Jill Kargman

Writer • Actress

A product of New York City's Upper East Side, author, actress and comedian Jill Kargman modeled a career in entertainment around the lifestyle she knew best - her own. Born Jill Kopelman in mid-1970s Manhattan, she graduated with honors from Yale University with a degree in art history, which she obtained in only three years. During that time, she also starred in theater productions and sang in the all-woman a capella group New Blue. She went on to study at the Spence School and Taft School. In 2002, she married advertising businessman Harry Kargman, and together they had three children: Sadie, Ivy and Fletch. A lifetime spent among the affluent denizens of the Upper East Side inspired her to write a number of books based on her perspective, beginning with the novel "The Right Address" in 2004, which she co-authored with fellow Spence alumnus Carrie Karasyov. Throughout her work, her portrayal of Manhattan's upper crust, from its glam and vanity to treacherous gossip, was largely satirical. In 2007, Kargman wrote "Momzillas," a novel about the extravagant lifestyles of the area's domineering mothers. She wrote pieces for numerous magazines, including Harper's Bazaar, GQ and ELLE, and for five years she penned a column called "EyeSpy" for Style.com. In 2011, she wrote a children's book with her daughter Sadie, then age 8, called "Pirates and Princesses." Four years later, she developed "Momzillas" into a television comedy series, "Odd Mom Out" (Bravo, 2015- ), wherein she portrayed a fictional version of herself that was so close to real life, the set designer even based the look of her character's home on the show heavily upon Kargman's own Manhattan townhouse. Although she found many outlets in which to satirize metropolitan life, Kargman openly declared her fondness for it and dismissed the notion of moving elsewhere.