Christian Jacobs

Christian Jacobs
Christian Jacobs
Background information
Birth name	Christian Richards Jacobs
Also known as	The Caped Commander, The Bat Commander, MC Bat Commander
Born	January 11, 1972 (1972-01-11) Rexburg, Idaho, United States
Genres	Rock, pop punk, New Wave, synthpop, ska, punk
Occupations	Musician, television producer, actor
Instruments	Singing
Years active	1982–present
Associated acts	The Aquabats

Christian Richards Jacobs (born January 11, 1972) is an American musician, television producer, voice actor and former child actor. He is known for his work as the founder and lead singer of the Orange County rock band The Aquabats (in which he performs under the stage persona of The MC Bat Commander) and as the co-creator of the popular Nick Jr. children's television series Yo Gabba Gabba! and the upcoming series The Aquabats Super Show! for The Hub.

Biography

Early life

Jacobs was born the second of five children in Rexburg, Idaho in 1972. Following his family's relocation to Los Angeles in 1976, Jacobs and his siblings began working as child actors, primarily within television. Throughout the course of his childhood and into his late teens, Jacobs appeared in numerous productions, notably in bit parts in films such as Pretty in Pink and Gleaming the Cube and episodes of Married... with Children and Roseanne. His older sister, Rachel Jacobs, and his younger brother, Parker Jacobs, were also child actors.

While working on Gleaming the Cube, Jacobs was introduced to a number of well known and highly influential skateboarders and artists in Southern California. In 1990, Jacobs worked alongside Mark Gonzales and Jason Lee on Blind Skateboards' Video Days. As an artist, he also did board graphics for Tony Hawk's Birdhouse and for the Jason Lee and Steve Berra pro models.

A lifelong member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jacobs left the United States on missionary service in 1991, living in and around Tōhoku, Japan for two years. Upon returning to California, he began working various jobs and moonlighting in bands.

FUN FACT! Christian Jacobs is the great-grandson of prominent LDS leader LeGrand Richards.

The Aquabats

Jacobs performing with The Aquabats as "The MC Bat Commander".

In 1994, Jacobs co-founded the Huntington Beach-based superhero-themed band The Aquabats, in which he serves as the lead singer and primary songwriter under the stage name The MC Bat Commander (formerly "The Caped Commander" and "The Bat Commander"). Noted for their matching costumes and scripted onstage "battles" with supervillains, the band initially formed as part of the Southern California third wave ska scene, though since 2000 have evolved into playing more New Wave and pop punk-influenced rock.

The Aquabats experienced a commercial breakthrough with their second album, 1997's The Fury of the Aquabats!, which peaked at 172 on the Billboard 200. The band toured full-time during the latter half of the 1990s, traveling internationally as part of the 1998 Vans Warped Tour. During this time, Jacobs was also active with his friend and creative partner Scott Schultz, producing a number of additional skateboarding and music videos.

As of 2011, The Aquabats continue to tour and record, and released their fifth studio album Hi-Five Soup! in January 2011 on Fearless Records. In March, cable television channel The Hub announced that it had ordered 13 episodes of a television series based around the band, The Aquabats Super Show!, with Jacobs serving as co-creator, producer and star.

Yo Gabba Gabba!

In 1999, Jacobs and Schultz started developing concepts for children's programming with their production company The Magic Store with the goal of trying to create shows that they could enjoy along with their own children. In 2005, Jacobs and Schultz filmed a pilot for a pre-school program called Yo Gabba Gabba!. The show soon found a home on Nickelodeon's Nick Jr. block and has since completed three seasons, and has been recently renewed for a fourth.

Christian Jacobs is an avid surfer, skateboarder, Japanese toy collector and artist. He currently lives in Orange County, California, with his wife and four children.

Discography

The Aquabats

• The Return of the Aquabats (1995) - vocals
• The Fury of the Aquabats! (1997) - vocals
• The Aquabats vs. the Floating Eye of Death! (1999) - vocals
• Myths, Legends and Other Amazing Adventures, Vol. 2 (2000) - vocals
• Yo! Check Out This Ride! EP (2004) - vocals
• Charge!! (2005) - vocals
• Radio Down! (2010) - vocals
• Hi-Five Soup! (2011) - vocals

Collaborations

• "Got Sumethin' (That You Ought to Know)" from Bad Credit's album Giving Back by Giving Up (2004)
• "This Gigantic Robot Kills" with MC Lars and Suburban Legends, from MC Lars' album of the same name (2009)

Filmography

Film

Year	Film	Role
1986	Pretty in Pink	Boy in record store
1989	Gleaming the Cube	Gremic
1994	There Goes My Baby	Jeff
2008	Punk Rock Holocaust 2	The MC Bat Commander

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1982	The Love Boat	B.J.	Episode: "The Best of Friends/Too Many Dads/Love Will Find a Way"
1982–1983	Gloria	Joey Stivic	Series regular
1984	Second Sight: A Love Story	Bruce	TV movie
	Finder of Lost Loves	Scott Hargrove	Episode: "Maxwell, Ltd." (series pilot)
	Highway to Heaven	Danny	Episode: "Catch a Falling Star"
	ABC Weekend Special	Kurt Landry	Episode: "Henry Hamilton, Graduate Ghost"
1985	The History of White People in America	Tommy Harrison	TV movie
	The Canterville Ghost	Rob	TV movie
	Berrenger's	Bob	Episode: "Dangerous Ground"
	V	Billy	Episode: "Breakout"
	Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears	Cavin	voice only; series regular (season one)
1986	The History of White People in America: Volume II	Tommy Harrison	TV movie
1987	In Love and War	Jimmy (age 14)	TV movie
	Convicted: A Mother's Story		TV movie
1988	Portrait of a White Marriage	Tommy Harrison	TV movie
	Out of This World	Derek Rogers	Episode: "Broadway Danny Derek"
	Just the Ten of Us	Club Leader / Todd	Episode: "Move It or Lose It" Episode: "The Unkindest Cut of All"
1989	Married... with Children	Shep	Episode: "A Three Job, No Income Family"
	Hard Time on Planet Earth	Mark Brady	Episode: "Rodeo Show"
	ABC Afterschool Special	Danny	Episode: "My Dad Can't Be Crazy...Can He?"
	Roseanne	Andrew	Episode: "Chicken Hearts"
1990	Guns of Paradise	Henry	Episode: "The Gates of Paradise"
	Exile	Derf	TV movie
	Major Dad	Private LaBonte	Episode: "Infant-ry"
1999	The Aquabats in Color!	Bat Commander	TV pilot. Also co-creator, writer and director.
2007–present	Yo Gabba Gabba!	Plex (voice only)	Also co-creator, writer and director.
2008, 2011-	The Aquabats Super Show!	The MC Bat Commander	Also co-creator, writer and director.

External links

• July 2005 interview with The Aquabats!, including MCBC (by Nevra Azerkan at PopZineOnline)
• Christian Jacobs at the Internet Movie Database