Don McMillan

Don McMillan graduated from Stanford University with a Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering in 1982. He went to work for AT&T Bell Laboratories where he worked as part of the team that designed the world’s first 32-bit Microprocessor. He then moved to the Silicon Valley (San Jose, California) where he worked at VLSI Technology as a computer chip designer. During his six years at VLSI he designed more than 50 standard and ASIC designs, many of which are still in use today.

After winning the 16th Annual San Francisco International Stand-Up Comedy Competition in 1991, however, McMillan turned in his microchips for a microphone. He went on to be the $100,000 Grand Champion on Star Search in 1993. He’s had numerous television appearances including The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Larry King Show, MTV’s Half Hour Comedy Hour, and A&E’s Evening at the Improv. Nowadays, you can catch McMillan headlining comedy clubs from the “Improvisation” to “Catch-A-Rising Star” across the country.

You most likely have seen McMillan as the star of 15 national commercials for Budweiser Beer. He plays the Bud delivery guy who mans the “freshness hotline” and protects the world against “skunky” beer. He can also be seen in commercials for 7–Eleven, Franco-American Ravioli, Little Caesar’s Pizza, ServiStar Hardware, and United Airlines.

McMillan starred in Don: Plain & Tall, an independent film that was awarded “Best Feature - Comedy” at the Back East Film Festival and the Breckenridge Film Festival. He has also appeared in the feature length films: Air Bud III – World Pup, Life Without Dick, Macon County Jail, Party Crashers, and Fanatics. He has guest starred on such television series as Star Trek: Voyager, Babylon 5, City Guys, and Step by Step, and has been profiled in Entertainment Weekly, TV Guide, and the IEEE Spectrum. Currently, McMillan has two big YouTube hits: “Life After Death by PowerPoint” and “Live from My Cubicle.”

McMillan has not lost contact with his high-tech roots. He has performed over 300 shows for major corporations throughout the United States, including IBM, Apple, Google, and Genetech. With PowerPoint slides that are like none you’ve ever seen before, McMillan’s corporate show utilizes his unique background to take a lighthearted look at computers, technology, and the high-tech life. He is the only comedian that references “Avogadro's Number” and “XML,” and he Beta tests all his jokes.