Sam Reich: From High School Dropout to CEO of Dropout

Sam Reich, an American comedian, producer, actor, and writer, has established himself as a prominent figure in the world of digital comedy. Born on July 22, 1984, in Boston, Massachusetts, he is the current CEO of Dropout (formerly CollegeHumor) and the host of popular web series such as Game Changer and Make Some Noise. In 2012, Forbes recognized his achievements by naming him one of their "30 Under 30" in the media category. As of June 2024, Reich is 39 years old and approaching his 40th birthday in July.

Early Life and Struggles

Samuel Dalton Reich was raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts, by his parents, Robert Reich, who served as the Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton, and Clare Dalton, a retired law professor at Northeastern University. Despite his parents' academic backgrounds, Sam's experience with formal education was challenging. He attended Buckingham Browne & Nichols School (BB&N) but dropped out in 2000 due to clinical depression.

In an interview with Forbes, Sam joked that "This bird was not meant to be caged,” and said "The formal education thing didn’t really work out so well for me, which is ironic in so far as my family is very academic and I grew up just outside of Harvard.”

Sam Reich went from high school dropout to one of the heads of his creative class. Now the president of digital production company Big Breakfast, Reich was president of original content for CollegeHumor, a struggling improv actor, a telemarketer, a precocious theater director, and a village idiot.

Early Career and Comedy Beginnings

Shortly after leaving high school, Sam moved to New York City and formed a comedy group called "Dutch West." The group focused on creating comedy videos for the internet. His wife Elaine Carrol was also part of the Dutch West with Vincent Peone, Matt Moore, and Josh Ruben.

CollegeHumor and Big Breakfast

In 2006, Reich joined CollegeHumor as the director of Original Content, and by 2009, he had risen to the position of president of Original Content. During his time as president, he oversaw Jest Originals, a short series project. In 2014, Sam founded Big Breakfast, CollegeHumor's offshoot production company, and relocated the CollegeHumor team to Los Angeles.

Still in 2014, Sam collaborated with Electus Digital to bring CollegeHumor's series Jake and Amir to life. Electus Digital is a partnership between Multimedia studio Electus and CollegeHumor Media, focusing on developing feature-length films and new media projects.

Collaborations and Recognition

Sam has collaborated with notable figures such as Michelle Obama and "Weird Al" Yankovic on music videos for CollegeHumor. In 2020, Reich acquired CollegeHumor from IAC (InterActiveCorp), which retained a minority shareholder position. Forbes recognized him as a multichannel networker in its 2014 "40 Under 40" list.

Transition to Dropout

In 2023, Sam rebranded CollegeHumor as Dropout. Initially, IAC was seeking $100 million for CollegeHumor, a company they had acquired for $26 million in 2006. However, when no buyers emerged at that price, IAC agreed to let Sam Reich take over the company without an upfront payment, while they maintained a minority stake.

Dropout plans to venture into event programming for Dimension 20, partnering with Live Nation for a four-show tour in the UK. A show is also planned for Madison Square Garden in 2025.

Financial Success

Dropout's net worth is estimated to be around $10 million. The company generates approximately 85% of its monthly revenue from subscriptions, priced at $5.99. Its YouTube channel boasts 14.8 million subscribers and generates an estimated $15,000 to $240,000 per month. Sam Reich's personal net worth was estimated at $10 million by 2023 and is expected to increase by 40% by 2026. His primary source of income is derived from his salary at CollegeHumor and subsequently Dropout. Apart from his salary, Sam earns income from brand partnerships and advertising revenue.

Personal Life

Sam is married to Elaine Carroll, whom he met at a summer camp in 2000. They have collaborated on the series Very Mary Kate and Precious Plum. Carroll, an accomplished actress born in New York, grew up in Richmond, Virginia, and attended a performing arts school there. She holds a BFA in Acting from Marymount Manhattan College. As mentioned earlier, she was also part of the Dutch West comedy group with Sam. There is no publicly available information regarding whether the couple has children.

In 2020, Sam, who has mild asthma, suspected he had contracted COVID-19. However, a functional medicine doctor discovered a treatable mold in his body requiring detoxification. Sam is 5'2" tall and weighs 61 kg. His father, Robert Reich, has a net worth of $4 million.

Overcoming Challenges

Sam Reich, who turns 40 in July 2024, has carved a niche in digital comedy and entertainment. His career has also earned him a good sum. Due to his hard work, Sam has grown wealth and escaped the tag of "nepo baby." That means he is also not a trust fund baby. Despite what people think, Sam has worked hard to earn the positions he has held at College Humor. Also, as much as Robert Reich held a cabinet position when Sam started his career, Robert was a professor and writer.

Robert Reich: A Brief Overview

Robert Reich has also had a long teaching career. From 1981 to 1992 he was a lecturer at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government and from 1997 to 2005 he was a professor of social and economic policy at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management of Brandeis University. In January 2006 he was appointed Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy at the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley. He taught his last class at Berkeley in the spring of 2023 and is currently Emeritus Carmel P. Reich has published numerous books, including the best-sellers The Work of Nations (1991), Reason (2004), Supercapitalism (2007), Aftershock (2010), Beyond Outrage (2012), and Saving Capitalism (2015). Reich was born to a Jewish family in Scranton, Pennsylvania, the son of Mildred Freshman (née Dorf) (1919-2006) and Edwin Saul Reich (1914-2016), who owned a women's clothing store. As a teenager, he was diagnosed with multiple epiphyseal dysplasia, also known as Fairbank's disease, a genetic disorder that results in short stature and other symptoms. This condition made Reich a target for bullies, and he sought out the protection of older boys; one of them was Michael Schwerner, who was one of the three civil rights workers murdered in Mississippi by the Ku Klux Klan in 1964 for registering African-American voters. Reich attended John Jay High School in Cross River, New York, where he received a National Merit Scholarship. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in history, summa cum laude. While at Dartmouth, Reich went on a date with Hillary Rodham (later Clinton), then an undergraduate at Wellesley College. He won a Rhodes Scholarship to study Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at University College, Oxford. While studying at Oxford, Reich first met Bill Clinton, also a Rhodes Scholar. Although Reich was drafted to serve in the Vietnam War, he did not pass the physical examination; due to his dysplasia condition, Reich is 4 feet 11 inches (1.50 m) tall, shorter than the required minimum height of 5 ft 0 in (1.52 m). Reich received his M.A. from the University of Oxford in 1970. He subsequently earned a J.D. from Yale Law School, where he was an editor of the Yale Law Journal. From 1973 to 1974, Reich served as a law clerk to Judge Frank M. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Solicitor General Robert Bork, under whom he had studied antitrust law while at Yale. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter appointed him as director of the policy planning staff at the Federal Trade Commission. From 1980 until 1992, Reich taught at the John F.

Reich's Advice and Philosophy

In an interview with Forbes, Sam Reich shared advice for potential former high school dropouts trying to make a living as creatives: "Try a lot of things. Do a lot of things. Get into every nook and cranny and corner of this world that you’re allowed into because you just never know how A is going to lead to B or B is going to lead to C. Do a lot."

Career Highlights

Some notable moments in Sam Reich's career include:

Making comedy shorts with his brother, Adam, on VHS.
Directing Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead in Boston.
Playing Leonardo Da Vinci in a children's theater tour.
Founding Dutch West, an internet-based sketch comedy group.
Directing and starring in The CollegeHumor Show on MTV.
Writing and directing See Plum Run for DROPOUT, a rebooted Precious Plum, starring Josh and Elaine.
Acquiring CollegeHumor from IAC and transforming it into CHMedia.

tags: #sam #reich #education #background