Michael Showalter (born June 17, 1970) is an American comedian, actor, director, writer and producer. He is a member of the sketch comedy trio Stella. Showalter first came to recognition as a cast member on MTV\'s The State, which aired from 1993 to 1995. He and David Wain created the Wet Hot American Summer franchise, with Showalter co-writing and starring in Wet Hot American Summer (2001), and the Netflix series. Showalter wrote and directed The Baxter (2005), in which he starred with Michelle Williams, Justin Theroux and Elizabeth Banks. Both of the films featured many of his co-stars from The State, and so do several of his other projects. Showalter is also a co-creator, co-producer, actor, and writer for the TV series Search Party.\n', '

Showalter was born in Princeton, New Jersey, the son of Elaine Showalter (née Cottler), an author, literary critic, and professor, and English Showalter, a Yale-educated professor of 18th century French literature. His father is Episcopalian and his mother is Jewish. He has one older sister, Vinca Showalter LaFleur, a professional speechwriter. He attended Princeton High School. For five years, Showalter shared an apartment with his friend, comedian and actress Andrea Rosen.\n', '

Showalter began his undergraduate studies at New York University, where he joined the sketch comedy group The New Group. He transferred to and graduated from Brown University. After he completed college, The New Group changed its name to The State and began creating video shorts for an MTV show called You Wrote It, You Watch It, hosted by Jon Stewart. The State was then picked up as its own show, which aired for two years on MTV.\n', '

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