Broken Lizard

Broken Lizard
Kevin Heffernan (right) and Steve Lemme (center) of Broken Lizard sign an autograph during a visit to Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in 2016.
Medium	Film
Nationality	United States
Years active	1996-present
Genres	Physical comedy, Gross-out humor
Notable works and roles	Puddle Cruiser (1996) Super Troopers (2001) Club Dread (2004) Beerfest (2006) The Slammin' Salmon (2009)
Members	Jay Chandrasekhar Kevin Heffernan Steve Lemme Paul Soter Erik Stolhanske
Website	brokenlizard.com

Broken Lizard is an American comedy troupe consisting of Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, and Erik Stolhanske. They collaborate on the screen-writing, acting and productions of their films, with Chandrasekhar and Heffernan being the primary directors. Broken Lizard does not have a single executive producer who serves as team captain and chooses its material.

The group formed at Colgate University in 1990 when Jay Chandrasekhar was asked by a student theater director to put together a comedy show. Chandrasekhar agreed and assembled a sketch comedy troupe which included Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, and Erik Stolhanske, all members of the Beta Theta Pi Fraternity. The team performed a combination of live stage sketches and short videos under the name "Charred Goosebeak." Charred Goosebeak continues to exist at Colgate to this day.

After graduation, the members reunited in New York City and spent the next few years performing at various clubs, mostly Greenwich Village mainstay The Duplex, under the name "Broken Lizard." The group offered various explanations of the origin of this moniker over the years, ranging from a euphemism for loss of virility, to a tribute to Chandrasekhar's pet allergies. Most recently, the members admitted that Chandrasekhar simply made up the name "off the top of his head" when he had their first flyer printed. Another possible name that was discarded was "Chocolate Speedo."

Broken Lizard spent the next few years performing at clubs and college campuses. Its membership dwindled to the five current performers. By the mid 90's, the group's interests shifted away from live material as they became more interested in filmed content. They wrote and acted in Dante's Levels of Hell, a series of interstitial shorts for Comedy Central's "Is This On?" feature.