Contemporary Authors

• Girl Logic: The Genius and the Absurdity Weinstein Books (New York, NY), 2017

• Amazon -

  On May 2nd, comedian Iliza achieved a lifelong goal when she launched “Truth & Iliza,” her very own late night talk show on Freeform (formerly ABC Family). The self styled talk show is a cross between social commentary, politics, pop culture and Iliza’s specific brand of feminism. In November 2017, she’ll publish her first book "Girl Logic" through Weinstein Books.

  Originally from Dallas, Iliza moved to Los Angeles after graduating from Emerson College. She is the only female and youngest comedian to hold the title of NBC's Last Comic Standing. Her debut one-hour comedy special, War Paint, reached #1 on the iTunes charts and was named one of its Top 10 Albums of 2013. Iliza’s follow-up, Freezing Hot, a Netflix Original Comedy Special, sealed her title as one of the hottest touring acts in America, with Esquire Magazine listing her as one of the top working comedians today.

  In September, 2016, Iliza premiered her latest Netflix special, Confirmed Kills, which finds the comedian in top form, tackling poignant topics while not trading on laughs. She recently wrapped up her first 15 city national theatre tour with “Iliza: The Confirmed Kills Tour.”

  Iliza’s stand-up credentials also include headlining the coveted Montreal Just For Laughs Festival and The New York Comedy Festival. As a national headliner, Iliza tours year-round selling out theatres, clubs and colleges. She also participated in the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's personal USO Tour throughout the Middle East and Europe, as well as Al Roker's Today Show USO Tour in Afghanistan, with Jay Leno and Craig Robinson.

  Iliza was recently feature in Elle’s “Women in Comedy” issue and her television credits include multiple appearances on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,” “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” “The Today Show.” Additionally, her digital scripted series, Forever 31 is currently streaming on ABCd and Hulu and has already been picked up for a second season.

  Iliza lives in Los Angeles where she spends time making up songs and nicknames for her dog Blanche.

  Twitter - @iliza
  Instagram - @ilizas

• Wikipedia -

  Iliza Shlesinger
  From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  Iliza Shlesinger
  Iliza Shlesinger.jpg
  Shlesinger in 2016
  Birth name Iliza Vie Shlesinger
  Born February 22, 1983 (age 35)
  Dallas, Texas, U.S
  Medium Stand-up, television, web series
  Alma mater Emerson College
  Years active 2007–present
  Iliza Vie Shlesinger[1] (/ˈʃlɛsɪŋɡər/;[2] born February 22, 1983) is an American comedian. She was the 2008 winner of NBC's Last Comic Standing and went on to host the syndicated dating show Excused and the TBS comedy/game show Separation Anxiety. She hosts a late-night talk show called Truth & Iliza on Freeform.[3]

  Contents
  1 Early life
  2 Career
  3 Personal life
  4 Works
  4.1 Comedy specials
  5 References
  6 External links
  Early life
  Shlesinger was born and raised in Dallas. She attended the private Greenhill School and participated on the school's improvisation team. She performed with ComedySportz Dallas and attended the University of Kansas for her freshman year. She also participated in Semester at Sea. She transferred to Emerson College in Boston, where she majored in film. There, she was a member of the campus' comedy sketch group, Jimmy's Traveling All Stars, and refined her writing and editing skills. She moved to Los Angeles shortly after graduating from Emerson College.[4]

  Career
  After graduating from college, Shlesinger moved to Los Angeles to pursue stand-up comedy. She was one of the most popular members of the Whiteboy Comedy group of standup comedians in Los Angeles, which brought her to the stage at The Improv in Hollywood.[5]

  In 2007, Shlesinger won Myspace's So You Think You're Funny contest and has been featured as the G4 network's Myspace Girl of the Week. Her television credits include E! Network's Forbes Celebrity 100, TV Guide's America's Next Top Producer, Comedy Central Presents Season 14 Episode 18,[6] John Oliver's New York Stand Up Show,[7] Byron Allen's Comics Unleashed, and History Channel's History of a Joke. She has written for Heavy.com and had her own show on GOTV's mobile network.

  Shlesinger performing in 2017
  In 2008, Shlesinger became the first woman, and the youngest, winner of NBC's Last Comic Standing, in the series' sixth season.[8][9] She was twice selected, by other comedians, to compete in the head-to-head eliminations, and won each time.[10] She appeared in The Last Comic Standing Tour.[11]

  Shlesinger contributed to Surviving the Holidays, a History Channel holiday special, with Lewis Black, and narrated the 2009 documentary Imagine It!² The Power of Imagination.[12][13] In 2010, she released an on-demand comedy video, Man Up and Act Like a Lady, and an on-demand comedy album, iliza LIVE, on her website, via The ConneXtion. Around the time of these releases, Shlesinger appeared in a business comedy video series for Slate.[14][15]

  Shlesinger hosted The Weakly News on TheStream.tv from July 7, 2007 to April 9, 2012.[16][17] She also hosted Excused, a syndicated American reality-based dating competition series, which ran from 2011 to 2013.[18] She co-stars in the 2013 film Paradise.[19] She began a podcast called Truth and Iliza in August 2014. Featuring celebrity guests & personal friends, the semi-weekly podcast is a forum for discussing things which bother her and those on the show,[20] with punk theme song performed by Being Mean to Pixley.[21]

  Shlesinger's first comedy album and video, War Paint, was recorded on December 1, 2012 at The Lakewood Theater in Dallas, Texas, and released on Netflix on September 1, 2013.[22][23] Her second stand-up special, Freezing Hot, was recorded in Denver, Colorado and premiered on Netflix in January 23, 2015.[24] Her third Netflix stand-up special, titled Confirmed Kills, was recorded at The Vic Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, and premiered on Netflix on September 23, 2016.[25]

  Shlesinger was comic co-host of StarTalk Radio Show with Neil DeGrasse Tyson for season 7, episode 12 titled Cosmic Queries: Galactic Grab Bag, post date: 20 May 2016.[26]

  On July 13, 2016, the ABCdigital original short-form digital comedy series Forever 31, created by and starring Shlesinger was released.[27]

  A late night show for Iliza Shlesinger was placed into development in September 2016 for the cable channel Freeform.[28] Truth & Iliza began airing on May 2, 2017.[29]

  On November 7, 2017, Weinstein Books published Shlesinger's book Girl Logic: The Genius and the Absurdity with an introduction by Mayim Bialik.[30]

  In December 2017, it was reported the comedian was sued by a man who was denied admission to one of her girls-only shows.[31]

  Personal life
  In mid 2017, Shlesinger became engaged to her boyfriend, whose identity she has protected by using the pseudonym "Smoky Husky."[32][33] She has since posted updates on her Facebook page, including pictures and videos from her bachelorette party in early 2018, and photos of her engagement ring.

  Works
  Comedy specials
  Year Title Distributor
  2013 War Paint Netflix
  2015 Freezing Hot Netflix
  2016 Confirmed Kills Netflix

• A.V Club - https://www.avclub.com/well-adjusted-man-with-good-priorities-sues-iliza-shles-1821656791

  Well-adjusted man with good priorities sues Iliza Shlesinger over women-only comedy show

  Katie Rife
  12/29/17 3:36pmFiled to: COMEDY
  237
  4

  Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
  As 2017 draws to a close and hope for a fresh start hums in the background of our pop-cultural consciousness, we regret to inform you that the #Meninists are at it again. Rolling Stone reports that one particularly well-adjusted man by the name of George St. George has sued comedian Iliza Shlesinger for denying him entry to her November 13 comedy show “Girls’ Night In,” which was advertised as being for women only.

  The show in question, a one-night-only Planned Parenthood benefit at the Largo in Los Angeles, was described as “a hybrid stand-up show and interactive discussion between Iliza and the women in the audience aimed at giving women a place to vent in a supportive, fun and inclusive environment” on the venue website. George, seeing an opportunity to turn an empowering experience into an exercise in petty contrarianism, bought two tickets. Upon their arrival, he was told that he and his (male) friend could sit in the back row, but the pair was ultimately denied entry to the show. According to the 21-year-old, this is a violation of his civil rights “akin to the injustices perpetrated during the Civil Rights Movement,” as Rolling Stone puts it.

  Adding exasperated sigh to dramatic eye roll, this isn’t the first time George has set up a stunt like this: He’s been the plaintiff in several lawsuits, each the legal equivalent of throwing oneself onto the floor of a busy supermarket and throwing a temper tantrum, according to Variety. In fact, his lawyer, Alfred Rava—a former secretary of the MRA group National Coalition for Men—has filed more than 150 lawsuits in California challenging the practice of running “ladies’ nights” specials at bars and other businesses.

  So while The A.V. Club has had a sometimes-complicated history with Shlesinger’s comedy—we criticized her last special for containing an unsettling impression of a black woman, and reported on some controversial comments she made about her fellow female comics—we would never wish this sort of men’s rights nonsense onto her either. Hopefully, the guys who filed this lawsuit can meet up with the guy who sent a letter to the mayor of Austin, Texas complaining abut a similar all-female screening of Wonder Woman, and that unhappy trio can all give each other the attention they clearly so desperately need.

• Rolling Stone - https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/comedian-iliza-shlesinger-sued-over-women-only-comedy-show-w514791

  Comedian Iliza Shlesinger Sued Over Women-Only Comedy Show
  Lawsuit claims "Girls Night In" violates California law prohibiting discrimination based on sex

  NOW PLAYING
  Comedian Iliza Shlesinger Sued Over Women-Only Comedy Show
  By Jon Blistein
  December 28, 2017
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  A man has sued comedian Iliza Shlesinger, claiming her women-only comedy show, "Girls Night In," violates California law prohibiting discrimination based on sex.

  RELATED

  Why Women-Only 'Wonder Woman' Screening That Sparked Outrage Is Vital
  Men accused popular theater of discrimination, some demanding to know whether the venue had ever offered "men-only" movie nights

  The defendant, George St. George, claims he and a friend bought $30 tickets to a "Girls Night In" show November 13th at the Largo at the Coronet theater in Los Angeles. Upon arriving at the Largo, the pair were given tickets but allegedly told they would have to sit in the back. When they returned to the theater later for the start of the show, the suit alleges that a Largo employee told them that Shlesinger and the theater had decided that the two would not be allowed to enter and would be given refunds.

  On the Largo website, Shlesinger's "Girls Night In" is described as "a hybrid stand up show and interactive discussion between Iliza and the women in the audience aimed at giving women a place to vent in a supportive, fun and inclusive environment. She invites women of all walks of life to come, laugh with her and at her and be ready to share and feel safe for an awesome night of comedy and love."

  The suit, however, argues that the show – and its full title, "Girls Night In With Iliza – No Boys Allowed" – violates several California laws, including the Unruh Civil Rights Act. It also cites the 1985 Supreme Court case, Koire v. Metro Car Wash, which effectively banned so-called "ladies night" promotions. It even claims the treatment of St. George and his friend is akin to the injustices perpetrated during the Civil Rights Movement.

  St. George, 21, has previously filed suits challenging "ladies nights" promotions. He is reportedly seeking "only the statutory damages" for violations of the Unruh Act.

  "Mr. St. George and other men were prohibited from entering The Coronet Theater and taking in this comedy show solely because of their sex, which, unsurprisingly, violates several California anti-discrimination laws," Rava said in a statement to Rolling Stone.

  "Since this is a legal matter, I'm unable to comment to the specifics of this lawsuit," Shlesinger tells Rolling Stone in a statement. "I will say that of the many shows I do throughout the year, Girls Night In was a singular evening that encouraged women to get together, talk and laugh about the things we go through as well as donate some money to Planned Parenthood. It's unfortunate that this has now become an issue."

  Meanwhile, St. George's attorney, Alfred Rava, has reportedly filed 150 complaints against California businesses over Unruh violations. In an e-mail to Variety, Rava said, "At no time should an entertainer or an entertainment venue require female patrons or male patrons sit in the back of the theater based solely on their sex." Rava notably once served as secretary of the National Coalition for Men, a non-profit men's rights group that attempts to highlight, among other things, false rape accusations and the "myth" that men don't do their fare share of housework. Rava said he is no longer a member of the group.

• Washington Post - https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/soloish/wp/2017/11/13/iliza-shlesinger-built-a-career-making-jokes-about-being-single-now-shes-engaged/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.87f68cea69f1

  Iliza Shlesinger built a career making jokes about being single. Now she’s engaged.
  By Jessica Contrera November 13, 2017 Email the author

  Comedian Iliza Shlesinger has a stand-up career, Netflix specials, a TV show, a Web series, a podcast and now a book. (Netflix)
  It’s a Wednesday night, I’m in bed, and I’m Internet-stalking comedian Iliza Shlesinger on my phone. I will apologize for this in the morning, when we have a phone interview to talk about her new book, “Girl Logic: The Genius and the Absurdity.” The book reads as a more introspective and personal version of her 2016 Netflix special, “Confirmed Kills,” which I show to anyone I think is in need of a deep-belly laugh. “Girl Logic” delves into the complicated inner-monologue it takes to be a female on this planet, especially one who is young and single, as Shlesinger’s fans know her to be.

  But I had just learned that sometime between writing the book and its publishing date, Shlesinger had gotten engaged. Naturally, I set to Googling “Iliza Shlesinger fiance.” His name wasn’t on her Wikipedia page. She didn’t mention him in interviews. A sad website called Whosdatedwho.com listed her as single. This is where a normal person would plug in their phone and sleep, but those people didn’t spend four years convincing their parents that journalism school was worth the money. So I didn’t rest until I had found my way to what appeared to be Shlesinger’s wedding registry. She has lovely taste in cutting boards.

  It was surprising that someone whose book cracks open childhood anxieties, sexual experiences and even the abortion she had at age 21 would decide to keep such a major part of her life to herself. And while getting married is a monumental shift in any person’s life, I wondered what being engaged feels like for Shlesinger — whose comedy is so intimately tied to her experiences of being single.

  When we talked the next morning, she was walking her iconic dog Blanche around New York City. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

  Jessica Contrera: You have stand-up and Netflix specials, a TV show, a web series, a podcast and now a book. What was it that you wanted to say that you felt you couldn’t do on other platforms?

  Shlesinger: Apparently, expounding on stage for two hours a night wasn’t enough. I really wanted to do a deep-dive into the idea that women are always called “crazy,” and we are painted with such broad strokes because it’s so easy to stereotype women and write them off. I got tired of that and I wanted to explain: We are not crazy. There’s a method to our madness. What lies behind that is that women are expected to be so many things to so many people, often all at once.

  We are constantly taking in all this unwanted feedback, process it and try to figure out what’s best for us. It’s not as simple as: “I’ll just have that piece of pizza.” Because we have to decide “Am I wearing something tight? Did I work out today? How am I feeling about that?” It’s this endless spiral of: Did it happen before? Could it happen again? Being a woman is about navigating all of that. If you put all of this out, as I just did, it sounds a little nutty, But really, it’s just survival.

  You often delve into the neuroses and anxiety of women, and display it on stage with characters, like a goblin, hunched over and cackling and screaming.

  There is a lot of goblin posture.

  Shlesinger’s new book, “Girl Logic”
  How do you make jokes about women, and our inner thoughts, without doing it in a way that is demeaning to women?

  It’s tough. It’s all about intention. You’re never going to please 100 percent of women. I believe in choosing your words very carefully. It’s funny, I’ll get comments like, “Oh I love you, you don’t care you have no filter.” On the contrary, I absolutely have a filter, because I understand decorum and my objective is not to upset people. It’s to make people think and make some of the girls in my audience feel included.

  In the book you dive into some pretty personal stories, and that’s certainly not something you’ve shied away from on stage. Have you always been comfortable talking about those things to strangers?

  No. It takes years to get to a place of introspection and self-analyzation, to get to a place where you’re saying things intelligently versus blurting them out. The fact that I had an abortion and things like that, I was never ashamed of it, it just never seemed like the right platform. The book felt like a very comfortable, appropriate place to do that because I had so much more to say about confidence, women’s safety, Planned Parenthood. Somehow it would feel wrong in a comedy club. It’s not exactly my brand.

  Was that part of the book particularly difficult to write?

  For some women, [an abortion] might be the biggest deal ever. There’s so much hype around it. It was weird, and it wasn’t my favorite thing in the world, but writing about it, it just came out. The challenge was more writing about it tactfully, because I didn’t want to write off how impactful something like that can be to someone. It just so happened that for me, it was a very “Let’s get this done and move on.” It wasn’t hard to write about. I wasn’t sitting there by candlelight crying.

  There’s a chapter on how to text a man. How to interpret “Ok!” vs. “Ok” vs “K…”

  That was hard to write. That was painstaking.

  It struck me that joking about that, if you were someone who had been married for a few years, it might come off as a little weird or disingenuous. It got me thinking about how so much of your comedy has been about being single, going out with your friends and dating. How do you think getting married might change who you are as a comic?

  There was a bit of mourning for me personally and artistically when I got engaged, because I was like: Oh, I’m not part of that tribe anymore. I can’t speak with any present knowledge about being single and dating. I almost felt — this is so stupid — I felt like I had abandoned them. But my heart is still the same, and I still believe we treat single women like lepers in America.

  My comedy will definitely change, and I look forward to seeing how I view marriage.

  It appears you haven’t named who your fiance is. Are you trying to keep this part of your life private?

  A girlfriend of mine, when she was dating and getting married to her guy, she had a pseudonym for him: “Handsome gentleman.” She would post pictures of him, but she never posted his name. I always thought that it was such a cool way to keep a little bit of yourself that you give so much of publicly, to keep it private.

  So when I started dating the guy I’m dating, I came up with a nickname for him. He is a chef, and he’s around barbecue smoke a lot. And he has these really intense, light-blue, White Walker eyes, like a husky. So he became “Smoky Husky.”

  Initially, I didn’t post his face at all, then I would post, like, half of his face, and now, I never give his name. I just decided that this was something where, I didn’t need the feedback. No matter who you date people are going to make fun of them, jealous people are going to say stuff, people get creepy, all the things that come with the public eye. If I could just carve out a little bit of anonymity for him, and for myself, that was something I wanted to do.

  There will come a day when we are photographed and they get his name and it becomes a thing. And if it happens, it happens. But I’m not going to contribute to that. My priority in life is not making sure you know my fiance’s name so the public can go and be weird about it.

  That being said, I’ve had him at plenty of my shows, and it’s so touching, fans will make him presents, and make us engagement gifts. I had one fan make him an apron that says Smoky Husky. So I presented him to the world as Smoky Husky, and the world embraced him.

  I hope he opens a restaurant named Smoky Husky one day.

  Me, too, because I want to eat for free.

  Shelesinger will be performing at DC Improv on Nov. 16, 17 and 18.

• Irish Times - https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/iliza-shlesinger-on-my-culture-radar-1.3451396

  Iliza Shlesinger: On My Culture Radar
  The outspoken Californian comedian on Girl Logic, Planet Earth and why Twitter has become a sad, angry suckhole
  Sat, Apr 7, 2018, 05:00
  Shilpa Ganatra
  Iliza Shlesinger: I don’t enjoy Twitter anymore. It’s become a sad, angry suckhole where even if you’re liberal, you’re told that you’re a right-wing Nazi
  Iliza Shlesinger: I don’t enjoy Twitter anymore. It’s become a sad, angry suckhole where even if you’re liberal, you’re told that you’re a right-wing Nazi

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  Current favourite book
  I’m going to say my own book. It’s called Girl Logic and it’s about my insight into why women think the way that we do. For girls, it’s a gentle tap to let them know they’re not alone in what they might think are crazy thoughts. For men it’s great because it’s about personal stories, work ethic and life, but also it gives them some insight into why women think the way that they do.

  Restaurant
  My favourite restaurant is Bludso’s BBQ in Los Angeles – its the owner’s last name; it’s not meant to have the word ‘blood’ in it. My fiance is the executive chef for the group, and it specialises in barbecued meats. I love their burnt ends, do you have them there? It’s the thinner, crispier end of a brisket. You chop them up and put on barbecue sauce. I also like corned beef, but I think Irish corned beef is different to Jewish corned beef.

  Play/musical
  I know I’m supposed to say Hamilton, but it’s really hard to get tickets here in California. I think my favourite play as a kid was Our Town by Thornton Wilder, but I haven’t seen a production of that recently, and I still love Phantom of the Opera. I think every woman’s dream is to have a partially mutilated man turn her into a star, and then feel he has ownership over her.

  City
  I’m going to say Tokyo. It’s important, especially as an American but also as a world traveller, to take yourself out of your comfort zone and go somewhere that’s the opposite of home. Americans are very loud and proud and in your face; the Japanese are proud too, but there’s a subtlety to it. The way they think and words they use is totally unrelatable, and that’s part of what I search for when I go abroad. I especially remember going to a small district called Ebisu which was cute and fun. Have you ever visited somewhere and thought ‘ooh, I belong here, I should open up a shop here that sells little figurines and I’ll learn the language’?

  Comedian
  There’s a comic who’s known as Sebastian Maniscalco. I always go on about him but I don’t know if the feeling’s mutual. His style is observational, it’s Italian-American, and his genuine disgust for most people, processes and things delights me. For my money, I think he’s one of the best comics working today – no one has a cadence or timing like his.

  Gadget
  I was given a set of Apple AirPods. A lot of people think they’re terrible but I’ve found them to be absolutely wonderful.

  Social media profile
  I don’t enjoy Twitter anymore. It’s become a sad, angry suckhole where even if you’re liberal, you’re told that you’re a right-wing Nazi. That’s a difficult place to be. On Instagram, I follow a lot of weird things, like I’m obsessed with this account that follows octopi and tells you how they live and shows different videos (@octonation). I follow this Japanese girl who has a giant red lizard (@macgyverlizard). I follow someone who’s domesticated a fox (@juniperfoxx). At the end of the day, as humans all we want is to look at a cute animal eating something small. My Instagram is full of that. If you want to see a Russian dwarf hamster eating a miniature Thanksgiving dinner, I have the Instagram account for you.

  Actor
  I’m currently working on a movie called Instant Family, which is a true story about adopting kids. It stars Mark Wahlberg, Rose Byrne and Octavia Spencer. Being on set with these people who have huge careers is a tutorial on how to be actor, and I get to watch them for free all day.

  TV show
  I really enjoy Planet Earth which is on Netflix here. If you ever wanted to bask in the glow of the planet’s magnificence, it tells you everything you wanted to know about the kimono dragon or predators in an Arctic tundra. You don’t even have to be stoned to watch it.

• Fashion - https://fashionmagazine.com/culture/iliza-shlesinger/

  Iliza Shlesinger Is a Standup Who Wants to Educate You…Kind Of
  By Greg Hudson Date March 2, 2018
  There’s something about Iliza Shlesinger’s feminism that feels, well, off. Some might even call it problematic. If we’re being completely honest, part of that stems from how the standup comic looks: We’re suspicious of women who talk about equality yet conform so completely to socially entrenched beauty standards. “How can you dismantle a system you’ve clearly bought into?” the thinking goes. “People don’t always like the idea of a woman who isn’t humiliated by her face,” says Shlesinger. “They don’t like the idea of a woman being proud.” Fair point.

  But it’s also how she talks about feminism—and women in general. Shlesinger is one of a handful of female standups dominating this modern comedy boom. She made a name for herself by becoming the first woman to win Last Comic Standing. She also happened to be the youngest. Obviously Shlesinger isn’t the first comedian to point out the differences—and the resulting comedy—between men and women. The gender stereotypes she uses when she describes a night out, say, or a failed romantic encounter, would seem outdated and un-woke if she didn’t unapologetically point out—and find the comedy in—the social, economic and political differences between men and women, too.

  Take her book, Girl Logic, published late last year. “Girl logic” is how women think—the natural, instinctual, nearly subconscious way they consider what they want by comparing their past experiences, the future they hope for, how they would like to be seen, their safety and pretty much every possible outcome. It’s not untrue, but it seems wrong, post-Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus, to admit that men and women are inherently different.

  But if that seems problematic, Shlesinger doesn’t really care—which might be the biggest indication of her fem­inism: She’s confident enough to present herself and her observations without apology, even if she knows that some, on both the right and the left, will take to social media to register that they’ve taken offence. That’s nothing new for her; she’s used to defying expectations.

  Your comedy is sometimes very conversational. How do you balance those conversational jokes you come up with onstage with actually writing down jokes?

  “I don’t write anything. It’s all done onstage, which is why I always tell younger comics that they just have to go do it. You have to get up, talk and take a thought or a word and just expound and you find it in there. I don’t sit down and write. Also, my jokes are like long stories—there’s a narrative—so it’s about a stream of consciousness; you pick and choose what you want to say, but there’s no writing anything down.”

  You often see male comedians adopting a self-loathing persona, but they still obviously have the confidence to do it. Does it take a different kind of confidence for women?

  “Some comics are self-loathing, but at the root of it, no matter your gender, no matter how introverted or awkward or ‘alt-y’ you are, you still think you’re goddamned good enough to get up there and take up someone’s time. So I think it’s a bit of an act. There are people with crippling insecurities, for sure. But you still put on your shoes, you still came here and you still think you’re smarter and funnier than most of the people in the room. I do think it’s an affectation a lot of people put on to ingratiate themselves. I happen to go the other way. I firmly believe in standing by what you are. I was never taught to dim my light to pacify other people. But I also don’t think that anything I’m doing or saying is wildly offensive. If you’re weirded out by it, it’s probably because you don’t love that a woman is talking.”

  In your last Netflix special Confirmed Kills and in Girl Logic, you’re doing a bit more educating. What do you think your responsibility is with your comedy?

  “It’s weird. There is some responsibility that people put on you. And you see this with actors and singers—people are always saying ‘You need to be a role model.’ Nobody is really saying that about comics—because we’re comics. I have an obligation to myself to be vulnerable and not say things or do things that aren’t authentic. I think with that responsibility you get the best version of me. No matter what you do, you’re going to piss people off. Whether you are talking about feminism or your government, you’re going to upset some people. I figure that if you’re going to upset group A half the time and group B half the time, at least 50 per cent of the time someone is OK with you.”

  Like what happened to you online recently.

  “I did this entire interview about feminism and how pro-female I am and how my whole career is a love letter to all that. And I had one sentence about how women are so multi-faceted, and so smart, yet you see a lot of women making lazy vagina jokes. The vaginas aren’t lazy; the jokes are. I’m in comedy clubs, and I hear these jokes often. And a couple of bloggers got upset. When you’re a woman and you say one thing that women disagree with, they want to crucify you. Never mind the book, the specials, the entire interview that was pro-women; you say one thing that hurts their feelings and therefore they want to see you die. And that is a big problem with humans in general. We love to tear people down; we love to tear women down.”

  Girl Logic is based on the premise that women and men think differently. Do you think that that is a biological difference or a social construct?

  “I think it’s both. It can’t be fully social because women have ovaries and a biological clock and periods, and in terms of safety, women aren’t as strong as men physic­ally. But a big touchstone of the book is that women have to be so many different things to so many people at once, and it’s because of these expectations that we’re constantly filtering out what works for us—past, present and future. It’s this constant measuring yourself against other people, against other women, against how you want to feel versus how you do feel, because you’re expected to be a certain way and act a certain way, which is exhausting, and we do it naturally. And so a normal person might say ‘Why do you care about what other people think? Just be yourself.’ And I agree with that, except that oftentimes what society, men or other women project on you can have detrimental effects, physically, emotionally and career-wise. You know, like ‘She seems like a slut’ or ‘She seems stupid.’ And then they treat you that way. And sometimes you don’t get a chance to prove them wrong. And we deal with this on a minute-by-minute basis. ‘She’s blond so she must not be smart.’ ‘Oh, she’s a different colour so she must not be XYZ.’ It’s a constant struggle: How much do I want to take in? And we suss out and do this naturally. That’s what girl logic is.”

  Talking about feminism seems dangerous—not only because non-feminists will get mad at you but because other feminists will.

  “That’s a very real thing. I have talked about this in hushed tones with other women. One of the huge dangers people face in this movement is other women. And people can roll their eyes at that, but Abraham Lincoln said, ‘A house divided against itself cannot stand.’ Women are always pitted against each other, and women pit other women against each other. Before I knew about the movement or Gloria Steinem or any of the literature, I was always the kind of woman who stood up for herself and didn’t understand why I shouldn’t be treated the same as the guys. I definitely thought I was smarter and funnier, and I just didn’t take any shit. That’s not to say that shit wasn’t put on me. I only started using the word ‘feminism’ maybe two years ago, as a way to make it more accessible, but talking about feminism doesn’t mean anything if you aren’t doing things to move that issue forward.”

• Iliza Shlesinger Website - https://www.iliza.com/

  On May 2nd, comedian Iliza achieved a lifelong goal when she launched “Truth & Iliza,” her very own late night talk show on Freeform (formerly ABC Family). The self styled talk show is a cross between social commentary, politics, pop culture and Iliza’s specific brand of feminism. In November 2017, she’ll publish her first book Girl Logic through Weinstein Books.

  Originally from Dallas, Iliza moved to Los Angeles after graduating from Emerson College. She is the only female and youngest comedian to hold the title of NBC's Last Comic Standing. Her debut one-hour comedy special, War Paint, reached #1 on the iTunes charts and was named one of its Top 10 Albums of 2013. Iliza’s follow-up, Freezing Hot, a Netflix Original Comedy Special, sealed her title as one of the hottest touring acts in America, with Esquire Magazine listing her as one of the top working comedians today. In September, 2016, Iliza premiered her latest Netflix special, Confirmed Kills, which finds the comedian in top form, tackling poignant topics while not trading on laughs. She’s currently on her first national theatre tour with “Iliza: The Confirmed Kills Tour”.

  Freeform (formerly ABC Family) recently partnered with Iliza to develop her own late night series – a lifelong goal of hers. Additionally, her digital scripted series, Forever 31 is currently streaming on ABCd and Hulu and has already been picked up for a second season. In Spring 2017, Weinstein Books will publish her first book Girl Logic.

  Iliza’s stand-up credentials also include headlining the coveted Montreal Just For Laughs Festival and The New York Comedy Festival. As a national headliner, Iliza tours year-round selling out theatres, clubs and colleges. She also participated in the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's personal USO Tour throughout the Middle East and Europe, as well as Al Roker's Today Show USO Tour in Afghanistan, with Jay Leno and Craig Robinson.

  Iliza was recently featured in Elle’s “Women in Comedy” issue and her television credits include multiple appearances on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,” “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” “The Today Show,” as well as hosting 230 episodes for the CBS syndicated show “Excused” and the TBS show “Separation Anxiety.”

  Iliza lives in Los Angeles where she spends time making up songs and nicknames for her dog Blanche.

Shlesinger, Iliza: GIRL LOGIC
Kirkus Reviews. (Sept. 15, 2017):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Shlesinger, Iliza GIRL LOGIC Weinstein Books (Adult Nonfiction) $27.00 11, 7 ISBN: 978-1-60286-323-1

A successful comedian tries to square gender stereotypes with the realities of how women really live.Shlesinger, a winner of NBC's Last Comic Standing, calls her debut book a celebration of womanhood, though her own life and stand-up routine have hardly been paragons of feminist resistance. She locates her moment of awakening in a 2015 episode in which a male comic mocked a fellow female comic. Emboldened to seek equality, she sets out to define and deconstruct the "have-it-all" mentality forced on American women, the obsession to have the perfect partner, profession, and physique. However, despite her profession and stated goal to increase empathy, the author's recent realizations are neither especially funny nor noteworthy. Shlesinger leans on hackneyed cliches, such as dissecting the so-called guys' girl, only to reveal she once hid behind the stereotype of the sports-loving, beer-drinking woman. A handful of the anecdotes about dating and workplace drama are humorous, but most rely on the dated conventions the author supposedly seeks to abolish. Some profanity-laden diatribes come dangerously close to being offensive for their lack of nuance about race and sexual orientation. The takeaway messages of the book are important: cultivate confidence, develop the courage to be different, refuse catty competition with other women. Unfortunately, the intended lessons are often lost in the author's frenetic chatter--e.g., an entire chapter describing how women should text men--and memoir-style meanderings through her childhood and adolescence, many of which lack resolution. In a handbook seemingly meant for teens, the faux adolescent tone feels forced and obscures what could be an empowering message about how it is never too late to counter the reductive nature of stereotypes. Instead of instructions for how to grow up, this reads like a series of theories not yet fully formed. An amusing stand-up bit buckles under the weight of a book-length treatment.

Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Shlesinger, Iliza: GIRL LOGIC." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Sept. 2017. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A504217545/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=4c50c6f9. Accessed 18 Apr. 2018.

Gale Document Number: GALE|A504217545

• Chicago Reader
  https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/iliza-shlesinger-girl-logic-feminism-patriarchy-mayim-bialik/Content?oid=35542549
  Word count: 876

  Iliza Shlesinger’s Girl Logic lacks girls and logic
  The comedian’s first book is a noxious “celebration” of women.
  By Alicia Swiz
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  Iliza Shlesinger

  MAARTEN DE BOER

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  Girl Logic: The Genius and the Absurdity
  By Iliza Shlesinger (Hachette)
  Shlesinger appears for a performance and book signing
  Fri 12/1, 8 PM
  The Vic
  3145 N. Sheffield
  773-432-0449
  victheatre.com
  $55-$151
  I'm not going to lie—I judged Girl Logic: The Genius and the Absurdity, comedian and Last Comic Standing winner Iliza Shlesinger's debut book, by its cover. For one, I was turned off by the sexist title, styled in faux-math font. Then I saw that the actress Mayim Bialik—who recently argued that you should sleep in the same bed as your children because bears do—contributed the foreword. A poor way to validate an allegedly pro-woman publication is to include a recommendation from someone who believes that modesty is what kept her from being assaulted by Harvey Weinstein as a teen. Oh, and Girl Logic is published by Weinstein Books.

  Shlesinger is something of a Weinstein in Steinem's clothing, posing as a confident and empowered woman yet preaching the exact mind-set that cultivates female oppression. According to her, "girl logic," or "GL," is "a characteristically female way of thinking" that suggests women are solely responsible for the expectations society puts upon them. Any confusion and frustration that women experience as a result is normal, because they can't help having dumb little-girl brains. "This book is a celebration of women," Shlesinger boasts in the introduction. What women, I wondered? Girl Logic is filled with anecdotes in which Shlesinger is the hero, other women are the villain, and men are the audience. In truth the book is a celebration of one type of woman—those who perceive other women as their competition and their enemy—and an invitation to every other woman reading it to be like Shlesinger or fail at life.

  In the first chapter, the author cites her boobs as the reason she was "lucky enough to have body confidence as a teen." She recalls a pool party thrown by her next-door neighbor where the boys asked the girls to participate in a bikini contest. "Though the other girls might have been able to wear braces and still look cute . . . I thought I had the swimsuit competition on lock," she writes. "And yet, no sooner had we lined up, my grown-woman chest all pigeon puffed out, that Aaron declared Angela, my Sun-In blonde nemesis (who didn't know she was my nemesis and honestly I would've been so excited if she'd wanted to hang out with me), the winner." Thirteen-year-old Iliza is rightfully frustrated and angered by the sexist power dynamics of this interaction. But what about the adult author of this book? Does Shlesinger use her "more evolved Girl Logic" to reflect on this moment from 20 years ago and wonder why she was more angry at the girl who won rather than the boys who'd initiated the bikini contest to begin with? She doesn't. This is her moment of reflection: "I don't know where Angela is now but I'm sure that early confirmation of her hotness has served her just fine in this life and that she's grown up to be a wonderful nurse or receptionist."

  A similar line of thinking informs the second chapter, titled "Case Clothed," which offers 20 pages of mean-girl observations about how other women dress, including "My Handy List of Clothing Items That Are Simply Not OK." Shlesinger attempts to validate her slut- shaming, puritanical assessments when she states, "I love trashy clothes: cut off shorts, leg warmers, mesh tops, lycra miniskirts, thigh-high socks, full length mesh body stockings." That describes the wardrobe of half of the most stylish women I know, myself included. Is she calling us trashy?

  Shlesinger's compassion for other women is as nonexistent as her introspectiveness. In Girl Logic she never interrogates or acknowledges her own privilege—as a white woman, as a professional comedian, or as a published author. She reserves use of her power only for herself in a way that mirrors the dominance and sexism of patriarchy. Because, like many other women in this world, Shlesinger values the opinions of men more than her own—to her it's complimentary when a man judges a woman for how she looks in a bikini.

  By chapter three ("Oh Boy, It's Guys' Girl"), I wasn't so much reading as searching for a redeeming sentence. There's a distinct lack of accountability in the thesis Shlesinger presents: "girl logic" is a natural by-product of being a woman rather than a response to generations of patriarchal domination that has convinced the members of an entire gender that they're flawed. The truth is girl logic does exist. It's a learned behavior, a survival mechanism developed by a group of people who are forced to modify everything about themselves in a male-dominated world. And it's a world this book tacitly endorses.  v

• The Unfinished Bookshelf
  https://theunfinishedbookshelf.com/girl-logic-iliza-shlesinger/
  Word count: 927

  GIRL LOGIC BY ILIZA SHLESINGER
  December 12, 2017, by Michelle1 comment0
  iliza

  From breakout stand-up comedian Iliza Shlesinger comes a subversively funny collection of essays and observations on a confident woman’s approach to friendship, singlehood, and relationships.
  ‘Girl Logic’ is Iliza’s term for the way women obsess over details and situations that men don’t necessarily even notice. She describes is as a characteristically female way of thinking that appears to be contradictory and circuitous but is actually a complicated and highly evolved way of looking at the world. When confronted with critical decisions about dating, sex, work, even getting dressed in the morning, Iliza argues that women will by nature consider every repercussion of every option before making a move toward what they really want. And that kind of holistic thinking can actually give women an advantage in what is still a male world.
  In Iliza’s own words: “Understanding Girl Logic is a way of embracing both our aspirations and our contradictions. GL is the desire to be strong and vulnerable. It’s wanting to be curvy, but rail thin at the same time. It’s striving to kick ass in a man’s world while still being loved by the women around you. This book is also for me, because apparently expounding on a stage for two hours a night wasn’t enough. (Trust me, if I could start a cult I would, but I hate the idea of deliberately dying in a group.)”

  My first introduction to Iliza was her comedy special Confirmed Kills. I’d not long been dating my partner and he suggested I watched this comedian he loved. To be honest, I think I was too focused on gauging his reactions to her jokes, especially the ones with a feminist bent, to really take the show in. Basically all I remember was party goblins and designated search claw. But I was intrigued (by both the boy and Iliza). We’ve now watched it and Freezing Hot countless times and I knew he was a keeper when he pre-ordered Iliza’s debut book as a surprise. (Okay, I’d already decided he was pretty darn good before that, but you get my drift). He was delighted when I finished Girl Logic and declared it one of my all-time favourite books. Big statement, I know. It’s pretty special though.

  Part memoir, part guide to life Girl Logic is a book I already feel like I need to re-read to fully appreciate and I know it’s one I can return to throughout my life. From the first page, I was hooked by Iliza’s conversational writing style and trademark humour, as well as the way she walked through things we all face as women: trusting ourselves and having confidence, body image, dating, sex and relationships, being single, friendships, careers, family, understanding text messages from boys (with a handy guide on how to reply based on what you want out of the relationship). Advice is contextualised with Iliza’s own experiences growing up and through early adulthood into her thirties.

  One of the things I love most about this book is that Iliza makes it very clear her story, her journey is not at an end. As she says, it’s easy to offer platitudes when you’ve reached this successful pinnacle. But this was written while she was still riding the rollercoaster of her life, relationships and career. The emotions she shares are real and I’m sure most women would find them incredibly relatable. From dating horror and success stories, to how Iliza stood up for herself against horrific, relentless bullying by the male comedians who lost to her on Last Comic Standing, there is at least one story or bit of advice everyone will find helpful. I am of course saying women will find this helpful because the book is written by a woman and aimed at women, but Iliza jokes throughout that there’s plenty for the guys as well. And there is. It’s just written with a female audience (and everyday challenges) in mind. But guys, if you want to get an insight into some of the ways our Girl Logic works, pick up this book. In fact, I’m pretty sure my partner had a few sneaky reads before he gave it to me.

  It’s hard to explain how affirming I found Girl Logic and how much it meant to me. I mean, I know that’s the point of the review, but really you just need to read and experience it for yourself. There is something for everyone in here. There are no pithy platitudes from someone who’s ‘made it’ and is showing it’s easy for anyone to get there. Girl Logic is all about acknowledging there will be failures and that life is a work in progress, but you can have a whole lot of fun along the way.

  “You Girl Logic will prepare you for a million scenarios where things can go utterly wrong, and it will help you survive when everything falls apart. Rejection happens, but unless you’re dying, there’s no reason you can’t use your GL to help you create an even better opportunity. Anything good in this world was created by someone who cared enough to fail over and over.”

  “Be kind. Work hard. Don’t take shit from anyone. And remain merciful.”

• The Crabby Reviewer- Reviews and General Crabbiness, by Dan Reilly
  http://thecrabbyreviewer.blogspot.com/2017/09/girl-logic-genius-and-absurdity-by.html
  Word count: 317

  Thursday, September 28, 2017
  Girl Logic (The Genius and the Absurdity), by Iliza Shlesinger

  A fun, if instantly forgettable, read.....

  Disclaimer: While I have heard of Iliza Shlesinger, I have not, to the best of my recollection, seen her perform.

  That said, I like to laugh. (Who doesn't?) So I thought this book might provide a few chuckles.

  It didn't. A smile or two, but nary a laugh, chuckle, guffaw, amused snort, giggle......nothing.

  Iliza is clearly a gifted storyteller, and I suspect a lot of this would be extremely funny if I were actually watching her deliver the lines, but we're talking about the printed page, and it's hard to make someone who is reading laugh. There's no contributor named anywhere on the book's cover, or in the indicia, so she wrote this herself, which is a good sign. She has a nice, conversational way of telling a story, and the occasional autobiographical tidbits that she drops are very interesting, especially the struggles she had touring with her Last Comic Standing castmates.

  That said, I found the whole "Girl Logic" concept annoying...It read like someone trying too hard to make "Girl Logic" a thing. She could have written a perfectly good book without trying to filter everything that she talks about through the concept of "Girl Logic". And at the risk of sounding sexist, I probably would have passed on this book if I knew that it was geared so heavily towards women....No offense, there's certainly room for books like this that hammer female empowerment through your head on EVERY...SINGLE...PAGE....but it doesn't make for the most entertaining read if you're a guy.

  I had an OK time reading GIRL LOGIC, but I wasn't too sad when it ended.

  Weinstein Books provided a review copy.