Dennis Miller

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Dennis Miller bigraphy, stories - American comedian

Dennis Miller : biography

November 3, 1953 –

Dennis Miller (born November 3, 1953) is an American stand-up comedian, talk show host, political commentator, sports commentator, actor, television personality, and radio personality. He is known for his critical assessments laced with pop culture references. He rose to fame as a cast member of Saturday Night Live in 1985, and subsequently hosted a string of his own talk shows on HBO, CNBC and in syndication. He currently hosts a daily, three-hour, self-titled talk radio program, nationally syndicated by Dial Global.

Although in his early years of fame he was perceived to be liberal and anti-Republican, in recent years, Miller has become known for his conservative political opinions. He is a regular political commentator on Fox News Channel’s The O’Reilly Factor in a segment called "Miller Time", and previously appeared on the network’s Hannity & Colmes in a segment called "Real Free Speech." During the Presidential election of 2012, Miller appeared on Fox News Channel and said that under Barack Obama, the US is on the road to the "European model." He is listed as 21st on Comedy Central’s 100 greatest stand up comedians of all time.. Listology. May 5, 2005

Political views

During the late 1980s and continuing through the 1990s, Miller was generally perceived as a cynic on the left, ever eager to bash conservative Republicans. This perception did not change much even when Miller told USA Today in 1995: "I might be profane and opinionated, but underneath all that are some pretty conservative feelings. On most issues, between Clinton and Newt Gingrich, I’d choose Newt in a second, even though he is a bit too exclusionary." Miller also declared himself a "conservative libertarian" in a 1996 Playboy interview.

Miller’s ideology changed significantly in the years following the September 11, 2001 attacks, when he became one of the few Hollywood celebrities backing George W. Bush and the war in Iraq. Miller has said that one of the defining moments, in addition to 9/11, for his move from the Democratic to the Republican Party was watching a 2004 primary debate between the nine Democrats then contending for their party’s nomination. "I haven’t seen a starting nine like that since the ’62 Mets", he remarked.

Slate.com commentator Dennis Cass describes Miller as having changed from a "left-leaning, Dada-ist wisenheimer" to a "tell-it-like-it-is, right-wing blowhard."* The perceived change did not surprise former Saturday Night Live colleague and Democratic Party Senator Al Franken, however: "People have said to me, ‘What happened to Dennis?’ Nothing happened to Dennis. He’s the same Dennis. He’s always had a conservative streak on certain issues."

While not at all shy about expressing his conservative opinions on topics such as taxes and foreign policy, Miller is quick to point out that he is still quite liberal on many social issues, including abortion and gay marriage. During a recent interview, Miller said "I’m basically a libertarian. I’m pro-gay marriage and pro-choice, but nobody wants to hear all that…. They determine who you are based on the war." During an interview on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, he said that he did not believe in global warming, and that even if it was happening, he would not mind it because he does not like to be cold.http://www.pennlive.com/entertainment/patriotnews/index.ssf?/base/entertainment/116187813997730.xml&coll=1

In a radio interview with Penn Jillette on September 22, 2006, Miller explained his libertarianism, saying, "…[a libertarian is] what I am, I’ll be honest with you. I’m for gay marriage. I don’t believe in abortion but I’m pro-choice ’cause it’s none of my business. Pretty much anything goes with me if you’re not infringing yourself on other people but, I’ll tell ya, 9/11 changed me…. You gotta go around and explain it to people and they think you’re a turncoat."