Michael O'Connell

Born in Sacramento, California, Michael O'Connell was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy at the age of two, which eventually led to him being in a wheelchair full time. In high school, he was a member of the drama club, a yearbook writer, and was voted "Wildest Imagination" in his senior class. While working by day as an auto insurance adjuster, he became a comic book writer, co-creating the comic "The Nice Guy" with artist Tim Watts and appearing at conventions such as Comic-Con International in San Diego. It was during this period that he became connected to the Browncoat movement - fans of the television show Firely fighting to get the canceled series back - which led to his attending the Hollywood premiere of the Firefly big screen continuation Serenity. During this appearance he was interviewed for the documentary Done The Impossible, the story of the journey of Firefly to a theatrical feature, and got to meet his creative hero, writer/director Joss Whedon. During a period of unemployment, he took a dare from a friend and tried doing stand-up comedy at a local comedy club. He won the competition that night and began pursuing a career as a comedian. He was soon working in comedy clubs all over the west coast, including the L.A. Improv and the Laugh Factory in Hollywood. He soon formed the comedy troupe known as "The Comedians with Disabilities Act", a tour made up of all disabled comics, and continues appearing both with the group and as a solo performer.