Melissa Beck (born Melissa Howard) is a

reality show Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

personality and

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audienc ...

known for her time as a cast member on the 2000 reality television series '' The Real World: New Orleans'' and the 2002–2005 prank show ''

Girls Behaving Badly ''Girls Behaving Badly'' is an American reality comedy television show that was on the Oxygen cable channel, and was also syndicated to television stations across the United States and Canada by Sony Pictures Television. The show, described ...

.''

Early life

Melissa Howard was born February 12, 1977, in Okinawa, Japan to a Filipino mother and Black-American father. She, her older sister Marlene and their younger brother, Michael, grew up in

Valrico, Florida Valrico is a census-designated place (CDP) in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The population was 35,545 at the 2010 census, up from 6,582 at the 2000 census. History Before the Civil War, the area was known as Long Pond and consi ...

.Persaud, Babita (June 12, 2000)
"USF grad's humor tickles 'Real World'"
. '' St. Petersburg Times''. She attended Brandon Senior High School and the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF i ...

, from which she graduated with a degree in journalism and mass communications.

Career

In 2000, 22-year-old Howard was one of seven people selected from a pool of 35,221 applicants to be cast on '' The Real World: New Orleans'', the ninth season of the long-running

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

reality television series. MTV producer and casting director, Andrew Hoegl explains that she was selected on the basis of her audition tape, which he calls "hysterical", and credits the season's humor to Howard, who referred to herself in her audition tape as a "half-black, half-Filipino

Chris Rock Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...

". Filming took place over the course of 124 days between January and late May 2000. Her 2000 MTV biography describes her as possessing a "manic wit". After filming ended, Howard moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in standup comedy, as well as to engage in

acrylic paint Acrylic paint is a fast-drying paint made of pigment suspended in acrylic polymer emulsion and plasticizers, silicone oils, defoamers, stabilizers, or metal soaps. Most acrylic paints are water-based, but become water-resistant when dry. ...

ing, an interest she developed while in New Orleans. She stayed in Los Angeles for approximately five or six years. She later started a blog called Princess Melissa in order to host a web store to sell her artwork, and to express herself in writing, telling

HuffPost ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

in a 2002 interview, "I've always felt more comfortable in my written presentation than in my face." She later moved her online presence to

Tumblr Tumblr (stylized as tumblr; pronounced "tumbler") is an American microblogging and social networking website founded by David Karp in 2007 and currently owned by Automattic. The service allows users to post multimedia and other content to ...

and then to

Patreon Patreon (, ) is a membership platform that provides business tools for content creators to run a subscription service. It helps creators and artists earn a monthly income by providing rewards and perks to their subscribers. Patreon charges a com ...

. Howard was ranked #92 on ''

Maxim Maxim or Maksim may refer to: Entertainment * ''Maxim'' (magazine), an international men's magazine ** ''Maxim'' (Australia), the Australian edition ** ''Maxim'' (India), the Indian edition *Maxim Radio, ''Maxim'' magazine's radio channel on Sir ...

'' magazine's "Hot 100 Women of 2004" feature. She was a member of the all-female cast of the

Oxygen Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements ...

network's

hidden camera A hidden camera or spy camera is a camera used to photograph or record subjects, often people, without their knowledge. The camera may be considered "hidden" because it is not visible to the subject being filmed, or is disguised as another obj ...

practical joke A practical joke, or prank, is a mischievous trick played on someone, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. ...

reality Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, re ...

television series ''

'', which aired from 2002 – 2005. In 2005 appeared on Bravo's ''

Battle of the Network Reality Stars ''Battle of the Network Reality Stars'' is an American television series that aired on the Bravo cable network from August 17 until September 21, 2005. Based on the popular 1970s and 1980s television competition ''Battle of the Network Stars'', t ...

''. On May 22, 2020, she launched a podcast with co-host Amanda Strong, ''Imperfect Strangers''. In April 2022, '' The Real World Homecoming: New Orleans'' premiered on

Paramount+ Paramount+ is an American subscription video on-demand service owned by Paramount Global. The service's content is drawn primarily from the libraries of CBS Media Ventures (including CBS Studios), Paramount Media Networks (formerly Viacom Media ...

, reuniting Beck with all six of her former roommates from ''The Real World: New Orleans''.

Personal life

After the run of ''Girls Behaving Badly'', Howard moved to New York to work part-time in a non-entertainment industry-related job, and to live with her boyfriend, J. On September 29, 2007, Howard married

Glassjaw Glassjaw is an American post-hardcore band from Hempstead, New York. The band is fronted by vocalist Daryl Palumbo and guitarist Justin Beck, and was a major part of the Long Island music scene in the early 2000s. The band has been influential ...

guitarist

Justin Beck Justin Beck is an American musician and businessman. He is the guitarist and musical writer for Long Island, New York band Glassjaw. Beck, with a high school and college buddy, Lee Tepper, also co-founded a band merchandise Merchandising i ...

at their home on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...

. She subsequently took his surname and became Melissa Beck. On March 20, 2009, Beck gave birth to their first daughter, Shalom Mazie Beck. On August 22, 2012, Beck announced on her Tumblr that she and her husband were expecting another daughter. Maja Ilani was born on January 1, 2013. As of 2022, they have three children. In October 2012, a tree fell on Beck's house during

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...

, destroying it and burying her older daughter in debris. Justin pulled the child out from the rubble, finding that she was apparently unharmed. They took the baby to the hospital, which discharged her three hours later, having confirmed that she suffered no injuries.

Filmography

As herself

*'' The Real World Homecoming: New Orleans'' (2022) *''

'' (2005) *''Reality TV Secrets Revealed 2'' (2004) *''The Real World Hook-Ups'' (2003) *''

True Hollywood Story ''E! True Hollywood Story'' is an American television documentary series on E! that pulls back the curtain and highlights some of pop culture's most fascinating people, moments and trends. The series offers exclusive interviews with new insigh ...

'' – Episode: ''The Real World'' (2003) *'' The New Tom Green Show'' – Episode: August 1, 2003 (2003) *''Reality TV Secrets: How to Get on the Show!'' (2003) *'' Real World/Road Rules Challenge: Battle of the Sexes'' (2003) *''

'' (2002–2003) *''The Real World Movie: The Lost Season'' (2002) *'' Real World/Road Rules Challenge: Extreme Challenge'' – Episode: #1.4 (2001) *''

The X Show ''The X Show'' is a magazine, variety, and interview/talk program that aired on FX Network in the US from May 1999 to April 2001. Running time was originally one hour, but this was later reduced to a half-hour. The show was 'guy-themed' much lik ...

'' – Episode: August 21, 2000 (2000) *''The Real World: Tenth Anniversary Special'' (2000) *'' The Real World: New Orleans'' (2000)

Actor

*''

The Jamie Foxx Show ''The Jamie Foxx Show'' is an American sitcom that aired on The WB from August 28, 1996, to January 14, 2001. The series stars Jamie Foxx, Garcelle Beauvais, Christopher B. Duncan, Ellia English, and Garrett Morris. Although the show was not ...

'' – Episode: ''If the Shoe Fits'' (2000) Reporter

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Melissa 1977 births Living people American people of Filipino descent The Real World (TV series) cast members University of South Florida alumni African-American actresses American television actresses African-American female comedians American women comedians 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Tampa, Florida People from Valrico, Florida The Challenge (TV series) contestants 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American people