Chelsea Handler

About me:

Chelsea Handler is one of the most exciting and successful figures in the entertainment industry. Recently named one of Glamour Magazine’s 2011 “Women of the Year”, Chelsea has built a multiplatform media empire as a bestselling author, talk show host, stand-up comedian, and an actress. The self-made media mogul is a cultural phenomenon whose business savvy is matched only by her comedic talents. As the host of E!’s “Chelsea Lately”, Handler remains the only female to break into the otherwise male-dominated late night arena. She has built “Chelsea Lately” into one of the highest rated shows on E! that consistently ranks higher than her late night competitors in the ratings (especially among women 18 to 34) and brings in an average of 900,000 viewers per episode. The show is also groundbreaking for female comedy writers as it is the first of its kind to have an unprecedented five women on staff who comprise half of the writing team. In April 2011, Handler introduced audiences to “After Lately”, a semi-scripted series that follows the outside lives of Chelsea along with her late night co-stars, guest comedians, and writers. With impressive ratings and an immediate cult following, “After Lately” recently returned for a second season and will feature cameos by Reese Witherspoon, Jenny McCarthy, and Jennifer Aniston among others. This January, Chelsea’s latest TV project “Are You There, Chelsea” premieres in primetime on NBC. The sitcom is based on her bestselling book Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea and stars Laura Prepon (“That 70’s Show”) as the fictional Chelsea with the real Chelsea Handler in a recurring role playing her sister Shoshanna. She is also an executive producer on the series. “Are You There, Chelsea” is produced by Warner Brothers Television for NBC Universal with new episodes airing Wednesday nights at 8:30pm beginning January 11th, 2012. Over the past year, Handler has taken on small feature film roles including a brief cameo in Universal Picture’s HOP with stars James Marsden and Russell Brand (April 2011) as well as supporting roles in 20th Century Fox’s action-comedy THIS MEANS WAR with Reese Witherspoon (February 17th, 2012), and Universal Picture’s FUN SIZE (October 2012). Additional TV credits include Oxygen’s “Girls Behaving Badly” (now syndicated in over 90 markets) and “The Chelsea Handler Show” along with MSN’s online web series “In The Motherhood.” Chelsea is also one of the leading nonfiction authors in publishing and was named “one of the clear winners of 2010” by Publisher’s Weekly with four bestselling books currently in print. Her first book, My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One Night Stands (Bloomsbury Publishing), sold over a million copies in more than twenty countries. Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea (Simon Spotlight), Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang (Grand Central Publishing), and her most recent Lies That Chelsea Handler Told Me (Borderline Amazing/A Chelsea Handler Book) all debuted at #1 on the New York Times Bestseller List. On March 28th, 2010, Handler had three books ranked at #1, #2, and #3 on the Bestseller Lists simultaneously – a remarkable feat for any author. In 2010, Grand Central created the “Borderline Amazing/A Chelsea Handler Book” publishing imprint with Chelsea signed on to pen three more books. Lies That Chelsea Handler Told Me was the imprint’s first release in May 2011. The second title is still in its preliminary stages and will be written through the eyes of Chelsea’s affable dog, Chunk. The third book is undecided at this time. In 2010, Chelsea partnered with Live Nation and Belvedere Vodka for the “Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang” comedy tour. She performed 79 shows in 53 markets across the United States and in Canada and sold over 250,000 tickets total to become one of the highest grossing of 2010. Her second Live Nation tour later that year, “Lies Chelsea Handler Told Me”, was equally successful with sold out shows in the top 20 US markets. Handler, who grew up in New Jersey, currently resides in Los Angeles.