David Faustino literally grew up on television. Born in Los Angeles in 1974, he landed his first acting gig at three months old in The Lily Tomlin Special. Bit roles in TV movies and popular series like Little House on the Prairie and Family Ties followed, until, at age 13, he landed the role of Bud, one of the titular kids in the sitcom Married… with Children, which premiered on the then newly launched Fox Network in 1987.
Faustino played Bud for 259 episodes across 11 seasons. He was 22 by the time the series finale aired in 1997. Though he has continued acting in the years since, he’s been much more active behind the scenes in an entirely different part of the entertainment business. Keep reading to learn what the one-time child star has been doing over the years, and where he is today at 48.
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Faustino was influential in the music scene, too.
Jim Smeal/Ron Galella Collection via Getty ImagesDuring the height of Married… with Children’s popularity, Faustino moonlighted as an influencer in L.A.’s burgeoning rap scene. With a few friends, according to L.A. Weekly, he hosted parties at a West Hollywood nightclub called Whiskey a Go Go that attracted future hip-hop superstars like N.W.A. Still in his late teens, he palled around with Easy-E and Fergie and helped introduce the world to will.i.am.
Married… with Children’s set decorators even incorporated Faustino’s musical obsession into show, covering the walls of Bud’s room with posters of rappers—including Nas. “My album poster being on Bud’s wall was one of the illest moments for me,” the rapper told HipHopDX in 2012. “It was a sign that I’d made it in a lot of ways.”
Faustino even released his own tracks on a compilation album, but his efforts didn’t exactly turn him into the next Vanilla Ice. "I wasn't old enough to tell a story yet,” the actor told L.A. Weekly. “When it didn't go over big, I just put the whole rap artist thing on the back burner." But he would return to hip-hop in a big way years later.
After Bud, he continued acting.
Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for National GeographicThough he never landed another gig as major as Married… with Children, Faustino has kept busy in front of the camera in the years since the show ended.
He’s appeared onscreen in dozens of guest roles on shows including Modern Family (appearing alongside his old co-star Ed O’Neill), Entourage (playing himself), Bones, and The Bernie Mac Show. He's also played almost as many roles behind behind a microphone, voicing characters on animated series including Batman Beyond, Johnny Bravo, and The Legend of Korra. For a time, he was even the voice of a T-Mobile ad campaign.
In 2009, he developed and starred in Star-ving, a web series for Crackle, in which he played an over-the-top version of himself, attempting to show audiences “a very twisted take” on his experiences in Hollywood, he explained to The Los Angeles Times in 2009. All three members of his Married… with Children family—O’Neill, Katey Segal, and Christina Applegate—made cameos on the short-lived series.
More recently, he starred in the Netflix comedy series Bad Samaritans and the horror comedy Sharknado 4, did an eight-episode run on The Young and the Restless, and took on fellow former teen star Joey Lawrence in a rap battle on Drop the Mic.
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You can also hear him on the radio.
In addition to voicing cartoon characters, Faustino has put his pipes to use on the radio, hosting the Old Scratch Radio Hour for Dash Radio, on which he reunited with O’Neill again for an interview in 2015. He still DJs live every Wednesday on Dash, according to his Twitter bio.
But over the years, he’s also reignited his passion for rap, performing as “Lil Gweed” (a reference to his Italian heritage) and, for a time, running a music label, Old Scratch Records.
He's a dad himself now.
JC Olivera/Getty ImagesFaustino wed Andrea Elmer in 2004, but the two divorced in 2007. And while he isn't married now, he has a long-time partner in Lindsay Bronson. The couple welcomed their daughter, Ava Marie Grace, in 2015. “Lindsay and I are extremely grateful and thrilled to bring another life into the world," Faustino told People at the time. Much more recently, he celebrated his daughter with an Instagram post on International Women's Day. "Here’s to my little woman on #internationalwomensday #IWD May you do big thangs while you’re here," he captioned a photo of the two of them.
