Jeff Dunham is an American standup comedian as well as a ventriloquist. He has appeared in several televisions shows including ‘Comedy Central Presents’, ‘The Tonight Show’, and ‘Late Show with David Letterman’, among others. Further, in 2009, he featured in his own series ‘The Jeff Dunham Show’ aired on Comedy Central.
Moreover, he has also attracted the headlines for his divorce publically. According to a Hollywood reporter on 21 January 2015, his present wife filed a lawsuit against his ex-wife for registering the domain AudreyDunham.com before she took in marriage. Do you want to know more about his personal life, career, and net worth? Stay tuned.
Caption: The comedian and Ventriloquist, Jeff Dunham.
Source: YouTube
Jeff Dunham: Bio, Family, Education
The comedian was born on 18 April 1962, in Dallas, Texas, the United States as Jeffrey Dunham. He was adopted by a real estate agent named Howard Dunham and his wife Joyce while he was three months old. He grew up as their only child in a Presbyterian upbringing.
As growing up, his interest began to build towards the act on dummies and comedies. Therefore, from the age of eight, he started to learn ventriloquism after he received a Mortimer Snerd dummy as a Christmas present. When he reached fourth grade, he decided to make his career as a professional ventriloquist. So, he began to practice for hours in front of a mirror in the footstep of his idols Edgar Bergen.
By the time, he reached sixth grade, he already joined Vent Haven ConVENTion in Kentucky in its annual international meeting for ventriloquists. Regarding his education and qualification, after completing his high school, he attended Baylor University. But due to his tour schedules, he didn’t complete his education.
Jeff Dunham: Career & Life Achievements
As stated earlier, he began to perform from his teenage years and touring around the cities for which he had to drop out of his high level of education for making his career professionally. While performing, he used to do the job at Six Flags, later, he worked for banquets where local celebrities had attended. However, his big break came in 1976 when he got the attention of Dallas reporters including Bill O’Reilly after his television debut. During his high school, he made an appearance on the show ‘The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson’.
Later, after finishing high school, he enrolled at Baylor University to get a degree in communication while still performing. Due to his touring and working, he had to drop out in order to concentrate on his profession. In 1985, he joined the ‘Broadway show Sugar Babies’ along with Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller. At the end of 1988, he began to work in ‘The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson’ as a talent booker.
Furthermore, he got his first solo appearance on Comedy Central’s show ‘Comedy Central Presents’ in July 2003. His popularity and career reached new peaks in 2008 earning him huge followers that appeared in his performing arenas. More to that, he has launched his career as a singer and released first music album ‘Don’t Come Home For Christmas’ in 2008.
In 2009, he signed a contract with Comedy Central to work in multi-platform including stand-up specials, DVDs, and a consumer product partnership. More in rows, to appear in the television show ‘The Jeff Dunham Show’ that premiered in 2009and plus 60 city tour that begun in September 2010.
As a writer, he has released ‘Dear Walter’ via BRASMA Publications in 2003. Then in 2010, he published another book through Dutton, an autobiography ‘All By My Selves: Walter, Peanut, Achmed and Me’. In addition, he has also gained a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 21 September 2017. And he is also a holder of Guinness World Record for ‘Most Tickets Sold for a Stand-up Comedy Tour’.
Jeff Dunham: Personal Life, Wife, & Divorce
Coming over to his personal life, he has married twice and divorced once. Currently, he is married to an actress and certified nutritionist Audrey Murdick. Apart from that, Audrey is also a personal fitness trainer and competitive bodybuilder. The couple met in 2009 and after some meetings, they began dating. Then the couple took steps ahead and got engaged in December 2011. A year later, on 12 October 2012, they exchanged vows in a private ceremony where their close ones attended the wedding.
After a couple of years, they welcomed their twin sons; James Jeffrey and Jack Steven. However, this is not the first time that Dunham became a father. Previously, he had two daughters from his first marriage. He was married to Paige Dunham who is a film producer. Talking about their history, they first met at a Comedy corner in West Palm Beach, Florida sometime in 1990 and started dating in 1992.
Caption: Jeff and wife, Audrey
Source: Foodnetwork
Then they married after two years in 1994 and adopted Paige’s daughter from her previous relationship. However, their relationship didn’t go well, in the end, they decided to separate from each other resulting in divorce in 2008.
Jeff Dunham: Net Worth & Social Media Profiles
From a young age, he has been doing his best to reach the top in his profession, despite that, he has gained a lot of success. Therefore, as a comedian and ventriloquist, he has made a net worth estimated at around $140 million. In addition to that, he is one of the highest-paid comedians whose yearly income ranges between $15 to $30 million. As of 2018, he has made a huge amount of $17 million from his career. According to Variety, he owns 7204 square feet house worth over $4 million in Hidden Hills, California.
Dunham is also active over different social media platforms where he shared pictures of his acts, daily lifestyle, and family. He has official and personal accounts on platforms like Instagram and Twitter. He has a Facebook account @jeffDunham with over 9 million followers. On Instagram, he has an account @jeffdunham having 739k followers. Also, on Twitter, he goes by the handle @jeffdunham with 550k followers.
Jeff Dunham: Body Measurements
Dunham has a fit and well-toned body that stands to a height of 5 feet 9 inches or meters and weighs. Other than this, there is no information on his body stats of chest size, waist, shoe size, and so on. He has brown eyes and hair color.
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