Josh Kornbluth
Encyclopedia
Josh Kornbluth is an American comedic autobiographical
monologuist based in the San Francisco Bay Area
who has toured internationally, written and starred in several feature films, and starred in a television interview show.
, he briefly attended Princeton University
but dropped out, never completing his undergraduate degree. He worked as a copyeditor in New York before moving to San Francisco in 1987. He is married to wife Sara, with whom he has a son, Guthrie.
, Lily Tomlin
, and Spalding Gray
.
Most of Kornbluth's monologues relate to personal and societal ethics, self-fulfillment, and the role of the individual in society, drawing a connection between his own personal foibles and larger issues of citizenship. Playing a hapless, sincere, and sometimes buffoonish everyman caught up in world events, he demonstrates the relevance of these concepts to daily life. His live performances, occasionally include a question-and-answer session with academic lawyers or other experts and scholars. Despite the serious messages and somewhat dry themes his works are all lighthearted and highly humorous.
Live monologues include:
, Rita Moreno
, and Amy Sedaris
. The show often included a "man on the street" segment, "Wandering Josh".
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
monologuist based in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
who has toured internationally, written and starred in several feature films, and starred in a television interview show.
Personal life
Kornbluth was born in 1959 to mother "Bunny" and father Paul, the oldest of four children. Raised in New York CityNew 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...
, he briefly attended Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
but dropped out, never completing his undergraduate degree. He worked as a copyeditor in New York before moving to San Francisco in 1987. He is married to wife Sara, with whom he has a son, Guthrie.
Overview
Kornbluth's live and filmed works are almost entirely solo monologues based closely on events and people his life, his upbringing, and his career. As such he is among a small group of artists that includes Eric BogosianEric Bogosian
Eric Bogosian is an American actor, playwright, monologist, and novelist of Armenian descent.-Personal life:Bogosian, an Armenian-American, was born in Woburn, Massachusetts, the son of Edwina, a hairdresser and instructor, and Henry Bogosian, an accountant. After graduating from Oberlin College,...
, Lily Tomlin
Lily Tomlin
Mary Jean "Lily" Tomlin is an American actress, comedienne, writer, and producer. Tomlin has been a major force in American comedy since the late 1960's when she began a career as a stand up comedian and became a featured performer on television's Laugh-in...
, and Spalding Gray
Spalding Gray
Spalding Rockwell Gray was an American actor, playwright, screenwriter, performance artist and monologuist...
.
Most of Kornbluth's monologues relate to personal and societal ethics, self-fulfillment, and the role of the individual in society, drawing a connection between his own personal foibles and larger issues of citizenship. Playing a hapless, sincere, and sometimes buffoonish everyman caught up in world events, he demonstrates the relevance of these concepts to daily life. His live performances, occasionally include a question-and-answer session with academic lawyers or other experts and scholars. Despite the serious messages and somewhat dry themes his works are all lighthearted and highly humorous.
Works
Major filmed work includes:- Haiku TunnelHaiku TunnelHaiku Tunnel is an office comedy film about the struggle between tempness and permness .-Plot:Josh is the consummate temp employee, avoiding all long-term connections and responsibilities, both at work and in his personal life...
- his experience as an inept legal assistant - Red Diaper BabyRed diaper babyRed diaper baby describes a child of parents who were members of the United States Communist Party or were close to the party or sympathetic to its aims.-History:...
- an affectionate account of growing up Communist in America - Strange CultureStrange CultureStrange Culture is a 2007 documentary film directed by Lynn Hershman Leeson. It stars Tilda Swinton and Thomas Jay Ryan.It premiered January 19, 2007 at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.-Synopsis:...
- a documentary on the bizarre case against Steve KurtzSteve KurtzSteve Kurtz is a professor of art at the SUNY Buffalo, former professor of art history at Carnegie Mellon University and a founding member of the performance art group, Critical Art Ensemble. He is known for his work in BioArt, and Electronic Civil Disobedience, and because of his arrest by the FBI...
Live monologues include:
- The Mathematics of Change - describes how despite a love for mathematics he "hit the wall" in his freshman classes at Princeton; draws parallels between calculus and life
- Mr. Smith Goes to Obscuristan - a San Francisco Mime TroupeSan Francisco Mime TroupeThe San Francisco Mime Troupe is a theatre of political satire which performs free shows in various parks in the San Francisco Bay Area and around California. The Troupe does not, however, perform silent mime, but each year creates an original musical comedy that combines aspects of Commedia...
show (co-author) - Ben Franklin Unplugged - describes how in the course of researching the personal and public life of Ben Franklin, he realizes that his affinity with Franklin goes far beyond their obvious physical resemblance
- Love and Taxes - revisits the events of Haiku Tunnel, the royalties from which he did not report to the IRSInternal Revenue ServiceThe Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
for years despite working for a well-known tax lawyer; explores the meaning of the tax system and necessity to pay income tax, as well as events surrounding his marriage. In 2004 a judge at the United States Tax CourtUnited States Tax CourtThe United States Tax Court is a federal trial court of record established by Congress under Article I of the U.S. Constitution, section 8 of which provides that the Congress has the power to "constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court"...
called Kornbluth to say he had cited a pivotal scene from the monologue in which a former Commissioner of Internal RevenueCommissioner of Internal RevenueThe Commissioner of Internal Revenue is the head of the Internal Revenue Service , a bureau within the United States Department of the Treasury.The office of Commissioner was created by Congress by the Revenue Act of 1862...
calls Kornbluth the Yiddish invective "pisher" for not paying his taxes, in a judicial opinion he had just completed, the first known instance of the word in American jurisprudence. As of 2011, Kornbluth and his brother were in production on a film version of the monologue. - Citizen Josh - in which he completes his final requirement for an undergraduate degree by writing a monologue about the role of civility in public debate
- Andy Warhol: Good for the Jews? - a monologue commissioned by the Contemporary Jewish MuseumContemporary Jewish MuseumThe Contemporary Jewish Museum was founded in 1984 in San Francisco, California, with the goal of offering contemporary perspectives on Jewish culture, history, art, and ideas...
of San Francisco, about the exhibit Warhol’s Jews: A Retrospective.
The Josh Kornbluth Show
Kornbluth hosted a television talk show, The Josh Kornbluth Show, for two seasons (2005-2007) on KQED 9, San Francisco. Guests included Alan AldaAlan Alda
Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo , better known as Alan Alda, is an American actor, director, screenwriter, and author. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner, he is best known for his role as Hawkeye Pierce in the TV series M*A*S*H...
, Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno is a Puerto Rican singer, dancer and actress. She is the only Hispanic and one of the few performers who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony, and was the second Puerto Rican to win an Academy Award....
, and Amy Sedaris
Amy Sedaris
Amy Louise Sedaris is an American actress, author, and comedian. She is known for playing the character Jerri Blank in the Comedy Central television series Strangers with Candy. Sedaris regularly collaborates with her older brother, humorist and author David Sedaris...
. The show often included a "man on the street" segment, "Wandering Josh".
External links
- joshkornbluth.com - Official website
- Josh Kornbluth Show blog on KQED
- Josh Kornbluth at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...