Kyle Gass

Kyle Gass

Best known as one half of the surprisingly musically competent comedy rock band Tenacious D, Kyle Gass has actually been appearing in front of the camera since long before the inception of his face-melting collaboration with Jack Black. Despite speculation that he sold his immortal soul to the devil himself in exchange for his musical abilities, Gass began playing the flute at the age of eight, eventually moving on to the saxophone and then guitar. He got his first acting break as a kid, appearing in a 7-Up commercial. After graduating high school in 1979, Gass enrolled at UCLA, where he met future celebrity Tim Robbins. Robbins recruited him into the Actor's Gang, where he soon met his future bandmate, a 16-year-old kid named Jack Black. Gass didn't take too kindly to the blustering upstart at first, but soon the two joined forces in the name of rock (and comedy). He taught Black to play guitar, and before long the two were creating the mythos of Tenacious D. Gass made numerous small appearances in movies throughout the '90s, playing characters like the anesthetist in Brain Dead and a smoker in an episode of Seinfeld. Then, in 2000, Tenacious D were given their own show on HBO. Combining sketch comedy with their bombastic songs and hardcore talent, the show earned the band a huge cult following. More small roles in movies took Gass through the inception of the new millennium, but the success of Tenacious D's show, appearances, album, and concerts were what made him the most visible. In 2006, Gass and Black filmed Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny, a big-screen telling of the band's mythical story including appearances by Ronnie James Dio, Meat Loaf, and of course, Satan. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide