The Daily Show Staff Extracurricular Projects | Learn What The Daily Show Staff Is Up To |

DAVID JAVERBAUM

David Javerbaum is currently a Consulting Producer for Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. His work for that program, including four years as Head Writer and two as Executive Producer, has earned him eleven Emmy Awards, two additional Emmy nominations, two Peabody Awards, and Television Critics Awards for both Best Comedy and Best News Show.

He is one of the primary authors of the show's textbook parody America (The Book), which sold over 2.5 million copies, spent a year on The New York Times Bestseller List (including 15 at #1), won the James Thurber Prize for American Humor (his second), won the 2005 Quill Awards for Best Humor Book and Audiobook, and was named Publishers' Weekly's 2004 Book of the Year; the audiobook won a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album. His new book, What to Expect When You're Expected: A Fetus's Guide to Its First Three Trimesters, will come out in October. He was also Emmy-nominated for his work as a writer for The Late Show with David Letterman and wrote for the 2006 Academy Awards. He spent three years writing for the satirical newspaper and website The Onion, conceiving its 1999 New York Times #1 bestseller Our Dumb Century and contributing numerous articles to it and two other Onion books. His work as a lyricist earned him a 2008 Tony nomination for his work on the Broadway adaptation of John Waters' film Cry-Baby, itself nominated for Best Musical. He wrote the lyrics for Stephen Colbert's Christmas special, A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All, featuring eight original songs sung by artists including Elvis Costello, Willie Nelson and Toby Keith. He also won the prestigious Kleban Award for Lyrics in 2005, and was the lyricist and co-librettist of Suburb, which won the Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater; its 2001 Off-Broadway production earned Best Off-Broadway Musical nominations from the Outer Critics Circle, the Lucille Lortel Awards, and the Drama League (for which it was nominated as Best Musical, Broadway or Off-). He is a graduate of NYU's Graduate School of Musical Theater Composition and Harvard University, where he wrote for the humor magazine The Harvard Lampoon and co-wrote two of that school's Hasty Pudding musicals. He lives in Manhattan with his wife Debra and their daughters Kate and Sara. His hobbies include the succinct encapsulation of his achievements.

Buy his book: "What to Expect When You're Expected: A Fetus' Guide to Its First Three Trimesters"

JOSH LIEB

Josh Lieb was born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina. After graduating from Harvard, he became a TV writer/producer, working on shows including NewsRadio and The Simpsons. His debut young adult novel, "I Am a Genius of Unspeakable Evil and I Want to be Your Class President" is being released October 13th by Penguin. He lives in New York with his wife and son.

Buy his book: "I am a Genius of Unspeakable Evil and I Want to be Your Class President"

SAM MEANS

Sam Means has been a staff writer since 2006. Before joining the Daily Show, he was a contributing writer for The Onion and a cartoonist for The New Yorker.

A Practical Guide to Racism is written in character as the pseudo-scientific Professor C.H. Dalton, who provides in-depth analysis of all nine of the modern races: Whites, Blacks, Jews, Asians, Indians (and Injuns), Arabs, Gypsies, Hispanics, and Merpeople, as well as "sexual ethnicities" like gays and women. Illustrated with extensive maps, charts, and phrenological diagrams, this volume is an essential field guide to our multicultural world.

Buy his book: "A Practical Guide to Racism"

JODY MORLOCK

Jody Morlock, TDS resident makeup artist, is also a fine artist and designer of tables and jewelry. She also selected the art for the building and green rooms.

View her work: Jodymorlock.com

BETH SHORR

Beth Shorr is the Talent Coordinator at The Daily Show. Born and raised in southern California, she joined the staff after graduating from NYU. Inspired by art, music and people on the streets of New York City, bshorr handmade designs are knitted and crocheted accessories that are both functional and fashionable. Handcrafted in the wee hours of the night, bshorr wearables include items for women, men and babies, and are made with the highest quality of fibers.

Visit her online store: bshorr handmade designs

SARA TAKSLER

Sara Taksler is a Segment Producer for The Daily Show. Before joining the staff in 2005, she worked in production for Nick At Nite, Comedy Central and MTV2. Her random talents include talking backwards, playing harmonica and guitar, and a remarkable fake sneeze.

TWISTED: A Balloonamentary is a feature documentary that explores how eight people's lives are transformed when they discover balloon twisting conventions. One young woman twists to get off welfare, an ex-con finds the gospel through balloons, and a grandfather in a tough neighborhood twists to show kids an alternative to selling drugs and joining gangs. It is a hilarious and heartwarming film about passion, salvation, love, death, race, religion, and a whole lot of balloons. The Hollywood Reporter calls the film, which includes an animated segment narrated by Jon Stewart, "...one of those wide-grin quirkster documentaries one hopes to discover every festival season, a thoroughly winning feature". TWISTED, which premiered at the South By Southwest Film Festival, was directed by Sara Taksler (favorite balloon animal: two birds kissing in a heart) and Naomi Greenfield (favorite balloon animal: monkey on a palm tree).

Buy the DVD: "TWISTED"