Ventriloquism is a very subtle method of making an inanimate object (like a puppet, doll, or dummy) seem to say words that actually come from the person (holding the inanimate object). In fact, the person throws their voice at the doll and even appears to be having a conversation with it. Not many people have a knack for it, but Jeff Dunham is an exception.
One of America’s highest-earning comedians, he has garnered millions of fans with his hilarious puppet characters and ability to practice ventriloquism. Find out more about his background, family and messy divorce history here.
Jeff Dunham Bio
American comedian and film producer was born on April 18, 1962 in Dallas, Texas. He was adopted as a baby by Howard Dunham and his wife Joyce. Howard was a real estate expert and Joyce a housewife. The wealthy couple raised Jeff as their only son. At the age of 8, young Jeff began practicing ventriloquism with a doll his parents gave him as a Christmas present.
He began studying ventriloquism and soon began performing at his school. As he became popular in his Dallas neighborhood, Dunham began cracking jokes about prominent members of the community. He appeared at an international convention in Kentucky, the Vent Haven Convention, where he completely outwitted other competitors dubbed the “Vent Haven Convention” and became a retired champion.
Jeff’s first television appearance was in 1976 as a teenager in his high school after being approached by reporter Bill O’Reilly. After his impressive performance, he was interviewed by a local news agency and subsequently got jobs as an advertising executive for Datsun dealers. Dunham graduated from high school and attended Baylor University, where he majored in communications. He continued to perform his acts earning up to $70,000 between 1983 and 84. In 1985 he joined the Broadway show Sugar Babies Show.
After his improvement and growing popularity, Jeff landed his first spot on The Tonight Show in April 1990, marking a major career breakthrough for him. He continued to perform in small concerts and clubs for some roles on television. It wasn’t all rosy for Jeff as his career seemed to have dwindled by the mid ’90s, but staying true to his determination, he continued to improve and make a name for himself among the public.
His solo DVD comedy, titled Arguing With Myself, aired on Comedy Central in 2006, signaling the comedian’s biggest hit of his career. He gained more than 2 million viewers and earned a booking on Comedy Central, which dumped him in 2003.
His next work Spark of Madness album, released in 2007, sold over a million copies and received 140 million YouTube hits. A very special Christmas followed in 2008 and was also a hit. Dunham signed a deal with a television network in 2009 and released his own The Jeff Dunham Show which became the most-watched program in Comedy Central history.
However, the show was canceled after one season. Comedy Central showed Dunham’s Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos in September 2011 Minding the Monsters in October 2012 Across the Map in November 2014 and March 28, 2015 Achmed Saves America was broadcast by Country Music Television. NBC aired his September 17, 2015, Nothing in Hollywood .
The comedic ventriloquist kicks puppets he created himself. They are Walter, Peanut and Jose Jalapeno on a Stick, Bubba J, Sweet Daddy Dee, Melvin the Superhero, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, Little Jess, Diane, Seamus and Achmed Junior.
He has also acted in several films and directed documentaries, streamed his work Jeff Dunham: Relative Disaster live on popular website Netflix Special in 2017, and has garnered huge views for the comic actor.
His capital
One of America’s highest-earning comedians, Jeff Dunham has garnered millions of fans with his hilarious puppet characters and ventriloquism skills. Forbes ranked Dunham the fifth-highest-paid comedian and put his net income at $13.5 million. The ventriloquist and comedian’s combined net worth is $120 million. He has sold more than 10 million DVDs and has also earned numerous sales and endorsement deals.
wife and children
Jeff Dunham is currently married to Audrey Murdick, his personal physical trainer and nutritionist. The couple took their final vows in 2012 after dating for around two years. Audrey, who is 18 years younger than the popular comedian, gave birth to twins in October 2015, whom the couple named James Jeffrey and Jack Steven.
He was formerly married to Paige Brown, a single mother of a daughter he met on the Comedy Corner Show in West Palm Beach, Florida in 1992. They married two years later in 1994. The couple had two daughters, Ashlyn and Kenna, born in 1995 and 1997 respectively, before their marriage collapsed in 2008 due to a long period of separation.
Facts About His Messy Divorce
It has been claimed while Jeff was on tour,Paige was having a sexual relationship with another man; a fitness trainer from her childhood school. As a result, Jeff had his own affairs that negatively impacted his marriage to Paige.
Seeing that their marriage had reached an impasse, Jeff divorced in 2008, but the divorce process dragged on for two years and was finalized in 2010. That ended their 15-year marriage.
Audrey Murdick and Jeff reportedly met (before 2008) at a restaurant where she worked as a waitress. The couple started speaking out before officially filing for divorce from Paige to be fully with Audrey, who is 18 years his junior. This suggests that he considered being with Audrey with his then-wife over, and not necessarily because they (Audrey and Jeff) broke up over their marital life.
Paige went on to have her own pound of flesh by using the name of her ex-husband’s new wife to create three domain company names – audreydunham.com, audreydunham.org and audreydunham.net in January 2012. This resulted in that Audrey Dunham was suing Paige Brown for cyberpiracy in a $300,000 lawsuit.