Michael J. Nelson

He was working as a waiter at T.G.I. Friday's and doing occasional stand-up comedy when he was offered a job on Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1988) doing typing in the writing room. The writers told him to feel free to make some comments on the movies they were watching, and he so impressed them with his wit and comedic timing that they made him a staff writer (and later the head writer).

[His explanation of how the show Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1988) lasted so long (10 seasons)] "I think the thing is just not to get famous, which is what we've done. We're always under the radar, we're durable because we're so not successful."