The Untold Truth Of David Spade

David Spade got every self-respecting comedian's dream job in 1990 when he became a writer and cast member of Saturday Night Live. Spade starred in classic sketches like "Gap Girls" alongside Adam Sandler and became known for his sarcastic, insult-based style of humor. Coming up with greats like Sandler, Chris Farley, Mike Meyers, and Rob Schneider, the world was at his comedic fingertips.

After Spade left SNL in 1996, he went on to star in comedy classics like Tommy Boy, Joe Dirt, and Just Shoot Me!, and he voiced the leading llama in the 2000 animated feature, Emperor's New Groove. The star even hosted the Teen Choice Awards in 2003.

So what happened to the actor, comedian, and father? Although Spade is still active in Hollywood and tours as a stand up comic, he hasn't reached the same level of success as many of his SNL counterparts. Although we're not exactly sure why this is the case, our exploration into the untold truth of David Spade might provide some insight.

David Spade has seemingly struggled to capitalize on his string of early successes. Aside from voicing the lead role in the children's movie Hotel Transylvania, a move which grossed $148 million domestically, according to Box Office Mojo, his film career hasn't hit a consistent stride in a while. Case in point: The straight-to-Netflix movie, Father of The Year, failed to strike a chord, but The Wrong Missy made the streaming platform's "Top 10" list in May 2020. You win some, you lose some, right?

As for Spade's passion project, sequel Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser, it didn't reach the big screen and was released exclusively on the streaming site Crackle, instead. However, it did quite well by the site's standards, becoming their most popular original, according to Deadline. And lately, the actor hasn't fared much better on the small screen. Aside from earlier successes with projects like Just Shoot Me!, Spade hasn't made anything stick in years. His reality prank show Fameless ran from 2015 to 2017 on TruTV, and his 2019 talk show Lights Out was unfortunately not renewed by Comedy Central, according to Deadline.

Of course, we're confident Spade can bounce back. 

As it turns out, David Spade has had his fair share of public spats, and perhaps his most famous one is his decades-long feud with comedian Eddie Murphy. It all began in 1995 when Spade referred to the actor as a "falling star" (at the time one of Murphy's films was doing badly at the box office) on his popular SNL segment, "Hollywood Minute," as he revealed in an excerpt for his book, Almost Interesting: The Memoir (via Salon). According to a 2011 Rolling Stone interview with Murphy, the actors have since patched things up.

Another beef of note? Look no further than the time when Spade got burned by Danielle Bregoli, AKA "Cash Me Outside" rapper Bhad Bhabie (thank you to spell-check for that last sentence). Here's what happened: The actor and the rapper ran into each other at a Los Angeles restaurant in 2017, where they took a selfie together. "How bow dis," he captioned the shot of himself with Bregoli, who is 38 years his junior, per The Wrap. "(@bhadbhabie is slightly underwhelmed to meet me ???'). Unfortunately, she stopped being famous 5 minutes before this was taken." 

Bregoli clapped back, reposting the photo on May 8, 2017, with the caption, "No lie, I thought dis guy was the waiter." Ouch. 

The two seemed to bury the hatchet, as Spade would go on to appear in a Bhad Bhabie music video for her single, "Gucci Flip Flops." All's well that ends well, right?

Finally, it hasn't been all smooth sailing for David Spade. In June 2017, his home in Beverly Hills got burglarized, and the thieves escaped with an entire safe full of his valuables, including approximately $80,000 in jewelry and cash, TMZ reported.

Then, in 2018, Spade suffered another blow when his sister-in-law, famous designer Kate Spade, tragically died by suicide. Not only are the two related through marriage, but it seems they were close. "She was so sharp and quick on her feet, I still can't believe it," Spade wrote in a June 5, 2020, Instagram post about her passing.

But most heartbreaking of all was perhaps the passing of Chris Farley in 1997. Spade, who was the late actor's dear friend and Tommy Boy co-star, didn't attend the funeral. Although some fans speculated he didn't come due to his feud with Eddie Murphy, who was in attendance, the real reason was much sadder.

"I think people misunderstood me not going to that funeral," Spade wrote in a May 2009 Reddit AMA. "It was just too ... emotional, and I wouldn't be able to handle it."

All in all, Spade has led a fascinating life that has been full of ups and downs. And we can't wait to find out what the next stop on his journey is.

If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.