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The Best Episodes of Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9

Every episode of Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9!

Binge this in 1d 1h•Peaking at 7.8/10

Each week Bill Maher surrounds himself with a panel of guests which include politicians, actors, comedians, musicians and the like to discuss what's going on in the world.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 26 - August 05, 2011
    7.8/10(31 votes)
    S9:E26

    Guests: Ex-Obama economy adviser Christina Romer, Astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Salon editor-at-large Joan Walsh, Palin biography filmmaker Stephen K Bannon and chef Anthony Bourdain. Topics: US credit downgrade, debt ceiling deal, failure of the stimulus package, inability of Democrats to negotiate, 'job creators', defunding of science in America, Rick Perry's prayer festival, escaping poverty, would Hillary Clinton have been better, need for a left-wing tea party equivalent.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 2 - January 21, 2011
    7.6/10(29 votes)
    S9:E2

    Guests: Journalist Michael Hastings, politician/businessman David Stockman, political commentator Rachel Maddow, economist Stephen Moore, entrepreneur Russell Simmons Topics: Keith Olbermann, Tunisian protests, health care, Ronald Reagan's legacy, gun control, Tucson shooting

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 12 - April 08, 2011
    7.5/10(25 votes)
    S9:E12

    Guests: Pilot Chesley Sullenberger, CNN host Eliot Spitzer, BBC anchor Katty Kay, Daily Beast blogger Andrew Sullivan, comedian Colin Quinn Topics: Government shutdown, Planned Parenthood, US Budget, Objectivism, Libya, reaction to Pastor Terry Jones, Donald Trump, Class conflict

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 14 - April 29, 2011
    7.5/10(26 votes)
    S9:E14

    Guests: Governor Deval Patrick (D-MA), journalist Laura Flanders, blogger Andrew Breitbart, author Mark McKinnon, director John Waters Topics: Birther and schooler conspiracy theories, labor union bill in Massachusetts, Romneycare, racism in the GOP, Donald Trump, gas prices, windfall profits tax, censorship on TV, Victory Day in Afghanistan, monarchy in the UK

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 18 - June 03, 2011
    7.5/10(29 votes)
    S9:E18

    Guests: U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan, professor Melissa Harris-Perry, former New York Rep. Rick Lazio, journalist Larry King, writer/director Adam McKay Topics: Mitt Romney's Presidential campaign, Republican hyperbolic rhetoric about Obama, Sarah Palin's bus tour, Rep. Anthony Weiner scandal, Lee Atwater, John Edwards scandal, the US budget deficit, link between cell phones and cancer, businessmen as politicians

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 28 - September 23, 2011
    7.5/10(30 votes)
    S9:E28

    Guests: Journalist Ron Suskind, musician and activist Tom Morello, co-editor of Deadline Artists: America’s Greatest Newspaper Columns John Avlon, former Representative and Director, President, and CEO of The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Jane Harman (D-CA), filmmaker Michael Moore Topics: Obama's first term in office, Ricky Perry's campaign, unemployment, Bill O'Reilly threat to quote, wealthy people unwilling to accept higher taxes, Tony Bennett remarks, artist censorship, occupation of Wall Street, poor people voting against their economic interests

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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    The 20 BEST Episodes of Real Time with Bill Maher

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  8. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 6 - February 18, 2011
    7.4/10(31 votes)
    S9:E6

    Guests: PBS host Tavis Smiley, director Kevin Smith, journalist John Heilemann, CNBC host Michelle Caruso-Cabrera, journalist Matt Taibbi Topics: Griftopia, budget cuts, Obama as a bad negotiator, trade unions for government employees, Tea Party Review magazine, Red State, treatment of women in Arab world, Natalie Munroe, Civil War reenactments

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 13 - April 15, 2011
    7.4/10(27 votes)
    S9:E13

    Guests: Theoretical Physicist Michio Kaku, MSNBC Ed Show host Ed Schultz, ex-RNC Head Michael Steele, ABC News Political Director Amy Walter, author Irshad Manji Topics: US Budget, trickle-down economics, Iraq War, military-industrial complex, France's ban on Muslim clothing, gender inequality in Muslim culture, Jon Kyl, health care in Paul Ryan's budget plan, racism in the Tea Party, National Endowment for the Arts

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 24 - July 22, 2011
    7.4/10(27 votes)
    S9:E24

    Guests: John Fetterman, DNC Vice-Chair Donna Brazile, Reason.com editor Nick Gillespie, actor John Turturro Topics: Republican strategy of no, the US budget, financial services industry, Marcus Bachmann, personal sacrifice in the US, independent voters, Michele Bachmann's migraines, political pledges

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  11. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 1 - January 14, 2011
    7.3/10(31 votes)
    S9:E1

    Guests: Assistant to the President Elizabeth Warren, actor Martin Short, political analyst James Carville, political consultant Mike Murphy, Editor-at-large of Reuters Chrystia Freeland Topics: Consumer protection, Tucson shooting, gun control, right wing rhetoric, health care

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 5 - February 11, 2011
    7.3/10(27 votes)
    S9:E5

    Guests: Syndicated columnist Arianna Huffington, philosopher Cornel West, journalist Hooman Majd, MSNBC host Norah O'Donnell, actor Matthew Perry Topics: AOL-HuffPo merger, Egypt after Mubarak and US reaction, Chris Lee, alcoholism, O'Reilly's interview of Obama, CPAC and homophobia, re-writing Mark Twain

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 27 - September 16, 2011
    7.3/10(28 votes)
    S9:E27

    Guests: Host of Current TV’s “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” Keith Olbermann, Republican strategist Rich Galen, Fellow at the Eisenhower Institute Jennifer Donahue, author of "The Forever War" Dexter Filkins, actor/comedian Louis C.K. Topics: Exit strategy from Afghanistan, War on terror, Republican presidential debates, Vaccination controversy, President Obama's jobs plan, manhood, Sarah Palin book, Jackie Kennedy, New York congressional special election, Palestinian statehood petition to UN, Al Gore's climate reality project.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 33 - October 28, 2011
    7.3/10(30 votes)
    S9:E33

    Guests: Tax reform lobbyist Grover Norquist, journalist Michelle Goldberg, CNN foreign correspondent Michael Ware, philosopher Cornel West, Republican strategist Ron Christie. Topics: Herman Cain's creepy ad, Fallout from the Status of Forces Agreement, brutality of treatment of Gaddafi's corpse, Iran, Occupy Wall Street, Newt Gingrich as a big thinker, class warfare, recreational drugs vs. prescription drugs

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 3 - January 28, 2011
    7.2/10(29 votes)
    S9:E3

    Guests: Former RNC Chairman Michael Steele, NRO host Will Cain, former Canadian PM Kim Campbell, Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA), comedian D. L. Hughley Topics: 2011 State of the Union Address, deficit, education, 2011 Egyptian protests, 2011 Domodedovo International Airport bombing, climate change, evolution

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  16. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 4 - February 04, 2011
    7.2/10(28 votes)
    S9:E4

    Guests: Journalist Mona Eltahawy, director Charles H. Ferguson, conservative columnist John Fund, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson Topics: Egyptian protests, financial meltdown, RNC in debt, Kepler (spacecraft), NASA going to Mars, Clarence & Ginny Thomas, Civil War celebrations in the south, GOProud at CPAC

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 15 - May 06, 2011
    7.2/10(27 votes)
    S9:E15

    Guests: Journalist Peter Bergen, author Michael Eric Dyson, investigative journalist and author Jeremy Scahill, ex-Bush speechwriter David Frum, author Irshad Manji Topics: Death of Osama bin Laden, potential OBL successors, Bush doctrine, Bin Laden's decline of popularity in the Moslem world, celebrations of OBL's death, OBL's goal to bankrupt the US, David Petraeus as CIA director nominee

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  18. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 16 - May 13, 2011
    7.2/10(29 votes)
    S9:E16

    Guests: Counter-terrorism expert Richard A. Clarke, author Andrew Ross Sorkin, columnist Reihan Salam, MSNBC analyst Michelle Bernard, actor Harry Shearer Topics: Osama Bin Laden's life in the compound, Pakistan as ally, Newt Gingrich, job gains/losses in the private and public sectors, US Army Corps of Engineers, FEMA, education, green energy, John Ensign scandal, pediatricians and gun safety

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 19 - June 10, 2011
    7.2/10(25 votes)
    S9:E19

    Guests: Former Congresswoman Jane Harman (D-CA), comedienne Janeane Garofalo, columnist Joshua Green, journalist Sharon Waxman, actress Jane Lynch Topics: Tax cuts for the wealthy, climate change, Rick Santorum, Rep. Anthony Weiner scandal, Sarah Palin's gubernatorial record, the Republican field for 2012, cybersex

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  20. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 22 - July 08, 2011
    7.2/10(27 votes)
    S9:E22

    Guests: Executive Director of Drug Policy Alliance Ethan Nadelmann, Ann Coulter, The Nation editor and MSNBC host Christopher Hayes, historian Amanda Foreman, Chaz Bono Topics: U.S. debt ceiling, jobs, Michele Bachmann, Keith Ablow on Bill Maher, News of the World phone hacking scandal, Casey Anthony trial, favorable laws for the wealthy

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  21. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 25 - July 29, 2011
    7.2/10(28 votes)
    S9:E25

    Guests: Financial-fraud investigator Harry Markopolos, former New York governor Eliot Spitzer; political strategist Margaret Hoover; FreedomWorks president and CEO Matt Kibbe; and emmy-award winning actor Bryan Cranston. Topics: Debt ceiling deal, deficit reduction, tea-party rise, washington and Obama's failure to negotiate, 'The Town' clip to inspire Republicans, drugs in America, Norway massacre, America's secret love of socialism

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 34 - November 04, 2011
    7.2/10(31 votes)
    S9:E34

    Guests: Delaware Atty. Gen. Beau Biden, former N.Y. gov. David Paterson, journalist Alex Wagner, Rep. Darrell Issa, comedian Bill Engvall. Topics: Herman Cain's popularity, the United States national motto, why does Middle America vote for Republicans, climate change, legalizing marijuana, Occupy Wall Street, gay marriage, the Second Amendment, Republicans trusting Jesus over government.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  23. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 7 - March 04, 2011
    7.1/10(25 votes)
    S9:E7

    Guests: Novelist T. Coraghessan Boyle, feminist icon Gloria Steinem, Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA), Washington Post reporter Ezra Klein, actress and comedianne Tracey Ullman Topics: Overpopulation, road quality in the US, Planned Parenthood, Wisconsin Governor, Equal Pay

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  24. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 20 - June 17, 2011
    7.1/10(27 votes)
    S9:E20

    Guests: Ray Kurzweil, columnist Ross Douthat, Public Notice executive director Gretchen Hamel, pundit Chris Matthews, comedian Kevin Nealon Topics: Mitt Romney, FEMA, Tim Pawlenty, Michele Bachmann, Republicans rooting for America to fail, Rep. Anthony Weiner scandal, Tracy Morgan, hunting, freedom vs. entitlement, Rick Perry's spiritual solutions to national problems

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  25. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 31 - October 14, 2011
    7.1/10(27 votes)
    S9:E31

    Guests: Pastor and Romney critic Dr Robert Jeffress, Magician Penn Jillette, Progressive talk radio host Thom Hartmann, CNBC host Michelle Caruso-Cabrera, American Spectator senior editor John Fund. Topics: The catholic church, faith vs good work, occupy wall street, Herman Cain's '999' plan, agnostics and atheism, morality without fear or reward, Obama's jobs plan, the fillibuster, attempts to dismantle the EPA, attack's on Mitt Romney's mormon faith.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  26. Real Time with Bill Maher Season 9 Episode 32 - October 21, 2011
    7.1/10(31 votes)
    S9:E32

    Guests: EPA Chief Lisa Jackson, novelist Touré, columnist Thomas Friedman, journalist Joshua Green, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow Topics: Attempts to dismantle the EPA, America falling behind on environmental issues, republican pettiness about Obama, drone warfare, death of Ghadafi, immigration, Herman Cain's campaign, need for a third party, occupy wall street, student debt and right wing reaction.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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Season 9 Ratings Summary

"August 05, 2011" is the best rated episode of "Real Time with Bill Maher" season 9. It scored 7.8/10 based on 31 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 8/5/2011. This episode is rated 0.2 points higher than the second-best, "January 21, 2011".