David Cross

Highest Rated: 100% Too Soon: Comedy After 9/11 (2021)

Lowest Rated: 12% Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011)

Birthday: Apr 4, 1964

Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia, USA

A key figure in the rise of alternative comedy in the 1990s, writer-actor-comedian David Cross was associated with two of the subgenre's most lasting and influential television shows - "Mr. Show with Bob and David" (HBO, 1995-98) and "Arrested Development" (Fox, 2003-06). The inventive sketch comedy show and the half-hour sitcom, respectively, were both adored by critics and earned a loyal following among comedy and alternative pop culture fans, but their niche audiences failed to deliver the numbers their respective networks demanded. In his stand-up comedy, Cross was fiercely intelligent, brutally honest, and often confrontational, especially in the fields of politics and religion. Cross managed to build a solid career at the fringes of Hollywood, with a Grammy-nominated stand-up album, voiceover work for offbeat animated series like "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" (Adult Swim, 2000- ) and "Crank Yankers," (Comedy Central, 2002-05; MTV2, 2007), and big screen character roles in the films "I'm Not There" (2007) and "Year One" (2009). Longtime Cross devotees, however, truly appreciated the work of his own creation, "The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret" (IFC, 2010-12) and thrilled at news of the revival of "Arrested Development" on the media provider Netflix. Irreverent, opinionated and outspoken, Cross somehow managed to work on an incredibly wide array of projects, while never compromising his professional integrity or recognized comedic persona.