Stuart Schuffman
American travel writer (born 1980)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stuart Schuffman (born December 16, 1980), also known as Broke-Ass Stuart, is an American travel writer, television host, poet, performer, and journalist based in San Francisco, California. He pioneered budget-living zines and books, created IFC's travel series Young, Broke & Beautiful (2011), and runs BrokeAssStuart.com as “Editor-in-Cheap.” He writes the dive-bar column for SFGate. In 2015, he received 18,211 votes (9.56%) in his San Francisco mayoral campaign.[1]
December 16, 1980
Stuart Schuffman | |
|---|---|
Stuart Schuffman aka Broke-Ass Stuart | |
| Born | Stuart Schuffman December 16, 1980 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Travel writer, television host, journalist |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | University of California, Santa Cruz (B.A. in American Studies) |
| Notable works | BrokeAssStuart.com; Young, Broke & Beautiful; SFGATE dive bar columnist |
| Website | |
| brokeassstuart | |
In October 2025, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors officially declared October 17 to be "Broke-Ass Stuart Day" in San Francisco.[2]
Early life and education
Schuffman was born in Los Angeles and grew up in El Paso, Texas, and San Diego, California.[3] He earned his B.A. in American Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Career
Schuffman’s media journey began with zines: Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to Living Cheaply in San Francisco, Volumes 1 (2004) and 2 (2005).[4] Volume 2 won the San Francisco Bay Guardian's Best Local Zine award in its 2005 Best of the Bay issue. These evolved into books published by Seven Footer Press: Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to Living Cheaply in San Francisco (2007)[5] and Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to Living Cheaply in New York (2008).[6]
He also contributed to Lonely Planet travel guides and has written for SF Bay Guardian and SF Weekly. He curates BrokeAssStuart.com as “Editor-in-Cheap” and writes the Dive-Bar column for SFGate.[7][8]
From 2015 to 2021, he penned the “Broke-Ass City” column for the San Francisco Examiner.[9] His bylines have appeared in Condé Nast Traveler,[10] 7x7,[11] SF Weekly,[12] and The Bold Italic,[13] amongst others.
Publications and zines
- Volume 1 & 2 of the Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to Living Cheaply in San Francisco zine (2004–2005)
- Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to Living Cheaply in San Francisco book (2007)
- Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to Living Cheaply in New York City book (2008)
- Young, Broke & Beautiful: Broke-Ass Stuart’s Guide to Living Cheaply (2011), published alongside the IFC series[14]
- Self-published zine Love Notes and Other Disasters (2014)[15]
- Retrospective zine Slouching Towards Neverland (2022)[16][17]
- Literary magazine The Dreams I Dreamt: Letters to San Francisco (2024)[18]
- Forthcoming anthology The Worst of Broke-Ass Stuart (2025)[19]
Television and web series
Schuffman co-created and hosted IFC's travel TV show Young, Broke & Beautiful (2011). While the Los Angeles Times described him as “a tireless self-promoter,”[20] and the Boston Globe said the show was “straining too hard to be different,”[21] KQED offered a more positive take: “Young, Broke & Beautiful brings Schuffman’s unique brand of adventurous budget travel to a more mainstream setting but mostly preserves his indie flair.”[22]
In 2014, he began The Kind of Late Show with Broke-Ass Stuart, a live late-night variety show uploaded to YouTube.[23] It featured guests such as Boots Riley and Kari Byron.
In 2019, he co-created and starred in the satirical web series Shaky Ground, which premiered at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco. It was given positive reviews by SF Weekly [24] and the San Francisco Examiner.[25]
Mayoral campaign
In 2015, Schuffman ran for mayor of San Francisco, finishing fourth with 9.56% of the vote. He described his bid as a protest against corporate influence and neglect of affordable living. The ethics commission later issued a fine for a technical campaign filing error, which he explained as an inadvertent mistake saying, “I just didn’t know I couldn’t do that.”[26]