Alan Stuart Franken was born on the 21st May 1951, in New York City, USA, and is a politician, actor, writer, and comedian, best known as a current US Senator from Minnesota, a position he has held since 2009. Franken also worked as a writer and performer on the television comedy show “Saturday Night Live” in the ‘70s and ‘80s, and won five Emmys. His career started in 1975.
Have you ever wondered how rich Al Franken is, as of late-2016? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that Franken’s net worth is as high as $8 million, an amount earned through politics, acting, his successful career on television, and Franken has also published several books, which have improved his wealth.
Al Franken Net Worth $8 Million
Al Franken is a son of Phoebe, a real estate agent, and Joseph Franken, a printing salesman, in a Jewish family with roots from Russia and Germany. His family moved from New York to Albert Lea, Minnesota, when Al was a young child, and then to St. Louis Park, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. Al went to The Blake School, where he was a member of the wrestling team and matriculated in 1969. Later, he studied at Harvard College majoring in government and graduating in 1973 with BA degree.
Franken met his fellow writer and longtime friend Tom Davis while at high school, and the two became well-known for their humor, especially political satire. They were hired as writers and occasional performers for “Saturday Night Live” from 1975 to 1995; in Season 1 of the show, Franken and Davis shared $350 per week. Franken also wrote “The New Show” in 1984, six episodes of “Politically Incorrect” from 1996 to 1997, and is the creator of “Late Line” that aired from 1998 to 1999, all contributing to his net worth.
Franken’s acting career started in 1976 when he appeared in the comedy called “Tunnel Vision”, and he also had a part in “The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash” (1978), which certainly added to his net worth. In 1983, Franken played in John Landis’ Oscar-nominated comedy “Trading Places” starring Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd, then together with Tom Davis, Al starred in “One More Saturday Night” in 1986. In the ‘90s, Franken had bigger roles in “MTV, Give Me Back My Life: A Harvard Lampoon Parody” (1991), Harold Ramis’ “Stuart Saves His Family” (1995), “The Definite Maybe” (1997) with Bob Balaban, and starred in “LateLine” from 1998 to 1999, increasing further his net worth. Most recently, Al played in Jonathan Demme’s Golden Globe-nominated drama “The Manchurian Candidate” (2004) starring Denzel Washington, Liev Schreiber, and Meryl Streep.
He entered politics in the ‘70s, but wasn’t very active until the 2000’s. Franken was a well-known supporter of Minnesota Senator Paul Wellstone and his death in a plane crash in 2002 was extremely upsetting to him. In 2003, Al started talking about entering the Senate, and in 2005, he founded his political action committee “Midwest Values PAC”. In 2008, he formally announced his candidacy for the Minnesota Senate, and a year later, Franken became the Senator after defeating Norm Coleman, and is still serving as a Minnesota Senator.
Franken has published several non-fiction books, including “I’m Good Enough, I’m Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!: Daily Affirmations with Stuart Smalley” (1992), “Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot and Other Observations” (1996), “Why Not Me?: The Inside Story of the Making and Unmaking of the Franken Presidency” (1999), and most recently “The Truth (With Jokes)” (2005), the sales of which have increased his net worth.
Regarding his personal life, Al Franken married Franni Bryson in 1975, and they have a son and a daughter. Al and his wife moved to Minneapolis in 2005, and they still live there.
