Born
Jon Ferguson Mohr
Other names
Jon Ferguson Cox Mohr
Occupations
Years active
1990–present
Spouses
Nicole Chamberlain
(m. 2006; div. 2018)
(m. 2023)Children
2
Website
Jon Ferguson "Jay" Mohr (born August 23, 1970) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, and radio host. He is known for playing film producer Peter Dragon in the TV comedy series Action in 1999, Professor Rick Payne in the TV series Ghost Whisperer from 2006 to 2008 and the title role in the CBS sitcom Gary Unmarried from 2008 to 2010. He was a featured cast member on the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live from 1993 to 1995.
Since making his feature film debut with Jerry Maguire, Mohr has appeared in films such as Suicide Kings (1997), Picture Perfect (1997), Paulie (1998), Mafia! (1998), Small Soldiers (1998), Go (1999), Cherry Falls (2000), The Adventures of Pluto Nash (2002), Are We There Yet? (2005), Street Kings (2008), Hereafter (2010) and The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013).
Mohr hosts his own podcast Mohr Stories on the SModcast Network and, since September 2015, hosted Jay Mohr Sports, a daily midday sports radio talk show on Fox Sports Radio. Mohr left Fox Sports Radio in January 2016 to pursue acting ventures. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award as the inaugural host and executive producer of Last Comic Standing (2003–2006).
Mohr was born in Verona, New Jersey to Iva Jean (née Ferguson), a nurse, and Jon Wood Mohr, a marketing executive.[2] He has two sisters, Julia and Virginia. He is of Scottish descent.[3][4] Mohr was raised Presbyterian, but later convertedtoRoman Catholicism.[5][6][7] He graduated from Verona High School in 1988.[8] In high school, he was on the wrestling team and served as its captain during his senior year.[9][10] Soon after graduating high school, Mohr was part of the cast of "Biloxi Blues" at the Nutley Little Theater in Nutley, New Jersey.[11]
After appearing on MTV's "Half Hour Comedy Hour" show on April 2, 1991,[9] MTV offered him a job hosting music videos as a VJ, which Mohr turned down.[12] Instead, Mohr ended up hosting the lip-sync contest game show Lip ServiceonMTV, which earned him a CableACE Award.[13][14] He then appeared as a featured player for the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons of Saturday Night Live. His memoir, Gasping for Airtime: Two Years in the Trenches of Saturday Night Live, details this tumultuous period of his life, including his battle with chronic panic attacks.[15] He later credited his SNL co-star Sarah Silverman with saving his life by helping him treat the problem.[citation needed] Mohr's account of his voluntary departure from SNL has been widely discounted, however. He was under a cloud of suspicion due to his admitted plagiarism of jokes during the season[16] and his multi-year contract with NBC did not allow him to unilaterally quit.
Mohr had a recurring role in the first season of The Jeff Foxworthy ShowasJeff Foxworthy's brother, Wayne. Mohr's first major film role was in 1996 when he played the conniving Bob Sugar, a sleazy sports agent in Jerry Maguire, followed in 1997 by a starring role in Picture Perfect with Jennifer Aniston. In 1999, Mohr starred in the television series Action, in which he played sleazy film producer Peter Dragon. He was the voice-over artist for Fox Sports Net's Beyond the Glory. Mohr appeared in additional movies including Suicide Kings, Are We There Yet?, Small Soldiers, Go, Pay It Forward, and The Groomsmen. Mohr was offered a late night talk show job by Michael Eisner, but he declined, instead convincing Eisner to let him host a talk show on ESPN, Mohr Sports, which ran briefly in 2001 before being cancelled. The talk show job Mohr passed was then offered to Jimmy Kimmel and became Jimmy Kimmel Live![17]
In 2003 and 2004, Mohr created, hosted, and was executive producerofNBC's Last Comic Standing reality television program. The show aired for three seasons, but was cancelled near the end of the third season due to poor ratings, only to be renewed later. Mohr was very vocal toward NBC concerning its cancellation[18] and did not return for the show's fourth season in 2006. Mohr was replaced with new host Anthony Clark, but was credited as a consultant. On the season finale of Last Comic Standing 4, Mohr performed as a guest comedian. His recurring role on the TV series Ghost Whisperer developed into a regular role. He appeared in "My Own Private Practice Guy", a 2003 episode of the sitcom Scrubs, and in three episodes of The West Wing in 2004 in the recurring role of Taylor Reid. Parts of Mohr's stand up was featured in Comedy Central's animated series Shorties Watchin' Shorties. In 2005, he and his Giraffe Productions company inked a deal with Sony Pictures Television.[19]
Mohr starred as newly divorced father Gary Brooks, the title character, for two seasons on the CBS sitcom Gary Unmarried. Paula Marshall played his ex-wife. In January 2010 he took the role as Billy in Clint Eastwood's thriller film Hereafter.[20] He also guest-starred on NBC's Outlaw in 2010.[21]
He has an upcoming starring role alongside Tom Blyth in the comedy Discussion Materials[22] adapted from Bill Keenan's memoir of the same name.
Mohr has contributed frequently to The Jim Rome Show and often guest-hosted the program. Mohr finished in 7th place in the 2007 Smack-Off, 6th place in the 2008 Smack-Off, 10th place in the 2009 Smack-Off, 6th place in the 2010 Smack-Off, and 6th place in the 2011 Smack-Off. Mohr is also known to do "drive-by" call-ins to the show, typically to promote one of his stand-up shows or live events.
On January 2, 2013, Mohr replaced Rome on Fox Sports Radio, as he hosts a daily talk show titled Jay Mohr Sports in Rome's longtime 12 to 3 p.m. (ET) timeslot, as Rome moved his show from Premiere Networks (the distributor of Fox Sports Radio) to CBS Sports Radio.[23] The show can be heard on several internet platforms and regional affiliates. On November 3, 2014, Jay Mohr Sports moved to the 3 to 6pm time slot, so Rich Eisen could take over the 12-3pm slot on Fox Sports Radio.[24]
Mohr hosted his own podcast, titled Mohr Stories, on the SModcast Network,[25][26] On May 4, 2012, Mohr announced his amicable departure from the SModcast network. He has since begun hosting Mohr Stories on his own network, Fake Mustache Studios.[27]
In June 2004, Mohr's first book, Gasping for Airtime: Two Years in the Trenches of Saturday Night Live, was published by Hyperion and chronicled his two years working on Saturday Night Live. In May 2010, publisher Simon & Schuster released Mohr's second book, No Wonder My Parents Drank: Tales from a Stand-Up Dad.
Mohr's album Happy. And A Lot was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.[28] The material was written by Nikki Cox, his wife at the time.[29]
Mohr has hosted the NASCAR Cup Series Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas since 2013.
In 2016, Mohr became the host of the Los Angeles Rams pregame show airing Saturday evenings after college footballonKABC-TV.[30] He was replaced as the host in November 2016 with no explanation.[citation needed]
Mohr has a son, Jackson,[31] from his six-year marriage to former model / actress Nicole Chamberlain.
Mohr married actress Nikki Cox on December 29, 2006.[31] Cox wrote one of his stand-up shows.[29] In December 2008, he filed legal papers requesting a legal name change to Jon Ferguson Cox Mohr, adding his wife's surname.[32] Their son, Meredith Daniel Mohr, was born on May 5, 2011.[33] On May 16, 2017, Mohr confirmed during The Adam Carolla Show that he and Cox were "in the middle" of a divorce.[34] Their divorce was finalized in August 2018.[35] In 2021, Mohr entered a rehabilitation facility to address an addiction to Adderall.[36]
Mohr began dating Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss in 2017.[37][38] The couple became engaged in December 2022 and married on September 3, 2023.[39][40][41]
Year
Title
Role
Notes
1996
Bob Sugar
1997
Nick
Brett Campbell
Mack (voice)
1998
Benny / Paulie (voice)
Larry Benson
Tony Cortino
Mark
1999
Jack
Zack
Teen Choice Award Nomination
2000
Leonard Marliston
Chris Chandler
2001
Dan
2002
Anthony Frankowski / Tony Francis
Alphine Stars
Ned (voice)
Hal Sinclair
2004
Ed
2005
Marty
Corey
2006
Augie
Cousin Mike Sullivan
2008
Sergeant Mike Clady
2009
Bubba Mabry
2010
Billy
2013
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
Rick 'The Implausible'
2014
Harold
2015
Jack Taylor
2018
Mike
Raymond
2019
Hollow Point
'Trigger'
2023
John Fisher
Year
Title
Role
Notes
1992
Interstitial shorts
1992–1993
Dorfman
1993–1995
Various
1995
Matt
1996
Wayne Foxworthy
Jake Bartholomew
1998
Brett Hutchins
1999
Tim (voice)
1999–2000
Peter Dragon
Golden Satellite award
2000
Christopher Walken (voice)
2000–2005
Various
2001
Lt. Dale Stillman
Boyd 'Bo' Aikens
2003
Dr. Peter Fisher
Roland Hill
Aaron Schecter
2003–2004
Presenter
Executive Producer; Primetime Emmy nomination
2004
Taylor Reid
3 episodes
AssWatch Salesman
2005
Martin Levson
2006
A Salute to the Troops and USO
Host
Kevin
Will Shepard
2006–2008
Professor Rick Payne
2008–2010
Gary Brooks
Also, Producer
2009
Harrison Powell
2010
Henry Ashford
2011
Nyle Brite
A Christmas Wedding Tail
Rusty (voice)
A.D.A. Bullock
2011–2013
Steven Royce
Recurring role
2012
Applebaum
Al
Brothers-In-Law
Jay Mohr: Funny for A Girl
Himself
Standup special
2013
Money Where Your Mouth Is
Host
2015
Jay Mohr: Happy. And a Lot.
Himself
Standup special
2017–2019
Alan
2 episodes
2018
Bert
2 episodes
2020
Jay Mohr: American Treasure
Himself
Standup special
2021
Himself
1 episode
Jay Mohr: Altamont
Himself
Standup special
2022
Councilman Eric Knight
3 episodes
2023
Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty
Tom Collins
Episode: "BEAT L.A."
2024
Coach Murphy
Year
Title
Role
Notes
2008
Agent
Dane Vogel (voice)
2009
Leisure Suit Larry: Box Office Bust
Kip Whiteman (voice)
2015
Dane Vogel (voice)
Scottish ancestry
The first is about fatherhood, and the other print project is about his conversion to Catholicism. "I went from being a Presbyterian to the Catholic church," he said.
International
National
Artists
Other
