Trivia: Says he was "painfully shy" as a child. Was trained as a Shakespearean actor, but became interested in comedy after he was exposed to improv in college. First TV appearance was in a 1994 episode of ER. Returned to Detroit in 1997 and joined the Second City as a performer and writer. Has received multiple Joseph Jefferson Awards, given to honor achievement in Chicago theater. A founding member of the Planet Ant Theatre.

Trivia: Intended to be a puppeteer in college, but dropped out to study comedy, including a stint with Boom Chicago in Amsterdam; while on a cast swap with Second City in Chicago in 2002, met his future comedic partner Keegan-Michael Key. Before the premiere of Key & Peele on Comedy Central in 2012, overlapped with Key for several seasons in the cast of MADtv. Unsuccessfully auditioned to play Barack Obama on Saturday Night Live in 2008 (the role went to Fred Armisen), but would earn acclaim for impersonating the president on Key & Peele in 2012. Like Key, has a black father and a white mother, a biracial status that provides a unique cultural sensitivity and informs much of their comedy.

Trivia: Launched stand-up comedy career in Dallas; hosted a monthly improv show in Addison, TX. Had a recurring role on Single Ladies. Joined the cast of Whitney in 2012 after winning NBC's Stand-up for Diversity program.

Trivia: Known to many as the mustachioed Deputy Travis Junior on the farcical Reno 911!, Robert Ben Garant first made an impression with audiences on the sketch-comedy show The State, which ran on MTV from 1993 to 1995. The show's bizarre and outlandish sensibilities gave viewers a taste of what was to come with Garant, who would take a break from film and television during the late '90s, only to return in 2003 to help create, write, and act in Reno 911!, which was a hit on Comedy Central. Garant then re-teamed with his writing partner Thomas Lennon to pen the scripts for Herbie: Fully Loaded, The Pacifier, and Night at the Museum. In 2007, Garant and the rest of the cast of Reno 911! brought their show to the big screen, with Reno 911!: Miami, and that same year, Garant put on both the writer's and director's hat with the over-the-top ping-pong comedy Balls of Fury. In 2009 he wrote the script for Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.

Trivia: Started performing stand-up comedy when he was 16.Many of his relatives are Lutheran ministers, including his grandfather, father and brother.Was already writing scripts when he was in high school.Dropped out of college to pursue an acting career.Signing up as an extra for the movie Virginia (2010), which was film in his home state, led to a small role after he approached director Dustin Lance Black to congratulate him on winning the Oscar for Milk (2008).Worked in a butcher shop and a bowling alley.Didn't had to audition for the role of Richard Jewell in Clint Eastwood's film Richard Jewell (2019).

Trivia: With an astonishing resumé that incorporates everything from Seinfeld to Beavis and Butt-Head and King of the Hill, character actor Toby Huss qualifies as a staple of American pop culture. Born December 12, 1966 in Marshalltown, IA (the birthplace of many an actor or actress), Huss grew up in the American heartland, then briefly attended the University of Iowa after high school before dropping out and heading to Tinseltown. The elusiveness of Huss' name recognition is tied inextricably to his versatility -- most viewers will remember such inimitable creations as Cotton Hill (on Mike Judge's King of the Hill); Artie -- The Strongest Man in the World (on The Adventures of Pete & Pete); and The Wiz ("Nobody beats me, cause I'm the Wiz!"), a nutty appliance salesman who dates Elaine, on Seinfeld -- but only the most incisive of viewers could tie them to the same person. Huss also portrayed Felix "Stumpy" Dreifuss on the HBO period drama Carnivàle (2003-2005) and Big Mike on the irreverent Comedy Central series Reno 911! (2003-2007). In addition to his television work, Huss has graced nearly 40 feature films with his presence, and nearly all are laugh-fests that take full advantage of the actor's comic flair. These include: Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996), Harold Ramis' Bedazzled (2000), and The Country Bears (2002). As Beavis and Bears demonstrate, Huss is particularly adept at voice work.

Trivia: The only female member of the sketch comedy troupe the State, comedian Kerri Kenney is also a writer, voice actor, and musician. She was born in Connecticut to Larry Kenney, who was the voice of many TV characters (including Sonny the Coco Puffs bird and Lion-O on Thundercats) as well as a regular on the Don Imus radio show. While studying at N.Y.U., she started a joke band called Cake Like with actress Nina Hellman and fashion designer Jody Seifert. The project turned into a real band with Kenney as the lead singer, bassist, and lyricist. After the debut release Delicious on John Zorn's Avant label, Cake Like released Bruiser Queen and Goodbye, So What? on Neil Young's Vapor label.Meanwhile, Kenney was writing and starring on The State, which aired for three seasons on MTV. After the TV series was canceled, she continued to work with her fellow cast members on various comedy projects. Viva Variety was a spoof on European variety shows that aired for two seasons on Comedy Central. Kenney played glamorous hostess the former Mrs. Laupin, along with co-host Mr. Laupin (Tom Lennon) and sidekick Johnny Bluejeans (Michael Ian Black). On the big screen, she appeared in several independent comedy projects with Troma vet Will Keenan, including Love God, Terror Firmer, and Waiting. Taking after her father, she also provided voices for the animated television series Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, Disney's The Weekenders, Clerks, Kim Possible, and Invader ZIM. In 2001, she made it to prime-time network television as domestic Pam on the CBS sitcom The Ellen Show. After Ellen was canceled, she reunited with State friends Tom Lennon and Ben Garant to come up with a reality cop show spoof. As co-creator, writer, producer, and cast member, Kenney helped make Reno 911! one of the most highly rated shows on Comedy Central in 2003. The same year she got a chance to work with her dad on the VH1 special SuperSecret TV Formulas.

Trivia: As part of the editing, writing, performing, directing, and production team of The State, David Wain has helped refurbish the kind of comedy that demands an acquired taste. Wain began his long-term creative partnerships with Michael Showalter and Michael Ian Black as one of the creators of the popular series, which aired on MTV in the mid-'90s and developed a devoted fan base through its two-year onscreen duration.A native of the Cleveland area, Wain was born on August 1, 1969, in Shaker Heights, OH, where he lived until he relocated to New York City to attend film school at N.Y.U. In 1991, he directed a short film entitled Aisle Six, which screened at the Sundance Film Festival two years later. Collaborations with Showalter and Black continued since The State, adding numerous television writing, directing, and performance credits to Wain's resumé, in addition to his contributions to live New York nightclub productions of a show called Stella. In 2000, Wain made small-role appearances in Edward Norton's Keeping the Faith and Spike Lee's Bamboozled.Wain made his feature-length directorial debut in 2001 with Wet Hot American Summer (co-written by Wain and Showalter), a satirical comedy reflective of '80s coming-of-age flicks and summer camp which featured David Hyde Pierce, Janeane Garofalo, Molly Shannon, Paul Rudd, Marguerite Moreau, and others. The film's comedic style caused mixed critical reactions, and box-office success was stifled in part by distribution limitations. However, State and other absurdist comedy fans lucky enough to find it in their local theaters were struck delirious by the feature, which was infused with former State actors and bizarre, self-aware humor.