Larry Wilmore
Elister Larry Wilmore III (born October 30, 1961) is an American comedian, writer, producer, and actor. He served as the "Senior Black Correspondent" on The Daily Show from 2006 to 2014, and hosted The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore in 2015 and 2016. He is also the creator of the sitcom The Bernie Mac Show.
Also recorded as Elister Larry Wilmore
Larry Wilmore

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- Name
- Larry Wilmore
- Birth Name
- Elister Larry Wilmore III
- Born
- 30 October 1961
- Birthplace
- Los Angeles, California U.S.
- Nationality
- United States
- Occupation
- actor · screenwriter · comedian · journalist · television presenter · podcaster · television producer
- Education
- California State Polytechnic University and Pomona · Damien High School
- Honours
- Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series
- Languages
- English
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Documentary summary
Elister Larry Wilmore III (born October 30, 1961) is an American comedian, writer, producer, and actor. He served as the "Senior Black Correspondent" on The Daily Show from 2006 to 2014, and hosted The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore in 2015 and 2016. He is also the creator of the sitcom The Bernie Mac Show.
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Note VALÉORINE
Larry Wilmore (born 1961) is an actor, comedian and journalist, among other activities, of American nationality. The actor was born in Los Angeles. Larry Wilmore was educated at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and Damien High School. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 27 September 2026
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wikidata · Q6491295 · wikipedia · Larry Wilmore
In this article
Biography
Biography
He was an executive producer for the ABC television series Black-ish, and co-created the HBO television series Insecure with Issa Rae. From 2017 to 2025, he hosted a podcast, Black on the Air, where he discussed current events and interviews guests. He was also the host of the talk show Wilmore.

Larry Wilmore speaking at Politicon in Pasadena, California on June 26, 2016
Gage Skidmore

The Nightly Show set during rehearsal while Larry Wilmore talks to a correspondent
The Nightly Show Crew Member archive
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Larry Wilmore • Birth Name — Elister Larry Wilmore III • Born — 30 October 1961 • Birthplace — Los Angeles, California U.S. • Active — 1983–present • Children — 2 • Medium — * Stand-up • television • film • podcast • books • Genre — * Observational comedy • black comedy • sketch comedy • satire • Subject — * American politics • African-American culture • popular culture • current events • racism • religion • Website — thelarrywilmore.com
Early life and education
Early life and education
Wilmore was born October 30, 1961, in Los Angeles to Betty and Larry Wilmore, a doctor. He grew up Catholic in suburban Pomona and his family is from Evanston, Illinois. He is the third of six children and his late younger brother Marc was also a television writer, actor, and producer. As a child, Wilmore found interest in topics including science, magic, science-fiction and fantasy, all of which have shaped the evolution of his performance. In an NPR interview, he said he was a nerd. "It used to be that the black comic figure had to have this bravado and always showed strength... now there's a comic figure where it's ok to just be a nerd and be black." Wilmore graduated from Damien High School in La Verne, California, in 1979. He studied theater at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona in Pomona, but dropped out to pursue acting and stand-up comedy.
Career
Career
Beginning in the 1980s, Wilmore appeared in several small film and television roles, including a recurring role as a police officer on The Facts of Life. In the early to mid-1990s, he was on the writing staff of the talk show Into the Night With Rick Dees, the sketch comedy show In Living Color (his younger brother Marc was also a writer with In Living Color; unlike Larry, he became a cast member), and the sitcom Sister, Sister, where Larry Wilmore portrayed a bus driver in an episode. He went on to be a writer and producer on a series of black sitcoms, including The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and The Jamie Foxx Show. In 1999, Wilmore co-created the animated comedy The PJs with Eddie Murphy and was the executive producer until its conclusion in 2001. He then created and produced The Bernie Mac Show, and won an Emmy for writing the pilot episode. He created and produced Whoopi, with Whoopi Goldberg. From 2005 to 2007 he was a consulting producer for The Office, and appeared in the "Diversity Day" episode as Mr. Brown, a diversity consultant. In 2006, Wilmore began appearing regularly on Comedy Central's The Daily Show, where he was billed as the "Senior Black Correspondent" or a derivative form of the title, such as the "Senior Executive Commander-in-Chief Who Happens To Be Black Correspondent" after the election of Barack Obama. Wilmore's work on the show frequently centered on humorous observations of the Black experience in American society. He originated the titular phrase I'd Rather We Got Casinos in a January 2007 Daily Show appearance. In January 2009, Hyperion published Wilmore's I'd Rather We Got Casinos: And Other Black Thoughts, a political humor book described by Booklist as being "a faux collection of articles, essays, radio transcripts, and letters exploring the more ludicrous angles on race." Wilmore has continued occasional acting appearances, including a role as a minister in I Love You, Man (2009) and a supporting role in Dinner for Schmucks (2010). In 2011, He began a recurring role on the ABC comedy Happy Endings, where he played Mr. Forristal, Brad (Damon Wayans Jr.)'s uptight boss. In 2012, he starred in the Showtime special Race, Religion and Sex, shot in Salt Lake City, Utah. On April 30, 2016, Wilmore was the headliner at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner. He came under fire for using the word "nigga" to refer to President Barack Obama saying "Barry, you did it my nigga." Wilmore defended his actions telling Al Sharpton, "I wanted to make a statement more than a joke... I really wanted to explain the historical implications of the Obama presidency from my point of view." In May 2017, Wilmore began hosting the podcast Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air as part of The Ringer podcast network, headed by Bill Simmons. Time ranked it in the top five of its list of 10 Best podcast of 2017.
The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore
The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore
On January 19, 2015, Wilmore began hosting The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, a late night panel talk show which aired on Comedy Central. It was a spin-off of The Daily Show, and replaced The Colbert Report in the network's 11:30pm timeslot. It was produced by Jon Stewart's production company Busboy Productions. On August 15, 2016, Comedy Central announced that Wilmore's show had been canceled, and the show ended August 18, 2016, with a total of 259 episodes.
Wilmore
Wilmore
He briefly hosted his own limited series late-night talk show on Peacock titled Wilmore.
Personal life
Personal life
Wilmore and actress Leilani Jones were married for 20 years; they have two children, John and Lauren. Wilmore and Jones divorced in 2015. He lived in San Marino, California, with his family until moving to New York City to work on The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore.
Filmography
Filmography
• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1983 — Good-bye, Cruel World — Sergeant, Thug • 1990 — The Ghost Writer — The Paramedic — TV movie • 2005; 2006 — The Office — Al Brown — 2 episodes: "Diversity Day", "Gay Witch Hunt" • 2009 — I Love You, Man — Minister • 2010 — Dinner for Schmucks — Williams • 2012 — Vamps — Professor Quincy • 2014 — Date and Switch — Mr. Vernon • 2019 — The Laundromat — Jeff • 2022 — Jerry & Marge Go Large — Steve • TBA — One Attempt Remaining — TBA — Filming
As showrunner
As showrunner
• Year — Title — Notes • 1999–2001 — The PJs — 43 episodes; co-creator, writer, executive producer • 2001–2003 — The Bernie Mac Show — creator 44 episodes; writer, director, executive producer • 2016 — Insecure — co-creator 8 episodes; writer, executive producer
As performer
As performer
• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1983 — The Facts of Life — Officer Ziaukus — 2 episodes • 1986 — Sledge Hammer! — Mail Man, Terrorist #3 — 2 episodes • 1990 — Star Search — Self — 1 episode • 1992 — In Living Color — Various — 2 episodes • 1994 — Sister, Sister — Bus Driver — 2 episodes • 1999 — The PJs — Various voices — 2 episodes • 2005–2007 — The Office — Mr. Brown — 2 episodes • 2006–2014 — The Daily Show — Himself (senior black correspondent) — 78 episodes • 2006–2007 — Help Me Help You — Larry, Jimmy — 2 episodes • 2008 — How I Met Your Mother — Dr. Greer — Episode: "Everything Must Go" • 2009–2010 — Accidentally on Purpose — Dr. Roland — 5 episodes • 2011 — Traffic Light — Harvey — 2 episodes • 2011 — Love Bites — The Boss — Episode: "Firsts" • 2011–2012 — Happy Endings — Mr. Forristal — 2 episodes • 2012 — Bullet in the Face — Racken's Mafiosi #1 — Episode: "The World Stage" • 2012 — Race, Religion and Sex — Himself — Stand-up special • 2013 — Malibu Country — Mr. Clark — 2 episodes • 2013 — NTSF:SD:SUV: — Historian — Episode: "A Hard Drive to Swallow" • 2013 — Instant Mom — Franklin Turner — Episode: "The Gift of the Maggies" • 2014 — Playing House — Dr. Ullman — Episode: "37 Weeks" • 2014–2017 — Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero — Principal Larry (voice) — Main role • 2015–2016 — The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore — Himself (host) — 259 episodes; also writer, executive producer • 2016 — White House Correspondents' Dinner — Himself (host) — TV special • 2017 — Difficult People — Larry Wilmore — Episode: "Passover Bump" • 2017 — The Mayor — Vern — Episode: "The Filibuster" • 2020 — Upload — Mr. Whitbridge — 2 episodes • 2020 — Wilmore — Himself (host) • 2026 — Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness — Barney — Episode: "Farewell"
As crew member
As crew member
• Year — Title — Notes • 1990–1991 — Into the Night — 6 episodes; writer • 1991–1993 — In Living Color — 58 episodes; writer • 1994–1995 — Sister, Sister — 5 episodes; writer • 1995–1996 — The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air — 24 episodes; co-producer, writer • 1996–1997 — The Jamie Foxx Show — 21 episodes; writer, supervising producer • 1997–1998 — Teen Angel — 17 episodes; writer, consulting producer • 2003–2004 — Whoopi — 22 episodes; writer, executive producer • 2005–2007 — The Office — 50 episodes; writer, consulting producer • 2011 — Love Bites — 8 episodes; writer, consulting producer • 2014–2015 — Black-ish — 24 episodes; executive producer • 2018–2024 — Grown-ish — 105 episodes; writer, co-creator
Published works
*
Influences
Wilmore has cited Johnny Carson, Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy and Jon Stewart as being comedy influences. Wilmore said that when he needs inspiration, he "observe[s] people. I ride the subway, sit in a coffee shop. There's nothing funnier than real human behavior."
Awards and nominations
• Year — Award — Category — Work — Result • 1992 — Primetime Emmy Award — Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing in a Variety or Music Program — In Living Color • 1996 — Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award — Favorite TV Show — The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air • 1996 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Comedy Series — The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air • 1997 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Comedy Series — The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air • 1999 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Comedy Series — The Jamie Foxx Show • 1999 — Primetime Emmy Award — Outstanding Animated Program — The PJs: He's Gotta Have It • 2001 — Peabody Award — The Bernie Mac Show • 2001 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Comedy Series — The Jamie Foxx Show • 2002 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Comedy Series — The Bernie Mac Show • 2002 — TCA Award — Outstanding Achievement in Comedy — The Bernie Mac Show • 2002 — Teen Choice Award — Choice Comedy Series — The Bernie Mac Show • 2002 — Teen Choice Award — Choice TV Breakout Show — The Bernie Mac Show • 2002 — Primetime Emmy Award — Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series — The Bernie Mac Show: Pilot • 2003 — Writers Guild of America Award — Episodic Comedy — The Bernie Mac Show • 2003 — Young Artist Award — Best Family Television Series (Comedy or Drama) — The Bernie Mac Show • 2003 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Comedy Series — The Bernie Mac Show • 2003 — Humanitas Prize — 30 Minute Network or Syndicated Television — The Bernie Mac Show • 2003 — Teen Choice Award — Choice Comedy Series — The Bernie Mac Show • 2003 — Satellite Award — Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy — The Bernie Mac Show • 2004 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Comedy Series — Whoopi • 2006 — Writers Guild of America Award — Comedy Series — The Office • 2006 — Writers Guild of America Award — New Series — The Office • 2008 — Writers Guild of America Award — Comedy Series — The Office • 2016 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Talk Series — The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore • 2016 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Host in a News, Talk, Reality, or Variety (Series or Special) — The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore • 2017 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Comedy Series — Insecure • 2017 — NAACP Image Award — Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series — Insecure • 2017 — MTV Movie & TV Awards — Show of the Year — Insecure • 2018 — Austin Film Festival — Extraordinary Contribution to Television — N/A
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Archive of American Television. Larry Wilmore Interview Part 1 of 3. 2017-08-31.
- 2.Biography.com (FYI / A&E Networks). Larry Wilmore Biography: Talk Show Host,(1961–).
- 3.Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air. The Ringer. 9 May 2017.
- 4.Hachette Books. I'd Rather We Got Casinos: And Other Black Thoughts. Acknowledgments. 2015. 978-0316262811.
- 5.Lee, Felicia R. "They Call Me Mister Correspondent", The New York Times, April 2, 2007.
- 6.Wilmore, Larry "Larry Wilmore: The Wilmore Report."Chicago Humanities Festival, November 19, 2012.
- 7.Bashir, Martin and Dan Morris. "Veteran TV Writer Moves in Front of the Camera", ABC News, October 10, 2007.
- 8.Wilmore, I'd Rather We Got Casinos, page ?
- 9.With 100th Episode, Larry Wilmore's 'Nightly Show' Has Found Its Voice. npr.org. August 19, 2015.
- 10.Baber, LaRue V. King of comedy - Damien High grad went from stand-up to winning an Emmy. The Whittier Daily News. January 31, 2003.
- 11.'Black Thoughts' With Comedian Larry Wilmore. NPR. February 24, 2009.
- 12.Deggans, Eric. Salvaging the sitcom. St. Petersburg Times. July 29, 2001.
- 13.54th Emmy Awards: What They Said. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. D10. September 23, 2002.
- 14.McFadden, Kay. NBC scores near-hit, sure miss in 'Whoopi', 'Happy Family' - Fall TV. The Seattle Times. E1. September 9, 2003.
- 15.The Daily Show. Black History Month. January 31, 2007.
- 16.Larry Wilmore's 'Race, Religion and Sex' Showtime Special to Feature a Town Hall Meeting (Video). HuffPost. August 24, 2012.
- 17.Rhodan, Maya. Larry Wilmore to Host White House Correspondents' Dinner. Time. 16 December 2015.
- 18.Ryan, April. Larry Wilmore's n-word 'joke' was an insult to black journalists. Washington Post. 5 May 2016.
- 19.Riley, Rochelle. What Larry Wilmore did to the president. Detroit Free Press. 7 May 2016.
- 20.Coleburn, Christina. Larry Wilmore: N-Word Was No Joke. NBC News. 8 May 2016.
- 21.Time Magazine. The Top 10 Podcasts of 2017.
- 22.Koblin, John. Comedy Central Cancels Larry Wilmore's Late-Night Show. The New York Times. August 16, 2016.
- 23.White, Peter. Peacock Unveils First-Look At Late Night Shows 'Wilmore' & 'The Amber Ruffin Show'. September 14, 2020.
- 24.Larry Wilmore biography. TVGuide.com.
- 25.Schwindt, Oriana (July 27, 2015). "Goodbye, and Goodnight". TV Guide. p 19.
- 26.Sims, David. The Fearless Comedy of The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. The Atlantic. January 21, 2015.
- 27.Davias, Arianna. Things you didn't know about Larry Wilmore. The Huffington Post. February 9, 2015.
- 28.NPR. For Host Larry Wilmore, a Year of 'Extraordinary' Highs and 'Humbling' Lows. February 19, 2015.
- 29.Harada, Wayne. Hawai'i Tony Winner Back in N.Y. Spotlight. The Honolulu Advertiser. October 25, 2005.
- 30.A&E Television Networks. Larry Wilmore. Biography.com.
- 31.Star Search- May 12, 1990 (Round 2 Semifinals). YouTube. 23 July 2020 cbignore.
- 32.Nominees - NAACP Image Awards Website. Naacpimageawards.net.
- 33.NAACP Image Award Nominations Announced. naacp.org. December 13, 2016.
- 34.Schwartz, Ryan. 2017 MTV Movie & TV Awards Nominations List — 'This Is Us,' 'Stranger Things'. TVLine. March 2, 2017.
- 35.2018 Winners. Austin Film Festival. 2018-10-28.
References
Citations
References
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 25 August 2026.
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