David Ray Campbell (born July 1, 1954) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

television writer, theater producer, and former comedy manager. With his partner,

Jim Jinkins James Jinkins (born August 8, 1953) is an American animator, cartoonist, and children's author. He is best known as the creator of the animated ''Doug (TV series), Doug'' television series which was later the basis for a Doug's 1st Movie, feature ...

, Campbell helped create the

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

animated television series '' Doug'', which launched the

Nicktoons Nicktoons is a collective name used by Nickelodeon for their original animated series. All Nicktoons are produced partly at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio and list Nickelodeon's parent company (Viacom, now known as Paramount Global) in their ...

brand. He is also the co-founder of

Jumbo Pictures The Walt Disney Company has owned and operated several animation studios since the company's founding on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio; the current Walt Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, Cal ...

and

Cartoon Pizza Cartoon Pizza is an American animation studio located in Nashville, Tennessee. It was co-founded by Jim Jinkins and David Campbell as the successor to Jinkins' former company, Jumbo Pictures. A hallmark of both Jumbo Pictures and Cartoon Pizza ha ...

, and is currently developing the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

musical, ''Holy Fire!''

Biography and career

Campbell was born in

Palatka, Florida Palatka () is a city in northeastern Florida and it is the county seat of Putnam County, Florida, United States. The population was 10,558 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Putnam County. Palatka is the principal city of the Palatka Mi ...

and grew up in

Searcy, Arkansas Searcy ( ) is the largest city and county seat of White County, Arkansas, United States. According to 2019 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 23,767. It is the principal city of the Searcy, AR Micropolitan Statistical Area ...

. He began his career working on many theatrical productions in New York and Los Angeles as a stage manager. He later produced such show business legends as

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...

Ann Miller Ann Miller (born Johnnie Lucille Collier; April 12, 1923 – January 22, 2004) was an American retired actress and former dancer. She is best remembered for her work in the Classical Hollywood cinema musicals of the 1940s and 1950s. Her early ...

Carol Channing Carol Elaine Channing (January 31, 1921 – January 15, 2019) was an American actress, singer, dancer and comedian who starred in Broadway and film musicals. Her characters usually had a fervent expressiveness and an easily identifiable voice, ...

, and Donald O’Connor in multiple productions of '' Sugar Babies'', which played more than 1,200 performances on Broadway. Campbell was also the founder and director of a New York talent management company, helping launch the early careers of

Louis CK Louis Alfred Székely (; born September 12, 1967), known professionally as Louis C.K. (), is an American stand-up comedian, screenwriter, actor, and filmmaker. C.K. won three Peabody Awards, three Grammy Awards, six Primetime Emmy Awards, and a ...

, Brett Butler, The Higgins Boys and Gruber, and television series including ''

Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy film review television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. ...

'' and ''

Grace Under Fire ''Grace Under Fire'' is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from September 29, 1993, to February 17, 1998. The show starred Brett Butler as a single mother learning how to cope with raising her three children alone after finally divorcing her ...

''. David and his partner Jim Jinkins would go on to create ''Doug'' after Jinkins showed Campbell doodlings of the character at a small restaurant in New York. The series received the 1993 and 1994 Parents’ Choice Awards and the 1995 Kids’ Choice Award. It was also nominated for three Cable ACE Awards, four

Emmys The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

as Best Animated Children’s Show and the prestigious Prix Jeunesse International Award. Following the success of ''Doug'', Walt Disney Studios acquired Jumbo Pictures, and made ''Doug'' the anchor of ABC’s Saturday morning lineup. It became a top-rated show, and inspired various books, merchandise, a live musical stage show, and a theatrical feature. He has been the Executive Producer on more than 300 episodes of award-winning children’s television including '' 101 Dalmatians: The Series'', ''

PB&J Otter ''PB&J Otter'' is an American animated musical television series. It premiered on Disney Channel's preschool block (Playhouse Disney) on March 15, 1998. A total of 65 episodes were produced during the course of its three-season run, with the fina ...

'', ''

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

'', ''

JoJo's Circus ''JoJo's Circus'' is a stop-motion animated television series created by Jim Jinkins, David Ray Campbell, David Campbell, Lisa Jinkins, and Eric Weiner and produced by the Canada-based Cuppa Coffee Studios and Cartoon Pizza. The series was writte ...

'', ''The Beginner’s Bible'', ''

Pinky Dinky Doo ''Pinky Dinky Doo'' is an animated children's television series created by Jim Jinkins. It was produced and co-owned by Jinkins' Cartoon Pizza and Sesame Workshop. The series was made in association with Discovery Kids Latin America, and the Canad ...

'', and many more. Most recently, Campbell was the Chief Content Officer at Dance Network, a digital television network in Nashville, TN. He is also working on several new projects including the video series, ''HoopDogz'', winner of the Parent’s

Dove Awards A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Award ...

and ''Holy Fire'', a Broadway-bound musical comedy. Campbell resides in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

with his wife and two daughters.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, David Ray American Christians American television writers Disney Television Animation people Nickelodeon Animation Studio people American theatre people Harding University alumni 1954 births Living people Screenwriters from Arkansas