48 Facts About David Alan Grier

David Alan Grier was born on June 30,1956 and is an American actor and comedian.

David Alan Grier began his career by portraying Jackie Robinson in the 1981 Broadway production The First, for which he earned a nomination at the 36th Tony Awards for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.

David Alan Grier then appeared in the Robert Altman film Streamers as Roger, a role for which he won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival.

David Alan Grier created and executive-produced the American satirical show Chocolate News for Comedy Central.

David Alan Grier was born in Detroit, Michigan, one of three children, to Aretas Ruth, a school teacher, and William Henry David Alan Grier, a psychiatrist and writer, who co-wrote the book Black Rage.

David Alan Grier was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical and won the Theatre World Award for The First.

David Alan Grier got his start on the National Public Radio radio drama adaptation of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in 1981.

David Alan Grier was the voice of a nameless X-wing fighter pilot during the Battle of Yavin.

David Alan Grier later starred as James "Thunder" Early in the hit Broadway musical Dreamgirls.

David Alan Grier made his film debut in 1983 in Streamers, directed by Robert Altman.

David Alan Grier won the Golden Lion for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival for the film.

David Alan Grier appeared in the Negro Ensemble Company production A Soldier's Play and reprised his role in the film version A Soldier's Story.

David Alan Grier appeared as a geology professor at Hillman College in the show A Different World.

David Alan Grier became a popular cast member through his characters, which ranged from hyperactive children to crotchety old men.

David Alan Grier played Rev Leon Lonnie Love on the TV series Martin.

David Alan Grier appeared with Tom Arnold in the 1997 comedy McHale's Navy as Ensign Charles Parker.

David Alan Grier had a cameo in the Robert De Niro and Edward Burns film 15 Minutes as a Central Park mugger.

In 2002, David Alan Grier joined the cast of the improv-based ABC sitcom and Bonnie Hunt vehicle Life with Bonnie which ran for two seasons.

David Alan Grier starred in his own Comedy Central stand-up special The Book of David: The Cult Figure's Manifesto.

David Alan Grier is a frequent guest on the Comedy Central show Crank Yankers.

David Alan Grier was the host of the NBC show Thank God You're Here.

David Alan Grier starred in Gym Teacher: The Movie playing the villain, Shelly Bragg.

David Alan Grier appeared as Uncle Henry in the ABC 2005 television film The Muppets' Wizard of Oz.

David Alan Grier played Professor Bunsen Jude, the Science Dude, the host of a children's TV program.

In May 2013, David Alan Grier appeared in Tyler Perry Presents Peeples, playing the role of Virgil Peeples, alongside Kerry Washington and Craig Robinson.

David Alan Grier appeared on the CBS TV-adaptation of Bad Teacher, playing the role of principal Carl Gaines.

David Alan Grier played the Cowardly Lion in NBC's live performance of The Wiz, which aired on December 3,2015.

In 1998, David Alan Grier co-starred with Jon Stewart in Elmopalooza, as the director of Jon's production crew, who he often chastises at Elmo and Telly after realizing what happened to the rest of the cast.

In 2008, David Alan Grier starred in the Comedy Central series Chocolate News which had satirical sketches about current events and news stories.

David Alan Grier appeared as Jimmy Dale in the series Queen Sugar appearing in Season 3 and played the role of Mr Packard in the Paramount Pictures film Clifford the Big Red Dog.

David Alan Grier is set to play Pastor Avery, the father of Shug Avery, a role featured in the 1985 film of the same name.

David Alan Grier is a comedian and hosted the Comedy Central series Premium Blend in 2001.

David Alan Grier made an appearance on the Dave, Shelley, and Chainsaw Show on October 5,2012, before doing performances at The Madhouse Comedy Club.

David Alan Grier returned to Broadway to perform in the musical A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum in 1997.

David Alan Grier returned to Broadway for the premiere of Race, written and directed by David Mamet, opposite James Spader, Kerry Washington, and Richard Thomas, which opened at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on December 6,2009.

David Alan Grier received his second Tony Award nomination for his role.

David Alan Grier appeared in the revival production of The Wiz at the La Jolla Playhouse directed by Des McAnuff.

David Alan Grier was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical for this role.

In January 2020, Grier returned to the stage for the Broadway production of A Soldier's Play, this time playing Tech Sergeant Vernon C Waters, the role originated by Adolph Caesar in the off-Broadway production.

In 1998 David Alan Grier hosted the game show Random Acts of Comedy on Fox Family, what is Freeform.

David Alan Grier was a contestant on the eighth season of Dancing with the Stars, partnered with Kym Johnson.

David Alan Grier appeared in an episode of Clean House along with his brother and his brother's family.

David Alan Grier invited the show to help his brother due to his severe problems with clutter, and the family received a home makeover.

David Alan Grier hosted the game show Snap Decision, which debuted August 7,2017, on the Game Show Network and many Sinclair TV stations.

David Alan Grier was married to Maritza Rivera and divorced in 1997.

David Alan Grier gave birth to their daughter, Luisa Danbi Grier-Kim on January 10,2008, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, in Los Angeles.

David Alan Grier is a fan of motorcycles, and owns the rare Yamaha YZF-R1 Limited Edition.

David Alan Grier is an avid cook and began food blogging during the run of the play Race, where James Spader helped to critique the food Grier made.