Robin Thede ( ) is an American comedian, actress and writer. Raised in Iowa, she has also worked as an entertainment correspondent, host, and radio personality. In 2015, she became the first African-American woman to be head writer for a

late-night talk show A late-night talk show is a genre of talk show popular in the United States, where the format originated. It is generally structured around humorous monologues about the day's news, guest interviews, comedy sketches and music performances. It i ...

(''

The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore ''The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore'' is a 2015–16 American Late night television, late-night panel discussion, panel Late-night talk show, talk show hosted by Larry Wilmore that aired for two seasons on Comedy Central. The show was a spin-o ...

''). From 2017 to 2018, Thede hosted '' The Rundown with Robin Thede'' on

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

. She created and co-stars in the

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

-nominated HBO series '' A Black Lady Sketch Show''.

Early life and education

Robin Thede was born in

Spencer, Iowa Spencer is a city in the state of Iowa, United States, and the county seat of Clay County. It is located at the confluence of the Little Sioux and Ocheyedan rivers. The population was 11,325 in the 2020 census, an increase from 11,317 in 2000. ...

. Her parents are

Phyllis Thede Phyllis Thede (born February 23, 1954) is an American politician, representing the 93rd District in the Iowa House of Representatives as a member of the Iowa Democratic Party. With a background in community education and unions, she was first ele ...

, who is African American, and Dave Thede, who is German American. Robin Thede was named after stand-up comedian and actor

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...

. She stated on ''

Late Night with Seth Meyers ''Late Night with Seth Meyers'' is an American late-night news and political satire talk show hosted by Seth Meyers on NBC. The show premiered on February 24, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. Airing weeknights a ...

'' this was most likely due to her father's love of Williams' work. She grew up in

Davenport, Iowa Davenport is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Iowa, United States. Located along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state, it is the largest of the Quad Cities, a metropolitan area with a population of 384,324 and a ...

, where her father was an educator and her mother also worked in community schools and served with the union for school staff. Thede's two sisters were born there. Thede and her sisters attended local schools in Davenport. Later her parents moved to

Bettendorf, Iowa Bettendorf is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States. It is the 15th largest city of Iowa and the third-largest city in the "Quad Cities". It is part of the Davenport– Moline– Rock Island, IA- IL Metropolitan Statistical Area. The popu ...

. Her mother was elected in 2009 as Iowa State Representative for House District 93 and has been repeatedly re-elected. She continues to serve in the legislature. Thede graduated from

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...

, earning a degree in Broadcast Journalism and African-American Studies. After college, Thede studied at

The Second City The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise and is the oldest ongoing improvisational theater troupe to be continually based in Chicago, with training programs and live theatres in Toronto and Los Angeles. The Second City Theatre op ...

theatre group in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Career

Robin first started with a sketch comedy group called Cleos Apartment with writers Diallo Riddle and

Bashir Salahuddin Bashir Salahuddin (born July 6, 1976) is an American actor, writer, and comedian. Early life and education Salahuddin was born and raised in the South Side of Chicago, Illinois. His father is originally from Panama and had moved to Chicago with ...

. Members included Thomas Fraser,

Wyatt Cenac Wyatt John Foster Cenac Jr. (; born April 19, 1976) is an American comedian, actor, producer, and writer. He was a correspondent and writer for ''The Daily Show'' from 2008 to 2012. He starred in the TBS series ''People of Earth'' and in Barry ...

, Nika Williams and Nefetari Spencer. That stage show was picked up online by

AOL AOL (stylized as Aol., formerly a company known as AOL Inc. and originally known as America Online) is an American web portal and online service provider based in New York City. It is a brand marketed by the current incarnation of Yahoo (2017� ...

and

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

for a new show called The Message which ran for a full year, 2007. Thede was also head writer and a performer on ''

''. From 2015–16, she was the head writer for the first season and a half of '' The Nightly Show,'' the first African-American woman to hold that position on any late-night talk show. Thede is also the second African-American woman to write for a late-night talk show, as

Amber Ruffin Amber Mildred Ruffin (born January 9, 1979) is an American comedian. She hosts her own late-night talk show titled ''The Amber Ruffin Show'' on NBC and Peacock. She has been a writer for '' Late Night with Seth Meyers'' since 2014. When she joine ...

was first to join the writing staff for ''

''. Prior to that, she was head writer on ''

The Queen Latifah Show ''The Queen Latifah Show'' was the title of two American television talk shows hosted by Queen Latifah. The original ''The Queen Latifah Show'' ran from September 13, 1999, to August 31, 2001. The revamped ''The Queen Latifah Show'' debuted Septem ...

'' and staff writer on the first two seasons of ''

Real Husbands of Hollywood ''Real Husbands of Hollywood'' (abbreviated ''RHOH'') is an American reality television parody that originally aired on Black Entertainment Television, BET from January 15, 2013 to December 13, 2016. A Revival (television), revival series produce ...

'' on

. In January 2013, she appeared in the Marlon Wayans' comedy ''

A Haunted House ''A Haunted House'' is a 2013 American horror satire film directed by Michael Tiddes, written by, produced by and starring Marlon Wayans. Although Wayans said the film was "not exactly a parody but rather a movie with funny characters doing th ...

'' opposite comedian

JB Smoove Jerry Angelo Brooks (born December 16, 1965), commonly known by his stage name J. B. Smoove, is an American actor, comedian and writer. After beginning his career in 1995 on ''Def Comedy Jam'', he was a writer and performer on NBC's ''Saturday Ni ...

. She also had recurring appearances as "Gail" on ''

Second Generation Wayans ''Second Generation Wayans'' is an American comedy-drama television series that debuted on BET on January 15, 2013. It ended on March 19, 2013 after only one season. Premise Damien Dante Wayans and Craig Wayans, nephews of the famous Wayans bro ...

'' on BET in March 2013. Thede has often worked on TV shows as both a writer and actress, including on the short-lived Fox series ''

In the Flow with Affion Crockett ''In the Flow with Affion Crockett'' is a sketch comedy television series starring Affion Crockett and produced by Jamie Foxx, ''MADtv'' co-creators Fax Bahr and Adam Small, ''Arrested Development'' creator Mitch Hurwitz and ''Two and a Half Men ...

'', the

Mike Epps Michael Elliot Epps (born November 18, 1970) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He played Day-Day Jones in ''Next Friday'' and its sequel, ''Friday After Next'', and also appeared in ''The Hangover'' and ''The Hangover Part III'' as "Bla ...

sketch comedy series ''Funny Bidness'', and on the comedy series ''Clunkers'' (starring Carl Payne, David Faustino and Sherman Hemsley). Thede's recent television appearances include roles on ''

Key & Peele ''Key & Peele'' (abbreviated to ''K&P'') is an American sketch comedy television series created by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele for Comedy Central. Both Key and Peele previously worked on '' Mad TV.'' Each episode of the show consists ...

'' (Comedy Central), ''

Hot In Cleveland ''Hot in Cleveland'' is an American television sitcom on TV Land starring Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick, and Betty White. The series, which was TV Land's first original series, premiered on June 16, 2010, and was TV Land's hig ...

'' (TV Land), ''

Chocolate News ''Chocolate News'' is an American satirical news show hosted and head written by David Alan Grier in 2008 with an emphasis on African American culture. The show was broadcast on Wednesday nights at 10:30 pm on Comedy Central as a lead-in to its ...

'' (Comedy Central), ''

Kath & Kim ''Kath & Kim,'' (also written as ''Kath and Kim'') is an Australian sitcom created by Jane Turner and Gina Riley, who portray the title characters of Kath Day-Knight, a cheery, middle-aged suburban mother, and Kim, her self-indulgent daughter ...

'' (NBC), ''

Worst Week ''Worst Week'' is an American sitcom television series that premiered on CBS on September 22, 2008. The series was based on the British sitcom ''The Worst Week of My Life''. It was adapted for American audiences by Fox under the title ''Worst ...

'' (CBS) and ''

All of Us ''All of Us'' is an American sitcom television series that premiered on the UPN network in the United States on September 16, 2003, where it aired for its first three seasons. On October 1, 2006, the show moved to The CW, a new network formed ...

'' (UPN). She was a series regular on the

original web series ''Buppies'' with

Tatyana Ali Tatyana Marisol Ali is an American actress and singer best known for her role as Ashley Banks on the NBC sitcom ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' from 1990 to 1996. She starred as Tyana Jones on the TV One original series ''Love That Girl!'', an ...

. Thede's other writing credits include BET Awards (2014), BET Honors (2013), UNCF: An Evening of Stars (2013), BET Awards (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012), NAACP Image Awards (2011), the BET Hip Hop Awards (2010, 2011, 2012) and more. Additionally, Thede has created several successful videos, including "Shit Black Guys Say" (which went viral with 2.5 million views on YouTube), "Every Little Step" with Wayne Brady, Bobby Brown and Mike Tyson (Funny or Die.com), and "For Stuffed Colored Girls" (Funny or Die.com). She can also be seen with Elite Delta Force 3 in "The Real Housewives of Civil Rights" (Funny or Die.com/EDF3 YouTube Channel). Thede's comedy work extends from years of professional live sketch comedy (Second City Chicago and LA, Improv Olympic, Acme) to comedic commentary on shows such as ''10 Things I Hate About Me'' for the Style Network. She is also a performer and writer for the all-female sketch group "Elite Delta Force 3", which won the 2009 Audience Award Winner of the Los Angeles Comedy Improv Festival. Other notable work includes co-hosting on ''The Voice of Reason'' on

Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. He became widely known for his portrayal of Ray Charles in the 2004 biographical film '' Ray'', for which he won the ...

's Foxxhole Sirius/XM radio channel. She worked as a regular entertainment correspondent for ''E! News'' with Ryan Seacrest and

Giuliana Rancic Giuliana Rancic (; ; born August 17, 1974) is an Italian-American entertainment reporter and television personality. She is a co-anchor of ''E! News'' and resides in Chicago and Los Angeles. Early life Rancic was born in Naples, Italy and immigra ...

. In October 2017, Thede began hosting her own late-night TV talk show, '' The Rundown with Robin Thede'' on

. She is one of a few African-American women to host their own late-night show. In June 2019, Thede was named one of Variety's 10 Comics to Watch for 2019. Most recently Thede created, writes, and performs in '' A Black Lady Sketch Show'', which premiered on HBO on August 2, 2019. In April 2021, the second season of ''A Black Lady Sketch Show'' premiered''.'' In 2020, she signed a development deal with

Warner Bros. Television Warner Bros. Television Studios (operating under the name Warner Bros. Television; formerly known as Warner Bros. Television Division) is an American television production and distribution studio of the Warner Bros. Television Group division of ...

Filmography

As writer

As actress

Other appearances

Awards and nominations

Emmy Awards

The

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

are presented by the

Academy of Television Arts & Sciences The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), also colloquially known as the Television Academy, is a professional honorary organization dedicated to the advancement of the television industry in the United States. It is a 501(c)(6) non-prof ...

Mipcom Awards

Mipcom's Diversify TV Excellence Awards are presented annually in order to recognize, champion and celebrate diversity, equality and inclusion in television programming across the international television industry. Thede has been honored with 1 award.

TCA Awards

The TCA Awards are awards presented by the

Television Critics Association The Television Critics Association (TCA) is a group of approximately 200 United States and Canadian television critics, journalists and columnists who cover television programming for newspapers, magazines and web publications. The TCA accepts app ...

in recognition of excellence in television. Thede has won 1 award.

References

External links

*
''A Black Lady Sketch Show''
on

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thede, Robin Living people African-American actresses American women comedians American radio personalities People from Spencer, Iowa Actors from Davenport, Iowa Northwestern University alumni Writers from Davenport, Iowa 1979 births American people of German descent Comedians from Iowa Actresses from Iowa 21st-century American actresses American television writers American women television writers American women screenwriters 21st-century American women writers Screenwriters from Iowa 21st-century American comedians 21st-century American screenwriters African-American female comedians 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American writers 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women African-American women writers