Chris D'Elia

Christopher D'Elia (born March 29, 1980) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer and podcast host. He is known for playing Alex Miller on the NBC sitcom Whitney; Danny Burton on the sitcom Undateable, also on NBC; and Kenny on The Good Doctor on ABC.

Early life
D'Elia was born in New Jersey, the son of TV producer and director Bill D'Elia, and interior decorator Ellie D'Elia (née Dombroski). He has a younger brother, filmmaker/actor Matt D'Elia. His father is first generation Italian-American.

He was raised in Montclair, New Jersey until age twelve, when his family relocated to Los Angeles, California. He graduated from La Cañada High School in 1998.

Career
D'Elia started acting in high school, and had some guest starring parts on Chicago Hope.

He attended New York University and studied acting but dropped out after a year because he didn't like college. He then appeared in a movie that went straight to DVD. During his downtime as an actor he started writing scripts. When he was 25 he decided to do standup, which he had always wanted to do.

D'Elia has been doing stand-up comedy since 2006. He considers himself to be a standup comedian who acts. He has been featured on Comedy Central's Live at Gotham, Comedy Central Presents, and Showtime's Live Nude Comedy. He was introduced to a broader audience as a regular on the series Glory Daze, which ran for one season on TBS, playing "the Oracle", William Stankowski. He was originally only cast for the pilot, but was made a series regular.

He co-starred in the NBC comedy series Whitney, opposite comedian Whitney Cummings, for two seasons.

D'Elia was one of three hosts of the Ten Minute Podcast (from 2012 to 2015), along with Bryan Callen and Will Sasso. Since February 2017, he has hosted the weekly podcast Congratulations with Chris D'Elia, which has charted in the top 20 comedy podcasts in multiple countries. Other podcasts have been heavily influenced by his style, including The Fighter and the Kid, hosted by friend Bryan Callen and former MMA fighter turned E! host Brendan Schaub.

D'Elia also gained over 2 million followers on Vine.

In January 2013, D'Elia released his debut parody rap album, as MC "Chank Smith", called Such Is Life (produced by Mr. Green).

On December 6, 2013, D'Elia's first one-hour stand-up special, White Male Black Comic, aired on Comedy Central. It was directed by his father.

In May 2014, D'Elia was cast in the lead role of the NBC sitcom Undateable, which premiered on May 29, 2014, executive produced by Bill Lawrence. The show is a multi-camera sitcom with a live audience, based on the book Undateable: 311 Things Guys Do That Guarantee They Won't Be Dating or Having Sex by Ellen Rakieten and Anne Coyle.

The show often incorporates improv, with D'Elia playing Oscar to Brent Morin's straight-man Felix à la The Odd Couple. The cast includes stand-up comics who were good friends before the show.

In 2015, Bill Lawrence and the cast (D'Elia, Brent Morin, Ron Funches, and Rick Glassman) went on a series of stand-up tour dates to promote the show.

In 2016, D'Elia headlined the Leafly 420 Comedy Tour show in Chicago with special guest Ron Funches.

D'Elia has developed a significant fanbase. He jokingly calls this following his "cult".

Personal life
D'Elia was raised Catholic.

In 2006, D'Elia married actress Emily Montague. They divorced in 2010.

Despite the fact that his characters in Whitney (Alex Miller) and Undateable (Danny Burton) are both portrayed as frequent drinkers, D'Elia has never used drugs or alcohol.

D'Elia lives in the Beachwood Canyon area of Los Angeles.

Influences
D'Elia has cited Bryan Callen, Eddie Murphy, and Jim Carrey as major influences on his comedic career.

Discography

 * Comedy albums