Steve Rizzo
Comedian turned Motivational Speaker
Steve Rizzo is an American motivational speaker, author, and former stand-up comedian, who is notable for his humorous style of motivational speaking and writing. Rizzo is a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA) and an inductee of the Council of Peers Award for Excellence (CPAE) Speaker Hall of Fame. His book, Becoming a Humor Being: The Power to Choose a Better Way won the Writer's Digest International Self-Published Book Awards.
Background
Steve Rizzo is a native of Brooklyn in New York City. While growing up, "Rizzo was [once] told by a [high school] guidance counselor that he didn't have the intelligence for college." He went on to study at the Long Island University C. W. Post Campus, earning a Bachelor of Arts in English and Education (with Honors) and Master of Arts in Theater Arts.
Career
Rizzo was once an English teacher for the 7th and 8th grade students at West Babylon Junior High School in West Babylon, New York, and counselor to students with behavioral problems in the 9th to 12th grades. He later became a comedian, and was roommate to Drew Carey, had Dennis Miller and Rosie O'Donnell open shows for him and shared the stage with Eddie Murphy, Rodney Dangerfield, Jerry Seinfeld and Ellen DeGeneres before moving on to become a motivational speaker. Rizzo left a promising career of over 18 years in stand-up comedy to pursue a new career in motivational speaking; he became a professional speaker in 1994.
As a stand-up comic, Rizzo performed at various comedy clubs, including the Pittsburgh Comedy Club in Dormont and the Improv. He also was featured in many television comedy shows, including An Evening at the Improv, Showtime Special, The Comedy Channel and Fox TV's Comic Strip Live.
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