Background and career
Albert Charles Kreischer Jr. (born November 3, 1972) is an American stand-up comedian, podcaster, and actor. In 1997, he was featured in an article in Rolling Stone while attending Florida State University. The magazine named Kreischer "the top partyer at the Number One Party School in the country." The article also served as inspiration for the 2002 film National Lampoon's Van Wilder.
Kreischer has served as host of the television series Hurt Bert on FX as well as Bert the Conqueror and Trip Flip on Travel Channel. He starred in the comedy film The Machine (2023). As part of his production company, Berty Boy Productions, Kreischer produces and hosts the podcasts Bertcast and Open Tabs and the cooking show Something’s Burning. He also co-hosts the podcast 2 Bears, 1 Cave with friend and fellow comedian Tom Segura.
Albert Charles Kreischer Jr. was born November 3, 1972, in St. Petersburg, Florida, and raised in Tampa. His mother worked in early childhood development and his father worked as a successful real-estate attorney. He attended Jesuit High School of Tampa then went on to attend Florida State University (FSU). Kreischer majored in English and was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity.
In 1997, during Kreischer's sixth year at FSU, the university was ranked number one by The Princeton Review in their annual list of the top "party schools" in the United States. Later that same year Kreischer became the focus of a six-page article in Rolling Stone who named him "the top partyer at the Number One Party School in the country." Titled "Bert Kreischer: The Undergraduate," the article recounted Kreischer's party hijinks, which included bouts of heavy drinking and public nudity. From the Rolling Stone article director Oliver Stone optioned the film rights to Kreischer's life. When the development deal with Oliver Stone fell through, all the scripts that were submitted went back to their writers. One of these writers changed Kreischer's name and sold the script to National Lampoon. This became the basis for the 2002 film National Lampoon's Van Wilder, starring Ryan Reynolds.
When asked about his involvement in the film, Kreischer told the New York Post in 2014: "I've never seen it. I had nothing to do with it." On Joe Rogan's podcast, Kreischer talked about how National Lampoon executives confirmed to him that he was the basis for the film. He also confirmed that he would never sue National Lampoon for having made the movie without his involvement.
