Sinbad was born on this date in 1956. He is an African American comedian, writer and actor.
Born David Adkins in Benton Harbor, MI., he is the son of Rev. Dr. Donald and Louise Adkins. In 1974 and 1978 he attended the University of Denver where he lettered in basketball. Adkins was in the US Air Force as a Boom Operator aboard the KC-135. He almost received a dishonorable discharge for various problems including going AWOL. He joined the military for a vehicle for getting the attention of his idols, the Harlem Globetrotters. His plan was to play basketball in the Air Force, get noticed by the Globetrotters or another pro team and leave; he never made the team.
In 1981, things began to change. The comedy bug hit him when he participated in an Air Force Talent Show. He won several contests while stationed in Kansas. Under the professional name Sinbad, he became popular in the late 1980s and 1990s, appearing on several television series and starring in the feature films Houseguest (1995), First Kid and Jingle All the Way (both 1996). Sinbad married Meredith Fuller in 1985. They have two children together. [27] The couple divorced in 1992, then remarried in 2002.
He appeared on Star Search and The Redd Foxx Show. At one time, Sinbad hosted his own talk show, VIBE, and portrayed the goofy coach Walter Oakes on A Different World (a spinoff of The Cosby Show). He also had his own show, “The Sinbad Show”, in the early 1990s on Fox. He was also featured in a late 1990s infomercial for Tae Bo, where he claimed that he was successfully using the Tae Bo system to become an action star. He was the host of Showtime at the Apollo (formerly It’s Showtime At The Apollo). He had originally hosted from 1989 to 1991 and was the temporary host in 2005 while regular host Mo’Nique was on maternity leave. During the 1990s, Sinbad guest-starred on an episode of Nickelodeon’s All That. He also made a cameo appearance in the comedy movie Good Burger. Sinbad’s film roles consist of the comedy Houseguest, as well as the films First Kid and Jingle All the Way. In 2004 he was named the #78 greatest stand-up comic of all time on “Comedy Central Presents: 100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time”. In 2006 Maxim Magazine ranked Sinbad as the “Worst Comic of All Time”.
Sinbad also made a cameo appearance on the television show It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia as himself in a rehab center in the episode Dennis Reynolds: An Erotic Life, which originally aired October 23, 2008. Sinbad was the host of Thou Shalt Laugh 3. The DVD was released in 2008. In 2009, Sinbad was placed in the top 10 of the 250 worst tax debtors for the state of California. The comedian owed the State $2.5 million in personal income tax. In 2009, Sinbad filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. In 2010, it was reported that Sinbad put up his 2.5-acre (10,000 m2) hilltop home for sale in order to alleviate his tax burdens.
In 2010, he debuted on the Celebrity Apprentice and was fired on the second episode after losing in the Kodak challenge as project manager, placing 13th. In 2011, he was the celebrity speaker of MacWorld Expo 2011. He starred in a reality show on WE tv called Sinbad: It’s Just Family, however it was cancelled in 2011. Sinbad made an appearance on “The Eric Andre Show” in 2012.