Jon Favreau

Favreau in 2013, photo by Prphotos

Birth Name: Jonathan Kolia Favreau

Place of Birth: Flushing, Queens, New York City, New York, U.S.

Date of Birth: October 19, 1966

Ethnicity:
*father – one half Italian, one quarter French-Canadian, one quarter German
*mother – Ashkenazi Jewish

Jon Favreau is an American actor, director, screenwriter, filmmaker, and comedian. He has directed the films Made, which he wrote; Elf, Zathura: A Space Adventure, Iron Man (2008), Iron Man 2, Cowboys & Aliens, Chef, which he also wrote; Disney’s The Jungle Book (2016), and The Lion King (2019). He also wrote the film Swingers and co-wrote the films The First $20 Million Is Always the Hardest and Couples Retreat. His acting roles include Rudy, PCU, Deep Impact, Very Bad Things, The Replacements, Daredevil, The Break-Up, Four Christmases, I Love You, Man; People Like Us, and The Wolf of Wall Street, his films Swingers, Made, and Couples Retreat; and as Happy Hogan in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He created the shows The Mandalorian and The Book of Bobba Fett, both of which he has written for; he has also hosted the show Dinner for Five and co-hosted The Chef Show. His production company is Fairview Entertainment.

Jon is the son of Madeline/Madeleine, an elementary school teacher, and Charles Favreau, a special education teacher. His father’s ancestry is half Italian, with the rest being French-Canadian and German. His mother was Ashkenazi Jewish, of Russian Jewish descent. Jon was raised Jewish and was Bar Mitzvah. Jon is married to Dr. Joya Tillem, with whom he has three children. Joya is also Jewish.

Jon’s paternal grandfather was Eustace Victor Favreau (the son of Charles William Favreau and Ann Elizabeth Lillian Werner). Eustace was born in New York. Charles was the son of French-Canadian parents, Lewis/Louis Favreau, Jr. and Marguerite/Margaret Boisse/Bosse. Ann Elizabeth was born in New Hampshire, the daughter of parents of German origin, Friedrick/Friedrich Werner and Emilie/Emma Hickert.

Jon’s paternal grandmother was Josephine Emilia “Joan” Defilippo (the daughter of Giovannino “John” Defilippo and Maria Maddaloni). Josephine was born in New York, to Italian parents. Giovannino was born in Napoli, Campania, the son of Michele Defilippo and Emilia Nuzzi. Maria was the daughter of Francesco Maddaloni and Rosina Alfieri.

Jon’s maternal grandfather was named Barney Balkoff (the son of Kolia Balkoff and Masha).

Jon’s maternal grandmother was named Mary Rubenstein.

Sources: Genealogy of Jon Favreau – https://www.nosorigines.qc.ca

Genealogy of Jon Favreau (focusing on his father’s side) – http://www.geni.com

Jon’s paternal grandfather, Eustace Victor Favreau, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Jon’s paternal grandmother, Josephine Emilia “Joan” Defilippo, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org