Ventriloquist and standup comedian Jeff Dunham received an invitation to Johnny Carson's couch as early as 1990, although genuine breakthrough success arrived only in 2006 with the airing of his initial Comedy Central special. Born in Dallas, TX, during 1962, Dunham's first Tonight Show appearance occurred alongside a part in the television program Jonathan Winters and His Traveling Road Show. He subsequently logged years of touring at an average of 250 dates annually and accumulated further television credits on Ellen, The Rosie O'Donnell Show, Late Show with David Letterman, and The Tonight Show hosted by Jay Leno. By 2004 his material had turned toward open resistance to political correctness, so his well-timed slot on Blue Collar TV proved pivotal. Dunham and his puppet Walter, the grumpy old man, scored a major success on the series, prompting Comedy Central to commission an hour-long special in 2006. Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself earned a Platinum sales award upon its DVD release that same year. The 2007 follow-up Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity unveiled the divisive character Achmed the Dead Terrorist, a skeleton wearing a turban whose signature line is "I Keel You!". The figure proved popular with Dunham's growing audience and reappeared in Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special in 2008, which by year's end became his third DVD to surpass one million copies sold. Simultaneously the CD Don't Come Home for Christmas appeared, containing Walter's performance of "I Hate Christmas" and Achmed's "Jingle Bombs". In 2009 Dunham entered a production agreement with Comedy Central for his own television series.
