The Steve Harvey Show, Little Big Shots, Stand-Up Comedy
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$160 Million
If you can pull it off, a mustache can be a defining feature that millions of people come to associate with you. These days, a lot of people think of Steve Harvey when asked to name the most famous person with a mustache. It only makes sense as Harvey is seemingly everywhere these days, hosting just about every show on network television and even beauty pageants, even if those don’t always go perfectly. Now in his early 60s, Harvey is just as busy as he’s been at any point in his career.
Harvey was born in the coal mining town Welch, West Virginia on January 17, 1957, but spent much of his early life living in Cleveland, Ohio’s east side. In the mid 1970s, Harvey had wrapped up college and went to two different colleges, trying to find his career path in life afterwards when the early 1980s rolled along.
After working several odd jobs during this time of his life, Harvey had always been someone with the ability to make people laugh. He was convinced to start using his comedy as a way to make money, as it was hard to come by back then. “I had, like, 11 jobs,” Harvey said. “I’ve been fired 11 times! ‘Cause I’m not cut for that. You know, I was a great employee, man. Everybody loved me coming to work - I’m singing, telling jokes on the assembly line. I was miserable, man. I was dying.”
Harvey performed on stage for the first time during the mid 1980s, and started to garner a lot of attention. The crowds at his shows got larger and larger, and Harvey had become a bona fide stand-up star by the 1990s.
During the decade, Harvey had become known on a national basis for his stand-up comedy, especially as he was named as the host for the long-running “Showtime at the Apollo” from the famous Apollo Theater. Harvey’s stand-up recognition was only bolstered by the fact that he began an acting career, which kicked off in 1994 with the ABC sitcom “Me and the Boys”.
Harvey took the next step forward in his career when he landed his own sitcom on the WB with “The Steve Harvey Show”. It was a successful series for the network, airing more than 120 episodes over the course of 7 seasons and can still be found in syndication to this day. During this time, Harvey joined alongside D.L. Hughley, Bernie Mac and Cedric the Entertainer to form the Kings of Comedy, having one of the more successful stand-up specials in recent memory as it was shown on the big screen and made $38 million at the box office.
After the success of the film and the end of his sitcom, Harvey had resumed his career as a host during the 2000s, coming out with “Steve Harvey’s Big Time Challenge” in 2003 while still making guest appearances on shows like “My Wife and Kids” as well as films such as “Love Don’t Cost a Thing”, “The Fighting Temptations” and “You Got Served”.
On the big screen, Harvey hasn’t had an acting appearance outside of playing himself since a 2005 voice role in “Racing Stripes”. He’s been far too busy with hosting various television programs, especially on the game show circuit. In 2010, Harvey was named the host of the long-running “Family Feud”, a gig that he still holds to this day. This has also spawned a similar series with “Celebrity Family Feud” that he’s hosted since 2015.
Harvey added his own daytime talk show to the mix with “Steve” in 2017, and is still the host of the annual Miss Universe competition, despite having a gaffe that one year in which the wrong winner was named. Other shows that Harvey has hosted in recent years includes “Little Big Shots”, its spin-off “Forever Young” and “Steve Harvey’s Funderdome”.
Harvey actually lost out on being the host of “Little Big Shots” after seven years, being replaced by Melissa McCarthy. That wasn’t the end of the road for Harvey, who obviously has plenty of other projects lined up, and he says that’s on purpose. “I’m running from homelessness,” Harvey said. “I can’t ever be in that position again. If my show gets canceled, I’ve got three more. I don’t have any free time, but I have 12 jobs.”
“I’m an honorable guy, and I’m just an old school guy, and I just thought that you’re supposed to talk to people and go, ‘Look, you’ve been good business for us. This is what we’re thinking of doing. Are you okay with that?’” he added. “No, you don’t just put something in the paper and say, ‘I’m gonna make this move right here’ because it’s crazy,” he said. “You look at the numbers on my show and it’s No. 4 in daytime television — it’s holding right there. I got a hit, so somebody’s gonna recognize that.”
Part of the reason why Harvey has been because guests and celebrities feel comfortable talking to him. “I don’t rehearse on either of my shows, ‘Family Feud’ or my talk show,” he said. “I never rehearse with the guests. I don’t want to have any preconceived thoughts, notions, because that kills my creativity as a host and as a stand-up.” This has led to some very memorable moments, many of which have gone viral, especially when it comes to “Family Feud”.
It took a while for Harvey to really find his footing in entertainment, having nearly been in his 40s by the time that he became famous. “A person has to remember that the road to success is always under construction,” he said. “You have to get that through your head. That it is not easy becoming successful.”
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