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Features
Entertainment

The Heart Surgeon Turned Comedian: The Connection to Kambiz Hosseini

Sept 25, 2019
Kodoom Official Blog , Videos , Society , Culture , Politics , Entertainment

Entertainment, Culture and Politics Blog, Kodoom.com Editorial:
Many Iranians in the Bay area plan to attend the stand up comedy event by Bassem Youssef in San Francisco (event link). Like Kambiz Hosseini, Iranian political satirist TV show/video Blogger, Youssef was also inspired and supported by American comedian Jon Stewart, host of The Daily Show. But Youssef is perhaps the world's only heart surgeon-turned-comedian, political-satirist! He has also been a guest on Maz Jobrani's podcast (see video later in the article).

Bassem Youssef (left) and Jon Stewart

Youssef practiced as a cardiothoracic surgeon in Egypt for 13 years, until his move into comedy and political satire. Youssef assisted the wounded in Tahrir Square during the Egyptian revolution. Youssef has credited surgery for making him "a much harder working person, a nerd, a perfectionist." In 2013, Youssef was named as one of the "100 most influential people in the world" by Time magazine.

Inspired by the Egyptian revolution of 2011, Youssef created his first satirical show in 2011. The program, shot in Youssef's laundry room using a table, a chair, one camera, and a mural of amateur photos from Tahrir Square, at 5 minutes per episode gained more than five million views on Youtube in the first three months alone.

Bassem Youssef (left) and Maz Jobrani

After the success of his first show, Egyptian channel ONTV, owned by Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris, offered Youssef a deal for Al Bernameg (literally, "The Program"). Youssef had planned to move to Cleveland to practice medicine but instead signed his show's contract. With a budget of roughly half a million dollars, the series made him the first Internet to TV conversion in the Middle East. In his show, Youssef has parodied Egyptian celebrities and politicians such as Mohamed ElBaradei, former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency and onetime presidential candidate. The show became the platform for many writers, artists, and politicians to speak freely about the social and political scene.

In June 2012, Jon Stewart invited Youssef to The Daily Show for an extended interview, "...I do know a little something about the humour business; your show is sharp, you're really good on it, it's smart, it's well executed, I think the world of what you're doing down there," Stewart said to Youssef. The segment was one of the highest in viewership on the Daily Show's website. Jon Stewart also traveled to Cairo in 2013 to appear as a guest on Youssef's show.

Al-Bernameg became the most watched show in the history of Egyptian TV with an average of 40 million viewers every week, in addition to over 2 million subscribers on YouTube and 1.2 billion views on his own channel and other channels.

Under the Muslim Brotherhood regime, a warrant for Youssef's arrest was issued and Bassem went through a 6 hours interrogation after which he was released on bail.

Bassem continued to poke fun of the people in power and he didn’t stop even after the military took over, costing him to be cancelled twice and pushed to terminate his show. Harassment and threats continued, pushing Bassem to flee to the United States. Youssef lives in the Bay Area with his wife and their children. When asked if he will ever return to Egypt and if he misses Egypt he has responded "NO!"

Bassem is now reinventing his career as a satirist comedian and a story teller, but in a different country and a different language that is not his own. When he is not touring around doing his live performances he is hosting his podcast “Remade in America.” In 2019, Bassem Youssef began the Youtube channel PlantBtv. His new online show combines his comedic, medical, and vegan background. It seeks to educate both Arabic and English audiences on nutrition and food science as it connects to health and well being.

Youssef will be performing on October 11-12 in San Francisco. His own favorite comedian is George Carlin.

Related to Satire:

  • A Historical Blunder: Trump Claims 1775 Revolutionary Army 'took over airports'!
  • Maz, US Special Ops Chief and Congressman Share Same Opinion About Trump's Drumbeat of War Against Iran
  • Bedoon Taarof, Nowruz with Maz Jobrani: About Marriage, Politics, Movies, Strip Club Act! (Video)
  • Iranian TV Censors Wolf Breasts out of Roma, and Devil out of Manchester United, Team Logos!
  • Saturday Night Live Mocks Putin's Handshake with Bin Salman (Video)
  • What is New With Maz? From Judging NFL Players to Events in A City Near You - Plus Promotion Codes
  • Popular Half-Persian American comedian tours Europe (TedTalk Video)
  • Fearless comedian shocks White House correspondents' Dinner (Video)
  • Yara Shahidi tells Kimmel she is proud of Iranian heritage and Michelle Obama (Video)
  • What is Up with Maz Jobrani this Norooz? New Film, Video, CBS and NPR series
  • The Simpsons creators predicted a Trump presidency back in 2000 (Video)
  • Jimmy Vestvood (Maz Jobrani) excels at box office
  • Iran Prisoner Swap: A Closer Look - Late Night with Seth Meyers
  • On Iran, Stewart to Obama: This new thing called US Diplomacy sounds interesting
  • Iranian American student makes audience laugh, think (Video)

Related to Maz Jobrani:

  • Maz, US Special Ops Chief and Congressman Share Same Opinion About Trump's Drumbeat of War Against Iran
  • Bedoon Taarof, Nowruz with Maz Jobrani: About Marriage, Politics, Movies, Strip Club Act! (Video)
  • What is New With Maz? From Judging NFL Players to Events in A City Near You - Plus Promotion Codes
  • What is Up with Maz Jobrani this Norooz? New Film, Video, CBS and NPR series
  • Googoosh and Iranian celebrities who did ice bucket challenge their way! Videos
  • Maz Jobrani in new family comedy at CBS: Nobody trusts Maz!
  • INFORMAL: Maz Jobrani talks about intercultural marriage, Mercedes and "status"!
  • What did Maz Jobrani tell President Obama? (Picture)
  • Christiane Amanpour joins group of most successful Iranian Americans
  • Maz Jobrani on Craig Ferguson's Late Late Show
  • Iranian-American comedians in demand
  • Maz Jobrani's Message for U.S. and Iranian Presidents!
  • Maz Jobrani Informal Video: Interview in Persian with world renowned stand up comedian
  • Maz Jobrani on Census 2010 for Iranian - Americans
  • Part 3 of "Informal" with Maz Jobrani at Kodoom.com
© 2025 Kodoom LLC All Rights Reserved
satire
Maz Jobrani
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