Comedian who went viral for having beer thrown at her makes a very Jewish TV debut on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’
Rising star Ariel Elias talked about growing up Jewish in the South
Ariel Elias makes her TV debut on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” Oct. 24, 2022. (Screenshot from YouTube)
(JTA) — Two weeks ago, Ariel Elias, then a little-known standup comedian performing at a club in New Jersey, had a beer thrown at her head from a group of Trump-hecklers who discovered she voted for Joe Biden. After the beer smashed against the brick wall behind her, she picked up the splattered can and chugged its remaining contents.
It made for a very viral video and caught the attention of comedians from Whitney Cummings to Jimmy Kimmel, prompting the latter to invite her onto his late-night talk show.
On Monday, Elias appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” making her TV debut — and delivered an extremely Jewish set.
“I’m Jewish and from Kentucky,” she said to applause. “That’s an insane origin story.”
Elias focused on what it was like growing up as a Jewish kid in the South, such as the way people pronounced her name (like “Earl”) and how classmates told her she was going to hell “from a place of love.” She also recalled a story from high school when her parents, who had moved to Kentucky from New Jersey, sat her down to tell her that they didn’t care if she was gay — they just wanted her to date someone Jewish.
“As long as they’re Jewish? We live in Kentucky. The choices are my dad or my brother, that’s it,” she said.
Watch her full set below:
This article originally appeared on JTA.org.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
