Margaret Cho

Cho, the daughter of Korean immigrants, grew up in San Francisco's Haight district in the 1970s. Needless to say, her childhood was colorful and enlightening. She started performing stand-up comedy at age 16. Shortly thereafter, she won a comedy contest and the opportunity to open for Jerry Seinfeld. With her career taking off, Cho moved to Los Angeles and made the rounds on the talk-show circuit. A 1994 American Comedy Award for Best Comedian led to her own network show, CBS's All-American Girl. The first network series about Asian Americans, the show was criticized for being both too ethnic and not Asian enough. The show was canceled and Cho struggled with alcohol and drug addiction. She chronicled her battle in Off-Broadway's I'm the One that I Want (1999), which she turned into a book in 2002. Her 2005 book was I Have Chosen to Stay and Fight. Her film credits include The Doom Generation (1995) and Face/Off (1997).