Judd Apatow was born in Syosset, New York, on December 6, 1967, to Tami Shad and Maury Apatow. Judd worked at his local high school station, hosting "Club Comedy" and interviewing talent like John Candy, Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld and Weird Al Yankovic. Apatow was also an avid TV watcher, immersing himself in comedic fare like "Taxi," "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "Rhoda" and "Saturday Night Live."

Apatow went west and attended the University of Southern California for a time, where he studied screenwriting. He worked as a stand-up comedian, including a stint on the TV series "Comic Strip Live," before realizing that he was better equipped at penning material for others. He wrote for comedians like Roseanne Barr, Jim Carrey and Tom Arnold, and by 1992, had earned an executive producer position with the sketch/variety series "The Ben Stiller Show." Though the show ran for one season, Apatow won an Emmy for his writing.

Apatow then became one of the writers and executive producers for Garry Shandling's "The Larry Sanders Show" for several seasons, with Apatow earning several additional Emmy nominations. He continued his journey in TV by creating the series "Freaks and Geeks," which debuted in 1999. Though Apatow dealt with another show being cancelled after one season, "Freaks" earned critical acclaim and provided a platform for actors who would work with the creator on future projects.

By the mid-'90s, Apatow was also getting into film, serving as executive producer and screenwriter on "Celtic Pride" and producing "The Cable Guy," both comedies from 1996. He met actress Leslie Mann on "The Cable Guy" set; the two married in the summer of 1997 and have two daughters.

Apatow made his big-screen directorial debut in August, 2005 with "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," starring Steve Carrell as a sensitive, somewhat alienated soul taking his first steps to becoming sexually intimate. The film, which Apatow also wrote and produced, was an unexpected smash, earning almost $110 million in the domestic box office and another $68 million overseas.

Apatow's next film as a director, 2007's "Knocked Up," co-starred Katherine Heigl and Seth Rogen as a mismatched couple who end up becoming parents. "Knocked Up" became another hit for Apatow, earning $219 million worldwide.

Apatow was cementing a reputation for creating popular work around men coming to terms with growing up.

In addition to his directing, Apatow has served as the producer and/or screenwriter for a number of big-screen comedies during the early 2000s, including "Anchor Man" (2004), "Superbad" (2007), "You Don't Mess With the Zohan" (2008), "Step Brothers" (2008), "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" (2008), "Get Him to the Greek" (2010) and "Bridesmaids" (2011).

Apatow went on to direct 2009's "Funny People," starring his former roommate Adam Sandler as a mega-star comedian dealing with a terminal illness. The film, which co-starred Rogen and Mann, focuses on the world of stand-up comedy.

During the December holiday season of 2012, the next Apatow-helmed film project arrived in the form of "This Is 40," said to be a semi-autobiographical look at family life from the perspective of a Californian couple and their two daughters. The film stars Paul Rudd, with his character's wife played by Mann and the film couple's children played by Apatow's own daughters.

Apatow has continued his TV duties by executive producing the hit HBO series "Girls," starring Lena Dunham. He also oversaw the first comedy issue of Vanity Fair. Most recently, Apatow has directed the comedy film, "Trainwreck," starring Amy Schumer.

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