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Poppi Kramer, comedian and Biggest Loser season 3 at-home winner, has died

Poppi Kramer, comedian and Biggest Loser season 3 at-home winner, has died
Poppi Kramer, who represented New Jersey on The Biggest Loser season 3 (Photo by NBC)

Poppi Kramer, a comedian and actor and the winner of The Biggest Loser season three’s at-home competition, died at age 46, according to friends and colleagues.

News of her death is circulating on social media among her friends and people she’s worked with; there are no details about when or how she died.

Time Out New York theater editor and critic Adam Feldman tweeted, “RIP Poppi Kramer, 46, comedian, singer, loudmouth, dieter, kvetcher, Mets fan, Jewess, nightlife institution, friend. I thought she’d never leave. I can’t believe she’s gone.”

Poppi was a contestant on NBC’s weight-loss competition in 2006. That season, the show had 50 contestants, one from each state, though it eliminated 36 of them during the first episode.

The show offered $50,000 to the at-home contestant who lost the most weight, and that was Poppi: She lost 117 pounds, 50.4 percent of her starting weight of 232. She was the first woman to win a prize on the series.

Poppi also acted and worked as a warm-up comedian for talk shows—and taught others how to do that. Her bio on her Facebook page says:

“Poppi Kramer is a stand-up comic/actress who has been performing and struggling in NYC since 1997. A minor gay male celebrity, Poppi is best known for her stint on NBC’s ‘The Biggest Loser’ Season 3 for losing half of her body weight. She still works in a bar. And she still wants a large plate of pasta. Come see her perform so she can pay her rent. Thank you for your time.”

Two years ago, Poppi was interviewed by The Record about what happened with her after the show. She said “I kept the weight off for about seven years” but “By 2014, I regained almost 80 percent of my weight.” She eventually decided to have bariatric surgery.

As to the Biggest Loser, she said,

“I got exactly what I wanted out of it. I am a warm-up comedian, and I am making a living being a comedian.”

Here are some remembrances from friends:

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Andy Dehnart

about reality blurred

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