Jimmy Kimmel is one of the wealthiest and most successful American talk show hosts. He is quick-witted, humorous, and down to earth. With a net worth of $35 million, he makes an estimated $8 million each year from his talk show, ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ He began his career as a radio DJ on the Los Angeles-based radio show ‘The Kevin and Bean Show,’ where he was known as ‘Jimmy the Sports Guy.’ Soon after, as co-host of the game program ‘Win Ben Stein’s Money,’ he won a Daytime Emmy Award for his sharp-edged comedy. With his hit show ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!,’ he reached the pinnacle of his career and gained significant success in the world of late-night talk shows. It quickly became one of the longest-running late-night discussion shows in ABC network history, smashing all previous records. As a result, he became one of the most popular and well-liked personalities on American television. He’s now riding a wave of success, and his new show,’shock-talk,’ has piqued the interest of a large number of viewers.
Childhood and Adolescence
Jimmy Kimmel was born to James Kimmel, an IBM executive, and Joan Kimmel, a passionate homemaker, in the Mill Basin section of Brooklyn, New York.
He was raised as a Roman Catholic and worked as an altar boy at the church when he was younger.
His family moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, when he was nine years old, and he attended Ed W. Clark High School. He was an outstanding student in high school.
He went on to the University of Nevada for a year, and it was then that he discovered his passion for radio.
Career of Jimmy Kimmel
He earned his first position as a co-host for the show ‘The Me And Him Show’ at Seattle radio station ‘KZOK-FM’ in 1989. Within two months, he was dismissed, and he went on to launch his own radio show in Palm Springs, California.
He worked as the popular ‘Jimmy the Sports Guy’ on the radio station ‘KROQ’ in Los Angeles, where he hosted ‘The Kevin and Bean Show’ as the popular ‘Jimmy the Sports Guy’.
He made an appearance as ‘Jimmy the fox person’ in Fox Network promotional videos in 1996.
He has appeared on a variety of talk shows, including Live with Regis and Kelly, Howard Stern’s Show, Ellen DeGeneres‘ Show, and David Letterman’s Late Show.
He made his television debut in 1997 as a co-host of the game show “Win Ben Stein’s Money,” which aired on the Comedy Central Network. His funny remarks and distinct performing style were well received by television audiences.
He and Adam Corolla, an American TV personality, comedian, and radio show host, co-hosted Comedy Central’s ‘The Man Show’ in 1999.
In the American comedy film ‘Road Trip,’ directed and written by Todd Phillips, he voiced ‘Corky,’ a talking dog.
In 2001, he appeared in ‘Mr. Saturday Knight,’ the ninth episode of the third season of ‘Family Guy,’ as ‘Deaths Dog.’
On the ABC network, he began hosting his own late-night talk show, ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!,’ in 2003. The episode was also carried on the Irish digital TV channel ‘3e’.
In 2004, he contributed his voice as ‘Spanky’ in Peter Hewitt’s American live-action feature ‘Garfield: The Movie.’
In 2010, he starred in a commercial for the video game ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops.’ He was seen firing and ducking gunfire in the footage.
In 2012, he hosted the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, D.C., where he delivered a series of amusing jokes about his high school history teacher during the closing ceremony.
He hosted The 64th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards on September 23, 2012, at the Nokia Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles, California.
Major Projects of Jimmy Kimmel
The game show ‘Win Ben Stein’s Money’ has won five Daytime Emmy Awards, and in 1999, the show’s hosts split the Emmy Award for ‘Outstanding Game Show Host.’
As of 2012, his popular talk show ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ had aired 1,826 episodes, making it the longest-running late-night talk show in ABC Network history.
Achievements & Awards
He and Ben Stein shared the Daytime Emmy Award for ‘Outstanding Game Show Host’ in 1999 for the show ‘Win Ben Stein’s Money.’ He was named to Time Magazine’s list of the “100 Most Influential People in the World” in 2013. He was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013.
Personal History and Legacy
He married his long-time fiancée Gina in June of 1988, and the couple has two children together. In 2002, the couple divorced. Following his divorce from Gina, he began dating Sarah Silverman, an American actor and writer. In early 2009, the pair called it quits. He began dating Molly McNearney, a co-head writer for ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live,’ in October 2009. In 2012, the couple got engaged.
He has Narcolepsy, which is a neurological illness in which the body’s sleep-wake cycles are disrupted.
He performs on the bass clarinet, a clarinet-family instrument, and has performed at the ‘The Mighty Mighty Bosstones’ event in Costa Mesa, California.
Estimated Net Worth
Jimmy Kimmel has a net worth of $50 million.
Trivia
This well-known American talk-show presenter set a Guinness World Record for the most miles flown in a week, traveling 30,000 miles back and forth between New York and California to host two television shows.