Background
Darnell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Eileen and Gene Darnell.
Darnell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Eileen and Gene Darnell.
His father was a policeman, and Mike was raised and attended public school in Philly"s Northeast section.
Darnell is currently President of Unscripted and Alternative Television at Warner Brothers Television, which he began on August 12. When he was 10, a talent manager saw him singing at a Police Athletic League event and encouraged him to do commercials.
When he was 12, his family moved to California, where he eventually appeared in or voiced-over some 60 commercials.
Later he worked as a bank teller to help pay his way through Cal State-Northridge. He also played piano at a night spot.
Soon after graduating, in 1994, he had an internship at "Entertainment Tonight, which he says he "hated," and then started working in the news unit of the new Fox affiliate station in Los Angeles, KTTV. He stayed with Fox for the next 19 years. During his long run with the network, Darnell was credited for launching When Animals Attack!, Breaking the Magician"s Code: Magic"s Biggest Secrets Finally Revealed, Temptation Island, Joe Millionaire, American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance?, and the various American reality series of British chef Gordon Ramsay, along with the canceled special O.J. Simpson: If I Did lieutenant, Here"s How lieutenant Happened.
In mid-2015, Darnell was credited as a creator on the genius game show 500 Questions, which he developed with Mark Burnett in his role at Warner Brothers.
Template:Cite url Their daughter Chelsea was born in 1998.