Bill Maher

Bill Maher is an American comedian, political commentator, and television host born William Maher Jr. on January 20, 1956, in New York City. He grew up in River Vale, New Jersey, the son of an NBC radio announcer father who was Catholic and a mother who was Jewish, a background he often references in his comedy. He graduated from Cornell University in 1978 with a degree in English and history and began performing stand-up in New York clubs.

He hosted Politically Incorrect on Comedy Central from 1993 and on ABC from 1997 to 2002. The show featured a roundtable of guests from politics, entertainment, and journalism debating current events. ABC declined to renew his contract after controversial remarks he made on air following the September 11, 2001, attacks.

In 2003 he launched Real Time with Bill Maher on HBO, which has continued weekly since. The program combines a monologue, panel discussion, and an end-of-show editorial segment titled New Rules. He has been nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Talk Series many times.

Maher has also produced the 2008 documentary film Religulous, directed by Larry Charles, in which he questioned organized religion. He is a vocal libertarian-leaning liberal who supports drug-policy reform and is a prominent advocate for animal rights, serving on the board of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2010.

Their name Bill derives from the Germanic elements wil meaning will or desire and helm meaning helmet, as a short form of William. Bill was among the most common nicknames for American boys named William throughout the twentieth century.