July 20 speaker: Mohammed "Mo" Amer

Against the tense geopolitical backdrop of Mideast politics, American foreign policy, and terrorist acts by religious fanatics, what the world needs more than ever is a good laugh. Enter: Mohammed Amer.

Dubbed ‘the Arab-American Bill Cosby,’ Mohammed “Mo” Amer is a bona fide headliner, an established standup comedian from Houston, Texas. In the classic storyteller tradition, Mo is the rare comic gem who started performing standup in high school while still in his mid-teens, racking up years of experience touring literally across the world, with an impressive global and national standup resume before even hitting his 30^th birthday. He has performed in over two dozen countries on five continents—as the first and only Arab-American refugee comic to perform for U.S. and coalition troops overseas, as well as with “Allah Made Me Funny—The Official Muslim Comedy Tour.” Adoring fans have watched him at sold-out shows worldwide, including: Royal Albert Hall and Hammersmith-Apollo (London); Acer Arena (Sydney); Nelson Mandela Theatre (Johannesburg); Shrine Auditorium (Los Angeles); as well as at the Las Vegas Comedy Festival, the Malmo Arts Festival (Sweden), Amman Comedy Festival (Jordan), and the World’s Funniest Island Festival (Australia).

He has been interviewed on television and radio dozens of times, including on NPR, BBC, and CNN. His work promotes art and understanding between the diverse cultures of the world, and his ethnic and family background uniquely situate him to speak from the heart about the absurd problems of religion, terror, and the politics of our age—through the lens of honest, endearing, personal stories about his family and himself. Mo’s solo show, entitled “Legally Homeless-Trials of a Refugee,” is presently in development for a feature length docu-comedy (expected premium cable broadcast in 2012). He is also co-writing a feature screenplay with award-winning filmmaker Iman Zawahry and longtime standup collaborator, Azhar Usman.

Website:  http://www.moamer.net

Twitter:  http://www.twitter.com/realmoamer

PRESS QUOTES

Amer is probably the most gifted of the three… Vaguely reminiscent of the comedian Sinbad (but funnier), he’s not averse to cartoonish body language to put his gags across. Much of his humor is mined from that old standby, the comedian's wacky ethnic family … Yet the comedian’s smiling patter carries a secret sting.— The Boston Globe