Early life[edit]

Roth was born and raised in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. He first acquired an interest in acting when he was ten, and has been working on commercials and being in front of and behind the camera ever since. In a 1996 interview, he said that he worked 22 commercials in his first year of acting. At age 11, he booked himself an audition for a children's show at a New York nightclub, winning a spot along with others including future stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Rick Schroder, and Ricki Lake.^[3] He was one of the hosts of the kids' news magazine version of Wonderama, which aired from 1980 to 1987.


After being a finalist on Star Search, he made numerous guest appearances on Charles in Charge, As the World Turns, The Equalizer, and Tales from the Darkside as Seymour Strand in the episode Seymourlama in 1986 (series 4, episode 8). After graduating from Cherry Hill High School East in 1986,^[4] and before producing reality television, Roth's first television exposure was hosting the kids' game show Fun House, which was one of the most popular children's shows in the U.S. at the time.^[1] At age 19, he became the youngest person to host a game show. During its three-year run, he also traveled across the country hosting a live version for children. In several episodes, he claimed that J.D. stood for "Jammin' Dude." In 1987, he auditioned for the part of Wesley Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation, but lost to Wil Wheaton;^[5][6] and was a panelist in the Davidson version of Hollywood Squares.