Jason Hewlett

Jason Hewlett (born 1978) is an American speaker, entertainer, author, impressionist, and corporate events headliner known for his "clean," "family friendly" comedy.

Jason Hewlett
Born1978
Salt Lake City, Utah
NationalityAmerican
OccupationSpeaker, entertainer, author, impressionist, and corporate events headliner
Notable work
Signature Moves: How To Stand Out in a Sit Down World
Spouse(s)Tami Spenst Hewlett
Parent(s)John and Marsha Hewlett

Personal life

Jason Hewlett was born in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1978 to John and Marsha Hewlett. Hewlett’s mother, formerly Marsha Redford, is a cousin of actor Robert Redford. He is married to Tami Spenst Hewlett and has 4 children.[1][2]

Hewlett’s Great Grandfather, Lester Franklin Hewlett, was President of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir from 1938–1962,[3][4] during which time the choir won a Grammy in 1959 for its recording of “The Battle Hymn of The Republic” in the vocal group/chorus category, of which Hewlett’s Great-Grandmother, Margaret Stewart Hewlett was a choir member.[3][4]

Career

Hewlett began his professional career after his post-high school service as a Mormon missionary in the Florianopolis, Brazil Mission ended in 1999. One of his early gigs was as a half-time entertainer for University of Utah & Brigham Young University basketball games.[5] In 2001, he began working with the Las Vegas based Legends in Concert as both a Ricky Martin and Elton John impersonator.[6]

In 2002, he left Legends and worked professionally,[7] and became a corporate events headliner. Devin Thorpe of Forbes said: "He’s become one of the most sought after corporate entertainers in the business because his fall-off-your-chair funny material is absolutely safe for work."[8][9][10]

In 2004, Hewlett was courted by multiple casinos in Las Vegas to manage and create his one-man show. Based upon creative differences and demands that he change his act from family appropriate to be more adult, he turned all offers away and continued performing at corporate events and speaking to youth in school assemblies.[11][12]

In 2011,[9] Hewlett announced his retirement from public events and solely performs and speaks for corporate and youth events, only occasionally allowing his draw to be used for charitable causes and fundraisers, although performing privately for numerous charities on a regular basis.[13][14][15]

In 2014, Hewlett performed his one-man show for the National Speakers Association Foundation Event. The same year he was invited to perform a US Military Tour throughout the Middle East and Southwest Asia on US Military stations and bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Djibouti, Addis-Ababa, and Afghanistan during wartime for Armed Forces Entertainment along with other Latter Day Saints Artists including David Archuleta, Dan Clark, and Dean Kaelin.[16]

In 2016, Hewlett was invited by the National Speakers Association to be the Keynote Speaker for the national Influence conference for his peers. At this same event, he was inducted into the Speaker Hall of Fame as one of the youngest recipients to be named a CPAE (Council of Peers Award of Excellence).[17][18]

Acting

In 1997 Hewlett played the lead role in "Crayoluv", a short film by director Tucker Dansie.[19]

Religious

Hewlett is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, also referred to as Mormons. He references his religion in his speaking and performing as a comedy routine in order to make everyone feel connected rather than segregated.[20][21][22]

Author

His book, “Signature Moves: How To Stand Out in a Sit Down World” was published in 2014 by Peak Bagger Publishing and is offered in print as well as digital formats.

Musician

His original music and album, “Good To Me”, is featured on iTunes and his popular song, “My 8-ft. Tall Doll (The Chewbacca Song)” is known among youth audiences.

Controversy and viral post

On December 1, 2015 Hewlett’s Facebook post about seeing his wife at retail store Target became a viral internet post the world over, as it got headlined in news outlets and media as, “Man Cheats on Wife - Breaks The Internet".[23][24][25][26][27] Within 24 hours of posting, it was featured on the Today Show web site, within 48 hours it had been highlighted as the top story on BusinessInsider, GoogleAds, Yahoo!, and in People magazine.[23][24][25][26][27] Within 72 hours the Hewlett couple’s story was appearing on news outlets from Italy to Singapore and Australia, among others, as well as the family received multiple Reality TV Show offers from Hollywood producers (all of which were turned away), and Hewlett’s name was trending higher than Kim Kardashian as the top trending name in the world. As favorable as the attention was at first, Hewlett was also accused of creating “click-bait” with his post, and received multiple negative reviews of his writing, specifically from Cosmopolitan, The TV show The View, and multiple popular bloggers. His post was shared by celebrities such as George Takei, Zooey Deschanel, and boxer Manny Pacquiao.[23][24][25][26][27] The original post on his Facebook Page has reached over 35 million views and more than 238,000 shares[28] and on his personal profile over 82,000 shares.[23][24][25][26][27][29]

Awards and recognition
  • Best Specialty Act or Variety Performance in the Arts & Entertainment Category, Best of State Awards - Utah (2010).[30]
  • Best Individual Vocalist in the Arts & Entertainment Category, Best of State Awards - Utah (2013).
  • Certified Speaking Profession (CSP) designation by the National Speakers Association (less than 5% of speakers receive) (2014).
  • Outstanding Eagle Scout Award from the National Eagle Scout Association (only 1250 have been awarded since its introduction in 2011 through 2015).[31]
  • The STAR Award from the SCERA Center for the Arts in Orem, Utah (lifetime achievement award - 2016).[32]
  • Speaker Hall of Fame aka CPAE (Council of Peers Award for Excellence) induction from the National Speakers Association (less than 1% of speakers) (2016).[18]
gollark: 0.0.0.0?
gollark: They proved themselves a formidable adversary last time.
gollark: Nope.
gollark: I don't actually know their IPs. Probably should do something about that.
gollark: I probably could.

References
  1. Goodfellow, Mollie (December 4, 2015). "Jason Hewlett's post about 'sort of' cheating on his wife is unexpectedly sweet". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  2. "Utah man's viral story about cheating on wife has a twist – and everyone loves it". Fox News. December 4, 2015. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  3. "Salt Lake Mormon Tabernacle Choir Discography". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  4. "Choir Historical Roster". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  5. Adams, Casey (September 4, 2015). "Noted impersonator Hewlett to deliver free fireside at SCERA". Daily Herald. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  6. Haddock, Sharon (April 6, 2006). "Jason Hewlett — 1 performer, 100 different personalities". DeseretNews.com. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  7. Hardy, Roger (October 11, 2007). "Concert review: Hewlett dazzles fans with talent for mimicry". Deseret News. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  8. Thorpe, Devin (September 2, 2015). "This Show Is Absolutely Safe For Work". Forbes. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  9. Adams, Casey (September 17, 2015). "Jason Hewlett featured guest at Clean Comedy Festival". Daily Herald. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  10. "Jason Hewlett - Public Speaking & Appearances - Speakerpedia, Discover & Follow a World of Compelling Voices". speakerpedia.com. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  11. Robinson, Doug (January 3, 2016). "Doug Robinson: G-rated comedian chose values over fortune, fame (+video)". DeseretNews.com. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  12. "LDS comedians keep it cool while keeping it clean". LDS Living. May 16, 2012. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  13. Hawkins, Savannah (September 22, 2015). "'Clean Comedy Fest' premieres in Provo". The Digital Universe. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  14. Lee Benson (April 19, 2015). "About Utah: He's going public (again) for a very good cause". Deseret News. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
  15. Benson, Lee (April 19, 2015). "About Utah: He's going public (again) for a very good cause". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  16. "David Archuleta~ Sunday Sincerity and Smiles, Middle East Military Tour Updates, Dean Kaelin New Blog, Jason Hewlett Blog Update, Dan Clark Posts letter, Abrra's Candy Jar, Somebody Out There - Fans of David Archuleta". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  17. Robinson, Doug (January 3, 2016). "Doug Robinson: G-rated comedian chose values over fortune, fame (+video)". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  18. "CPAE Speaker Hall of Fame - National Speakers Association (NSA)". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  19. "Crayoluv". June 1, 1997. Retrieved November 16, 2016 – via IMDb.
  20. "Jason Hewlett - Latter-day Profiles". July 22, 2016. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  21. "Artist - Jason Hewlett - Deseret Book". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  22. "Watch Jason Hewlett - Live From Las Vegas () online - Amazon Video". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  23. UK, Rachel Moss Lifestyle Writer at The Huffington Post (December 4, 2015). "Man's Story About 'Cheating' On His Wife Is Surprisingly Sweet". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  24. "Guy Sorta Cheats on His Wife, Becomes an Internet Sensation". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  25. "This guy is melting everyone's hearts online with a surprising story about 'cheating' on his wife". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  26. Murray, Rheana. "Why this man's 'cheating' on his wife is making everyone swoon". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  27. DailyEdge.ie. "This husband's Facebook post about "kind of" cheating on his wife has become a sensation". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  28. "Jason Hewlett - Timeline - Facebook". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  29. "Jason Hewlett - Kind of embarrassed to admit this, but I... - Facebook". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  30. "Best of State - Utah". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  31. "Master NOESA List (2015 c.)" (XLS). Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  32. Herald, Derrick Clements Daily. "SCERA sets Star Awards, gala banquet to fete local arts standouts". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
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