Since the dawn of time, Jewish people have contributed greatly to various fields, from sports to entertainment to politics to porn. With our Breakthrough Jew feature, we recognize those who are up and comers in these various industries, identifying those great innovators and leaders in the contemporary world who are making a mark on society that will last a lifetime.

With the Jewish Hall of Fame, we recognize the remarkable advancements members of our community have made on today's society. These are people who have truly changed the world, and have earned the respect and praise of the members of today's younger generation.

ShalomLife’s Jewish Hall of Fame is our ongoing tribute to the greatest Jews who have ever lived; be sure to catch us weekly with our latest inductees, and tweet us @ShalomLife with your suggestions.

Check out last week's inductee into the Hall of Fame here.

Hall of Fame Member: Matthew Richard Stone

: May 26th, 1971, in Houston, Texas.

Hailing from Houston, Texas, Matt Stone is known not only for his hand as co-creator of the hilarious hit show South Park, but for helping to redefine comedy for an entire generation. Born to Gerald Whitney Stone Jr, and his Jewish mother Sheila Lois Belasco, his family moved to Denver, Colorado, when he was young. He attended Heritage high school with his sister, Rachel, and then went on to attend the University of Colorado at Boulder.

While at university, studying to obtain a double major in film and mathematics, Stone met Trey Parker. In 1992, the two friends created the film The Spirit of Christmas (also known as Jesus vs. Frosty). The film was produced under the moniker Avenging Conscience Films, and was made with an 8-millimeter camera, glue, and construction paper. This animation style would come to be their signature film aesthetic.

Avenging Conscience Films then went on to produce a trailer for a fake musical by the name of Alfred Packer: The Musical. The trailer became a sensation on campus and the team raised $125,000 in funding from friends, family members, and fans of the trailer. The film was produced shortly after, premiering in Boulder in 1993. Stone and Parker then sent it to the Sundance Film Festival, but never heard back from them. In response, the duo rented out a conference room at a nearby hotel, where they had their own screening of the film which would eventually be retitled Cannibal! The Musical . MTV covered their premiere and, eventually, the men would go on to sell the rights to the film for $1 million.

Three years after the film’s release, in 1995, Brian Garden, an executive of Fox, saw The Spirit of Christmas. He then paid Stone and Parker $2,000 in order for them to produce an animated film Jesus vs. Santa, that he could include in a Christmas card for him to send to his friends during the holidays. The film/card ended up going viral online, and it caught the attention of the producers at Comedy Central, who hired both men to produce a show for their network.

With a budget of $300,000, the men put together their iconic and Emmy Award winning show South Park , named after an area of Colorado by the same name. The show was a hit, and was quick to gain followers, which helped to launch Comedy Central into the powerhouse network that it is today. The show was a sensation, and did exceedingly well until it had a poor third season.

Deciding that their bad third season would mark an end to the series, the duo produced a feature film length entitled Bigger, Longer, and Uncut. Originally the MPAA wanted to give the film an NC-17 rating, but Stone and Parker got the R rating they’d been hoping for only two weeks before the film’s release in theaters. The film premiered in 1999 and made over $83 million at the box office.

It also brought forth a wonderful Robin Williams performance at the Oscars:





Despite the advertising for the film claiming that the end of South Park was near, the show continues to be a success among both young, and older, audiences, just adjourning their 18th (!!) season. The show has released several comedic albums, and television films. Stone and Parker have also released joint projects together that don’t centre around the town of South Park.

The duo wrote the hit broadway musical The Book of Mormon, which received glowing reviews and a Tony award. They also worked together on Team America: World Police in 2004, and Stone continues to work on producing, writing, animating, and lending his voice to South Park, as well as working with the film company he and Parker owns, called Important Studios.