circulation daily newspaper and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries....
"Just as comic Lenny BruceLenny BruceLeonard Alfred Schneider , better known by the stage name Lenny Bruce, was a Jewish-American comedian, social critic and satirist...
battled the stifling conformity of the 1950s or Dick GregoryDick GregoryRichard Claxton "Dick" Gregory is an American comedian, social activist, social critic, writer, and entrepreneur....
and Richard PryorRichard PryorRichard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor was an American stand-up comedian, actor, social critic, writer and MC. Pryor was known for uncompromising examinations of racism and topical contemporary issues, which employed colorful vulgarities, and profanity, as well as racial epithets...
challenged racism in the '60s and '70s, these performers now are challenging mainstream notions about their ethnic, religious and racial groups."
In 2005, Obeidallah received the first “Spirit of Bill Hicks” award, named in honor of comedian Bill Hicks
Bill Hicks
William Melvin "Bill" Hicks was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, satirist, and musician. His material largely consisted of general discussions about society, religion, politics, philosophy, and personal issues. Hicks' material was often controversial and steeped in dark comedy...
for “thought provoking comedy” from the NY Underground Comedy Festival and the Hicks’ family. He co-produced with the Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
winning comedy writer and best-selling author Max Brooks
Max Brooks
Maximillian Michael "Max" Brooks is an American author and screenwriter, with a particular interest in zombies. Brooks is also a television and voice-over actor.- Early life and education :...
a new show entitled The Watch List for Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
's Internet channel. This was the first show ever produced by a major American entertainment company to showcase all Middle Eastern-American performers. Obeidallah has also appeared on Comedy Central on the critically acclaimed "Axis of Evil" Comedy
Axis of Evil Comedy Tour
The Axis of Evil Comedy Tour is a stand-up comedy tour featuring Middle Eastern comedians Ahmed Ahmed, Aron Kader and Maz Jobrani, with special guests Dean Obeidallah, Won Ho Chung, and Nick Youssef. The tour's name is derived from a speech by US President George W. Bush which designated Iraq,...
special.
He is also the co-founder of the New York Arab-American Comedy Festival. This highly-acclaimed, first of its kind festival has received national and international media coverage. It is held annually in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and showcases Arab-American comics, actors, playwrights and filmmakers. The 7th annual Festival was held on May 10–14, 2010.
Obeidallah is the co-creator of Stand up for Peace which he performs across the country with Jewish-American comedian Scott Blakeman. Stand Up for Peace brings Arab-Americans, Muslims and Jews together through comedy in the hopes of fostering understanding and peace in the Middle East.
Dean has also been featured on numerous national and international television programs including Comedy Central's "Axis of Evil" special and The Watch List,
, ABC's The View, "Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen," PBS' Newshour with Jim Lehrer
Jim Lehrer
James Charles "Jim" Lehrer is an American journalist and the executive editor and former news anchor for PBS NewsHour on PBS, known for his role as a frequent debate moderator during elections...
, ABC's 20/20, CNN's "Inside the Middle East" and Japan's NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
. He can also be seen on the upcoming PBS' documentary, "Stand Up: Muslim American Comics Come of Age" which aired nationally in May 2008 and on BBC World News. Dean can also be seen in the bonus feature of the DVD version of Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11" in the section entitled: Arab-American comedians. He has also been featured in various publications and radio networks including The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
, The Los Angeles Times, NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
, BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, Democracy Now!
Democracy Now!
Democracy Now! and its staff have received several journalism awards, including the Gracie Award from American Women in Radio & Television; the George Polk Award for its 1998 radio documentary Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship, on the Chevron Corporation and the deaths of...
with Amy Goodman
Amy Goodman
Amy Goodman is an American progressive broadcast journalist, syndicated columnist, investigative reporter and author. Goodman is the host of Democracy Now!, an independent global news program broadcast daily on radio, television and the internet.-Early life:Goodman was born in Bay Shore, New York...
, The Associated Press, Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair (magazine)
Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...
(Italian version) and Air America Radio
Air America Radio
Air America was an American radio network specializing in progressive talk programming...
.
Dean served as the Executive Producer of the Amman Stand up Comedy Festival held in Amman
Amman
Amman is the capital of Jordan. It is the country's political, cultural and commercial centre and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. The Greater Amman area has a population of 2,842,629 as of 2010. The population of Amman is expected to jump from 2.8 million to almost...
, Jordan from December 2–6, 2008. This was the first stand up comedy festival in the history of the Middle East. The third annual Festival was held December 4 to 10, 2010.
In addition to appearing at hundreds of comedy clubs and colleges across the United States, Obeidallah has performed stand-up comedy in Canada and in the Middle East in Amman
Amman
Amman is the capital of Jordan. It is the country's political, cultural and commercial centre and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. The Greater Amman area has a population of 2,842,629 as of 2010. The population of Amman is expected to jump from 2.8 million to almost...
, Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
, Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
, Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
, Oman, Sharm El Sheikh and Ramallah
Ramallah
Ramallah is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank located 10 kilometers north of Jerusalem, adjacent to al-Bireh. It currently serves as the de facto administrative capital of the Palestinian National Authority...
.
External links
- Dean Obeidallah's official website
- Dean Obeidallah on FacebookFacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
- NY Arab-American Comedy Festival official website
- Stand up for Peace website
- Interview from 2002
- Comedy Central's "The Watch List" Home page
- Newsweek article about Dean Obeidallah
- Profile of Dean Obeidallah at the Institute for Middle East Understanding
- PBS documentary which aired May 11, 2008 featuring Dean Obeidallah entitled: "Stand Up Comics: Muslim-American Comedians Come of Age"
- Video (and audio) of interview/discussion with Dean Obeidallah on Bloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tv is a political, world events, philosophy, and science video blog discussion site in which the participants take part in an active back and forth conversation via webcam which is then broadcast online to viewers...
- Photo gallery: Dean Onnual Arab-American Comedy Festival in New York
- NPR article "Muslim Comedian Aims at Breaking Stereotypes"
- AND Magazine interview "The Muslims Are Coming!"