Judy Tenuta
(born November 7, 1956, in Oak Park, Illinois) is an American entertainer, comedienne, and accordionist.
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Comic persona
Tenuta's act is primarily structured around an exaggerated, offbeat persona that is referred to primarily as "The Love Goddess."
[1] Other monikers include "Aphrodite of the Accordion," "Fashion Saint," "Princess of Panty Shields," and "Empress of Elvis Impersonators."
[2] Tenuta's persona encourages fans to convert to her own personal religion, "Judyism."
Career
Aside from her own stand-up work, she has been featured in several productions of
"Weird Al" Yankovic, including
The Weird Al Show
and the music videos for "
Headline News" and "
White & Nerdy." She has also appeared on
game shows such as
Hollywood Squares
and the
1998 revival of
Match Game
. Her most extensive profile came from a series of TV ads for
MTV in the mid-1980s, which became popular and gained her a loyal following.
Her use of voice in her act has lent itself to
voice-over work in several animated programs. This includes doing the voice of Edna on
Duckman
, Black Widow on
Space Ghost Coast to Coast
, and as herself in
Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist
.
In 1987 she hosted a
Night Flight anniversary show on USA network, where she had also previously appeared on "Comedy Cuts".
In 1991, she published her first book, "The Power Of Judyism," following up with an
audio CD version in 1999.
In
1998, she conceived, produced, and starred in the film
Desperation Boulevard
. More recently, she was a guest on
Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide
.
Discography
- Buy This Pigs
, 1987
- In Goddess We Trust
, 1995
- UnButtPlugged
, 1999
- Attention Butt Pirates And Lesbetarians - Live at CSW
, 1999
- A Space Goddessy
, 2002
Personal life
One of twelve siblings, she was born in 1956 to an Italian father and Polish mother in Oak Park, Illinois. Her older brother, Danny Tenuta, is a retired union electrician and ship captain of the Aquila. She has a younger sister and several younger brothers, including Tom who had a career as a dancer and now has his own studio. Judy's nephew, JP Tenuta, is a professional dancer who studied at Ailey and The Martha Graham School. She married
Emo Philips in 1988, but they've since divorced.
References
- Judy Tenuta's comedy relates to discrimination by Joshua Rotter
- judytenuta.com