Lange frequently discussed his on-again/off-again relationship with longtime girlfriend Dana Sironi after they began dating in early spring 2002. Most of the couple’s problems stemmed from Lange’s lifestyle. In mid-2006 Lange declared that the couple had officially broken up, for which Lange cited his heroin abuse as the primary reason, and claimed to have warned her that she would be “tortured” if they stayed together. However, Lange announced on an early November 2006 Stern Show that he and Sironi were again together to some extent, but that the situation was a mystery even to him. The couple broke up in early 2007, but began dating again in December 2007. On January 29, 2008, Vinnie Favale from the David Letterman Show accidentally emailed Dana the itinerary for the night of Artie’s appearance. The email contained the details of the reservations Vinnie made for Artie and three Penthouse pets at a hotel and the Penthouse club. They have since parted ways.
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After Lange served a short jail term and successfully completed a drug rehabilitation program, comedian Norm MacDonald offered him a part in the 1998 movie Dirty Work. While promoting the movie, McDonald brought Lange to The Howard Stern Show. Lange appeared on the show several times after, and was eventually asked to take over Jackie Martling’s chair when Martling left the Stern Show in 2001.
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Lange was one of the original nine castmembers of MADtv when the series debuted in 1995. Unlike some of his fellow castmembers on MADtv, Lange came to the show with limited sketch comedy experience as a stand-up comedian. Around this time he became heavily involved with drugs, particularly cocaine. He has stated that his lowest point of cocaine use occurred during a shooting of the MADtv sketch “Babewatch” (a parody of Baywatch) in which he played a pig lifeguard. Because the sketch involved going through hours of make-up to transform him into a pig, he snorted cocaine in his car in full pig make-up during a break in the shooting of the sketch. Upon returning from the shoot, he passed out in his hotel room, and awoke to find he had defecated in his bed. (The cast and fanbase of The Howard Stern Show now refer to this incident as “The Pig Story.”) His tenure with MADtv came to a dramatic end when, during a cocaine binge, the police were called to the studio. Lange fled, running through a number of backyards and stores before being arrested. He was charged with cocaine possession, assaulting an officer, and possessing an open alcoholic container in his car, among other charges. Upon Lange’s arrest, Quincy Jones, an executive producer of MADtv, intervened and arranged for him to continue on the show for a second season. Lange’s sobriety did not last, however, and he was fired after two seasons.
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Artie “Skipper” Lange was born and raised in Union Township, Union County, New Jersey. His mother was a homemaker and his father was a general contractor. Two weeks after he was born, his father went on trial for counterfeiting money, but was spared jail time out of the court’s sympathy for his young son. His family identified themselves as Italian-Americans, despite having German and Native American ancestry on his father’s side. Lange has said that his father’s background “has always been a gray area.” During a segment of The Howard Stern Show, Lange provided a blood sample which was taken to a laboratory for genetics testing. Howard Stern announced that the results indicated that Lange was approximately 25 percent American Indian. Stern noted that Lange turned beet red after the revelation was made. Lange remarked that he had to re-evaluate his position when watching Western films, and that he was feeling more sympathetic toward the American Indian.
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Not exactly Artie news but I wanted to write about Killers of Comedy show I went to last Saturday in Houston. It was Hilarious! The show had Shuli, Yucko, Sal the Stockbroker, Rev. Bob Levy, Beetlejuice and The Iron Sheik. I brought my fiance to the show and after a few drinks I was SHOCKED to see that she was one of three girls getting Blue Cheese licked off her ass on stage. The other two were a MOTHER and DAUGHTER!!! Later in the show my fiance was called back on stage, they put whipcream between her boobs, picked up beetlejuice, flew him across the stage like superman and put his face between her boobs. The fans there were great and I made a couple new friends. I have a few pictures I will post shortly of me and Sal and my fiance getting hit on. I heard on the show Monday that Bob Levy was retiring the blue cheese bit until someone can come up with something crazier than a mother and daughter at the same time.

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