Comedy Without Shame: No topic is taboo for Chelsea Handler

By Chris Carney


It would be far too easy, and quite condescending, to suggest that Chelsea Handler is a man trapped in a woman’s body. Sure her humor is crass, filled with vulgarities and topics traditionally associated with men on a guy’s night out. She blatantly professes her numerous sexual conquests in a manner that requires a high five from her nearest bro. She even relishes a deep affection for drinking and other habits traditionally deemed unladylike. Yet, none of these “manly” traits take away from her inherent femininity and womanly appeal. In fact, these traits combine, like a well-portioned cocktail, to make Handler one of the coolest chicks on the planet.

Women love her. Men want to be her. Women and men alike want to be with her. Handler defines the term “Renaissance woman,” even though she’d likely berate you for calling her such while sipping on the dirty martini she stole from you.

Raised in Livingston, N.J., Handler is the youngest of six children parented by a Jewish father and a Mormon mother. This melding of cultural and religious influences birthed a unique worldview that is both at odds with tradition and all inclusive of it. No topic is immune to her sarcastic rants, visceral diatribes and self-deprecating banter.

Handler began her professional life on the comedy circuit that has introduced us to some of America’s funniest people. From there she made the rounds on shows such as Girls Behaving Badly, The Tonight Show and The View. She became so sought after that she was able to turn down a gig on Dancing With the Stars. Her memoir, My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands brought her national acclaim. Her second book, Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea, secured her fame. The books, coupled with her top-rated E! show, Chelsea Lately, have pushed her onto the A-list. She even won a Bravo A-List Award to prove it.

It is her consistently hilarious skewering of celebrity culture, current events and general nonsense on Chelsea Lately that has cemented her place as a dominant force in late-night television, a realm traditionally dominated by the men she so ably manipulates.

Is it any wonder that America is fascinated with Handler? In an age where equality is deemed to be a given, why do her antics upset some and thrill others? Perhaps because she exposes a hidden truth, that despite our progress there are still avenues to be explored and stereotypes to be torn down.
No one seems more capable of shining the light on these hidden areas of modern-day life than the woman who once said, “I think we can all agree that sleeping around is a great way to meet people.”