Biography of Wayne Cotter

Wayne Cotter is a favorite of the talk shows, having appeared dozens of times with both David Letterman and Jay Leno. With Leno, he also appears in a recurring role as a roving reporter for The Tonight Show. A top nationally touring comedian, Wayne hosted the Fox Television Network series “Comic Strip Live” for many years, and was seen in the feature film “Spy Hard.” He has also been nominated as “Best Standup Comedian” in the American Comedy Awards, and has appeared in numerous cable television specials. He also served as host of the long-running Discovery series “Amazing America,” a light-hearted look at weird and wacky subcultures throughout the United States. Regularly appearing in nightclubs and casinos, he has also become a highly sought-after entertainer for corporate events.

Drawn to standup comedy at the tender age of 6, Wayne memorized the routines of Alan King, Bob Newhart, Carl Reiner & Mel Brooks and other greats of the era, repeating them incessantly. His parents, not recognizing this obvious cry for help, simply avoided him, causing sufficient feelings of alienation that Wayne’s future in show business was virtually assured.

Although he studied Electrical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and began a career with a New Jersey computer company, before long Wayne started moonlighting as a Philadelphia comedian. He continued this double life for some time, and ultimately came to the visionary conclusion that the computer industry was going nowhere and left town to pursue show business full time.

Upon arriving in New York, Wayne quickly became a favorite of both David Letterman and Johnny Carson. He also appeared on several cable specials, and was nominated as “Best Standup” in the American Comedy Awards. He moved to Los Angeles, where he hosted the weekly Fox television series “Comic Strip Live” for over three years. His relationship with Discovery Networks then began as a spokesperson for The Learning Channel, leading him eventually to host his own show there.

Keeping up-to-date with developments in the fast-paced information technology business, Wayne now performs frequently for such companies as Sun Microsystems, Hewlett-Packard, and IBM. “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” he says.

Wayne lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son. He finds parenthood to be a great source of comedy. “Although, ” he adds, “not enough to write off the expense.”

One look at Wayne’s ten-minute demo tape and you’ll agree: he’s a fresh and smart, clean and funny comedian who’s perfect to liven up any event.