Travon Free

Travon Free (born 1984/1985)[1] is an American comedian and actor who currently writes for "Any Given Wednesday with Bill Simmons" on HBO[2] and formerly wrote for The Daily Show on Comedy Central.[3][4] He won an Emmy Award for his work on the Daily Show in 2015. He is a former college basketball player.

Early life

Free grew up with his mother and grandmother in Compton, California.[1] He attended Dominguez High School, where he played basketball. In 2002, the Los Angeles Times called him the "team's best player".[5] He chose to remain local and decided to play college basketball for the Long Beach State 49ers. Their program was struggling, and Free liked his chances of earning a starting role. Injuries sapped his dream of playing professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and he had no interest in playing overseas.[1] While he was out injured with a torn meniscus in his right knee that required surgery, he entertained the team with his humor, which was a prelude to his career in comedy.[6] While in college, Free took a Comedy Writing class and performed at Laugh Factory in Hollywood and The Ice House Club in Pasadena, California.[3][7]

Professional career

Free began writing for The Daily Show in October 2012.[3] After coming in second place in a contest to win a position working for the show, he was invited by Executive Producer Rory Albanese to tour the show's set, which Free treated as a consolation prize.[1] During his visit, he was surprised backstage when Jon Stewart offered him a full-time writing job.[3] Free won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series on The Daily Show in 2015 after being nominated in the two years prior.[8][9] He has also had recurring roles on the shows Tosh.0 and Chelsea Lately.[3] Free is now contributing to a new HBO show by Bill Simmons titled, Any Given Wednesday.

Personal life

In 2011, Free came out as bisexual, one of the few Division I college basketball players who have come out.[3][10]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Guardabascio, Mike (July 6, 2015). "Travon Free goes from Compton to Long Beach State to the Daily Show". Long Beach Press-Telegram. Archived from the original on December 1, 2015.
  2. ↑ "IMDb: Travon Free". IMDb.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 ZumMallen, Ryan (March 14, 2013). "Former 49er Free Charging The Comedy Game". Gazettes.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014.
  4. ↑ "About Travon Free". ComedyCentral.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014.
  5. ↑ Bolch, Ben (December 12, 2002). "Otis Says Return 'Unbelievable'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014.
  6. ↑ Smith, Marcia C. (July 18, 2006). "Laughs are as big as the comedian". Orange County Register. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014.
  7. ↑ Jenkins, Lee (March 14, 2007). "At Long Beach State, It's Players, Not Games, That Get Away". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 9, 2014.
  8. ↑ Colurso, Mary (September 20, 2015). "Emmy Awards 2015: See photos, full list of winners including Jon Hamm, Viola Davis, Peter Dinklage". AL.com. Archived from the original on December 1, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Travon Free". Emmys.com. Archived from the original on December 1, 2015.
  10. ↑ Zeigler, Cyd (January 25, 2011). "Former Long Beach State baller is bisexual". OutSports.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2013.
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