Bill Maher

American stand-up comedian and television hostTemplate:SHORTDESC:American stand-up comedian and television host[[Category:**Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Pagetype/config' not found.**s with short description]]

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**William Maher** (Template:IPAc-en; born January 20, 1956) is an American comedian, political commentator, and television host. He is known for the HBO political talk show *Real Time with Bill Maher* (2003–present) and the similar late-night show called *Politically Incorrect* (1993–2002), originally on Comedy Central and later on ABC.

Maher is known for his political satire and sociopolitical commentary. He targets many topics including religion, political correctness and the mass media. His critical views of religion were the basis for the 2008 documentary film *Religulous*. He is a supporter of animal rights, having served on the board of PETA since 1997 and is an advisory board member of Project Reason. Maher supports the legalization of cannabis, serving on the advisory board of NORML.

In 2005, Maher ranked at number 38 on Comedy Central's 100 greatest stand-up comedians of all time. He received a Hollywood Walk of Fame star on September 14, 2010.

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## Early life and education

Maher was born in New York City. His father, William Aloysius Maher Jr., was a network news editor and radio announcer, and his mother, Julie Maher (née Berman), was a nurse. He was raised in his Irish-American father's Roman Catholic religion. Until his early teens, he was unaware that his mother, whose family was from Hungary, was Jewish. Owing to his disagreement with the Catholic Church's doctrine about birth control, Maher's father stopped taking Maher and his sister to Catholic church services when Maher was thirteen.

Maher was raised in River Vale, New Jersey, and graduated from Pascack Hills High School in Montvale in 1974. He then attended Cornell University, where he double majored in English and history, and graduated in 1978. Maher has said: "selling pot allowed me to get through college and make enough money to start off in comedy."

## Career

### Early career

Maher began his career as a comedian and actor. He was host of the New York City comedy club Catch a Rising Star in 1979. Maher began appearing on Johnny Carson's and David Letterman's shows in 1982. He made limited television appearances including on *Sara* (1985), *Max Headroom* (1987), *Murder, She Wrote* (1989, 1990), and *Charlie Hoover* (1991). His feature film debut was in *D.C. Cab* (1983). He later appeared in *Ratboy* (1986), *House II: The Second Story* (1987), *Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death* (1988), *Newhart* (1988), hosted the talk show *Midnight Hour* on CBS (1990), and *Pizza Man* (1991).

#### *Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher*

*Main article: Politically Incorrect*
Maher assumed the host role on *Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher*, a late-night political talk show that ran on Comedy Central from 1993 to 1997 and on ABC from 1997 to 2002. The show regularly began with a topical monologue by Maher preceding the introduction of four guests, usually a diverse group of individuals, such as show business, popular culture, political pundits, political consultants, authors, and occasionally news figures. The group would discuss topical issues selected by Maher, who also participated in the discussions. Jerry Seinfeld, a regular guest on the show, stated that *Politically Incorrect* reminded him of talk shows from the 1950s and '60s "when guests interacted with each other as much as with the host".

*Politically Incorrect* won an array of awards, including an Emmy Award for Outstanding Technical Direction, two CableACE awards for Best Talk Show Series, and a Genesis Award for Best Television Talk Show. Maher earned numerous award nominations for his producing, writing, and hosting of *Politically Incorrect*, including ten Emmy nominations, two TV Guide nominations, and two Writers Guild nominations. ABC decided against renewing Maher's contract for *Politically Incorrect* in 2002, after he made a controversial on-air remark six days after the September 11 attacks. He agreed with his guest, conservative pundit Dinesh D'Souza, that the 9/11 terrorists did not act in a cowardly manner (in rebuttal to President Bush's statement calling them cowards). Maher said, "We have been the cowards. Lobbing cruise missiles from 2,000 miles away. That's cowardly. Staying in the airplane when it hits the building. Say what you want about it. Not cowardly. You're right." Maher later clarified that his comment was not anti-military in any way whatsoever, referencing his well-documented longstanding support for the American military. After receiving complaints, FedEx and Sears Roebuck pulled their advertisements from the show, costing the show significant revenue.

Maher's remarks after 9/11 were not the first time he had sparked controversy on *Politically Incorrect*. In the same year, he expressed his deep regrets and apologized after being widely criticized for comparing his dogs to retarded children. The show was canceled on June 16, 2002, and the Sinclair Broadcast Group had dropped the show from its ABC-affiliated stations months prior. On June 22, 2002, just six days after the cancellation of *Politically Incorrect*, Maher received the Los Angeles Press Club president's award (for "championing free speech"). Maher was on the board of judges for the 2002 PEN/Newman's Own First Amendment Award.

#### *Real Time with Bill Maher*

*Main article: Real Time with Bill Maher*
In 2003, Maher became the host, co-producer, and co-writer of *Real Time with Bill Maher*, a weekly hour-long political comedy talk show on the cable television network HBO. In 2016, HBO renewed *Real Time* through 2018, for its 15th and 16th seasons. During an interview, Maher told Terry Gross (on NPR's *Fresh Air*) that he much prefers having serious and well-informed guests on his program, as opposed to the random celebrities that fleshed out his roundtable discussions on *Politically Incorrect*.

As with his previous show, *Politically Incorrect*, Maher begins *Real Time* with a comic opening monologue based upon current events and other topical issues. He proceeds to a one-on-one interview with a guest, either in-studio or via satellite. Following the interview, Maher sits with two or three panelists, usually consisting of pundits, authors, activists, actors, politicians, and journalists, for a discussion of the week's events.

*Real Time* has earned widespread praise. It has been nominated for more than ten Primetime Emmy Awards and six Writer's Guild awards. In 2007, Maher and his co-producers were awarded the Television Producer of the Year Award in Variety Television by the Producers Guild of America. Maher holds the record for the most Emmy nominations without a win, having been nominated on 22 occasions and not winning once. Eleven of the nominations were for *Politically Incorrect*, while nine were for *Real Time*. The other two were nominations for two of his HBO comedy specials: *I'm Swiss* and *Bill Maher: The Decider*.

##### Notable responses to *Real Time* episodes

In late May 2005, Alabama Congressman Spencer Bachus sent a letter to Time Warner's board of directors requesting *Real Time* be canceled after remarks Maher made after noting the military had missed its recruiting goals by 42 percent. Bachus said he felt the comments were demeaning to the military and treasonous. Maher stated his highest regard and support for the troops and asked why the congressman criticized him instead of doing something about the recruitment problem.

On September 17, 2010, Maher aired a clip of Delaware Republican Senatorial candidate Christine O'Donnell from the October 29, 1999 episode of his old show *Politically Incorrect* on his current show *Real Time with Bill Maher*, where she mentioned that she had "dabbled in witchcraft". This was one of the most notable of numerous controversial statements by O'Donnell that made her the most covered candidate in the 2010 mid-term election cycle.

In February 2017, Maher invited Milo Yiannopoulos to be interviewed on *Real Time.* Yiannopoulos accepted, despite protests from some commentators and fans. The appearance on Maher's show harmed Yiannopoulos's career due to comments in the interview in which he seemed to express sympathy toward perpetrators of child sexual abuse. In the days following the interview, Yiannopoulos had his invitation to speak before the 2017 Conservative Political Action Conference, as well as a book deal with Simon & Schuster, cancelled. Yiannopoulos subsequently resigned as an editor at Breitbart News. When asked whether Yiannopoulos's interview on his show was among the causes of his resignation, Maher concurred, saying, "As I say, sunlight is the best disinfectant. You're welcome."

In June 2017, Maher came under criticism for saying "I'm a house nigger" on *Real Time* with calls being made by people to HBO to fire him. Following the episode, HBO sent a statement to media outlets, calling Maher's remarks "inexcusable and tasteless" and said the cable network will remove that segment from future airings of the show. Maher also issued a statement apologizing for the remarks.

### Political commentator

Maher is a frequent commentator on various cable news networks, including CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, and HLN. Maher has regularly appeared on CNN's *The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer* and has also been a frequent guest on MSNBC's *Hardball with Chris Matthews*, *The Rachel Maddow Show*, and *Countdown with Keith Olbermann*. Maher has also appeared as a guest on HLN's *The Joy Behar Show*. He wrote the foreword for the 2002 book, *Spin This!: All the Ways We Don't Tell the Truth* by show host Bill Press.

Maher hosted the January 13, 2006 edition of *Larry King Live*, on which he was a frequent guest. Maher appeared as a special guest on the June 29, 2010 edition of the show, on which CNN anchor Larry King announced his retirement. Maher co-emceed the final show of *Larry King Live* on December 16, 2010 with Ryan Seacrest.

### Other work

In 2004, Maher appeared on stage as Satan in The Steve Allen Theater production of "Hollywood Hell House", a spoof of the Christian-run hell houses. The show was a faithful reproduction of an evangelistic scare-experience written by Reverend Keenan Roberts to terrify teenagers into declaring themselves Christians. "Our faith is that putting this up as itself, it will hoist itself on its own petard, that it's comical just as it is," explained producer Maggie Rowe. The show featured a rotating cast of over 160 celebrities, including Andy Richter (Jesus), Richard Belzer, Dave Thomas, Traci Lords, Craig Bierko, Sarah Silverman, and Julia Sweeney.

Maher and director Larry Charles teamed up to make the movie *Religulous*, described by trade publication *Variety* as a documentary "that spoofs religious extremism across the world". It was released on October 3, 2008.

In 2013, Maher became one of the executive producers for the HBO newsmagazine series *Vice*. Also in 2013, Maher appeared on *The Tonight Show with Jay Leno* and offered to pay $5 million to a charity if Donald Trump would produce his birth certificate to prove that Trump's mother had not mated with an orangutan. Maher said this reportedly in response to Trump having previously challenged President Barack Obama to produce his birth certificate, and having offered $5 million payable to a charity of Obama's choice if Obama would produce his college applications, transcripts, and passport records.

In response to Maher's offer, Trump produced his birth certificate, and then Trump launched a lawsuit after Maher was not forthcoming, claiming that Maher's $5 million offer was legally binding. "I don't think he was joking", Trump said. "He said it with venom." Trump withdrew his lawsuit against the comedian after eight weeks.

On May 13, 2016, Maher and his friend Michael Moore announced on YouTube that they are going to make a movie called *The Kings of Atheism*.

## Views and beliefs

### Politics

 File:Bill Maher and Ingrid Newkirk by David Shankbone.jpg
Maher often eschews political labels, referring to himself as "practical". He identifies as liberal, but stands against political correctness. In his words, "The difference is that liberals protect people, and P.C. people protect feelings."

In the past, he has also described himself as a libertarian, and has also referred to himself "as a progressive, as a sane person".

In a 2012 panel discussion with Salman Rushdie, Maher counted himself, Rushdie, and others such as Christopher Hitchens and Sam Harris as "9/11 liberals," noting that they differentiate themselves from many mainstream liberals in saying that not all religions are alike and that they are not bigoted in criticizing a particular religion. He said in a later interview: "It's ridiculous to label criticism of a religion as a phobia of a religion. I'm going to criticize any person or group that violates liberal principles...."

Maher favors ending corporate welfare and federal funding of non-profits as well as the legalization of gambling, prostitution, and cannabisTemplate:Clarify. Maher is a member of the advisory boards for both the NORML and Marijuana Policy Project, organizations that support regulated legalization of cannabis, and has been called "one of the brightest torches for sensible marijuana policy" and "a contemporary cannabis statesman".

Maher describes himself as an environmentalist, and he has spoken in favor of the Kyoto treaty on global warming on his show *Real Time*. He often criticizes industry figures involved in environmental pollution. He is a board member of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. The comedian has noted the paradox of people claiming they distrusted "elite" politicians while at the same time wanting elite doctors to treat them and elite lawyers to represent them in court.

Maher supports the death penalty.

Since the 9/11 attacks, he has endorsed certain uses of profiling at airports, saying that "Places like Israel, where they have faced terrorism for a long time, of course understand that profiling is part of all detective work. It's part of all police work. If they stop calling it profiling and start calling it high-intelligence screening or something, people would go, it's about time."

He opposed the Iraq War from the beginning, and has summarized his opinion by saying that the United States and the world have had to pay too high a price for the war. He is skeptical of Iraq surviving without civil war.

In the 2008 U.S. presidential election, Maher announced his support for U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL). Although Maher welcomed Obama's electoral victory, he subjected him to criticism after he took office for not acting more boldly on health care reform and other progressive issues.

 File:Bill Maher and Mark Warner.jpg
On February 23, 2012, after his 'Crazy Stupid Politics' special streamed on Yahoo! Screen, Maher announced that he was contributing $1 million to Priorities USA, the Obama SuperPAC.

On the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Maher says he is "more on the side of the Israelis" and doesn't consider both sides equally guilty. He acknowledges that "Palestinians do have gripes", and he has been critical of U.S. financial aid to Israel, saying "they don't need our money, they can handle it themselves." Maher also notes that most Israelis would prefer a two-state solution and oppose the hard-line stance of their Israeli government, which he describes as having been taken over by their version of the Tea Party. However, Maher has defended Israel's military actions against Palestinian militants amid criticism over civilian deaths and disproportionate casualty count between Israelis and Palestinians during the 2014 Gaza war. He argues that Israel is still showing restraint, and he finds it ironic that the same people who were incredulous over how the Jews in World War II were led "to their slaughter", can't understand why they are defending themselves now.

Maher is a gun owner, and explained in his February 12, 2013, appearance on the late night TV talk show *Conan* that he owns guns for personal home protection. However, he does not identify himself as a "proud" gun owner, commenting that being a proud gun owner is akin to "saying I'm a 'proud remote control owner'". Maher has stated that statistics showing that gun owners are more likely to harm a member of their household are caused by irresponsible gun owners, and believes that tragedies such as school shootings will not lead to fundamental change in gun laws because both Democrats and Republicans favor guns. He believes the Second Amendment is "bulls—t."

On June 7, 2013, Maher expressed on his show limited support for the NSA's PRISM intelligence data collection from private phone calls and the Internet, saying that the threat of terrorists obtaining and using nuclear weapons was the tipping point for him. While he stated that he trusted the Obama administration to employ the program responsibly, he described the NSA's access to private data as a "slippery slope", and worried about whether other politicians would be as responsible.

In the leadup to the 2014 midterm elections, Maher conducted a "Flip a District" contest on his HBO show. His audience was asked to select one "terrible, entrenched" member of Congress in a close election race—"the loserest loser of all"—to remove from office. Maher aimed to help oust that representative by shining a "national spotlight" on the politician during segments of his show and stand-up comedy appearances in that member's district during the Fall election.

Maher endorsed a 2014 Maine referendum to ban the use of bait, traps, and dogs to hunt bears in Maine. He specifically criticized the use of bait, referring to its use as "nothing but an execution".

In 2015, Maher criticized Barack Obama's visit to Saudi Arabia, a close U.S. ally, saying: "Stop respecting their medieval bullshit under the guise of, 'It's their culture.'"

In the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Maher initially endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders on February 5, 2016. Maher later announced his support for Hillary Clinton after Sanders had lost the Democratic Party primary elections. In October 2016, Maher criticized WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange for publishing leaks from the DNC's emails, saying: "I really feel like he's lost his way a little, and he hates Hillary."

On March 31, 2017, following her defeat, Maher responded on air to suggestions Clinton was ready to end her low profile and speak out: "Hillary, stay in the woods. Okay. You had your shot. You f\*cked it up. You're Bill Buckner. We had the World Series, and you let the grounder go through your legs. Let someone else have the chance."

Maher said economic recession would be 'worth it' if Donald Trump doesn't get re-elected in 2020. He said: "We have survived many recessions. We can't survive another Donald Trump term."

In 2019, Maher denounced the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions, saying: "It's predicated on this notion ... I think it's very shallow thinking that the Jews in Israel are mostly white and Palestinians are mostly brown, so they must be innocent and correct and the Jews must be wrong." He responded to Rep. Rashida Tlaib's call to boycott his talk show: "Some people have one move only: boycott. Cancel. Make-go-away. But here's the thing, the house voted 318 to 17 to condemn the #BDS movement, including 93% of Dems. Does Tlaib want to boycott 93% of her own party?". He has also been critical of the #MeToo movement, describing the movement as McCarthyite. He has supported Chris Matthews against allegations of sexual harassment. In addition, he is against what he sees as 'cancel culture' from the left (such as the firing of Megyn Kelly following her comments on blackface).

In 2020, he criticized those who equated using the term "Wuhan virus" with racism, stating, "Scientists...have been naming diseases after the places they came from for a very long time. Zika is from the Zika Forest, Ebola from the Ebola River, hantavirus the Hantan River. There's the West Nile virus and Guinea worm and Rocky Mountain spotted fever and, of course, the Spanish flu." He added: "This has nothing to do with Asian Americans, and it has everything to do with China."

### Religion

*See also: Religulous*
 File:Protests against Bill Maher TIFF08.jpg
Maher is highly critical of all religion and views it as highly destructive. He has been described, or self-identified, variously as an agnostic, atheist, and apatheist, while objecting to having his views defined by a single label. In his 2008 feature film *Religulous*, he refers to himself as agnostic. He has rejected being grouped with explicit atheists, saying in 2002, "I'm not an atheist. There's a really big difference between an atheist and someone who just doesn't believe in religion. Religion to me is a bureaucracy between man and God that I don't need, but I'm not an atheist, no." Maher has also occasionally referred to himself as an apatheist, saying in 2011 "I don't know what happens when you die, and I don't care." When discussing his apatheism and his views on the existence of God, he said on a scale from 1 to 7 (7 being "absolutely certain there is no god"), he was only at 6.9, like Richard Dawkins, "because we just don't know ... but we just don't think about it." He added, "There's atheist and there's agnostic, and I'm okay with us not splitting the difference on those; if you are just not a super-religious person, you are on my team." Several months later on a 2012 episode of his HBO show, Maher declared that "idiots must stop claiming that atheism is a religion [...] believe it or not, I don't really enjoy talking about religion all the time. In fact, not only is atheism not a religion, it's not even my hobby, and that's the best thing about being an atheist. It requires so little of your time." He has reiterated his stance during other interviews, rejecting both the certitude of the existence, as well as the certitude of nonexistence of deities, concluding, "I'm saying that doubt is the only appropriate response for human beings."

While critical of all organized religions, saying "they're all stupid and dangerous", Maher says all religions are not alike, and has drawn comparisons and contrasts between them. He has said, "By any standard, Mormonism is more ridiculous than any other religion." He has referred to tenets of Judaism as "insane" and "funny", and has said Buddhism "includes crazy whack shit that doesn't exist, that somebody made up, like reincarnation". He has described Christianity and Islam as more "warlike", and has asserted that, like historic Christianity, present-day Islam needs to undergo its own reformation and enlightenment.

In defense of his criticism of Islam, Sharia law and Muslim culture, Maher says he is "... someone who believes in the values that Western people believe in that a lot of the Muslim world does not. Like separation of church and state. Like equality of the sexes. Like respect for minorities, free elections, free speech, freedom to gather. These things are not just different from cultures that don't have them.... It's better ... I would like to keep those values here." Citing studies and poll results by Pew Research Center, the World Economic Forum and others, Maher says the human rights violations and "illiberal ideas" found in Islam are not extremist views held by a small minority, but are supported by a majority of citizens in Muslim countries. Maher has criticized liberals as hypocritical for defending these core liberal values and ideals only at home, while not condemning the oppression of these values and groups in Muslim culture. Regarding the more recent publicity generated by his stance in the ongoing debate, Maher says he thinks people are finally paying closer attention to a conversation that they need to have. "I'm just shining a light on the reality of the situation. I don't even understand why this is so controversial."

Maher received the 2009 Richard Dawkins Award from Atheist Alliance International. He is an advisory board member of author Sam Harris's Project Reason, a foundation that promotes scientific knowledge and secular values within society.Template:Citation needed

### Health care

Maher supports the establishment of a Medicare-for-All universal single-payer health care system, and has consistently agreed with the proposal since 2011. Maher has stated that the American Medical Association is a powerful lobbying group and one of the primary reasons why the United States had failed to enact health care reform in the decades prior to the passage of the Affordable Care Act. On the topic of getting the Affordable Care Act passed, in 2009 Maher stated that Obama should forget about trying to get 60 votes for it because "he only needs 51.": "Forget getting the sixty votes or sixty percent—sixty percent of people don't believe in evolution in this country—he just needs to drag them to it, like I said, they're stupid; get health care done, with or without them." On Fox News in a televised debate with Bill O'Reilly, Maher said that "if Jesus was in charge of the country we'd probably have health care for everybody."

Maher has expressed the view that a lot of illness is the result of poor diet and lack of exercise, and that medicine is often not the most appropriate way of addressing illness. In an episode of his show about the 2008 presidential candidates' health plans, Maher stated that poor nutrition is a primary cause of illness, and that "the answer isn't another pill." He also has said: "If you believe you need to take all the pills the pharmaceutical industry says you do, then you're already on drugs!" He has expressed his distaste for the pharmaceutical and health care industries in general, on the grounds that they make their money out of treating people who are made sick by consuming unhealthy food that corporations push on the public. He maintains that mass consumption of high-fructose corn syrup is a contributor to the rise in frequency of obesity in the United States.

In a discussion with Michael Moore about the film *Sicko*, Maher said, "The human body is pretty amazing; it doesn't get sick, usually, for no reason. I mean, there's some genetic stuff that can get to you, but, basically, people are sick in this country because they're poisoned. The environment is a poisoning factor, but also, we gotta say, they poison themselves. They eat shit. People eat shit, and that's, to my way of thinking, about 90 percent of why people are sick, is because they eat shit."

Tara Parker-Pope and former Senator (R-TN) Dr. Bill Frist, a physician, have called his criticism of the H1N1 flu vaccinations unscientific. Infectious diseases expert Paul Offit has written that misinformation about vaccines from celebrities like Maher has put children at unnecessary risk. Offit says that celebrities like Maher are seen as "less credible" and would still be considered just "great entertainment" if they weren't joined by the former Director of the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Bernadine Healy and influential pediatrician, Dr. Robert Sears.

Surgical Oncologist David Gorski criticized Maher's claims about vaccines several times on ScienceBlogs, and when Maher received the Richard Dawkins Award in 2009, Gorski wrote it was inappropriate. Skeptics, including magician and popular science writer Martin Gardner, neurologist Steven Novella, and magician Jamy Ian Swiss have also strongly rebuked Maher, characterizing him as anti-science, uninformed and potentially endangering the health of fans who take his "non-medical" advice. Maher responded to the criticism, saying, "What I've read about what they think I'm saying is not what I've said. I'm not a germ theory denier. I believe vaccinations can work. Polio is a good example. Do I think in certain situations that inoculating Third World children against malaria or diphtheria, or whatever, is right? Of course. In a situation like that, the benefits outweigh costs. But to me living in Los Angeles? To get a flu shot? No." In 2019, Gorski again criticized Maher's HBO interview with the doctor Jay Gordon and Maher's claims about vaccines (in particular, the influenza vaccine), spreading out vaccinations and the possibility of a link between vaccines and autism, which is debunked according to consensus science.

### Cannabis advocacy

Maher, who has a California medical marijuana card, openly and publicly uses cannabis, and has been a visible supporter of cannabis law reform. He has been on the advisory board both of NORML and the Marijuana Policy Project. He sold pot while in college at Cornell and credits it for making his college and the beginning of his career as a comic possible.

#### Awards

Maher was honored by *High Times* as "Top Pot Comic in 2006" and *Real Time* won a Stony Award in 2006 for "Best Cable News Show". *High Times* later designated him as "Stoner of the Year".

### Miscellaneous

Maher has been a critic of 9/11 conspiracy theories. On October 19, 2007, Maher confronted several 9/11 truthers and had them ejected from his show audience after they interrupted the live show numerous times by calling out from the audience. The incident drew significant media attention and praise from Fox News talk show host and frequent critic John Gibson.

In November 2018 and January 2019, Maher stated in a blog post, in an interview with Larry King, and during a "New Rules" segment of *Real Time with Bill Maher*, that he questions Stan Lee's legacy, that comic books are not literature, and that adult fans of comic books "need to grow up".

## Influences

Maher has said his influences include Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, Steve Allen, Johnny Carson, Robert Klein, and George Carlin.

Comedians who have said they were influenced by Maher are Chris Rock and Seth MacFarlane.Template:Citation needed

## Personal life

 File:BillMaherStarSept10.jpg
Maher has never married. Regarding marriage, Maher is quoted on his website as saying, "I'm the last of my guy friends to have never gotten married, and their wives—they don't want them playing with me. I'm like the escaped slave—I bring news of freedom."

In 2003, he began dating former Playboy Cyber Girl Coco Johnsen. In November 2004, at the end of their 17-month relationship, Johnsen sued Maher for US$9 million for "pain and suffering" for alleged "insulting, humiliating and degrading racial comments". Her suit stated that Maher promised to marry her and father her children, support her financially and buy a house in Beverly Hills. Johnsen's suit also alleged that she quit her job as a flight attendant and occasional model to be with him. Maher's lawyers in their response, filed on November 23, 2004, in Los Angeles Superior Court said Maher is a "confirmed bachelor, and a very public one at that" who "never promised to marry [Johnsen] or to have children with her". Maher's filing stated that, after the relationship had ended, Johnsen "launched a campaign to embarrass, humiliate, and extort ridiculous sums of money from Bill Maher". Johnsen had previously accused another former boyfriend of rape and kidnapping in 1997, and the charges were later dismissed for lack of evidence. The lawsuit was dismissed on May 2, 2005.

In 2005, Maher began dating Karrine Steffans, best-selling author and former hip hop model.

When commentators suggested there was a pattern to his dating because both his girlfriend and former girlfriend were black, Maher said, "People say I'm into black women. Robert De Niro is into black women. I'm just into women who are real, and they happen to be black." From 2009–2011, Maher dated former adjunct professor, science educator, and current *Skeptics' Guide to the Universe* co-host Cara Santa Maria. In 2014, Maher was dating Ontario-born singer Anjulie Persaud.

In 2012, Maher purchased a minority ownership interest in the New York Mets.

## Bibliography

* *True Story: A Novel*, 1994 (Template:ISBN)
* *Does Anybody Have a Problem With That? Politically Incorrect's Greatest Hits*, 1996 (Template:ISBN)
* *Does Anybody Have a Problem with That? The Best of Politically Incorrect*, 1997 (Template:ISBN)
* *When You Ride Alone You Ride With Bin Laden: What the Government Should Be Telling Us to Help Fight the War on Terrorism*, 2003 (Template:ISBN)
* *Keep the Statue of Liberty Closed: The New Rules*, 2004 (Template:ISBN)
* *New Rules: Polite Musings from a Timid Observer*, 2005 (Template:ISBN)
* *The New New Rules: A Funny Look at How Everybody but Me Has Their Head Up Their Ass*, 2011 (Template:ISBN)

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Stated on *Finding Your Roots*, January 12, 2016, PBS; on a series that lists "Jr." and "Sr." distinctions, Bill Maher's birth name was listed simply as William Maher, while his father was William Aloysius Maher Jr., and his paternal grandfather was William Aloysius Maher Sr.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Bill Maher Biography". Film Reference. Archived from the original on January 8, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080108083123/http://www.filmreference.com/film/32/Bill-Maher.html. Retrieved January 17, 2008.
3. ↑ Template:Cite book
4. ↑ "Political Satirist Bill Maher's 'New Rules'", NPR. Retrieved on January 23, 2011. Archived from the original on February 19, 2011.
5. ↑ US Weekly Staff (January 23, 2015). "Bill Maher: 25 Things You Don't Know About Me", *Us Weekly*.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Interview with Larry King, 9-28-03", *CNN*. "Larry, I'm a PETA board member."
7. ↑ The Reason Project; Project Reason.org; 2011
8. ↑ "Advisory Board". https://norml.org/advisory-board.
9. ↑ ""Comedy Central's Top 100"". Archived from the original on April 4, 2005. https://web.archive.org/web/20050404175840/http://www.comedycentral.com/tv\_shows/100greatest/list.jhtml. Retrieved April 4, 2005. . Comedy Central. April 4, 2005
10. ↑ "Bill Maher gets Hollywood Walk of Fame star, September 14, 2010" (September 14, 2010).
11. ↑ "Bill Maher". *Dead-Frog*. http://www.dead-frog.com/comedians/comic/bill\_maher. Retrieved April 10, 2013. "Part Hungarian part Irish..."
12. ↑ "Interview With Bill Maher", CNN (May 24, 2002). Retrieved on January 17, 2008. "My mother is Jewish. But I never even knew I was half-Jewish until I was a teen-ager."
13. ↑ Carlin-McCall, Kelly (November–December 2008). "The Real Bill". Irish America magazine. http://www.irishabroad.com/irishworld/irishamericamag/octnov08/features/bill-maher-octnov08.asp. Retrieved April 23, 2010. "So the fact that I'm half Irish and half Jewish, they both contributed to a sense of humor."
14. ↑ Morgan, Piers (July 2011). "Bill Maher explains his 'apatheism,' apathetic atheism", CNN. Retrieved on July 12, 2011. "... and I was raised Catholic. I was never Jewish"
15. ↑ "Getting Blasphemous in the Presence of Bill Maher". Media.www.diamondbackonline.com. Archived from the original on December 21, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20081221013449/http://media.www.diamondbackonline.com/media/storage/paper873/news/2008/10/03/Diversions/Getting.Blasphemous.In.The.Presence.Of.Bill.Maher-3467097.shtml. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Bill Maher: How did I get here?; Bloomberg BusinessWeek; September 5, 2013; Real Life with Bill Maher, November 7, 2014.
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20. ↑ *Science Fiction, Horror & Fantasy Film and Television Credits: Television shows*; Harris M. Lentz; McFarland Publishing, 2001; Pg. 1944
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29. ↑ "'Real Time With Bill Maher' Renewed Through 2018", *Variety* (July 30, 2016). Retrieved on August 1, 2016.
30. ↑ "Bill Maher: Four More Years", *NPR* (February 8, 2005). Retrieved on August 9, 2010.
31. ↑ Producers Guild of America Awards – Winners 1990-2010; PGA.org; May 29, 2012
32. ↑ "Gold Derby", *Los Angeles Times* (July 20, 2009).
33. ↑ "Bill Maher's Remark About Army 'Borders on Treason,' Lawmaker Says – Celebrity Gossip", FOX News (May 23, 2005). Retrieved on October 18, 2010.
34. ↑ McGreal, Chris (September 20, 2010). "Christine O'Donnell: I dabbled in witchcraft", *The Guardian* (London). Retrieved on September 20, 2010. Archived from the original on September 22, 2010.
35. ↑ Sragow, Michael. "Bill Maher celebrates the art of standup".
36. ↑ "The Midterms’ Media Mainstays | Pew Research Center". http://www.journalism.org/numbers\_report/midterms'\_media\_mainstays.
37. ↑ Ken Tucker. "Christine O'Donnell, witchcraft, and Bill Maher: TV and politics put a hex on common sense", *Entertainment Weekly*.
38. ↑ Itzkoff, Dave (February 22, 2017). "Bill Maher, Faulted for Booking Milo Yiannopoulos, Takes Credit for His Fall", *The New York Times*. Retrieved on February 22, 2017.
39. ↑ Pengelly, Martin (June 3, 2017). "Bill Maher sorry for use of N-word as HBO calls it 'inexcusable and tasteless'". The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/jun/03/bill-maher-hbo-real-time-ben-sasse.
40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 Phillips, Kristine; Phillips, Kristine (June 3, 2017). "Bill Maher says he is 'very sorry' for using a racial slur on his HBO show". washingtonpost.com. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2017/06/03/bill-maher-faces-calls-for-firing-after-using-the-n-word-on-his-hbo-show/.
41. ↑ Robyn Ross. "Bill Maher: Zach Galifianakis Did Not Light Up a Real Joint", *TV Guide*.
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52. ↑ Nededog, Jehtro (May 10, 2012). "HBO, Bill Maher Team With Vice for Newsmagazine". *The Hollywood Reporter*.
53. ↑ Hinckley, David (April 5, 2013). "TV review: 'Vice' on HBO". *Daily News*.
54. ↑ 54.0 54.1 Allen, Michael E. (February 6, 2013). "Donald Trump Sues Bill Maher for Calling Him the Son of an Orangutan", *Forbes*. Retrieved on August 18, 2015.
55. ↑ Lee, Kristen A. (November 1, 2012). "Trump puts kibosh on $5M offer to Obama", *Daily News* (New York). Retrieved on August 19, 2015.
56. ↑ Ax, Joseph (April 3, 2013). "Trump withdraws 'orangutan' lawsuit against comic Bill Maher", Reuters. Retrieved on August 4, 2015.
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63. ↑ "NORML Advisory Board", *National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws*. Retrieved on March 22, 2012.
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80. ↑ Maher Wants His Show to Decide a House Race; New York Times; Bill Carter; January 30, 2014.
81. ↑ Flip a District; Real Time with Bill Maher; June 3, 2014.
82. ↑ "Famous talk show host Bill Maher endorses referendum to ban bear baiting", *Bangor Daily News* (September 15, 2014). Retrieved on September 15, 2014.
83. ↑ "Bill Maher To Obama On Saudi Arabia: "Stop Respecting Their Medieval Bulls\*\*t"", *Yahoo News* (January 31, 2015).
84. ↑ "Bill Maher: 'I'm With Her' or 'I'm With Stupid'". *The Observer*, July 29, 2016.
85. ↑ "Bill Maher and Michael Moore Turn on Julian Assange: 'I Feel Like He's Drifted'", *The Daily Beast*, October 29, 2016.
86. ↑ "Bill Maher to Hillary Clinton: 'Stay in the woods, OK? You had your shot'", *The Washington Times* (April 3, 2017).
87. ↑ "Millionaire Bill Maher pushes for recession", *Fox Business* (August 10, 2019).
88. ↑ "Bill Maher fires back at Tlaib after she suggests a boycott of his show", *Fox News* (August 22, 2019).
89. ↑ "Bill Maher invites Rashida Tlaib to discuss Israel, BDS on his show", *Fox News* (August 24, 2019).
90. ↑ "The Selective Empathy of #MeToo Backlash", *The Atlantic* (February 11, 2018). Retrieved on March 11, 2020.
91. ↑ "The Men of Late Night Take on Brett Kavanaugh", *Time* (October 1, 2018). Retrieved on March 11, 2020.
92. ↑ "Bill Maher defends Chris Matthews, mocks harassment claim", *TheHill* (March 7, 2020). Retrieved on March 11, 2020.
93. ↑ "Megyn Kelly and Bill Maher get candid on cancel culture: 'Even liberals hate this'", *USA TODAY* (January 27, 2020). Retrieved on March 11, 2020.
94. ↑ "Bill Maher defends calling coronavirus 'Chinese virus,' mocks Ted Lieu", *The Hill* (April 11, 2020).
95. ↑ Holden, Stephen (September 30, 2008). "Believers, Skeptics and a Pool of Sitting Ducks", *The New York Times*
96. ↑ Thompson, Stephen (October 9, 2002). "Is There a God?". *The A.V. Club*.
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98. ↑ HBO: Real Time with Bill Maher; Episode 236 – New Rules; Home Box Office; February 3, 2012
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100. ↑ Bill Maher on Paris massacre: 'There are no great religions — they're all stupid and dangerous'; *Raw Story*; January 8, 2015
101. ↑ Walker, Joseph (January 8, 2012). "Group lists Top Ten Anti-Mormon Statements of 2011", *Deseret News*.
102. ↑ 102.0 102.1 102.2 "Petition All You Want, Bill Maher Will Speak at Berkeley", *Vanity Fair* (December 2014). Retrieved on April 13, 2015.
103. ↑ "Bill Maher Stands By Mohammed Remarks: 'I Don't Need To Apologize For Being A Proud Westerner'". Mediaite. November 1, 2010. http://www.mediaite.com/tv/bill-maher-stands-by-mohammed-remarks-i-dont-need-to-apologize-for-being-a-proud-westerner. Retrieved March 13, 2011.
104. ↑ "Yes, Bill Maher Is Boorish. But We Shouldn't Be Afraid to Criticize Islam", *The New Republic* (October 9, 2014).
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123. ↑ Gorski, David. "Shame on HBO! Bill Maher interviews Dr. Jay Gordon and the antivaccine misinformation flows.". Science Based Medicine. https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/shame-on-hbo-bill-maher-interviews-dr-jay-gordon-and-the-antivaccine-misinformation-flows/. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
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129. ↑ Kaplan, Ilana (January 26, 2019). "Bill Maher Reignites Feud With Stan Lee Fans on 'Real Time'". *Rolling Stone*. https://www.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-news/bill-maher-stan-lee-real-time-785005/.
130. ↑ Perez, Lexy (January 25, 2019). "Bill Maher Responds to Stan Lee Backlash, Advises Comic Fans to "Grow Up"". *The Hollywood Reporter*. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/bill-maher-responds-stan-lee-backlash-real-time-1179466.
131. ↑ "'Awards Chatter' Podcast — Bill Maher ('Real Time With Bill Maher')". https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/awards-chatter-podcast-bill-maher-906168.
132. ↑ Long, Liz (July 31, 2015). "An Interview with Bill Maher". https://theroanoker.com/api/content/37e0b7da-36c4-11e5-bbeb-22000b078648/.
133. ↑ Hiatt, Brian; Hiatt, Brian (December 3, 2014). "Chris Rock: The Rolling Stone Interview". https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/chris-rock-the-rolling-stone-interview-55649/.
134. ↑ "Clips From Last Night: Bill Maher on why he's never been married... and American innovation". *Piers Morgan Live*. CNN. July 12, 2011.
135. ↑ 135.0 135.1 "Side Dish: Bill Maher is so in love, he may even break his biggest rule—get married!", *New York Daily News*, October 26, 2009.
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137. ↑ "Bill Maher Hit With Palimony Suit". Archived from the original on December 21, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20081221001246/http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1111041coco1.html. Retrieved January 3, 2009.
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139. ↑ "Maher: Ex Is Serial Shakedown Artist". The Smoking Gun. November 29, 2004.
140. ↑ "The Fix", *Salon*, November 30, 2004.
141. ↑ Keller, Julie (November 30, 2004). "Bill Maher Cries 'Con'". E!.
142. ↑ Hagan, Joe (April 9, 2012). "It Won't Hurt You. It's Vapor." *New York Magazine*, pg. 6.
143. ↑ "Judge Dismisses $9M Lawsuit Against Bill Maher" Template:Webarchive. Fox News/Associated Press. May 4, 2005.
144. ↑ Calhoune, Sandra. "Plot Summary of Confessions of A Video Vixen". Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20081205104113/http://www.allreaders.com/topics/info\_35499.asp. Retrieved January 8, 2009.
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146. ↑ A Bawdy Lifestyle, and How to Shake It Washington Post; July 28, 2005
147. ↑ "Bill Maher & Cara Santa Maria Split", *InTouch Weekly*, March 21, 2011. Template:Webarchive
148. ↑ Kennedy, John (March 22, 2014). "Bill Maher supports Rob Ford". Global News. http://globalnews.ca/news/1224401/toronto-mayor-rob-ford-gets-support-from-bill-maher. Retrieved December 17, 2014.
149. ↑ Rubin, Adam. "Bill Maher owns stake in Mets". ESPN New York. http://espn.go.com/new-york/mlb/story/\_/id/8004806/bill-maher-buys-minority-share-new-york-mets. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
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151. ↑ "HBO Comedy Hour:". http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-09-23/entertainment/9509230132\_1\_bill-maher-hbo-comedy-hour-premium-cable-channel.
152. ↑ http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/11/03/bill-maher-roasts-rapist-donald-trump-in-whinylittlebitch-comedy-special.html

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