Jon Stewart: Who's Your Daddy?
by Lia Haberman
Apr 1, 2004, 11:30 AM PT
This just in: Jon Stewart is gonna be a daddy.
The 41-year-old funnyman and his missus, Tracey, are expecting their first child. No other details are available.
Stewart's publicist wasn't available for confirmation at press time but fellow thesp and Daily Show guest Jennifer Beals let the baby news out of the bag Monday night when she congratulated Stewart on air--unaware that this wasn't public knowledge.
A stunned Stewart, who starred with Beals in 1997's romantic comedy Wishful Thinking, accepted her best wishes and a chorus of "awwws" from the audience.
The Daily Show host and his wife, a graphic designer, have been hitched since 2000.
The timing works out well for the late night yakker and papa-to-be, who's suddenly facing 2 a.m. feedings and college tuition.
Two weeks ago, Stewart agreed to a four-year contract extension at Comedy Central that will keep him anchoring the mock newscast through 2008.
"A lot of people like to get out when their show's still going well," Stewart said in a statement. "This gives me the opportunity to beat this thing into the ground."
For his efforts, Stewart's expected to receive a raise in his current $1.5 million salary.
He took over the anchor desk in January 1999 from original host Craig Kilborn.
Before joining The Daily Show, Stewart emceed the syndicated Jon Stewart Show, which originally aired on MTV, and was a fill-in host for The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder.
He hosted the 2002 Grammy Awards and has also tried his hand at acting. Aside from a recurring role as Garry Shandling's scheming successor on HBO's The Larry Sanders Show, Stewart has appeared in such feature flicks as The First Wives Club, Playing by Heart, Death to Smoochy, Big Daddy and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.