Not a lot of women manage to reach fame and success through stand-up comedy. But Kathy Griffin is one of those women who have overcome gender discriminations in the comedian world and has put her foot well in the door of celebrity status. And while she is not an A-list celebrity, she earns a living by making fun of those who are on that list - and in quite a funny way, we might add!

Kathy's birth name is Kathleen Mary Griffin. She was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, and graduated from the Oak Park and River Forrest high school. The youngest of five children, Kathy wanted to make it into the world of entertainment and when her parents decided to retire to California she used the opportunity to move as well, closer to the glamorous world of Hollywood.

The beginning of the 80s found Kathy performing with an LA comedy troupe called The Groundlings. Besides her work with the troupe, Griffin also did stand-up comedy in various LA clubs, until she got her big breakthrough. Together with another member of The Groundlings, Janeane Garofalo, Kathy had a comedy act called 'Hot Cup of Talk', the same name which she was going to use for her future HBO special.

But stand-up was not the only thing Griffin could do. She entered the world of film by taking up a part in the 1991 horror 'The Unborn'. Over time, Kathy made a series of appearances in both TV productions and films: 'Medusa: Dare to Be Truthful', 'The Fresh Prince of Bel Air', 'Shakes the Clown', 'Civil Wars'. But Griffin came to the attention of the public in 1996, when she appeared on the NBC sitcom 'Suddenly Susan', joining already-star Brooke Shields.

Over time, Kathy Griffin made her name famous mostly by making fun at not being a Hollywood celebrity, stuck in the obscure part of the non-A-lister team. She considers herself a D-list celebrity and frequently speaks of that. The moment she won the 2003 Celebrity Mole Hawaii, after having to endure the pain of walking bare footed on hot lava, was marked by Griffin as the point when she received D-list celebrity status. Quite recently, it was rumored that she is one of the people considered for replacing Rosie O'Donnell on The View.

Kathy also has a reality show of her own, entitled 'Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List', in which certain aspects of her life are presented and there have been appearances made by some of the people in her life, starting with her parents, her husband and her assistant and ending with her two dogs. The show proved to be quite popular and its first season received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Reality Program.

All in all, Kathy is someone we love to have around. It may be the fact that we like the way she's making fun of celebrities, it may be the way she laughs, the idea is that we won't be forgetting this D-lister any time soon. What do you say about Kathy Griffin, is she IN or is she OUT?

Selective filmography:

• 'The Last Guy on Earth' (2008) (in production)

• 'Her Minor Thing' (2005)

• 'Dirty Love' (2005)

• 'Lovewrecked' (2005)

• 'Spider-Man' (2 episodes, 2003)

• 'On Edge' (2001)

• 'Suddenly Susan' (92 episodes, 1996-2000)

• 'Enemies of Laughter' (2000)

• 'Dilbert' (10 episodes, 1999-2000)

• 'The Intern' (2000)

• 'Muppets from Space' (1999)

• 'Can't Stop Dancing' (1999)

• 'Who's the Caboose?' (1997)

• 'The Barefoot Executive' (1995)

• 'It's Pat' (1994)

• 'Pulp Fiction' (1994)

• 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air' (2 episodes, 1990-1992)

• 'Shakes the Clown' (1991)

• 'The Unborn' (1991)

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