Nationality American Name Judy Tenuta | Ex-spouse Emo Philips Books The Power of Judyism | |
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Medium stand-up, television, music Subject(s) Catholicism, current events, American politics, pop culture, religion Role Entertainer · judytenuta.com Albums Buy This, Pigs!, A Space Goddessy, Attention Butt Pirates and Lesbetarians Parents Caesar Tenuta, Joann Tenuta Movies and TV shows Butch Camp, Going Down in La‑La Land, Sister Mary, The Weird Al Show, Space Ghost Coast to Similar People Emo Philips, Casper Andreas, Charlie Vaughn, Kipleigh Brown, "Weird Al" Yankovic | ||
Stand Up Comedy "Judy Tenuta" Part One Ladies of the Night
Judy Tenuta (2/15/89)
Judy Lynn Tenuta (born November 7, 1956) is an American comedian. She is noted for her brash onstage persona, alternating insult comedy with self-promotion as the "Love Goddess."
Contents
- Stand Up Comedy Judy Tenuta Part One Ladies of the Night
- Judy Tenuta 21589
- Early life
- Career
- Comic persona
- Discography
- References
Early life
One of nine siblings, Judy Lynn was born in Oak Park, Illinois in 1956 into a large Catholic family; to a Polish mother Joann, and an Italian father, Caesar.
Career
Tenuta gained notoriety as a wisecracking, accordion-wielding self-proclaimed "Petite Flower and Love Goddess" during the golden age of character comedy in the mid '80s, alongside Emo Philips and Bobcat Goldthwait, in addition to such notable contemporaries as Sam Kinison and Steven Wright. She has been featured in several productions of "Weird Al" Yankovic's, including The Weird Al Show as well as the music videos for "Headline News" and "White & Nerdy". She has also appeared on game shows such as Hollywood Squares, Street Smarts and the 1998-99 revival of Match Game. Her most extensive profile came from a series of TV ads for MTV and most notably, Diet Dr Pepper in the late-1980s, as well as her HBO, Showtime and Lifetime specials which became popular and gained her a loyal following. She is also well known for her often quoted catch phrase, "It could happen!"
Her use of voice in her act has lent itself to voice-over work in several animated programs. This includes doing the voice of Edna on Duckman, Black Widow on Space Ghost Coast to Coast, and as herself in Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist.
Comic persona
Tenuta's act is primarily structured around an exaggerated, offbeat persona that is referred to primarily as "The Love Goddess". Other monikers include "The Petite Flower", "Aphrodite of the Accordion", "Fashion-Plate Saint", "Princess of Panty Shields", and "Empress of Elvis Impersonators". Tenuta's persona encourages fans to convert to her own personal religion, "Judyism".