Jimmy Fallon and Family Background: The Comedy Hero that Grasps his Opportunities.
A story of taking advantage of opportunities and using hard work to make it to the top.
By Maddie McDonald | Nursing Major, Bethel University
In 1997, Jimmy Fallon enters an under-lit room with a camera and four people gazing, just waiting for a chuckle. With hopes to make these four producers laugh as hard as they can, Fallon uses his finest jokes and impressions of everyone from Chris Rock to Jerry Seinfeld; but he doesn’t land the part for Saturday Night Live (Hiatt 2011).
Fallon grew up worshipping Saturday Night Live. Everything about the show he loved and would recreate numerous skits from the show. Comedy seemed to be his niche. Whatever he could do, radio shows, theater, comedy productions, he began executing. In his last year at The College of Saint Rose, Fallon dropped out and relocated to Los Angeles to pursue a career full of laughter (Britannica). Every move he made after that decision drove him toward his goal of appearing on SNL. He received an audition for a role on the program. Fallon prepared day and night for this audition so he would be able to showcase his exuberant personality just right. His dream stood so close to him that he could virtually touch it, almost grasp it.
Fallon’s 16 million youtube followers know him as a great comedian who can play hilarious games with celebrities, racking up millions of views on youtube. Whether he tries to fit too many people in a phone booth or guess what’s in that box, Fallon demonstrates his success from hard work and taking advantage of his many opportunities. Fallon is a prime example of the Gladwellian traits to success, which he shows through his family background, 10,000 hours, and extraordinary opportunities.
Fallon, a great showcase of how family background can aid in the success of one’s career; the special advantages of growing up in the white middle class contributed to the opportunities that were seized by him at a young age. Fallon saw many chances as a child that he could take to attribute valuable experience in the field of the arts. As a teenager Fallon acted in many theater productions and comedy shows, he also hosted a radio show which allowed him to become comfortable performing to audiences. He continued to gain his voice, his style, and his ability for stand up comedy. As stated by Annette Lareau in her book Unequal Childhoods, “Daily life for working class and poor children is slower paced… there is less emphasis of performance and more latitude for children to pursue their own choices” (Lareau 76). Another psychologist also states this idea by noting how cultural and economic status contributes to the opportunities presented to kids at a young age (Spengler 2015).This relates to Fallon since he grew up in the middle class, because of this he attained more opportunity to get involved in extra curricular activities and to follow his passions. Where as if he were to have grown up in a lower class family he may not have reached the point of success he has today, simply because of the chances he would have been presented with.
Since Fallon grew up the way he did, he learned to make and find his own opportunities; he knew what he deserved and therefore took ahold of those opportunities and turned them into his own advantages.
Not only did the economic class that Fallon’s family held help give him more and greater opportunities at a young age, but the role his parents played in his life factored substantially. Fallon grew up accustomed to a focus of attention because as stated by Fallon’s mother Gloria, “[Fallon’s parents] were very over-protective” (Hiatt, 2011). Fallon lived a very sheltered life once their family moved to a quieter Saugerties, New York because his father found a better job. His parents were very protective, an example that his mother would only let him ride his bike in the fenced in back yard. Even though being a sheltered kid can be seen as a negative in some cases, it has many benefits. Kids are closer to and with their parents often so they catch on to certain mannerisms and standards of giving and receiving services. Lareau speaks on this topic of learned advantages, discussing the two different positives that are presented, “Parents’ interventions on behalf of their children can produce a twofold advantage. The children’s interaction with [professionals] become more personalized, more closely tailored to meet their specific needs” (Lareau 165). In this first advantage Lareau discusses how children will become more aware of their entitlement in relation to institutions. This can be seen in Fallon’s case as well, where he has the ability to customize his career opportunities and goals because he saw the same thing done by his parents. He learned strategies of confrontation and discussion that allowed him to climb up in his career.
The other positive that Lareau discusses, “Children learn to expect this individualization… that will become useful in the future, when they come to extract advantages on their own behalf” (Lareau 166). This point is a discussion of what children expect, and therefore will create advantages around. Since Fallon grew up the way he did, he learned to make and find his own opportunities; he knew what he deserved and therefore took ahold of those opportunities and turned them into his own advantages. Fallon’s parent’s and their prevalent role in his life had a monumental impact on how Fallon found and took advantage of the opportunities that presented to him.
Hard dedicated work and the use of the idea of 10,000 hours becomes one reason many people are successful today. Look at Bill Gates for example, he became one of the most successful people in the world today. That mainly contributes to the fact that he had the opportunity to learn programming in the eight grade, where most programmers from that time were lucky to even gain experience in high school. He gained his 10,000 hours way before anyone else, and used it greatly to his advantage. If he didn’t join the programming club or put as much effort into learning computer skills, he would not be as successful as he became today. But that was never the case as Gates puts it, “It was my obsession” (Outliers 50–52). We can see this through Fallon’s story as well.
Take a look at The Beatles for example, probably one of the most accomplished, well-known, and successful bands in history. And why is that? Because of the extraordinary opportunity they were given to play at Hamburg, which in turn allowed them to achieve their 10,000 hours. In all their preparation from this opportunity, they found their valuable experience (Outliers 47–50).
As a kid Fallon obsessed over comedy and performing, everything about it he admired. Specifically Saturday Night Live the one comedy show he obsessed over the most. Time that he could have spent doing teenager things like going to parties and events or hanging out with friends, he would skip so he could watch the show. He idolized everything about the sitcom, specifically John Belushi (Haitt 2011). He spent as many hours a day that he could afford working on his own talent and learning through watching others. He did this by worshipping comedy shows and ingesting all information possible, and also by hosting a radio show and being apart of comedy and theater productions throughout his teenage years. Once he dropped out of college and moved to Los Angeles, California he auditioned for every role that came his way, purely for the experience he would gain. He eventually got a tiny role on a WB sitcom. Fallon spent so many days practicing and studying the production of comedy shows, hoping that one day all of his preparation would turn into valuable experience to land him his long awaited dream.
Throughout his youth and adulthood, Fallon became presented with many extraordinary opportunities. Gladwell states how opportunity presents itself based on a person’s race, background, personality, birthdate, and many other factors. Also that what sets apart a well accomplished and successful person from someone who is not, is defined by what opportunities presented themselves to these individuals as well as how they respond to them. Take a look at The Beatles for example, probably one of the most accomplished, well-known, and successful bands in history. And why is that? Because of the extraordinary opportunity they were given to play at Hamburg, which in turn allowed them to achieve their 10,000 hours. In all their preparation from this opportunity, they found their valuable experience (Outliers 47–50).
The idea of extraordinary opportunities can easily be applied to Fallon’s story as well. Since his teenage years Fallon has been lucky, he hosted his own radio show which allowed him to really get into comedy. Once he moved to Los Angeles Fallon obtained so many chances for auditions and roles of shows and sitcoms. Fallon originally auditioned for a part on Saturday Night Live in 1997, but when he did not receive the part he joined a WB Sitcom. Although one stipulation to his contract stated, if he were to receive a part on Saturday Night Live he would be free from his contract. The producers did not believe that Fallon would ever obtain that amazing of an opportunity on SNL so they agreed. That became a terrible mistake because the next year Fallon earned a part on SNL, the job of his dreams. From then on Fallon became unstoppable, he gained a multitude of not only fame but invaluable experience and countless opportunity after being cast on the show. He attended talkshows, radio shows, award events, etc., people started to know his name. Fallon stayed with SNL for six years and concluded his time on the show in 2004. After that in 2009 he took the profound chance to have his own late night show and take over Jay Leno’s role. The show at first had mixed reviews but soon turned into a sensation bringing comedy and joy to anyone that watched (Stack 2009). Fallon has now become a well-known and admired comedian that took his experience and turned it into his opportunity.
Jimmy Fallon waltzes onto the stage, accompanied by the famous red-haired actress Emma Stone. The band Roots play a catchy pitch in the background as Fallon and Stone split a few jokes before they get started. Fallon stands center stage as he queues the band to begin to play the song Fancy by Iggy Azalea. Fallon begins to jerk and dance while lip syncing the tune, the crowd in an uproar of laughter (Youtube 2014).The one thing that shines brighter than Fallons performance is his smile. He pursued his passion and put in the hard work of 10,000 hours to get there. Fallon grabbed the extraordinary opportunity of having his own show, The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Now every week he brings the world laughter and comedy through interviews and games with America’s favorite celebrities. He lives his childhood dream that he knew he deserved due to his family background. The show has become immensely successful, with his most-watched videos reaching over 80 million views on Youtube. Fallon not only reached his goal of obtaining a role on Saturday Night Live, but he continued to grow and work even harder to reach as much success that he has today.
Works Cited
Fallon, Jimmy. Lip Sync Battle with Emma Stone. Youtube, 28 Apr. 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=41&v=bLBSoC_2IY8. Accessed 5 May 2018.
Gladwell, Malcolm. Outliers. Little, Brown and Company, 2008.
Hiatt, Brian. “Jimmy Fallon’s Big Adventure.” Rolling Stone, 20 Jan. 2011, https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/jimmy-fallons-big-adventure-20110120. Accessed 1 May 2018.
“Jimmy Fallon: American Comedian and Television Host.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 2018, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jimmy-Fallon. Accessed 1 May 2018.
Lareau, Annette. Unequal Childhoods: Class, Race, and Family Life. University of CaliforniaPress, 2011, pp. 75–120.
Spengler, Marion. “Student characteristics and behaviors at age 12 predict occupational success40 years later over and above childhood IQ and parental socioeconomic status.”Developmental Psychology, vol. 51(9), Sept. 2015, pp. 1329–1340. PsychINFO, https://web-b-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.bethel.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=80fa3656-fbf5–4547–802b-725456b6a8d6%40sessionmgr102&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=2015–302 00–001&db=psyh. Accessed 23 Mar. 2018.
Stack, Tim. “Jimmy’s Late Shift.” Entertainment Weekly, issue 1037, Mar. 2009, pp.48–51. Academic Search Premier, https://web-a-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.bethel.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=4&sid=6fa37944–2c45–498d-bdc7-1888efd28fb8%40sessionmgr4009&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=36801316&db=aph. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.
Steinberg, Brian. “Jimmy on the Spot.” Variety. Gale Cengage Educator’s Reference Complete, https://clicsearch.bethel.edu/primo-explore/fulldisplay?docid=TN_gale_ofa344496546&context=L&vid=BETHEL&search_scope=bethel&tab=default_tab&lang=en_US. Accessed 23 Apr. 2018.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Maddie McDonald
Maddie McDonald, a freshman from Woodbury, Minn., seeks a CNA position at a local hospital to help reach her dream of working as a neonatal nurse. McDonald likes ‘70s music, road trips that lead to camping somewhere up north, and iced lattes with almond milk from Caribou.
What I’ve Learned:
- Sarah Clark taught me that where you come from doesn’t affect your success. Even she can become a cheerleader and follow her high school dreams.
- The book Outliers gave me insight on my favorite band, The Beatles, showing me how hard, dedicated work toward a specific skill can lead to profound success.
- Outliers taught me that one only has to be good enough. As long as you pass the threshold, you are just as smart as anyone else who crossed that line as well.
- Winter taught the class that good writers drop us in a moment. If you want someone to read the whole story you have to keep them interested by giving a relatable, eye catching stories.
- A lot can happen in the blink of an eye. When a snap judgment occurs it takes only seconds for opinions, ideas, or plans to formulate in your subconscious mind.
- Clapping your hands will never be appropriate in class. Instead only snaps should be used to celebrate your peers.
- Project your voice, make eye contact, and don’t make weird hand gestures; three things that should be going through your head while presenting a speech.
- Anything can be possible if you are determined and ready for hard work. Dedication to your dreams is key to success.
- Name your dogs. Proudly make sure everyone knows that you have a 2000 Buick Century that has begun to rust and has a motor that knocks when it is ignited.
- Winter showed us how to properly write. No was, were, is, or are should be allowed in any paper.
- Maddie walks up to the front of the class. Another mini speech that she has had close to no time to prepare for has to be presented, hoping that this is finally the last time. She stands in front of the lectern trying to grasp all the points she will cover into a perfect bundle inside of her head. Instead she becomes faced with a tornado of thoughts that swirl through her head. She stumbles and “umms” her way through the speech, but it finally comes to a close and she makes her way back to her seat.
