Tehran Von Ghasri
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Tehran Von Ghasri, or simply Tehran Ghasri ( fa, تهران قصری, ), professionally known as Tehran formerly Tehran SoParvaz, is an American international comedian, actor, host, television and radio personality, entertainer of
African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
and
Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
descent. Tehran was raised in Washington D.C. and surrounding Washington Metropolitan Area, where he began his career hosting on television and curating events. Tehran is multilingual, performing comedy in
Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
, mixed
Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
, some
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
,
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
, and primarily English.


Early life

Tehran Von Ghasri was born in Washington D.C. to an Iranian immigrant father and African-American mother, who met in the U.S.A. in college. He was named after
Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...
, the capital of Iran. His parents chose the name "Tehran" as a reminder of his Persian roots while the name sounded African American as well. His name was subject to controversy in Islamic Republic of Iran courts. On attempting to receive Iran status, courts in Iran ruled the use of "Tehran", as a name, as counter to the Islamic Republic regime. Tehran's father and family fought legally in court for Tehran to retain the name for Iran documentation. Tehran was the first Iranian named as such. The name had no usage in records before in Iran. Tehran Von Ghasri's family is multicultural and multi-religious. His religious background include Muslim, Zoroastrian, Christian, and Jewish heritage. His maternal grandmother was
Mizrahi ''Mizrachi'' or ''Mizrahi'' ( he, מזרחי) has two meanings. In the literal Hebrew meaning ''Eastern'', it may refer to: *Mizrahi Jews, Jews from the Middle East * Mizrahi (surname), a Sephardic surname, given to Jews who got to the Iberian P ...
Jewish of nubian Egyptian descent, his maternal grandfather was non-practicing Baptist from a prominent African American family. His paternal grandfather was Muslim, while his paternal grandmother was a practicing Zoroastrian. Each grandparent felt a need to convey their heritage to Tehran as a child. As a result, growing up Tehran had many different religious ceremonies including a bar mitzvah. Tehran is well disciplined and educated in all of his distinct cultural heritages, religious, and diverse ethnic backgrounds and speaks on them in and media and comedy frequently. Tehran speaks several languages including
Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
, which he also reads and writes, fluently. Due to his immigrant and proud minority upbringing, education played a large part of Tehran's life. An avid basketball player in high school recruited for college, Tehran had top grades and SAT score in high school. Tehran double majored in a Bachelor of Arts program in International Politics and Communication, a Masters in Econ, before attending law school for his J.D. Tehran graduated Magna Cum Laude with aspirations of going into show business as a manager, agent, or executive. Tehran decided to go into comedy his last year of law school after watching comedian Mike E. Winfield on TV and then performing on stage with fellow comedians Max Amini and Maz Jobrani. He loved the feeling of making an audience of people laugh, while speaking his truth. On advice from Maz Jobrani and
Dave Chappelle David Khari Webber Chappelle ( ; born August 24, 1973) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is best known for his satirical comedy sketch series ''Chappelle's Show'' (2003–2006), which he starred in until quitting in the middle of p ...
, Tehran moved to Los Angeles and began at the Laugh Factory. Tehran has always been involved in social activism, especially in regards to Human Rights, African American rights in the U.S.A., and freedoms in Iran. Tehran often mixes his social activism with his comedy on stage.


Career

In a television show launched by VOA Persian which called "Minutes With Max Amini", he revealed his long-time friendship with Max Amini and said that Amini was his first motivator to be a comedian. followed by a performance by Maz Jobrani at George Washington University which Maz encouraged him to move to Los Angeles and pursue comedy full time. Tehran has a J.D. degree and holds degrees in
international politics International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the Scientific method, scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities betwe ...
, economics from
George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...
. Tehran went viral for his story being told on VOA favorite, Parazit. Tehran has hosted his own radio and television shows on Rangarang and Tapesh satellite television, both of them are US-based Persian language television channels. Tehran rose to populartiy in the Iranian diaspora after begin featured in the premier episode of
Parazit Parazit ( fa, پارازیت, ', meaning "static") was a weekly half-hour Persian-language satirical television show broadcast on Voice of America's Persian service. The show poked fun at Iranian politics. Kambiz Hosseini and Saman Arbabi, Iranian ...
on
VOA Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is the state-owned news network and international radio broadcaster of the United States of America. It is the largest and oldest U.S.-funded international broadcaster. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content ...
. After becoming very popular in the Iranian community and diaspora, Tehran has branched out and crossed over into the American and International markets. After being a guest, Tehran became a main host and daily contributo on Take Part Live, the prime daily social commentary talk show on
Pivot (TV Network) Pivot was an American digital cable and satellite television network owned by Participant Media. The channel, targeted at young adults between 18 and 34 years old, debuted on August 1, 2013. The channel ceased operations on October 31, 2016. Hi ...
. Tehran performs stand-up comedy in venues all over the world, and is a favorite at The World Famous Laugh Factory in Los Angeles. Tehran created and hosts Comedy Bazaar, the longest running Middle Eastern comedy show, as well as the inclusive Tehran Thursday. Both are staple shows at the Laugh Factory. In 2017, he was a panelist on several
season 4 Season 4 may refer to: * "Season 4" (''30 Rock'' episode), an episode of ''30 Rock'' See also * * Season One (disambiguation) Season One may refer to: Albums * ''Season One'' (Suburban Legends album), 2004 * ''Season One'' (All Sons & Daughte ...
episodes of the ''
AfterBuzz TV AfterBuzz TV is an online broadcast network that specializes in after-show podcasts for several television series including ''Game of Thrones'', '' Big Brother'', ''The Flash'', ''Real Housewives'', and ''Grey's Anatomy''. Created by Maria Menoun ...
'' aftershow podcast for the American television series '' Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.''. Tehran has been in several film projects including Dane Cook American Typecast, the
Sean Stone Sean Christopher Stone (born December 29, 1984) is an American actor, filmmaker, and television host. Stone hosted a show on the Russian state-funded network RT America until the network was shut down in 2022 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine ...
directed Fury of the Fist and the Golden Fleece, and featured in Maz Jobrani project Jimmy Vestvood. Tehran has also been a main host on Fox SoMe panel show, daily contributor on Take Part Live, and regular on Fox Soul. Tehran's comedy style has been noted as very unique with elements of
Dave Chappelle David Khari Webber Chappelle ( ; born August 24, 1973) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is best known for his satirical comedy sketch series ''Chappelle's Show'' (2003–2006), which he starred in until quitting in the middle of p ...
meets Maz Jobrani, whom he often tours with. Tehran has produced and taken part in many shows focused on bringing people together and world peace, most notably Comedy 4 Peace aimed at united in the Middle East with focuses on Israel and Palestinian relations with comedian Erik Angel. Tehran cites his personal journey and cultural connections as inspirations for his comedy seeking to unite people through laughter.


Filmography


Film


Television


Other Work


See also

*
List of Iranian Americans This is a list of notable Iranian-Americans of all Iranian ethnic backgrounds, including both original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American descendants. ''To be included in this list, the person must have a Wikipedia ...
* Max Amini * Maz Jobrani *
Omid Djalili Omid Djalili ( fa, امید جلیلی; born 30 September 1965) is a British actor, comedian and writer. Early life and education Djalili was born on 30 September 1965 in Chelsea, London, to Iranian Baháʼí parents. He attended Holland Park ...
*
Shappi Khorsandi Shaparak Khorsandi ( fa, شاپرک خرسندی, born 8 June 1973), formerly known as Shappi Khorsandi, is an Iranian-born British comedian and author. She is the daughter of the Iranian political satirist and poet Hadi Khorsandi. Her family le ...


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ghasri, Tehran 21st-century American comedians American stand-up comedians American comedians of Iranian descent American male television actors American male film actors George Mason University alumni Actors of Iranian descent Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American people of Iranian-African descent 21st-century African-American people