20 Interesting Facts About Tiffany Haddish

It's no secret that Tiffany Haddish has been experiencing a major increase in popularity lately - and frankly, it's about time! The comedy superstar has been hustling for years now trying to make a career in the entertainment industry happen, and her role in Girls Trip was definitely her big break. She was starring alongside big names like Queen Latifah and Jada Pinkett Smith, and many just assumed she'd fade into the background, or just be another of the ensemble cast members. Instead, she became the breakout star of the film - everyone wanted to know who the hilarious woman was. And, when she started hitting the talk show circuit to promote her project, people fell even more in love with her because she was just so real, and absolutely hilarious. I mean, who could ever forget her way too long dance break for Stephen Colbert, or the hilarious Groupon swamp tour story she told on several shows? The woman knows her comedy.

While she's always positive and joyous in her interviews, the true story is, Tiffany Haddish definitely hasn't had an easy life - she's had to go through a lot of struggle and hardship to get to where she is, and she's a true warrior.

Here are 20 things you may not know about the amazing, absolutely hilarious Tiffany Haddish.

20 She Spent Years In Foster Care

Tiffany Haddish definitely had a tough childhood. When she was just a kid, her mother had a bad car accident that dramatically changed her personality, and Haddish and her sisters and brothers ended up in foster care. And, to make matters worse, she was split up from her siblings - which she wasn't about to let happen. As she told People, "the social workers had to stop telling me where they [her siblings] were because I would just get on a bus and go to them. I felt responsible for them."

She definitely struggled, moving from foster home to foster home for several years.

It's not something she ever tries to hide - in fact, she makes jokes about her experiences growing up in her stand-up routines, often thanking audience members for paying taxes during the time she was in foster care. It certainly wasn't an easy way to grow up, but she seems to have come through it with strength and a positive attitude, which is majorly impressive. It seems she learned early on that a great way to make friends and to make the best of a situation was to make people laugh - so that's what she always tried to do.

19 As A Teen, She Was Given A Choice Between A Psychiatrist And Comedy Camp To Address Her Misbehaving

When she was a misbehaving teenager, Tiffany Haddish was given two options after getting in trouble one too many times - a social worker told her, according to SheKnows, that she could either go to see a psychiatrist or go to comedy camp. We're not quite sure why comedy camp was seen as an option, but perhaps her social worker realized Tiffany's passion for comedy and realized it could be just the thing she needed to get her to focus on something other than stirring up trouble. At the Laugh Factory Comedy Camp, Haddish got the opportunity to meet a ton of major names in the comedy world at the time, including Richard Pryor, Charles Fleischer, and Dane Cook. And, it definitely had an impact. She chatted about her experience with People, saying "going to that comedy camp and having all those men tell me 'you're beautiful, you're smart, you're talented.' Like, for somebody to tell me that, even if they didn't believe it or mean it, it was enough. It was enough to light a fire." And light a fire it did! It just goes to show that sometimes, the smallest opportunities can have the biggest impact on your life.

18 She Didn't Learn How To Read Until She Was In High School

Tiffany Haddish is known for always telling it like it is - she's not afraid to be honest, and she's certainly not afraid to give her opinion. However, when she was in school, she used her ability to command everyone's attention and talk a big game in order to distract from a secret she was keeping - she actually couldn't really read. As she admitted to Madame Noire, "I was excellent at making people laugh and getting people to do things for me."

"All I knew were my ABCs and like three-letter words and McDonald's. Things you see every day."

"So I was a professional cheater."

Since she had such a tough childhood filled with a ton of changes and upheaval, she somehow just got very far behind in terms of literacy. Luckily, one of her teachers at El Camino High School went above and beyond and decided to help Tiffany catch up to the rest of her classmates, so she could finally stop lying about being able to read. And, it's a good thing she managed to brush up on her skills - she's probably putting them to good use reading scripts nowadays, looking for her next big role to catapult her further to superstardom!

17 She Married The Private Investigator Who Helped Her Find Her Long Lost Father

Honestly, the more things you find out about Tiffany Haddish's life, the more you realize just what a crazy life she led! So, the reason she ended up going into foster care when her mother started struggling with personal issues was that her father was long out of the picture - he just wasn't a part of her life. However, she was determined to build that relationship and find out who he was and have him be a part of life, so she decided to hire a private investigator to track him down. And, he had a pretty insane proposition that we cannot believe she agreed to. As she explained to Essence, "I said 'maybe you could find my daddy.' And he said 'I'll find your daddy for you, but it's gonna cost you.' And he was like 'I want you to marry me, that's what I want.' And so he found him in three weeks… and I'm a woman of my word." On the one hand, she got to build a relationship with her father, and he even was able to walk her down the aisle on her wedding day. On the other hand, her relationship with her ex ended up being majorly toxic and they eventually divorced - poor Tiff.

16 She Published A Best-Selling Book, Co-Written With Tucker Max

When it comes to celebrities who decide to pen books, Tiffany Haddish wasn't at the top of our list for one we were expecting. I mean, sure, she's had a fascinating life, but she just doesn't seem like the type to sit down for hours and write. She's more of a verbal storyteller. However, luckily, there are services for that. She ended up working with controversial author Tucker Max to write her book, The Last Black Unicorn, which is filled with personal essays about her life that show her struggles, but also her ability to turn everything into a fantastic, often funny story. People went absolutely nuts over the book because it was released right when Haddish's career was starting to blow up, and because, well, it sounded just like Tiffany!

The book was totally real and fearless and people responded to it in a majorly positive way.

We're not sure if she'll ever write anything else because she's already told her story, but who knows - the comedian probably has a whole lot more stories down her sleeve that she's just waiting to break out for book number two. Maybe one day we can all own a whole Tiffany Haddish collection.

15 Her Father Was A Refugee From Eritrea

Tiffany Haddish has certainly had a complex relationship with her father. He abandoned her family when she was just three years old, according to SheKnows, and though she tracked him down through the use of a private investigator, there's no denying that she missed out on having that father figure in her life. However, she still considers him a big part of her life, even in the small role he played - so when he passed away in May of 2017, she decided to pay him tribute on the Oscars red carpet. While Haddish could have likely called in favors from designers around town and showed up in a total showstopping, glamorous gown, she took things in a different direction. She paid tribute to her father by wearing a traditional Eritrean gown, because she wanted to honor their heritage and to honor his memory on that red carpet. It was a majorly touching moment, and she ended up looking absolutely breathtaking - proof that she's not afraid to be herself and take a style risk, even if some people might avoid doing so. If she wants to honor her father with an Eritrean gown, that's exactly what she's going to do, regardless of what any stylist says.

14 She Made SNL History As The First Black Female Stand-Up Comic To Host The Show

We kind of can't believe this is true, but it turns out, it is - when Tiffany Haddish hosted Saturday Night Live back in November of 2017, she made history by being the first black female stand-up comic to host the show.

In the entire history of the 43 seasons it has been on the air, no one else had done it.

Talk about being a major inspiration! Obviously, she was hilarious and totally shone in every single one of her skits, but for many people, there was nothing funny about the significance. It was a major moment of cultural significance, and no one will forget it. Given that SNL definitely isn't afraid to invite back popular hosts, we have a feeling we'll be seeing Tiffany Haddish at least once or twice more over the next few years - I mean, when you have a comedic genius who is willing to show her stuff on your show, why not take her up on it? The week they were working on the scripts for that show was probably filled with laughter as Tiffany cracked up every single person in the writers' room, time and time again. It's kind of just what she was made to do!

13 She Has An Amazing Story About Someone Biting Beyonce

When Tiffany Haddish tells a story, she turns it into a whole production, even if it's something as simple as taking a Groupon swamp tour with some fellow celebrities. So, when she actually has a juicy story, you know she's going to tell it well - and that's exactly what she did about the whole Beyonce incident, which she discussed with GQ. Apparently, they were both at a party when, at some point, a woman (who was never named) came up and bit Beyonce. Haddish immediately put on her fighting gloves and told Bey she was about to rough the biter up a little, but Beyonce told her to chill and avoid starting an altercation in the middle of the party. To her credit, Haddish tried to keep it a secret for quite a while before eventually it just got to be too much to bear and she had to tell her secret or burst trying to keep it in. One thing is for sure - we're excited that Haddish is going to more and more big events filled with celebrities because we have a feeling there will be a lot more great stories coming our way. Although, hopefully no more with any biting - that's kind of weird.

12 She's Using Her Fame And Fortune To Take Care Of Her Family

There are a lot of celebrities who completely lose their minds the moment they get a bit of fame and fortune and start spending money like mad. They'll buy expensive cars, a luxurious home, designer goods, hire staff, just blow dollars left and right.

Tiffany Haddish isn't like that.

While she's making better money now than she ever has before, she's not investing in anything crazy - instead, she's using her newfound fortune to take care of her family. She chatted about her decisions with GQ, saying "I just got my mom out the [health center]. Once you start making it in the business, you start meeting all kinds of people that definitely have mental problems, and they link you up with the best psychiatrists. Literally, all my money goes into my grandmother and my mother. I got a two-bedroom apartment and moved my sister in so she could be monitoring. I got nurses for my mom. My grandma bumped her head and [… ] she's dealing with Alzheimer's. I've got meal services coming to the house for her and for my mom." I mean, that's completely adorable - Tiffany Haddish just has such a warm, caring heart.

11 She Used To Live In Her Car

By now, most huge Tiffany Haddish fans have heard this story, but just in case you haven't we'll go through it. When she first came to Beverly Hills as an aspiring comedian who was trying to make her dream happen, Tiffany didn't have a lot of money to spend on things like rent. In fact, she didn't even have enough to rent a small, run-down spot in a bad neighborhood in Los Angeles. So, she did what she had to do - according to IMDB, she slept in her car while she tried to book gigs and make her dream a reality. I mean, talk about inspirational! She's truly hustled and worked so hard to get to where she is today, she deserves every single dollar she's making now. It can't have been easy to decide to pursue her dream, even if it meant living in a car for a while, rather than moving somewhere less expensive where she may have been able to get a minimum wage job and small apartment. She went all in, deciding to bet on herself and her talent, and her gamble paid off big time. Soon enough, she'll be able to afford any house she wants - and any car she wants, just for driving!

10 She Suffered From Toxic Shock Syndrome At 13

As if Tiffany Haddish hadn't had a hard enough life by the time she hit 13, this story takes things to a whole new level. So, when she was just a young teen, she ended up using a tampon during her time of the month because there was nothing else around and she figured out it would be fine.

Soon, though, she started to realize that something was wrong - so she got her mother and grandmother.

She told the crazy story to Madame Noire, saying "everything I ate I [couldn't keep in]. [… ] I was completely dehydrated… I ended up having to stay in the hospital for three days. They hooked me up with all these IVs… it was the worst… the reason you're so sick off the tampon is [that] they put a chemical in there that is the same chemical they put in rat poisoning [… ]. You're allergic to this poison and that's why you have [the] toxic shock." Crazy, right?!

9 She Took Her Book Title From A Name Harsh Classmates Used To Call Her

Okay, talk about making the best of a bad situation - the title behind Tiffany Haddish's book is even cuter than we thought. So, you may have assumed that the title, The Last Black Unicorn, was just a reference to how one of a kind Tiffany was, how there was no one in the industry like her. While that's certainly true, it actually has a much deeper meaning. It turns out, when she was younger, according to Alloy, she used to get bullied in the schoolyard because of a wart she had on her head. They responded to her wart by calling her a unicorn. While this might have negatively impacted some people, Tiff decided to embrace her new name and own it because, well, who doesn't love unicorns? And she plopped that nickname right on the cover of the New York Times bestselling book she helped write. We have a feeling those bullies are feeling pretty darn foolish now that they see all the success the girl they used to bully has achieved. I mean, they certainly don't have wildly successful books carried in bookstores around the world, do they? Tiffany definitely had the last laugh in this situation.

8 Kevin Hart Had A Major Impact On Her

Kevin Hart may be selling out huge arena tours now, but just like Tiffany Haddish, he was once a comedian with a dream struggling to make it happen. So, when he met her back when she was living in her car, he gave her some words of wisdom. She told the hilarious story to Vanity Fair, saying "he saw all the stuff in my car, he had like this long discussion with me, you know? Basically like 'you're a beautiful woman, you could stay with any man, why don't you just stay with a man?' And I was also like 'I'm not [getting] with nobody for a roof over my head, I'm just not that type of person… Kevin gave me $300, told me to get a room for a week… I got me a motel room, and he told me to write out a list of goals and start doing something every day toward those goals."

And, little by little, that's exactly what she did - and now, she's starring alongside Kevin Hart in a movie, Night School.

Talk about a full circle moment! It just goes to show you that you never know what impact your decision to help someone might have - it could end up completely turning their life around!

7 She's Completely Obsessed With Groupon

While there are many celebrities who pretend to be far wealthier than they actually are, overspending just to try to keep up with far more successful stars, Tiffany Haddish doesn't play that game. Though she's making good money now, she's not afraid to hunt for a bargain, and she's a huge fangirl for Groupon. In fact, she told so many fantastic Groupon stories that the company ended up making her their official spokesperson and putting her as the star in a series of hilarious commercials. It's just one of the reasons we love Tiffany Haddish so much. While some celebrities might be embarrassed to even admit they're looking for a low-cost alternative, Tiffany is all about saving a few bucks wherever she can. After all, if you can get something for a better price, why not? There are so many stars who end up making bad financial decisions and go from being millionaires to being totally broke - we have a feeling Tiffany will avoid that fate thanks to her good financial decisions. She's never going to be the type of star who goes into debt just to keep up with the other celebrities - she just does her own thing and doesn't care what anyone thinks.

6 She Loves To Surf

While Tiffany Haddish has an amazing physique, we never really pictured her as an athlete - she just seems like the type that has natural curves. Well, while you may not see her on the volleyball courts or soccer field, you just might spot her on the beach, because it turns out she's a huge fan of surfing. She mentioned that Sally Field in the movie Gidget first inspired her to try out the sport, according to Alloy.  and it's since become one of her favorite activities. According to Vanity Fair, she'd even be totally down to do a remake of the movie, with her as the starring role, obviously.

It just goes to show that the minute you think you know everything about Tiffany Haddish, she ends up surprising you with a secret skill or passion.

Now, all we want is for her to star in a hilarious surf comedy set on the beach. I mean, there have been a ton of dramas involving surfing - why not stick Tiffany Haddish in a wetsuit, put her by an ocean with a surfboard in her hands, and let her do her thing. We have a feeling it would be absolutely hysterical.

5 She Believes In The Health Benefits Of Drinking Turpentine

When she was talking to GQ for an interview, Haddish revealed a certain health habit she has that's a bit, well, dangerous. She drinks turpentine. As she told the writer she was chatting with, "a teaspoon of turpentine will not kill you. The government doesn't want you to know that if you have a cold, just take some turpentine with some sugar or castor oil or honey and it'll go away the next day." When the writer expresses a bit of doubt and incredulity, Haddish is quick to say that once she incorporated the practice "everything just felt so much better, clarity-wise" and "I was killing the game onstage! My thought patterns were coming quick, quick, quick." Okay obviously, no one should be drinking turpentine - no matter how effective Tiffany Haddish says it is. Still, it just goes to show what an unpredictable force she is. Who knows, perhaps she'll end up getting a Turpentine spokesperson sponsorship next. They're probably not legally allowed to tell her to advocate actually drinking it, but they could definitely create some kind of playful campaign that features the rising comedian who claims to drink their product. I mean, it would probably be the most publicity they got in decades!

4 She Has An Interesting Guilty Pleasure Treat - Pickles With Jolly Ranchers

Even though she's known more for her comedic skills than for the way she looks in a bathing suit, there's no denying that Hollywood is definitely very focused on image. Tiffany Haddish may not be a size zero, but she's certainly a conventionally attractive kind of woman. However, that doesn't mean she only eats salad and steamed vegetables and dry chicken - in fact, she has a somewhat unusual guilty pleasure treat. She discussed it with ExtraTv, saying that "I like to eat pickles with Jolly Ranchers in the middle of them. You get the big dill pickles from the liquor store. You gotta go to a [corner] store to get the pickles. You eat the top off and you stick a Jolly Rancher in the middle and it's the bomb."

"Everyone that knows about it is from the hood. If you don't know, you're not hood!"

Haddish is so savvy with her decisions, that she may very well end up turning her brief story about a guilty pleasure into a culinary empire selling Jolly Rancher-stuffed pickles. I mean, if Bethenny Frankel could build an empire for women looking to buy lower calorie alcoholic options, why couldn't Tiffany Haddish be the new pickle queen, providing sweet and sour treats to people around the world?

3 She Had A Ton Of Small Roles Before Getting Her Big Break

It may seem like Tiffany Haddish just snagged a role in Girls Trip and became a huge star overnight, but that couldn't be further from the truth. While not everyone will remember her earlier roles, because she wasn't yet a household name at that point, she's definitely paid her dues and done her time in the industry. She's appeared on shows including That's So Raven, My Name is Earl, It' s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and New Girl, just to name a few. And, she had one of the lead roles in The Carmichael Show, which wasn't on the air for very long and thus didn't quite catapult her to stardom. It just goes to show what a crazy place the entertainment industry is. It may seem like someone is an overnight success who just got lucky with the right role, but usually, that person has been working for years on end, trying to book small gigs and just make a living before they enter the big leagues and start getting the kind of roles that allow them to walk down the red carpet. It's definitely not an easy industry, but Tiffany Haddish was determined to succeed - and she certainly did!

2 Self-Help YouTube Videos Changed Her Life And Perspective On Herself

Tiffany Haddish may be consistently hilarious, but that doesn't mean she can't get serious from time to time - in fact, she revealed some poignant truths to Well and Good about the impact self-help videos had on her. She commented that "YouTube videos have changed my whole existence. I used to watch this video with Louise Hay all the time." The video advocated for a particular self-love practice where you look at yourself in the mirror and affirm that you love and approve of yourself, and she just couldn't do it - and she knew she had to make a change. "That meant I didn't really love myself, I didn't approve of who I was. And then for a week, every day I did it for five minutes and I cried every single time and then after that week, I stopped crying. And I kept doing it every morning, just looking directly into my eyes."

"After like two weeks, my whole world started changing, things just started opening up for me."

"Like the road started clearing. And people started treating me the way that I was treating myself. I was treating myself with love, so then people started giving me love and helping me." What an amazing story!

1 She's Not Afraid To Repeat Outfits - In Fact, She Embraces It!

There's a bit of an unspoken rule in Hollywood that you shouldn't repeat outfits, especially for something as major as a red carpet event. However, Tiffany Haddish isn't about to follow anyone's rules - she makes her own. So, when she bought a stunning white Alexander McQueen dress, she wore it once… then again… and again, and always to very high profile events. And she refuses to apologize for it. As she told Glamour, "I wear what I wear when I feel like wearing it. If it makes me feel good, I'm going to wear it. And I think people should think that way: if you have your favorite piece of clothing or your favorite dress or your favorite whatever, rock it!" And, she's all about promoting outfit-repeating to the entire world. She commented that "I know this girl that goes to a private school - she's not rich, she's going on a scholarship - and kids make fun of her if she's wearing the same jacket after three days. When she saw me [in the white dress], she hit me up. She said it made her feel so good to see that I was wearing the same dress." It just goes to show, you never know what kind of impact your actions will have!

References: gq.com, sheknows.com, people.com, imdb.com, alloy.com, wellandgood.com, glamour.com