Ari Shaffir

Ari David Shaffir (born February 12, 1974) is an American comedian, actor, podcaster, writer, and producer. He produces and hosts the Skeptic Tank podcast. He also co-hosts the podcast Punch Drunk Sports with Jayson Thibault and Sam Tripoli, and is a regular guest on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast on the "Protect Our Parks" episodes with Shane Gillis and Mark Normand. He created and previously hosted and produced the This is Not Happening television series, an adaptation of his monthly stand-up show. Early life Ari David Shaffir was born in New York City to a Jewish family of Romanian Jewish descent. His father was a Holocaust survivor. The family followed Conservative Jewish practices until Ari was nine years old, when family moved to Maryland. There his parents adopted Orthodox Jewish beliefs. When he was 16, he worked at Arlington National Cemetery. Shaffir attended high school in Rockville, Maryland. He went on to study for two years at Yeshiva in Jerusalem before transferring to University of Maryland, where he graduated in 1999 with a degree in English literature. Shaffir played on the University's NCAA golf team in 1995 and claims he was the lowest-ranked NCAA athlete.