Aziz Ansari

About

Aziz Ansari is an American actor and comedian known for his portrayal of the character Tom Haverford on the NBC show Parks and Recreation.

Career

Ansari started his comedy career by performing improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. In 2005, Ansari collaborated with comedians Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer to form the comedy group Human Giant. The first series was titled "Shutterbugs," in which they played the roles of child talent agents (shown below, left). This was followed by a series titled "The Illusionators" mocking television magicians like Criss Angel (shown below, right).

In June 2008, Ansari was cast as the character Tom Haverford in the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation, running for a total of six seasons with 112 episodes as of August 2014. Ansari has appeared in other television shows including Flight of the Conchords and Scrubs, and in the films Get Him to the Greek, I Love You, Man, 30 Minutes or Less, Observe and Report, Funny People and This is the End. Ansari has released his stand-up comedy sets "Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening", "Dangerously Delicious" and "Buried Alive."

Online History

In May 2007, the @azizansari Twitter^[4] feed was launched, which gained over 3.97 million followers over the first eight years. On January 1st, 2008, Ansari created the "Aziz is Bored" Tumblr^[3] blog. On April 8th, Ansari launched a Facebook^[2] page, which gathered upwards of 530,000 likes in the next seven years. In March 2012, Ansari released the comedy special Dangerously Delicious on AzizAnsari.com,^[5] with streaming provided by the video service VHX.^[1] On May 1st, Ansari pranked host Anderson Cooper on the talk show Anderson Live by having a look-a-like impersonate him (shown below).

Participation on Reddit

On October 12th, 2011, Ansari submitted an "ask me anything" (AMA) post to the /r/IAmA^[6] subreddit, in which he answered questions about his career, the entertainment industry and his role on Parks and Recreation. Ansari went on to do several more AMAs, including one on March 21st, 2012,^[7] September 20th, 2012^[8] and November 1st, 2013.^[9] On August 6th, 2014, Ansari submitted a post to the /r/modernromantics^[11] subreddit asking Redditors to discuss their experiences in "open relationships."

Rap Album Photoshops

On August 1st, 2012, the Emceez Ansari Tumblr^[10] blog was launched, which highlights photoshopped rap album covers with Ansari's face superimposed on the front (shown below). On July 15th, 2013, Redditor SharmanderXII submitted a gallery of the photoshops to the /r/pics^[10] subreddit, where they gained over 3,100 votes (95% upvoted) prior to being archived.

Reputation

In 2005, Rolling Stone placed Ansari in their annual "Hot List" in the "Hot Standup" category. In 2006, he won HBO's Jury Award for "Best Standup" at the Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado. After the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombing, Ansari performed at a benefit for victims with proceeds going to The One Fund & The Officer Richard Donohue Fund.

Sexual Misconduct Allegation

On January 13th, 2018, the women's interest site Babe^[12] published an anonymous account written by a woman accusing Ansari of sexual misconduct titled "I went on a date with Aziz Ansari. It turned into the worst night of my life." In the account, the woman describes meeting Ansari at a Los Angeles party and subsequently having dinner with him at a later date in New York. Following dinner, the two returned to Ansari's apartment, where they engaged in oral sex with one another, claiming she felt uncomfortable and pressured with the experience. That day, the article reached the front page of various subreddits, including /r/WeinsteinEffect,^[14] /r/The_Donald^[15] and /r/GamerGhazi.^[16]

On January 14th, the official @babedotnet Twitter feed tweeted a video of text messages between the woman and Ansari (shown below).

Meanwhile, The Atlantic^[13] published an article titled "The Humiliation of Aziz Ansari," in which she referred to the anonymous account as "3,000 words of revenge porn" and lamented how the article "may have destroyed Ansari’s career, which is now the punishment for every kind of male sexual misconduct, from the grotesque to the disappointing." That day, the article reached the front page of /r/television.^[17]

Also on January 14th, Ansari released a statement addressing the allegations, in which he claimed all sexual intereactions with the woman were "completely consensual" (shown below).

"In September of last year, I met a woman at a party. We exchanged numbers. We texted back and forth and eventually went on a date. We went out to dinner, and afterwards we ended up engaging in sexual activity, which by all indications was completely consensual.

The next day, I got a text from her saying that although “it may have seemed okay,” upon further reflection, she felt uncomfortable. It was true that everything did seem okay to me, so when I heard that it was not the case for her, I was surprised and concerned. I took her words to heart and responded privately after taking the time to process what she had said.

I continue to support the movement that is happening in our culture. It is necessary and long overdue."

Personal Life

Aziz Ansari was born in Columbia, South Carolina on February 23rd, 1983.

Search Interest

External References