Jeffrey Marshall Foxworthy (born September 6, 1958) is an American comedian, actor, writer, and radio and television host. He is a member of theBlue Collar Comedy Tour, withLarry the Cable Guy,Bill Engvall, and formerlyRon White. Known for his "You might be aredneck" one-liners, Foxworthy has released six major-label comedy albums. His first two albums were each certified triplePlatinum by theRecording Industry Association of America. He has written several books based on his redneck jokes, as well as an autobiography entitledNo Shirt, No Shoes... No Problem![1]
Foxworthy has also made several ventures into television, starting in the mid-1990s with his own sitcom calledThe Jeff Foxworthy Show. He has also appeared alongside Engvall and Larry the Cable Guy in several Blue Collar television specials, includingBlue Collar TV forThe WB. In addition, he hosted the game showsAre You Smarter than a 5th Grader? andThe American Bible Challenge, and the radio programThe Foxworthy Countdown.
Jeffrey Marshall Foxworthy was born inAtlanta, Georgia, on September 6, 1958, the first of three children of Carole Linda (née Camp) andIBM executive Jimmy Abstance Foxworthy. His grandfather, James Marvin Camp, was aHapeville firefighter for over three decades.[1] He has two younger siblings, Jay Foxworthy and Jennifer Foxworthy.[2]
Foxworthy graduated fromHapeville High School. He attendedGeorgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, but left just before graduating.[3] He worked for five years inmainframe computer maintenance at IBM, where his father also worked. At the urging of IBM co-workers, Foxworthy entered and won the Great Southeastern Laugh-off at Atlanta'sPunchline comedy club in 1984.
In 1993, he releasedYou Might Be a Redneck If…, which topped the comedy albums chart and started the "You Might Be aRedneck"fad. The album went gold in 1994, platinum by 1995, and 3× platinum by 1996, which is more than three million copies.[4]
Totally Committed was released in May 1998. In conjunction with the album was a one-hourHBO stand-up special by the same name. The album reached "gold" status and received a 1999 Grammy Award nomination.[6] The video for theTotally Committed song featured frequent references to then-Atlanta Bravespitcher,Greg Maddux as well as an appearance at the very end by Maddux himself (along with teammateJohn Smoltz).
In 1995, Foxworthy starred inThe Jeff Foxworthy Show, a sitcom created out of his stand-up comedy persona. It aired onABC, but was canceled after one season.NBC subsequently picked up the show, but it was again canceled after one season. Later, he remarked that the network did not understand how to properly market his humor; thinking his routine was "too Southern" for a national network ("Has anyone heard me talk?", he commented in one of his stand-up routines), they based the first season of his sitcom inBloomington, Indiana. Later, the series aired onNick at Nite andCMT in 2005 and 2006. He also appeared inAlan Jackson's video for "I Don't Even Know Your Name" in 1995.
Foxworthy hosted Country Weekly's "TNN Music City News Country Awards" show for 1998, 1999, and 2000.[8]
In 1998, Foxworthy appeared on the mock talk showSpace Ghost Coast to Coast, where he attempts to explain his famous "You might be a Redneck" joke toSpace Ghost, yet fails entirely. Throughout the episode, Space Ghost,Zorak, andMoltar are taking the Ghost Planet to theUS, with plans to make it the 51st state. By the end of the episode Foxworthy is sent to "The Box".
He hostedAre You Smarter than A 5th Grader? onFox inprime time. He hosted the syndicated version of the series from September 21, 2009, until its cancellation on March 24, 2011.[9] In 2015 it was announced that Foxworthy would return as host ofAre You Smarter than a 5th Grader?[10] In addition, he is a host onThe Bucks of Tecomate which airs on theNBC Sports Network with Alabama native David Morris.[citation needed]
Foxworthy in performance at the Resch Center in Green Bay in 2015
In the early 2000s, Foxworthy had a career resurgence as a result of theBlue Collar Comedy Tour, in which he and three other comedians (Larry the Cable Guy,Ron White, andBill Engvall), specializing in common-man comedy, toured the country and performed for record crowds. The tour lasted three full years, constantly being extended after an initial run of 20 shows.
In 2004, he launched a new television series calledBlue Collar TV onThe WB. He served asexecutive producer and starred alongside Blue Collar Comedy Tour-mates Larry the Cable Guy and Bill Engvall. (Ron White made occasional guest appearances.) On Larry the Cable Guy's website, he posted that the show was canceled on October 17, 2005, by The WB. Reruns ofBlue Collar TV continued until the network merged withUPN to formThe CW. In 2006, Foxworthy resurrected theBlue Collar TV format onCountry Music Television (CMT) withFoxworthy's Big Night Out. The show began airing in the fall and was canceled after one season of 12 episodes.
Foxworthy has authored several books, includingYou Might Be a Redneck If... (1989), as well as his autobiography,No Shirt, No Shoes, No Problem! (1996). ArtistLayron DeJarnette provided illustrations for the Redneck Dictionary books. R. David Boyd has been the exclusive illustrator for most of Foxworthy's books and album covers.
He also has released acookbook entitledThe Redneck Grill, co-authored withNewnan, Georgia, artist R. David Boyd, and "Redneck Extreme Mobile Home Makeover" (2005), a book with some of his redneck jokes.
Jeff Foxworthy's Redneck Dictionary: Words You Thought You Knew the Meaning Of (2005)
Jeff Foxworthy's Redneck Dictionary II: More Words You Thought You Knew the Meaning Of (2006)
Jeff Foxworthy's Redneck Dictionary III: Learning to Talk More Gooder Fastly (2007)
Rednecks in College
In February 2008, Foxworthy released his first children's bookDirt On My Shirt. This was followed bySilly Street in 2009 andHide!!! in 2010, both of which were illustrated by Steve Bjorkman.
In May 2008, Foxworthy releasedHow to Really Stink at Golf, with co-authorBrian Hartt and illustrations byLayron DeJarnette. In May 2009, he releasedHow to Really Stink at Work, A Guide to Making Yourself Fire-Proof While Having the Most Fun Possible. This book was also co-authored with Hartt and illustrations byDeJarnette.
In April 1999, Foxworthy beganThe Foxworthy Countdown, a nationallysyndicated, weeklyradio show, which featured the top 30 country hits of the week, as reported byMediabase. In 2001, he received aCountry Music Association nomination for "Broadcast Personality of the Year". The program's last broadcast, the 2009 year-end countdown, aired the weekend of December 27, 2009.[18] In 2006,Sirius Satellite Radio launched the Blue Collar Comedy channel, which featured stand-up comedy centered around the Blue Collar group. In 2015, now under theSiriusXM banner, the station rebranded asJeff & Larry's Comedy Roundup, which featured similar programming to the previous channel with an enhanced focus on Foxworthy and Larry the Cable Guy.[19]
In August 2011, Foxworthy launched Foxworthy Outdoors, a website carrying an assortment of Foxworthy-brand hunting and outdoors products. On the site, he also hosts aweb series calledJeff Foxworthy: Inside & Out, featuring some of his friends as they document hunting trips, fishing outings, and land conservation on hisGeorgia farm.[20][21]
In 2017 Foxworthy created thecard gameRelative Insanity, a game similar toCards Against Humanity with a family theme. Family Game Shelf praised the game, saying "it will have you laughing until your sides hurt".[22]
Foxworthy accepting a new jacket from 3rd Infantry Division Commander Army Maj. Gen. William G. Webster for his support
Foxworthy met his wife Pamela Gregg at the Punchline inAtlanta, Georgia, and they married on September 18, 1985.[23] They have two daughters, Jordan and Julianne.[24][25][26] He is a noted hunting enthusiast, beginning when he was a teen hunting on his father's farm property in Central Georgia.[citation needed]
Foxworthy claims to keep his jokesapolitical and has criticized thememes circulating on social media that appear to show him making jokes at the expense ofliberals in his stand-up.[27][28] Despite this, he donated to the presidential campaign ofGeorge W. Bush, as well as theRepublican National Committee in the 2000s.[29] In 2012, Foxworthy endorsed Republican presidential candidateMitt Romney.[30]