Trivia: An alumnus of New York City's High School of Music and Arts and Bard College, actor/writer/director Christopher Guest made his initial Broadway appearance in the 1970 revival of Room Service; two years later, he co-starred in Moonchildren. Guest's early acting accomplishments have tended to become obscured in the light of his extensive work for the National Lampoon folks: he wrote several articles for the Lampoon magazine, and was a writer/performer for the organization's radio programs, record albums, and stage reviews. His extensive comic talents went largely untapped in such "mainstream" acting assignments as the made-for-TV Blind Ambition (1982), in which he portrayed Nixon intimate Jeb Stuart Magruder, and the theatrical feature The Long Riders (1982), in which he was co-starred with his younger brother Nicholas.In 1982, Guest played divorced suburbanite Bucky Frische in Million Dollar Infield (1982), a made-for-TV movie produced and co-written by Rob Reiner. His association with Reiner extended into appearances in the latter's big-screen directorial efforts: In This is Spinal Tap (1983), Guest not only penned the script but also played heavy metal rocker Nigel Tufnel; and in The Princess Bride (1986), cast as the evil Count Rubin, he offered a sly impression of British character actor Henry Daniell. Guest has since parlayed his "Spinal Tap" association into something of a second career, touring as Nigel Tufnel with fellow "Tap" members David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean) and Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer) and composing many of the group's "hits." On TV, Guest was a regular during the 1984-1985 season of Saturday Night Live and shared a scriptwriting Emmy for a 1976 Lily Tomlin special. Making his directorial debut with the Tinseltown satire The Big Picture (1989), Guest has gone on to helm the TV-movie remake of Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1993), the "Johnny Appleseed" segment of Shelley Duvall's cable-TV anthology American Tall Tales and Legends, and most of the episodes of Rob Reiner's 1992 TV sitcom Morton and Hayes.After once again appearing as Nigel Tufnel in The Return of Spinal Tap (1992), the latter '90s found Guest expanding on his successes in the world of showbiz mockery by taking the directors chair with a few irreverent faux documentaries of his own. Re-teaming with fellow bandmates McKean and Shearer for the musical numbers in Waiting for Guffman (1996), the critically praised comedy proved that Guest's eye for satire was indeed as sharp as his pen. Following with some vocal work in Small Soldiers (1998), Guest returned to the director's chair for what would be comedian Chris Farley's last film, Almost Heroes (1998). Both of these projects proved to be brief diversions, though, and, as old habits die hard, Guest couldn't resist his urges for parody for long.Though not related (in a traditional sense) to show business, Best in Show targeted a subject that some may say was screaming for parody, the world of Championship Dog shows. His skills as a director more focused and refined than ever, Guest lead a talented cast of the usual suspects in creating yet another hilarious and scathing take on a what many considered to be well-deserving subject. After earning a Golden Globe nomination for "Best Comedy" at that year's ceremony, the film went on to live a healthy life on DVD and cable television. Guest's next film set its sights on a target that many may agree was begging for the treatment even more so than that of his last subject, and though A Mighty Wind's spot on folk song parodies would prove almost so effective as to be considered the real deal, the film itself differed from Best in Show in that it sharply divided its supporters and detractors as few of his films had. Guest worked as an actor, screenwriter, songwriter, and director for The Mighty Wind (2003), an award-winning mockuementary chronicling the ups and downs of a career in folk music, and again with For Your Consideration (2006). The actor would co-star with Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins in Mr. Henderson Presents (2005), which followed a wealthy eccentric determined to transform a dingy London theater into a thriving hotspot for entertainment, and take on roles in 2009's The Invention of Lying and Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. Guest is married to actress Jamie Lee Curtis.

Trivia: You knew him as Lenny Koznowski, the nasal, nerdish pal of Andrew "Squiggy" Squigman (David L. Lander) on the hit TV series Laverne and Shirley. Show-biz insiders knew Michael McKean as an intelligent, versatile actor and writer. Shedding himself of the "Lenny" image after Laverne and Shirley folded in 1983, McKean became involved in several ensemble comedy projects with such kindred spirits as Harry Shearer, Rob Reiner and Christopher Guest. In the 1984 "rockumentary" spoof This Is Spinal Tap, McKean played the cockney-accented heavy metal musician David St. Hubbins. Apparently McKean enjoyed posing as an Englishman, inasmuch as he has done it so often and so well since Spinal Tap, most recently as Brian Benben's snippish boss on the cable TV sitcom Dream On. In the early '90s, McKean was one of the stars of another, less memorable TV comedy, Grand, and appeared for two season on Saturday Night Live. He continues to land film roles, usually in comedies, including the successful The Brady Bunch Movie (1995).

Trivia: California native Harry Shearer was one of the busier child actors of the 1950s. He appeared in such films as The Robe (1953) (as the boy David) and Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953); he could be heard on such radio programs as Suspense, Lux Radio Theatre, and the Jack Benny Show; and among his many TV guest roles was the character who would evolve into Eddie Haskell in the 1955 Leave It to Beaver pilot. After attending U.C.L.A., Shearer flourished as a standup comedian and comedy writer. He was frequently employed on the writing staff for such TV laughspinners as Laverne and Shirley and America 2Night; he also worked both sides of the camera in the 1984 rockumentary parody This Is Spinal Tap, co-starring as rock idol Derek Smalls and co-writing the script with director Rob Reiner and fellow cast members Christopher Guest and Michael McKean. In league with another top satirist, Albert Brooks, Shearer concocted the screenplay for another faux documentary, 1979's Real Lampoon. During the 1984-1985 TV season, Shearer joined the Not Ready for Prime Time Players on NBC's Saturday Night Live. The soft-spoken, saturnine Harry Shearer is most famous however for lending his voice to the Fox Network cartoon series The Simpsons.

Trivia: As the son of multi-talented comedic genius Carl Reiner (Your Show of Shows), Rob Reiner instantly outgrew his father's legacy to establish himself as an independent force in multiple facets of the entertainment industry. Born in the Bronx in 1945, Reiner moved to Los Angeles with his folks at the age of 12 (not coincidentally, the very same year that the NYC-based Caesar's Hour, with Carl Reiner as a regular contributor, wrapped) and soon began acting in regional theater and improv ensembles. After appearing on various episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents from the age of 16 and studying drama at UCLA, Reiner co-founded the improvisational comedy troupe The Session, then made his onscreen cinematic debut in his father's Enter Laughing (1967) and contributed scripts (in his dad's vein) to CBS's controversial The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. His first massive break arrived when he landed the role of Mike "Meathead" Stivic, the liberal, Polish son-in-law to Carroll O'Connor's racist working stiff Archie Bunker, on Norman Lear's groundbreaking network hit All in the Family. In 1971, Reiner wed Penny Marshall (the sister of another comic demagogue, Garry Marshall); the marrieds frequently appeared together on ABC's The Odd Couple. Reiner earned two Emmys for All in the Family, but ended his role in 1978 (after seven seasons) as the series transitioned into Archie Bunker's Place. A now-forgotten telemovie followed -- the romantic comedy More Than Friends, written by and starring Reiner and Marshall (and directed by future Cheers progenitor James Burrows) -- but by that point, the Reiners' marriage was in disarray; a divorce ensued in 1979, followed by several years of inactivity on Reiner's end.Reiner bounced back as a director, however (and then some) in 1984, with the hysterical mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap, ostensibly a spoof of The Song Remains the Same, The Kids Are Alright, The Last Waltz, and other mid-'70s concert films, about a gleefully moronic glam rock band (Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer) whose hits include "Sex Farm," "Smell the Glove," and "Hellhole." The picture became a sensation (a massive cult hit), led to several Reiner-less follow-ups with the principal cast (Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind), and -- most importantly -- launched Reiner as a directorial force. He helmed a cute and charming sophomore effort, the teen comedy The Sure Thing (1985), which boasts two superb lead performances by John Cusack and Daphne Zuniga, and demonstrates great taste and sensitivity, but failed to make a splash despite solid reviews (Roger Ebert declared it "a small miracle" and Variety assessed it as "sweetly old fashioned" and "appealing.") The following year, the director struck box-office gold with his third effort, Stand by Me (1986). In this coming-of-age saga, adapted from a Stephen King short story by Ray Gideon and Bruce A. Evans, Reiner successfully blends comedy, drama, and sentiment, and elicits exemplary performances from an ensemble of teenage performers including River Phoenix and Wil Wheaton, in his story of a bunch of adolescent boys who venture out to find a local boy's corpse. For his fourth effort, Reiner helmed the legendary William Goldman's adaptation of his own 1973 fantasy novel, The Princess Bride (which had purportedly floated around Hollywood for 13 years), and scored in the process -- especially with young viewers, who immediately warmed to Cary Elwes' dashing adventurer and Robin Wright's heroine. (The picture's neat comic turns by Billy Crystal, Wallace Shawn, and Andre the Giant stretched its appeal to older viewers, as well.) Reiner followed this up with another four-star blockbuster, and one of the most lucrative (and affable) pictures of 1989, the romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally, written by Nora Ephron. It sports exceptional lead performances by Crystal and Meg Ryan, and -- in one of the most infamous movie bits of the past few decades, a cameo by Reiner's own mother, Estelle, who provides the film's funniest line.Reiner began the 1990s with another Stephen King outing: Misery, a claustrophobic horror picture adapted from a 1987 King novel. In directing the picture, Reiner elicited exceptional performances from James Caan and Kathy Bates. The latter won a Best Actress Academy Award for her portrayal of the psychopathic ex-nurse Annie Wilkes, who confines Caan's author in her home and forces him to write a new manuscript under the duress of torture and threatened homicide. With a trio of A-list actors including Jack Nicholson, Tom Cruise, and Demi Moore, the director's late 1992 courtroom thriller A Few Good Men (adapted by Aaron Sorkin from his play) earned a Best Picture Oscar nomination and another Golden Globe nomination for Reiner. Unfortunately, this marked the beginning of a decline, of sorts, for Reiner. He then helmed 1994's god-awful family-friendly comedy North (reviled by just about everybody). The following year's The American President charmed audiences, but 1996's Ghosts of Mississippi struck most viewers as uneven. In 1999, Reiner produced, directed, and co-starred in The Story of Us, a romantic comedy starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Bruce Willis, but it opened up to mediocre reviews. (Ebert gave it one star and moaned, "Watching it is like taking a long trip in a small car with the Bickersons"; Janet Maslin observed that it "offers such an arthritic vision of middle-aged marriage that it feels like the first Jack Lemmon comedy made expressly for the baby-boom generation.") Perhaps riled by these disappointments -- and seeking greater immersion in California politics -- Reiner took several years off as a director, until 2003's Alex & Emma, a romantic comedy about writer's block starring Luke Wilson and Kate Hudson. With one or two exceptions, critics universally panned the picture (giving Reiner his most terrible reviews to date). 2005's Rumor Has It..., yet another romantic comedy starring Jennifer Aniston as a woman who goes off in search of her family's roots, also opened to dismal reviews and lackluster box office, despite the star appeal of Aniston and her male lead, Kevin Costner. In 1987, Reiner co-founded Castle Rock Productions (the company's name refers to a fictional town created by Stephen King). In addition to directing and producing, Reiner has also pursued an acting career on the side, with supporting roles and cameos in such films as Postcards From the Edge (1990), Sleepless in Seattle (1993), Bullets Over Broadway (1994), The First Wives Club (1996), Primary Colors (1998), EDtv (1999), The Muse (1999), The Story of Us (1999), and The Majestic (2001). Later, he delivered a performance as Wirschafter in his own Alex & Emma (2003) and cameo'd as himself in the 2003 David Spade comedy Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star. Between 2004 and 2006, Reiner joined Whoopi Goldberg, Mandy Patinkin, William H. Macy, and others to voice the late Christopher Reeve's CG-animated feature Everybody's Hero, about a boy who attempts to retrieve a talking baseball bat from a crooked security guard. In 2007 he had one of his biggest late-career successes directing Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman in The Bucket List. Three years later he made the little-seen comedy Flipped. Reiner married his second wife, Michele Singer Reiner, in 1989.

Trivia: With long, shapely legs, a svelte, curvaceous body to die for, and thick black hair cascading around her lovely face, Fran Drescher has all the looks of a sophisticated movie star. And then she opens her mouth. Out comes a crow-like cacophony of nasal sounds made more grating by a thick Queens accent and a tendency to pull no punches. The paradox between the book and its cover is what has made Drescher a rich and popular comedienne; her long-running sitcom The Nanny, with its combination of romantic and slapstick comedy, led many to hail her as Lucille Ball's successor. Though she capitalizes on playing a rather ditzy working-class gal from Flushing, Drescher is known for her creativity and shrewdness. In addition to acting, she is a talented writer and producer.Much of Drescher's comedy, especially that from her sitcom, is drawn from her life experiences. Like her character, Fran Fine, she was born and raised in Queens. She has had a lifelong interest in acting and studied drama in high school. She attended a year at Queens College and then attended cosmetology school to become a hairdresser. For a time, she had her own business. She made her film debut playing Connie in Saturday Night Fever (1977). Her next film, American Hot Wax (1978), provided Drescher with her first major role and though she would continue on to play supporting parts in numerous other films, it was not until she played a small but memorable part in Rob Reiner's hilarious mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap (1984) that she began making a name for herself. In addition to her film roles, she was also busy on television, guest starring in series and appearing in television films like Terror in the Towers. She played starring roles in three short-lived series, including Princesses. She and her husband Peter Marc Jacobson created The Nanny and it aired on CBS from 1993 to 1999. She not only starred in the show, but also wrote and produced it; Drescher received Emmy nominations for her work on the show. In 1996, she co-starred with Robin Williams in the Disney comedy Jack, while in 1997, she and Jacobson co-created the idea for the romantic comedy The Beautician and the Beast, in which she also starred. Drescher published her autobiography, Enter Whining, in 1996.Drescher once again drew from her life experiences in the 2002 memoir Cancer Schmancer, which chronicled the actress's battle with uterine cancer, and formed the Cancer Schmancer Movement in 2007. The nonprofit is dedicated to educating women about cancer prevention and the importance of early detection (Drescher's cancer was initially misdiagnosed). In 2011, Drescher appeared on Oprah Winfrey to discuss her relationship with her then ex-husband Peter Mark Jacobson after he came out as gay after the end of their 21-year marriage. The television series Happily Divorced (2011-2013) is based on her experience with Jacobson.

Trivia: In tandem with John Lennon, musician Paul McCartney is responsible for composing most of the songs in the nine-year history of the Beatles. While still a member of the group, McCartney wrote the score for the 1966 film The Family Way; it would be his last solo gig until the Beatles' breakup in 1970. So prolific and popular was McCartney in his post-Beatles years that it became a standard joke amongst post-postwar kids to query "You mean that Paul McCartney was in a band before Wings?" Also grist for the humor mill was McCartney's incredible wealth; his legal ownership of virtually every song ever written (including such state anthems as "On Wisconsin"); and the strict vegetarian edicts of his wife and business partner Linda Eastman McCartney. Paul McCartney has also kept active in the film world, penning the theme for the 1973 James Bond flick Live And Let Die, and producing, scoring and acting in the 1984 vanity project Give My Regards to Broad Street, in which viewers were offered the unlikely premise that McCartney would face bankruptcy if he didn't locate a lost record album.

Trivia: John, born Reginald Dwight, is a rock star who appeared in the film Tommy (1975).

Trivia: Country music superstar Garth Brooks maintained music as his primary artistic calling throughout the 1990s, becoming one of the top-selling recording artists of all time. Along with a smattering of guest shots as himself on TV, Brooks also appeared in several country music documentaries, including Hunks With Hats (1993) with Clint Black and Alan Jackson. In 2000, Brooks prepared to make a move into the realm of fiction films with The Lamb, a feature starring him as the titular kohl-eyed rocker alter ego introduced by Brooks' 1999 album ...In the Life of Chris Gaines. In 2001 he was the executive producer on the family-friendly holiday made-for-TV holiday film Call Me Claus.

Trivia: Named "Outstanding Senior Girl" of Piedmont Academy. Served as a tour guide for the Country Music Hall of Fame after college. Released her self-titled debut album in 1991, which featured the hit single "She's in Love with the Boy." Saved the life of a baggage handler trapped in the belly of a plane by alerting the pilot she heard screaming from underneath her seat. Had a recurring role as Lt. Cmdr. Teresa Coulter on the TV show JAG. Inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1999. Garth Brooks proposed to her on stage on May 25, 2005, in front of 7,000 fans. Cowrote a cookbook with her mother and sister called Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen in 2008. Frequently participates in Habitat for Humanity relief projects.

Trivia: Was only 2 years old when he started playing drums.Has been the drummer and joint front man for the band The Roots (originally The Square Roots) who have won several Grammy awards.Became a part of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon's in-house band in February 2014.Made the number 54 spot on Rolling Stone magazine's 2016 list of 100 Greatest Drummers of All Time.Is a supporter of Soles4Souls, Artists for a New South Africa, Save The Music Foundation, Tibet House US, Treatment Action Campaign and Be The Change.