Rita Rudner (b. September 17, 1956, Miami, Florida) is an American comedian and writer. She has appeared in several television shows both in the U.S. and Britain and was a semi-regular on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. She was also 'discovered' by Hey Hey It's Saturday and became very popular with Australian audiences.
Rudner and her husband, Martin Bergman, wrote the screenplay of the film Peter's Friends, in which she also starred. She has written several books, including Naked Beneath My Clothes and Tickled Pink: A Comic Novel.
Her show had recently appeared at the New York-New York Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, though it will be soon moving to Harrah's. She also recently hosted the syndicated improvisational comedy show Ask Rita, which mimicked the format of a talk/advice show. Rudner, her husband, and their daughter Molly make Las Vegas their primary home. They live part-time in Palm Desert, California where Rudner frequently performs at the McCallum Theatre on the campus of College of the Desert.
She appeared in the 2005 documentary film The Aristocrats. She also appeared in the romantic comedy movie The Last Guy on Earth (2006) (post production).
Before she began doing stand-up, she appeared as a dancer in six broadway shows: "Promises, Promises," "Follies," "The Magic Show," "Mack & Mabel," "So Long 174th Street," and "Annie."
