Hal Sparks

**Harry Sparks III**, known as **Hal Sparks**, is an American actor, comedian, musician, political commentator, and television personality.

## Early life

Sparks was born on September 25, 1969 in Cincinnati, Ohio, but grew up in Peaks Mill, Kentucky.

When he was 14 years old, he moved to the Chicago area and enrolled at New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois, where he entered the theater department. Despite some initial opposition by his father, by 15 he began performing standup comedy and by 17 he won the title of "Chicago's Funniest Teenager" from the Chicago Sun-Times.

## Career

While still in high school, he became the host of the short-run Saturday game show Treasure Mall in 1988, just months shy of his 19th birthday. Upon graduation, Sparks moved to Los Angeles and after ten long years of paying his dues, he got his major TV break when he was hired to host Talk Soup in 1999.

He would go on to independently produce his first standup comedy DVD Escape from Halcatraz in 2008.

Sparks is a regular guest on such programs as CNN's Your $$$$$, The Joy Behar Show and The View when he's not hosting his own weekly progressive radio show. He's also participated in the Progressive Voices Cruise in 2009 and 2010. In 2011, he joined Stephanie Miller and John Fugelsang for the successful Sexy Liberal Comedy Tour in various cities across the country. This tour topped more than a million dollars in ticket sales while raising money for local progressive causes.

## Personal life

Sparks is an outspoken activist who regularly participates in charitable events for organizations like AIDS Walk, Farm Sanctuary, the Lilli Claire Foundation, Imagine a Cure and the Marijuana Policy Project. However, Sparks is a non-drinker and non-drug user who has "never had an alcoholic beverage in my life."[this quote needs a citation]

While at Los Angeles International Airport in 2010, Sparks and an airline passenger used CPR on an unconscious, elderly man who had collapsed in the airport terminal.

In May 2011, Sparks announced he would become a father during a special Ustream show on Father's Day. He debuted his son Camden Harrison Sparks at the 2011 AIDS Walk in Los Angeles.

Sparks has studied martial arts since the age of 8 years old and holds belts in Karate, Tae Kwon Do, and several forms of Kung Fu including Wushu.

In 2012, the Pittsburgh Pirates began using the iconic "Zoltan" hand gesture from Dude, Where's My Car? as a good luck symbol to turn around a 19-season losing streak. After a Twitter campaign to encourage the "real" Zoltan to appear at a game, Sparks flew to Pittsburgh on July 25, 2012, to throw out the honorary first pitch, and was on hand to see the Pirates win 3-2 over his hometown team, the Chicago Cubs. Despite picking up a cult following in Pittsburgh and helping the team contend in the playoff race well into September, the Pirates finished with a 79-83 record, extending their major North American professional sports record to 20 consecutive losing seasons.

Sparks is a Freemason, having been initiated on November 6, 2016 at Los Angeles Lodge No 42 F. & A. M.

As of April 2017, Sparks is a vegan and does intermittent fasting. He currently lives in Chinatown, Los Angeles. He also does a political commentary talk show on the Chicago audio station 820 AM on Saturdays, which is uploaded on his YouTube channel.