Silverman, the youngest of four daughters, was born in Bedford, New Hampshire. Her mother, Beth Ann Silverman, was George McGovern's personal campaign photographer and founded the theater company New Thalian Players. Her father, Donald Silverman, was a social worker by training who ran the discount clothing store Crazy Sophie's Outlet. Her family is Jewish, the descendants of immigrants from Russia Read more...

Silverman first received national attention in the 1993–94 season of Saturday Night Live, as a writer and featured player. She was fired after one season because only one of the sketches she wrote survived to dress rehearsal, and none aired. Bob Odenkirk, a former SNL writer explained:

Silverman claims being fired by SNL via fax upset her greatly. She parodied the situation when she Read more...

Silverman caused a brief controversy after using the ethnic slur "chink" in an interview on the July 11, 2001, episode of Late Night with Conan O'Brien. In the interview, Silverman explained that a friend had advised her on how to avoid jury duty by writing a racial slur on the selection form, "something inappropriate, like 'I hate chinks'". However, Silverman said that she ultimately decided that Read more...