Arj Barker
Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox comedian
Arjan Singh Āulakh (born August 12, 1974),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> known by the stage name Arj Barker,<ref name="Real name and heritage">Template:Cite web</ref> is an American comedian and actor from San Anselmo, California. He has toured in North America, Australia, New Zealand and Europe.<ref name="chortle">Template:Cite web</ref> He was born to an engineer father and artist mother. His father is of Indian Punjabi Sikh descent and his mother is of European descent.<ref name="Real name and heritage"/>
Career
Barker started his career in comedy after graduating from high school in 1989.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His first gigs were at a café called Caffe Nuvo in downtown San Anselmo where he hosted stand-up night every Sunday throughout the early 1990s.<ref name="Comedian Arj Barker Reflects on Marin Upbringing"/> Barker appeared on Premium Blend in 1997, followed by appearances on the shows Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Glass House. He twice hosted Comedy Central Presents, first on September 20, 2000, and again on March 31, 2006. Barker was featured in Comedy Central's animated series Shorties Watchin' Shorties. He appeared on the Australian show Thank God You're Here on October 18, 2006, September 19, 2007, and June 17, 2009.
Barker co-wrote and performed in The Marijuana-Logues, an Off-Broadway show in New York City, with Doug Benson and Tony Camin. The title of the show was a parody of The Vagina Monologues. NBC gave Barker the lead role for sitcom Nearly Nirvana, originally scheduled for 2004. However, Barker was replaced in the lead role by the show's creator, Ajay Sahgal, and the show never aired.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Barker appeared in the HBO sitcom Flight of the Conchords, playing Dave.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Barker has been successful in Australia for a number of years since first appearing at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 2000, and presently resides there.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> At the ARIA Music Awards of 2019, he won Best Comedy Release for Organic.<ref name="ARIA 2019 Wins">Template:Cite news</ref>
During the 2024 Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Barker attracted widespread media attention in Australia for, while on stage in front of a live audience, demanding a mother breastfeeding her 7-month-old baby to leave and have her ticket refunded. Barker claimed the baby was interrupting his train of thought.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Arj and Poopy
Barker also has his own Flash series, Arj and Poopy, based on some of his stand-up material, that stars him and his cat, Poopy, who talks by farting.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The series was animated by Bernard Derriman, and has been syndicated to AtomFilms.<ref>AtomFilms: Arj & Poopy series Template:Webarchive</ref>
The episode "Unlucky in Love" won the Annecy International Animated Film Festival Internet Selection in 2006.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
List of episodes
- "Experimentation"
- "Venetian Rowing Machine"
- "Philosopher"
- "Brutally Ambushed"
- "Long Distance Relationship"
- "Shpants"
- "Unlucky in Love"
- "Yoga"
- "Oh, Christmas tree"
- "Congo Windfall"
- "Poetreet"
Last Comic Standing
Barker was featured as a contestant on the first episode of the fifth season of Last Comic Standing, where he advanced to the Los Angeles semi-final round. He then failed to progress to the final 10 in the semi-final round.
Discography
Albums
| Name | Album details |
|---|---|
| Arj Barker: Issue Were Here |
|
| The Marijuana-Logues Template:Small |
|
| Live |
|
| Forever |
|
| Arj Barker: LYAO |
|
| Joy Harvest |
|
| Heavy |
|
| Organic |
|
DVD releases
| Name | Year |
|---|---|
| Live | 2006 |
| Balls | 2008 |
| Forever | 2010 |
| LYAO | 2010 |
| Joy Harvest | 2012 |
| Heavy | 2013 |
| Go Time | 2015 |
| Get in My Head | 2017 |
| Organic | 2018 |
Awards
ARIA Music Awards
The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. Barker has won one award from four nominations. Template:Awards table ! Template:Abbr |- | 2010 | Arj Barker Forever | rowspan="4"| Best Comedy Release | Template:Nom | rowspan="4"|<ref name="awards">Template:Cite web</ref> |- | 2012 | Joy Harvest | Template:Nom |- | 2017 | Get In My Head | Template:Nom |- | 2019 | Organic | Template:Won |- Template:End
References
External links
- 1974 births
- Living people
- American stand-up comedians
- American male actors of Indian descent
- ARIA Award winners
- Male actors from San Francisco
- American male comedians
- People from San Anselmo, California
- Comedians from Marin County, California
- 20th-century American comedians
- 21st-century American comedians
- American people of Punjabi descent
- Actors from Marin County, California
- Comedians from San Francisco