Jenny Jones (presenter)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Jenny Jones | |
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| Born | Janina Stranski June 7, 1946 Bethlehem, Palestine |
| Occupation | Talk Show Host, Awards Presenter, Comedienne, Singer |
| Years active | 1969 -present |
Jenny Jones (born Janina Stranski on June 7, 1946 in Bethlehem, Palestine) is a Canadian-American talk show host who hosted The Jenny Jones Show from 1991 to 2003.
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[edit] Pre "Jenny Jones Show"
Jenny Jones (birth name Janina Stranski) was born in Bethlehem, Palestine on June 7th, 1946.[1] Her father was an officer in the Polish Army, who fought against the Germans during the Invasion of Poland in 1939[2]. Her parents later immigrated to London, Ontario, Canada, where she grew up. She had a rough childhood. When she was 16 she dropped out of high-school, but she also had a knack for making people laugh. When she was a teenager, she toured Canada in a rock n' roll band, and at the age of 19, she made a bold move and moved to Los Angeles, California with no job, one suitcase, a set of drums, and her Corvair convertible. [3] According to her website she briefly joined an all girls band and relocated once again to Las Vegas where she quickly landed a job as a back-up singer for Wayne Newton, who gave her the confidence to begin her own band "Jenny Jones and Company". While she was singing, she also did comedy shorts and as time went on audiences requested her more and more for comedy acts. She decided to pursue her comedy full time and worked as an office manager to support herself financially. She also appeared on various television shows such as Press Your Luck, Hollywood Squares and Match Game. In 1984, at the age of 38, she was arrested for attempting to carry a weapon on an airplane. In 1986, she became the first woman to win the Star Search grand prize of $100,000(US). Later, Jones would develop a live comedy show specifically targeted towards women entitled "Girls’ Night Out." Her show was well received by audiences, setting attendance records in theatres and clubs. The success her show as well as her ability to reach out to women led to Jones receiving national recognition appearing in publications such as Time and People magazines and television shows such as Larry King Live and 20/20. This is what caused her to be noticed by a high-power Warner Brothers executive and pitched a show featuring her likeness. She accepted and relocated to Chicago Illinois and on September 16th 1991 The Jenny Jones Show debuted.
[edit] Talk show
In 1991, she became the host of her own daily TV talk show, The Jenny Jones Show. The show had many elements that are now considered daytime-talk cliches, such as paternity tests, sending out-of-control teens to boot camp, and makeovers. Her show was noted for using rhyming show titles, such as "You May Shake it for Money, But Leave Those Sexy Clothes at the Club, Honey!" Jones rejected comparison to Jerry Springer, saying that her show was fun, and not exploitative. The Jenny Jones Show, along with The Oprah Winfrey Show, was one of the pioneers of day-time talk shows. [4]
[edit] Women's Health Advocate
Jones was an honorary chairperson for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation's Chicago Race for the Cure, an annual event that raises awareness and money for breast cancer research and she donated a mobile mammography motor coach to Cook County Hospital. [5]
[edit] Controversy
On an episode called "Same-Sex Secret Crushes" taped on March 6, 1995, a gay man named Scott Amedure confessed his love for his friend, Jonathan Schmitz. Schmitz reacted with laughter while on the show, but became disturbed by the incident later. He had a history of mental illness and alcohol/drug abuse. Three days after the show's taping, Schmitz killed Amedure. Schmitz was later convicted of second degree murder and received 25-50 years in prison. The episode was never aired.
Amedure's family then sued the producers of The Jenny Jones Show saying they should have known about Schmitz's mental illness history. In interviews, Jones said her producers told Schmitz that his admirer could be a man, but Schmitz maintained they misled him into thinking it would be a woman. While under oath, Jones admitted that the show didn't want Schmitz to know that his admirer was a man. Amedure's family won the initial ruling and the show was ordered to pay them $25 million. The verdict was later overturned by the Michigan appellate court. The case is now studied in law school tort classes because of the legal significance of saying the show's producers were not responsible for guests' safety after they had left the studio.
The show's ratings declined in the years after the case and was cancelled in 2003; it had come close to getting the axe at the end of the previous season, but was saved by a last-minute deal with the Tribune station group.
[edit] Parodies
On the comedy sketch show MADtv, cast member Mo Collins would often do skits in which she acted as Jenny Jones; poking fun at her high voice, chuckle, the cadence of her voice and her extreme politeness. For example, scolding her booing audience with "No! That's not, not, not nice, No!" while smiling.
On Saturday Night Live, former cast member Rachel Dratch parodied Jenny Jones in 1999.
Married with Children did a joke that had a TV reporter announce: "Today's Oprah will feature people who survived being on Jenny Jones."
[edit] Filmography and TV appearances
- Jenny Jones
- Hollywood Squares
- Match Game
- Wisecracks
- Man of the Year
- Press Your Luck
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ Jenny Jones
- ^ Jenny Jones: My Story by Jenny Jones and Patsi Bale Cox
- ^ Biography
- ^ Jenny Jones
- ^ Biography
