Judy Tenuta (born November 7, 1956, in Oak Park, Illinois) is an American entertainer, actress, comedienne, author, producer and accordionist.

Early life [link]

One of nine siblings, Judy Lynn was born in 1956 into a huge Catholic family; to a Polish mother Joann, and an Italian father, Caesar, in Oak Park, Illinois. Her older brother, Danny Tenuta, is a retired union electrician. She has a younger sister and several younger brothers, including Jim who had a career as a dancer and now has his own studio. Tenuta's nephew, JP Tenuta, is a professional dancer who studied at Ailey and The Martha Graham School.

Career [link]

Judy gained notoriety as a wisecracking, accordion wielding self-proclaimed "Petite Flower and Love Goddess" during the golden age of character comedy in the mid 80's with such notable contemporaries as Sam Kinison and Steven Wright. She has been featured in several productions of "Weird Al" Yankovic, including The Weird Al Show and the music videos for "Headline News" and "White & Nerdy." She has also appeared on game shows such as Hollywood Squares and the 1998 revival of Match Game. Her most extensive profile came from a series of TV ads for MTV and most notably, Diet Dr. Pepper in the late-1980s, as well as her HBO, Showtime and Lifetime specials which became popular and gained her a loyal following. She is also well known for her often quoted catch phrase, "It could Happen!"

Her use of voice in her act has lent itself to voice-over work in several animated programs. This includes doing the voice of Edna on Duckman, Black Widow on Space Ghost Coast to Coast,^[1] and as herself in Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist.

• 1986 – Judy appeared on British TV Comedy show Saturday Live.

• 1986 – 1990 – Judy made several guest appearances on her favorite female comedian's show, "Joan Rivers"

• In 1987, Judy became nationally known in her first HBO special "Women of the Night", costarring Ellen DeGeneres, Paula Poundstone and Rita Rudner.

• In 1987, Judy became the first female stand-up to win the "Best Female Comedienne" at The American Comedy Awards.

• 1987 – 1988 Judy toured across the country with aother of her favorite comedians, comedy legend George Carlin.

• In 1988, Judy became the "Spokes-Goddess" for a series of "Diet Dr. Pepper" Commercials, and also filmed her second HBO Special.

• In 1989, Judy appeared on "Larry King LIve", and converted him to her signature religion, "JUDYISM"

• In 1991, she published her first book, The Power Of Judyism, following up with an audio CD version in 1999.

• In 1994, She was nominated for her first Grammy, for her comedy CD, "Attention Butt Pirates and Lesbetarians".

• In 1995, Judy was nominated for her second Grammy, for her comedy CD, "In Goddess We Trust".

• In 1996, Judy appeared as a drill sergeant, SAM ROTTWEILER training gay men to defend themselves against bullies in the cult classic film, "BUTCH CAMP"

• In 1998, she conceived, produced, and starred in the film Desperation Boulevard.

• In 2001, Judy appeared on "The View" dishing with Joy Behar, Star Jones, and Barbara Walters.

• In 2007, she had a guest appearance as Mrs. Holler, the librarian on Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide.

• In 2007, Judy had a pivotal role as "Margo the cat lady" in the Hilary Duff movie "Material Girls".

• In 2011, Judy played Zania, a menacing, aging actress in the independent film, "Going Down in LALA Land".

Comic persona [link]

Tenuta's act is primarily structured around an exaggerated, offbeat persona that is referred to primarily as "The Love Goddess."^[2] Other monikers include "The Petite Flower," "Aphrodite of the Accordion," "Fashion-Plate Saint," "Princess of Panty Shields," and "Empress of Elvis Impersonators."^[3] Tenuta's persona encourages fans to convert to her own personal religion, "Judyism."

Discography [link]

• Buy This, Pigs! (Elektra Records) 1987
• In Goddess We Trust, 1995
• UnButtPlugged, 1999
• Attention, Butt Pirates And Lesbetarians – Live at CSW, 1999
• A Space Goddessy, 2002

References [link]

1. ^ Space Ghost Coast to Coast on TV.com
2. ^ Judy Tenuta's comedy relates to discrimination by Joshua Rotter
3. ^ judytenuta.com

External links [link]

• Official site
• Judy Tenuta at the Internet Movie Database
• Videos