Janeane Garofalo (born September 28 1964) is an American stand-up comedian, actress, political activist, writer, and former co-host on Air America Radio's The Majority Report.
On August 20, 2007, it was announced that she will join the FOX Network television series 24 in its seventh season. Garofalo will play an FBI agent who is part of the team investigating the crisis of the new season.
Despite her celebrity status, Garofalo continues to circulate regularly within New York City's local comedy and performance-art scene.
Janeane, the petite woman with the acerbic wit, was born in Newton, New Jersey, in 1964, and had many jobs before breaking into show biz. She worked as a bike messenger, a shoe salesperson (no doubt with Al Bundy's disposition), waitress and temp secretary. Watching David Letterman on TV inspired her to write comedy, and by 1985 she was doing stand up comedy. As such, Janeane has become a cult figure, giving a voice to a generation, venting her frustration at TV, dating, relationships, life in general and anything that ticks her off in particular. Janeane did sketches on "Ben Stiller Show, The" (1992) (an Emmy winning, but canceled show). She would continue to collaborate with Ben Stiller in future projects. Janeane received 2 Emmy nominations for her work on "Larry Sanders Show, The" (1992), developing her signature character: a smart, cynical woman with a razor wit. She was not happy with her "Saturday Night Live" (1975) stint in 1994, and was vocal about it (of course). Transferring her persona from TV to the big screen, she moved on to movies, basically playing the character she had defined for herself. In Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997) she portrayed a smart, cynical, successful businesswomen with a razor wit, and this time with swear words (in the movie she had developed a brand of cigarettes with fast-burning paper, for the gal on the go; in real life it is alleged she smokes Marlboros). Janeane continues to work in TV and movies, often collaborating with Ben Stiller in a number of movies like Mystery Men (1999), his easygoing style being a counterpoint to her caustic nature.
