Jessica Makinson
Encyclopedia
Jessica Makinson is an American actress, comedienne, and improviser known as a series regular for several Comedy Central
programs, voice over work for animation, and as a sketch player for late night
talk show
s.
and pretending. She graduated from Arizona State University
in 2000 with a BA in theater. She then began sketch
and improvisation
work at ASU. Makinson helped build ASU's Farce Side Comedy Hour and Barren Mind into on-campus hits with her comedic skills. Soon after graduating, Makinson moved to Los Angeles
where she studied at Improv Olympic
, going on to become a stand-out performer in groups like Brand X, King Ten, and The Armondo Show.
A go-to girl for Trey Parker
and Matt Stone
, Makinson guest starred on their political sitcom, That's My Bush, and has contributed voices
to their long running animated series, South Park
. She has also contributed sketches and characters to ABC
's Jimmy Kimmel Live
, CBS
' Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and Showtime's The Underground
.
In 2003, Makinson starred in a season of Comedy Central
's improv/hidden camera series, Trigger Happy TV
, before landing the role of Eleanor (the weeper) on Spike TV
's 2004 reality
parody, Joe Schmo 2. The following year, she starred in two pilots, The Hollywood Show for Comedy Central (playing a mock reporter) and The Sportsmen's News for the Outdoor Channel (playing a mock news co-anchor). In early 2007, Makinson starred in arguably her biggest role to date, playing Carly Barzak in the short-lived series, Halfway Home
.
In December 2007, she appeared in TV commercials
for Toshiba
HDTV
which cross-promoted with Shrek the Third
.
Makinson also guest starred in an episode of the Nickelodeon
series iCarly
, entitled "iHave a Lovesick Teacher" as Miss Lauren Ackerman, Carly, Sam and Freddie's mean and insane history teacher, and again in "iStage an Intervention" very shortly at the end. She also appears on True Jackson, VP
as a rude airline passenger in the episode "Trapped in Paris".
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
programs, voice over work for animation, and as a sketch player for late night
Late night television
Late night television in the United States is the block of television programming airing after 11:00 pm and usually through 2:00 am. Traditionally, this type of programming airs after the late local news and is most notable for being the daypart used for a particular genre of programming that falls...
talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
s.
Early life and career
Makinson was an only child who loved water skiingWater skiing
thumb|right|A slalom skier making a turn on a slalom waterski.Waterskiing is a sport where an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation on a body of water, skimming the surface.-History:...
and pretending. She graduated from Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
in 2000 with a BA in theater. She then began sketch
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
and improvisation
Improvisational theatre
Improvisational theatre takes many forms. It is best known as improv or impro, which is often comedic, and sometimes poignant or dramatic. In this popular, often topical art form improvisational actors/improvisers use improvisational acting techniques to perform spontaneously...
work at ASU. Makinson helped build ASU's Farce Side Comedy Hour and Barren Mind into on-campus hits with her comedic skills. Soon after graduating, Makinson moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
where she studied at Improv Olympic
I.O.
iO, or iO Chicago, is a theater located at 3541 N. Clark St., in Chicago, Illinois, one-half block south of Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs baseball team. The theater both has performances of, and teaches improvisational comedy. It was founded in the 1980s by Del Close and Charna Halpern...
, going on to become a stand-out performer in groups like Brand X, King Ten, and The Armondo Show.
A go-to girl for Trey Parker
Trey Parker
Trey Parker is an American animator, screenwriter, director, producer, voice artist, musician and actor, best known for being the co-creator of the television series South Park along with his creative partner and best friend Matt Stone.Parker started his film career in 1992, making a holiday short...
and Matt Stone
Matt Stone
Matthew Richard "Matt" Stone is an American screenwriter, producer, voice artist, musician and actor, best known for being the co-creator of South Park along with creative partner and best friend, Trey Parker....
, Makinson guest starred on their political sitcom, That's My Bush, and has contributed voices
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
to their long running animated series, South Park
South Park
South Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
. She has also contributed sketches and characters to ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's Jimmy Kimmel Live
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Jimmy Kimmel Live! is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and broadcast on ABC.The nightly hour-long show made its debut on January 26, 2003, following Super Bowl XXXVII. Jimmy Kimmel Live! is produced by Jackhole Productions in association with ABC Studios...
, CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
' Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and Showtime's The Underground
The Underground (TV series)
The Underground was a sketch comedy series produced by and starring Damon Wayans. It aired on Showtime. Wayans describes the show as "In Living Color on steroids." In fact the show features raunchy, sexist, and racist behavior, and as Wayans states in his opening monologue, "We decided to test the...
.
In 2003, Makinson starred in a season of Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
's improv/hidden camera series, Trigger Happy TV
Trigger Happy TV
Trigger Happy TV was a hidden camera/practical joke reality television program. The original British edition of the show, produced by Absolutely Productions, starred Dom Joly and ran for two series on the British television channel Channel 4 from 2000 until 2002...
, before landing the role of Eleanor (the weeper) on Spike TV
Spike TV
Spike is an American cable television channel. It launched on March 7, 1983 as The Nashville Network , a joint venture of WSM, Inc...
's 2004 reality
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
parody, Joe Schmo 2. The following year, she starred in two pilots, The Hollywood Show for Comedy Central (playing a mock reporter) and The Sportsmen's News for the Outdoor Channel (playing a mock news co-anchor). In early 2007, Makinson starred in arguably her biggest role to date, playing Carly Barzak in the short-lived series, Halfway Home
Halfway Home (TV series)
Halfway Home is an American comedy series that aired on Comedy Central in Spring 2007.On its official website, Halfway Home is described as an "improvised half-hour show featuring the daily exploits of five ex-cons living together in a residential rehab facility" .After airing 10 episodes, on June...
.
In December 2007, she appeared in TV commercials
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
for Toshiba
Toshiba
is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...
HDTV
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
which cross-promoted with Shrek the Third
Shrek the Third
Shrek the Third is a 2007 American animated film, and the third film in the Shrek series. It was produced by Jeffrey Katzenberg for DreamWorks Animation, and is distributed by Paramount Pictures. It was released in U.S. theaters on May 18, 2007...
.
Makinson also guest starred in an episode of the Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
series iCarly
ICarly
iCarly is an American sitcom that focuses on a girl named Carly Shay who creates her own web show called iCarly with her best friends Sam and Freddie. The series was created by Dan Schneider, who also serves as executive producer. It stars Miranda Cosgrove as Carly, Jennette McCurdy as Sam, Nathan...
, entitled "iHave a Lovesick Teacher" as Miss Lauren Ackerman, Carly, Sam and Freddie's mean and insane history teacher, and again in "iStage an Intervention" very shortly at the end. She also appears on True Jackson, VP
True Jackson, VP
True Jackson, VP is an American television sitcom that aired on Nickelodeon from November 8, 2008 to August 20, 2011. The series starred Keke Palmer, Ashley Argota, Matt Shively, Danielle Bisutti, Greg Proops, Robbie Amell and Ron Butler. The theme song was written by Toby Gad and Keke Palmer and...
as a rude airline passenger in the episode "Trapped in Paris".
External links
- Biography at Comedy CentralComedy CentralComedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....