Bobby Lee
From 2001 to 2009, Lee was a cast member on MADtv, and he co-starred in the ABC single-camera sitcom series Splitting Up Together alongside Jenna Fischer and Oliver Hudson between 2018 and 2019. Lee has also appeared in the films Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004), Pineapple Express (2008), and The Dictator (2012). He had a guest appearance as the cynical, burned-out Dr. Kang on FX on Hulu's TV comedy series Reservation Dogs.
Early life and education
Lee was born on September 17, 1971, to Korean immigrant parents Jeanie and Robert Lee. He and his younger brother Steve grew up in Poway, California. His parents owned clothing stores in both Escondido and Encinitas, California. He attended Painted Rock Elementary School, Twin Peaks Middle School, and Poway High School. In high school, he was part of a breakdancing team. After graduation, he attended Palomar College before dropping out.
Career
Lee worked at cafes and restaurants before pursuing a career in comedy. In 1994, the coffee shop where he was working abruptly closed. Lee stated, "I just went next door to get a job, which was The Comedy Store in San Diego." After a few months of working odd jobs at the club, he tried stand-up during one of their amateur nights. Within a year of doing regular comedy sets, he received offers to open for both Pauly Shore and Carlos Mencia. He then began working regularly at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles, a comedy club owned by Pauly Shore's mother Mitzi.
Lee has said that his parents had hoped he would continue on with the family business and were less than supportive of his comedic pursuits at first. During a podcast interview conducted by fellow actor and comedian Joe Rogan on February 1, 2011, Lee stated that during the first few years he did stand-up, his parents barely spoke to him. However, after his appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno his father called him, asked how much he had to pay to be on the show, and then apologized for not supporting his comedy career. Lee has included his family in some of his work; his brother has appeared in several non-speaking roles on MADtv, and his entire immediate family has appeared in a sketch on the show. In 2007, he pitched a sitcom to Comedy Central about a Korean family, which was to star his own family.
In 2012, Lee was hired to reboot Maker Studios' YouTube comedy channel, The Station. Lee hosted the 9th MusiCares MAP Fund Benefit Concert in 2013. From 2019 to 2023, Lee made several appearances as recurring character Jin Jeong in the Magnum P.I. television series. In 2020, Lee began co-hosting the Bad Friends podcast with Andrew Santino.
MADtv
In 2001, Lee joined the cast of MADtv, making him the show's first and only Asian cast member. He has stated that he dreaded playing the characters Bae Sung and Connie Chung, as well as the "Average Asian" skits. Lee remained with the cast until the series' cancellation in 2009 and returned briefly when MADtv was revived in 2016 on The CW.
TigerBelly podcast
| TigerBelly | |
|---|---|
| Presentation | |
| Hosted by | Bobby Lee Khalyla Kuhn |
| Genre | Talk |
| Format | Audio & Video |
| Language | English |
| Length | 60–90 minutes |
| Production | |
| Production | Bobby Lee Khalyla Kuhn Gilbert Galon George Kimmel Bryce Hallock |
| No. of episodes | 343 (as of April 18, 2022) |
| Publication | |
| Original release | September 1, 2015 – present |
| Related | |
| Website | TheTigerBelly.com |
Started in 2015, TigerBelly is a video podcast hosted by Bobby Lee and his ex-partner, Khalyla Kuhn. It also features appearances by technical engineer Gilbert Galon and producer George Kimmel. The show's intro song "Shadow Gook" was written and produced by Lee and performed by Lee and Kuhn. The hosts discuss events from their lives and news topics from popular culture, often revolving around Asian American issues related to the entertainment industry, adolescence, sexuality, ethnicity, racism, and politics.
Prior to the creation of TigerBelly, Lee and Erik Griffin pitched a podcast to All Things Comedy but never developed the show. While Kuhn was recovering from heart surgery, she developed a podcast as a way to occupy herself. Lee assisted her with its creation and eventually appeared on her show. He then decided to focus on a podcast with Kuhn instead of with Griffin.
Personal life
Lee began taking methamphetamine and marijuana around age 12, as well as heroin by age 15, and went through three drug-rehabilitation attempts before becoming sober when he was 17. Lee relapsed on Vicodin and ended 12 years of sobriety after receiving negative feedback from a producer. He got sober after MADtv producer Lauren Dombrowski fought for him after he was fired from the show a second time, a story which Lee discusses in his appearance on the pilot episode of Comedy Central's TV series This Is Not Happening. On TigerBelly episode 224, Lee admitted to guest Theo Von that he had relapsed after his father's death in August 2019 from Parkinson's disease. He subsequently went to rehab and became sober again. Lee has stated that he is a recovering alcoholic.
Lee is a long-time Arsenal Football Club supporter. Lee is an avid fan of video games, including FIFA, Stardew Valley, The Elder Scrolls, Red Dead Redemption 2, and The Witcher series. Lee's younger brother, Steve Lee, is a musician and comedian. He hosts The Steebee Weebee podcast and co-hosts the Scissor Bros podcast with comedian Jeremiah Watkins. He has also made guest appearances alongside Lee on MADtv, especially in sketches featuring Lee's recurring characters of Kim Jong-il and Tank.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | The Underground Comedy Movie | Chinese Man | |
| 2003 | Pauly Shore Is Dead | Delivery Boy | |
| American Misfits | Korean General | Video | |
| 2004 | Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle | Kenneth Park | |
| 2005 | Accidentally on Purpose | Bobby | Short |
| 2006 | Undoing | Kenny | |
| 2007 | Kickin' It Old Skool | Aki | |
| 2008 | Killer Pad | Winnie | |
| Pineapple Express | Bobby | ||
| Larry of Arabia | Bobby | Short | |
| 2009 | Soldiers of Capernaum | - | Video |
| 2010 | Fudgy Wudgy Fudge Face | Kangaroo Hands | |
| Hard Breakers | Travis | ||
| 2011 | Paul | Valet | |
| A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas | Kenneth Park | ||
| 2012 | The Dictator | Mr. Lao | |
| 2013 | Final Recipe | Park | |
| Wedding Palace | Kevin | ||
| Jesus is My Co-Pilot | Himself | Short | |
| 2014 | Meet Me at the Reck | Himself | Video |
| Bro, What Happened? | Brah Man | ||
| Out of Love | Stanley | Short | |
| 2015 | The Comments | Hugh | Short |
| 2016 | Laid in America | Goose | |
| Keeping Up with the Joneses | Ricky Lu | ||
| 2018 | Curious Georgina | Bobby | Short |
| Public Disturbance | Chuck | ||
| 2019 | Extracurricular Activities | Mr. Mulnick | |
| 2020 | The Wrong Missy | Check-In Desk Employee | |
| Guest House | Benny | ||
| 2021 | Wish Dragon | Tall Goon (voice) | |
| How It Ends | Derek | ||
| Hero Mode | VP Goodson | ||
| 2023 | Death and Ramen | Timmy Lee | Short |
| The Throwback | Charles | ||
| 2024 | Drugstore June | Bill | |
| Sweet Dreams | Cruise | ||
| Borderlands | Larry |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Arli$$ | - | Episode: "D-Day" |
| 2001 | Late Friday | Himself | Episode #1.19 |
| The Brothers Garcia | Pet Store Clerk | Episode: "But Football Is a Religion" | |
| 2001–09, 2016 | Mad TV | Himself/Cast Member | Featured cast (season 7 & 15), main cast (season 8–14) |
| 2004 | I Love the '90s | Himself | 2 episodes |
| Faking It | Himself | Episode: "Fireman to Funnyman" | |
| 2005 | Minding the Store | Himself | Episodes: "Makeover" & "La Jolla" |
| The Drop | Himself | Episode #3.14 | |
| Party @ the Palms | Chu | Episode #1.6 | |
| Curb Your Enthusiasm | Sung | Episode: "The Korean Bookie" | |
| 2005–06 | Mind of Mencia | Asian CSI Agent/Gay Pirate | 2 episodes |
| 2006 | Icons | Himself | Episode: "Jamie Kennedy" |
| Comedy Zen | Himself | Episode #1.4" | |
| Thugaboo: Sneaker Madness | Mr. Lee Young/William Hung (voice) | TV movie | |
| 2007 | American Dad! | Danny (voice) | Episode: "Bush Comes to Dinner" |
| 2007–14 | Chelsea Lately | Himself/Round Table Guest | Recurring guest |
| 2008 | Asian Excellence Awards | Himself/Host | Main host |
| 2009 | Live at Gotham | Himself/Host | Episode: "Episode #4.2" |
| Whorified! The Search for America's Next Top Whore | Himself | Episode: "Reality TV Made Me Do It" | |
| Family Guy | Sharply Dressed Asian Man (voice) | Episode: "Business Guy" | |
| The League | Chu | Episode: "The Usual Bet" | |
| 2009–19 | Laugh Factory | Himself | Recurring guest |
| 2010 | Supreme Court of Comedy | Himself | Episode: "Tom Arnold vs. Bobby Lee" |
| Ktown Cowboys | Himself | Episode: "Episode #1.9" | |
| Cubed | Bob Yamamoto | Recurring cast (season 1), guest (season 2) | |
| 2011 | After Lately | Himself | Episode: "The 'M' Word" |
| Big Time Rush | T.J. | Episode: "Big Time Reality" | |
| Family Guy | Chinese Man (voice) | Episode: "Amish Guy" | |
| 2012 | Equals Three | Himself | Episode: "Spelling Bee" |
| Samurai! Daycare | Park | Recurring cast | |
| RVC: The Lone Shopping Network | Hiri | Episode: "Father of My Squids" | |
| 2012–13 | Animal Practice | Dr. Yamamoto | Main cast |
| 2013 | Who Gets the Last Laugh? | Himself | Episode: "Bam Margera/Bobby Lee/Matt Besser" |
| Gotham Comedy Live | Himself/Host | Episode: "Bobby Lee" | |
| Knife Fight | Himself | Episode: "Travi vs. Kuramoto" | |
| Internet Shock Quiz | Himself | Episode: "Bobby Lee's Racist Confession" | |
| JustKiddingFilms | Himself | Episode: "Don't Bang My Wife" & "Sharing Is Caring" | |
| Arrested Development | Mrs. Oh | Episode: "Queen B." | |
| Tubbin' with Tash | Tiger Belly | Episodes: "Chelsea Handler" & "Chelsea Peretti & Reggie Watts" | |
| Sean Saves the World | Mr. Kim | Episode: "Sean Comes Clean" | |
| 2013–14 | Kill Tony | Himself/Guest Host | Episodes: "Kill Tony #9" & "Kill Tony #32" |
| Deal with It | Himself | Recurring cast (season 1), guest (season 3) | |
| 2013–15 | The Awesomes | Tim/Sumo (voice) | Main cast |
| 2014 | TripTank | Mongolian/Mongolian Leader/Li Ching (voice) | Episode: "The Green" & "Candy Van Finger Bang" |
| The League | Lee Wei Lee | Episode: "Epi Sexy" | |
| 2014–16 | This Is Not Happening | Himself | Recurring guest |
| 2015 | The Comedians | Fortune Teller's nephew | Episode: "Billy's Birthday" |
| NCIS: Los Angeles | Rio Syamsundin | Episode: "Blame It on Rio" | |
| 2015-16 | Bad Weather Films | Himself | 2 episodes |
| 2015–19 | Nature Cat | MC Ferret (voice) | Recurring cast (season 1–3) |
| 2016 | Jeff Ross Presents Roast Battle | Himself/Judge | Episode: "Road to Roast Battle" |
| @midnight | Himself | Episode: "Episode #4.6" | |
| Another Period | Sea Captain | Episode: "Lillian's Wedding" & "The Duel" | |
| Son of Zorn | Jakton | Episode: "The War of the Workplace" | |
| 2016–18 | Love | Truman | Recurring cast |
| 2017 | The Comedy Jam | Himself | Episode: "Tiffany Haddish/Chris Hardwick/Bobby Lee" |
| Funny You Should Ask | Himself | Recurring guest | |
| Comrade Detective | New York Degenerate (voice) | Episode: "Two Films for One Ticket" | |
| What Would Diplo Do? | Brian | Main cast | |
| Real Rob | Kim Lin | Episode: "Best Play Date Ever" | |
| 2018 | Something’s Burning | Himself | Episode: "Bobby Lee & Chris D'Elia Make Homemade Pasta w/ Bert Kreischer" |
| Alone Together | Stan | Episode: "Pop-Up" | |
| NCIS: Los Angeles | Jeff Carol | Episode: "Goodbye, Vietnam" | |
| 2018–19 | Splitting Up Together | Arthur | Main cast |
| 2019 | Family Style | Himself | Episode: "Sweets" |
| Beyond the Arc | Himself | Episode: "Montreal" | |
| 2019–23 | Magnum P.I. | Jin | Recurring cast (season 2-4), guest (season 5) |
| 2020 | Game On! | Himself/Captain | Main captain |
| The Stand-Up Show with Jon Dore | Himself | Episode: "Episode #1.5" | |
| The Cabin with Bert Kreischer | Himself | Episode: "Release" | |
| The Comedy Store | Himself | Main guest | |
| Dream Corp LLC | Tricky Ricky | Recurring cast (season 3) | |
| 2021 | Fast Foodies | Himself | Episode: "Bobby Lee" |
| Nailed It! | Himself/Guest Judge | Episode: "Travel Dos and Donuts" | |
| Well Done with Sebastian Maniscalco | Himself | Episode: "The Macaroniscalco" | |
| Immoral Compass | Dylan | Episode: "Part 2: Secrets" | |
| 2021–22 | Reservation Dogs | Dr. Kang | Guest (season 1), recurring cast (season 2) |
| Inside Job | Dr. Andre (voice) | Main cast | |
| 2021–23 | And Just Like That... | Jackie Nee | Recurring cast |
| 2022 | About Last Night | Himself | Episode: "Anna Camp/Loni Love/Bobby Lee" |
| Dark Side of Comedy | Himself | Episode: "Andrew Dice Clay" | |
| 2023 | History of the World, Part II | Harold | Episode: "VI" |
Music videos
| Year | Title | Artist | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | "We Made You" | Eminem | Sulu | |
| 2010 | "2 Different Tears" | Wonder Girls | ||
| 2011 | "Hangover" | Taio Cruz | Captain | |
| 2017 | "Dure Dure" | Jencarlos |
Documentary
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Heckler | Himself | |
| 2016 | Dying Laughing | Himself | |
| 2017 | Funny: The Documentary | Himself | |
| 2020 | Happy Happy Joy Joy: The Ren and Stimpy Story | Himself |
References
- ^ "Bobby Lee Birthday".
- ^ "Happy Stardew Birthday, Bobby | Ep 184 | Bad Friends". YouTube. September 18, 2023.
- ^ "MILESTONES: September 17 birthdays for Patrick Mahomes, John Franco, Bobby Lee". Brooklyn Eagle. September 17, 2020. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
- ^ Grant, Lee (September 17, 2004). "'Mad' man". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on March 1, 2016. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
- ^ Archer, Greg (September 18, 2013). "Bobby Lee On Comedy, Survival And Being 'A Big, Sweaty Ball Of Flesh'". HuffPost. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ Yang, Jeff (April 10, 2007). "ASIAN POP / Mad Man". SFGate. Archived from the original on March 5, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ Woo, Michelle (April 2, 2007). "Kickin' It With Bobby Lee". Character Media. Archived from the original on January 29, 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
- ^ Nguyen, Joe (May 5, 2009). "Face2Face with Bobby Lee". www.asiaxpress.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ "Bobby Lee at Levity Live". Visit Oxnard. Archived from the original on January 26, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ Rogan, Lee & Redban 2013
- ^ Baldwin, Drew (January 30, 2012). "Maker Studios Reboots The Station With Bobby Lee". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on January 26, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ The Grammys (December 2, 2014). "Set List Bonus: Ninth Annual MusiCares MAP Fund Benefit At Club Nokia". GRAMMY.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2020. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
- ^ Laddin, Stephen (March 3, 2020). "Andrew Santino Is A People Person". High Times. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
- ^ "TV top picks". The Santa Fe New Mexican. September 27, 2016. p. A010. Retrieved June 18, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Lee 2017, p. 12:00
- ^ Lee 2017, p. 2:03
- ^ Lee, Bobby; Kuhn, Khalyla; Galon, Gilbert (November 26, 2015). "The Korean Kite 한국 연". Tigerbelly (Podcast). Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
- ^ Lee & Griffin 2016, p. 1:17:00
- ^ Baldwin, Greg; Kalloniatis, Ant (November 19, 2017). "Bobby Lee is a Provoked Panda". Second Chances Podcast (Podcast). Archived from the original on January 29, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
- ^ Lee 2017, p. 10:45
- ^ Schonberger, Chris (October 27, 2016). "Watch Bobby Lee Take on the Hot Ones Challenge". First We Feast. Archived from the original on March 2, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ Kozlowski, Carl (May 26, 2016). "Why Bobby Lee Is Done with 'MADtv'". Hollywood in Toto. Archived from the original on March 5, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ Lee, Diaz & Syatt 2014, p. 9:30
- ^ Variety Staff (October 28, 2008). "'Madtv's' Lauren Dombrowski dies". Variety. Archived from the original on March 29, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ "Comedian Bobby Lee's father has passed away". August 19, 2019.
- ^ Lee, Bobby (December 12, 2019). "Theo Von & The Guillotine | TigerBelly 224". YouTube. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
- ^ "David Choe x Money Mark x Steve Lee starts a band". Upper Playground. August 19, 2014. Archived from the original on October 18, 2014. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
- ^ "Bobby Lee". IMDb. Archived from the original on February 13, 2023. Retrieved February 28, 2023.
- ^ Adriane (May 24, 2010). "The Wonder Girls: New Music Video, Exclusive Pics, Videos Here at MTV Iggy!"MTV K. Archived from the original on June 04 2011. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
- ^ "Jencarlos Releases New Single "Dure Dure" with Don Omar". www.peermusic.com. July 28, 2017. Archived from the original on March 14, 2023. Retrieved April 9, 2021.
Sources
- Lee, Bobby (July 20, 2017). "A Family Affair - TigerBelly 100". TigerBelly (Podcast). TigerBelly. Archived from the original on July 6, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2018 – via YouTube.
- Lee, Bobby; Griffin, Erik (April 15, 2016). "Erik Griffin and the Oily Poll - TigerBelly 37". TigerBelly (Podcast). TigerBelly. Archived from the original on July 6, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2018 – via YouTube.
- Lee, Bobby; Diaz, Joey; Syatt, Lee (December 19, 2014). "#240 - Bobby Lee, Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt" (Podcast). The Church of what's happening. Archived from the original on June 21, 2016. Retrieved March 1, 2018 – via YouTube.
- Rogan, Joe; Lee, Bobby; Redban, Brian (January 20, 2013). "Joe Rogan Experience #76 - Bobby Lee, Brian Redban" (Podcast). Joe Rogan Experience. Archived from the original on November 16, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2018 – via YouTube.
External links
