Bill Maher Popular Books
Bill Maher Biography & Facts
William Maher (; born January 20, 1956) is an American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. He is known for the HBO political talk show Real Time with Bill Maher (2003–present) and the similar late-night show called Politically Incorrect (1993–2002), originally on Comedy Central and later on ABC. In 2022, Maher started the podcast Club Random.Maher is known for his political satire and sociopolitical commentary. He targets many topics including religion, political correctness, and the mass media. His critical views of religion were the basis for his 2008 documentary film Religulous. He is a supporter of animal rights, having served on the board of PETA since 1997, and is an advisory board member of Project Reason. Maher supports the legalization of cannabis, serving on the advisory board of NORML.In 2005, Maher ranked at number 38 on Comedy Central's 100 greatest stand-up comedians of all time. He received a Hollywood Walk of Fame star in 2010. Maher has earned 41 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and a win for his work as executive producer for Vice in 2014. He has also received nominations for two Grammy Awards and a Tony Award. Early life and education Maher was born in New York City. His father, William Aloysius Maher Jr., was a network news editor and radio announcer, and his mother, Julie Maher (née Berman), was a nurse. He was raised in his Irish-American father's Roman Catholic religion. Until his early teens, he was unaware that his mother, whose family was from Hungary, was Jewish. Owing to his disagreement with the Catholic Church's doctrine about birth control, Maher's father stopped taking Maher and his sister to Catholic church services when Maher was thirteen.Maher was raised in River Vale, New Jersey, and graduated from Pascack Hills High School in Montvale in 1974. He then attended Cornell University, where he double-majored in English and history, and graduated in 1978. Maher has said, "Selling pot allowed me to get through college and make enough money to start off in comedy." Career Early career Maher began his career as a comedian and actor. He was host of the New York City comedy club Catch a Rising Star in 1979. Maher began appearing on Johnny Carson's and David Letterman's shows in 1982. He made limited television appearances including on Sara (1985), Max Headroom (1987), Murder, She Wrote (1989, 1990), and Charlie Hoover (1991). His feature film debut was in D.C. Cab (1983). He later appeared in Ratboy (1986), House II: The Second Story (1987), Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death (1988), Newhart (1988), hosted the talk show Midnight Hour on CBS (1990) and Pizza Man (1991). Television career Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher Maher assumed the host role on Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher, a late-night political talk show that ran on Comedy Central from 1993 to 1997 and on ABC from 1997 to 2002. The show regularly began with a topical monologue by Maher preceding the introduction of four guests, usually a diverse group of individuals, such as show business, popular culture, political pundits, political consultants, authors, and occasionally news figures. The group would discuss topical issues selected by Maher, who also participated in the discussions. Jerry Seinfeld, a regular guest on the show, stated that Politically Incorrect reminded him of talk shows from the 1950s and '60s "when guests interacted with each other as much as with the host".Politically Incorrect won an array of awards, including an Emmy Award for Outstanding Technical Direction, two CableACE awards for Best Talk Show Series, and a Genesis Award for Best Television Talk Show. Maher earned numerous award nominations for his producing, writing, and hosting of Politically Incorrect, including ten Emmy nominations, two TV Guide nominations, and two Writers Guild nominations. ABC decided against renewing Maher's contract for Politically Incorrect in 2002, after he made a controversial on-air remark six days after the September 11 attacks. He agreed with his guest, conservative pundit Dinesh D'Souza, that the 9/11 terrorists did not act in a cowardly manner (in rebuttal to President Bush's statement calling them cowards). Maher said, "We have been the cowards. Lobbing cruise missiles from 2,000 miles away. That's cowardly. Staying in the airplane when it hits the building. Say what you want about it. Not cowardly. You're right." Maher later clarified that his comment was not anti-military in any way whatsoever, referencing his well-documented longstanding support for the American military. After receiving complaints, FedEx and Sears pulled their advertisements from the show, costing the show significant revenue.Maher's remarks after 9/11 were not the first time he had sparked controversy on Politically Incorrect. In the same year, he expressed his deep regrets and apologized after being widely criticized for comparing his dogs to mentally disabled children. The show was canceled on June 16, 2002, and the Sinclair Broadcast Group had dropped the show from its ABC-affiliated stations months prior. On June 22, 2002, just six days after the cancellation of Politically Incorrect, Maher received the Los Angeles Press Club president's award (for "championing free speech"). Maher was on the board of judges for the 2002 PEN/Newman's Own First Amendment Award, which included writer Vanessa Leggett, imprisoned for 168 days for protecting sources and research notes. Real Time with Bill Maher In 2003, Maher became the host, co-producer, and co-writer of Real Time with Bill Maher, a weekly hour-long political comedy talk show on the cable television network HBO. In 2016, HBO renewed Real Time through 2018, for its 15th and 16th seasons. During an interview, Maher told Terry Gross (on NPR's Fresh Air) that he much prefers having serious and well-informed guests on his program, as opposed to the random celebrities that fleshed out his roundtable discussions on Politically Incorrect.As with his previous show, Politically Incorrect, Maher begins Real Time with a comic opening monologue based upon current events and other topical issues. He proceeds to a one-on-one interview with a guest, either in-studio or via satellite. Following the interview, Maher sits with two or three panelists—usually consisting of pundits, authors, activists, actors, politicians, and journalists—for a discussion of the week's events. Real Time has earned widespread praise. It has been nominated for more than ten Primetime Emmy Awards and six Writer's Guild awards. In 2007, Maher and his co-producers were awarded the Television Producer of the Year Award in Variety Television by the Producers Guild of America. Maher holds the record for the most Emmy nominations without a win, having been nominated on 22 occasions and not winning once. Eleven of the nominations were for Politically Incorrect, while nine were for Real Time. The other two were nominations for t.... Discover the Bill Maher popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Bill Maher books.
Best Seller Bill Maher Books of 2024
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New Rules
Bill MaherBill Maher is on the forefront of the new wave of comedians who influence and shape political debate through their comedy. He is best known not just for being funny, but for advoca...
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Making Sense
Sam HarrisA New York Times New and Noteworthy BookFrom the bestselling author of Waking Up and The End of Faith, an adaptation of his wildly popular, often controversial podca...
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Cancel This Book
Dan KovalikExamining a phenomenon that is sweeping the country, Cancel This Book shines the spotlight on the suppression of open and candid debate. The public shaming of ind...
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Infidel
Ayaan Hirsi AliOne of today’s most admired and controversial political figures, Ayaan Hirsi Ali burst into international headlines following the murder of Theo van Gogh by an Islamist who threate...
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The Ken Commandments
Ken BakerFrom New Age spirituality, to Biblebased Christianity, to Scientology, to Buddhist retreats, to meditation classes, to Atheism studies, to the megachurch of the nation's top TV pre...
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Framed in Monte Carlo
Ted Maher, Bill Hayes, Jennifer Thomas & Michael GriffithAs featured on 60 Minutes, Dateline, Inside Edition, and 48 Hours, the shocking true story of banker Edmond Safra's death and the man wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for the cr...
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Abundance
Ezra KleinFrom bestselling authors and journalistic titans, Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, Abundance is a onceinageneration, paradigmshifting call to rethink big, entrenched problems that se...
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The Daily Don
Jesse DuquetteThe Best of “The Daily Don,” political cartoon that documents all the covfefe of the administration of Donald Trump.The Daily Don is the best of artist Jesse Duquette’s fabulous In...
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The New New Rules
Bill MaherFrom bestselling author and host of HBO's Real Time, Bill Maher's new book of political riffs serves up a savagely funny set of rules for preserving sanity in an insane world.A ...
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You Deserve the Truth
Erica Williams SimonFrom a millennial media maker and awardwinning social critic, an accessible, straightforward, and remarkable guide that “invites us beyond the old stories we’ve told about ourselve...
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Confessions of a Puppetmaster
Charles Band & Adam Felber“Confessions of a Puppetmaster is a fast, funny, wild ride through some wild times. Plus, Charlie compares me to Harrison Ford, so I’m all in!” Bill MaherRenowned producer, directo...
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Red-Blooded American Male
Robert TrachtenbergA collection of 100 inspired and surprising portraits of celebrities and everymen alike from the awardwinning photographer Robert Trachtenberg.Paul Rudd checking out...
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My Best Mistake
Terry O'ReillyThe host of CBC Radio’s Under the Influence, Terry O’Reilly, uncovers the surprising power of screwing upThe Incredible Hulk was originally supposed to be grey, but a printing glit...
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The Science Delusion
Curtis WhiteOne of our most brilliant social criticsauthor of the bestselling The Middle Mindpresents a scathing critique of the “delusions” of science alongside a rousing defense of the tra...
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GOP GPS
Evan Siegfried & Robert A. GeorgeEditors’ Pick for the Conservative Book ClubA roadmap to the future for RepublicansWith each passing election cycle, Republicans face stiffer and stiffer odds for winning elections...