American actor Jason Lee was born on April 25, 1970 in Orange County, California. Raised in Huntington Beach, he attended Ocean View High School. When he was 13, he took up skateboarding, and later developed his career as a professional skateboarder. He amazed many fans by popularizing the move he called “360 flip,” in addition to the numerous tricks he was able to perform. He later became a co-founder of the company Stereo Skateboards and Stereo Sounds Clothing. He is also credited for being the first to be street-tech with style, and is famous for giving fame to the ollie flips trick. Because of his talents, he appeared on the Sonic Youth video for the song “100%,” which was directed by Spike Jonze.
In 1992, Jason Lee landed a part in the film Ma Vida Loca, causing him to leave skateboarding and start off his professional acting career. His first major movie was actually a cult hit, catapulting him into the spotlight with his role as Brodie Bruce in Kevin Smith’s Mallrats. The two remained close friends, and Lee appeared on many of Smith’s other projects. Some of these are Chasing Amy, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Dogma, and Clerks II. Lee even won an Independent Spirit Award for his role on Chasing Amy.
Jason Lee soon found himself playing the lead male role on Heartbreakers, Stealing Harvard and A Guy Thing. Some of Lee’s other films include Vanilla Sky, Almost Famous, Dreamcatcher, Big Trouble, The Ballad of Jack and Rose, Mumford and Enemy of the State. He is also known for voicing the character Syndrome on the animated Disney film The Incredibles, as well as the voice of the title character in Underdog. In 2005, he was cast as the lead character on the NBC sitcom My Name is Earl. It debuted to critical acclaim and impressive ratings, and has resulted in a Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series -- Musical or Comedy as well as a nomination for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actor in a Comedy Series. Jason Lee is also known for playing Dave Seville on the film Alvin and the Chipmunks.