David "Dave" Seville is a fictional character, the producer and manager of the fictional singing group ''

Alvin and the Chipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three ...

''. The character was created by Ross Bagdasarian Sr., who had used the name "David Seville" as his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

prior to the creation of the Chipmunks, while writing and recording novelty records in the 1950s. One of the records, recorded in 1958 under the David Seville stage name, was "

Witch Doctor A witch doctor (also spelled witch-doctor) was originally a type of healer who treated ailments believed to be caused by witchcraft. The term is now more commonly used to refer to healers, particularly in regions which use traditional healing ...

", featuring a sped-up high-pitched vocal technique. Bagdasarian would later use that technique in "

The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late) "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" is a novelty Christmas song written by Ross Bagdasarian (under the stage name of David Seville) in 1958. Bagdasarian sang and recorded the song, varying the tape speeds to produce high-pitched "chi ...

", which would introduce both Alvin and the Chipmunks as a singing group and Bagdasarian's

music producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

"Dave". Bagdasarian would go on to create ''

The Alvin Show ''The Alvin Show'' is an American animated television series that aired on CBS in the early 1960s. This was the first series to feature the singing characters Alvin and the Chipmunks. ''The Alvin Show'' aired for one season, from October 4, 1961, ...

'', based on the Alvin and the Chipmunks group, where he voiced the semi-fictional character David Seville, based largely on himself, with Alvin based on Ross's sometimes rebellious son Adam. Bagdasarian Sr. died in 1972, and his son (Adam's brother)

Ross Bagdasarian Jr. Ross Truman Bagdasarian Jr. (born May 6, 1949) is an American actor, animator and producer, known for his work on the ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' franchise. He is the son of the franchise's creator, Ross Bagdasarian. Early life Bagdasarian was ...

took over ownership of

Bagdasarian Productions Bagdasarian Productions (also credited as Bagdasarian Company) is an American production company founded by Ross Bagdasarian Sr. (also known as David Seville) on February 20, 1961. The company holds the rights to Alvin and the Chipmunks and rela ...

. He reprised the David Seville character, first in a series of novelty albums beginning with 1980's ''

Chipmunk Punk ''Chipmunk Punk'' is an album by the Chipmunks, as well as being the first album released by Ross Bagdasarian, Jr., after he took over the voices of the Chipmunks after the death of his father in 1972. Despite the title of the album, none of th ...

''. Bagdasarian Jr. subsequently assumed the role on the TV series ''

'', which ran in original episodes from 1983–1990. Bagdasarian Jr. has voiced David Seville in all official animated and recorded incarnations of David Seville since taking over for his father in the 1970s, including TV series, animated specials, and

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy w ...

productions. He most recently voiced the character in the 2015 reboot of the ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' television show. Actor

Jason Lee Jason Lee may refer to: Entertainment *Jason Lee (actor) (born 1970), American film and TV actor and former professional skateboarder *Jason Scott Lee (born 1966), Asian American film actor * Jaxon Lee (Jason Christopher Lee, born 1968), American v ...

also portrays David Seville in live action/CGI films starring Alvin and the Chipmunks, which use a combination of live-action acting and

computer animation Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating animations. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both static scenes ( still images) and dynamic images ( moving images), while computer animation re ...

. While Ross Bagdasarian Jr. does not do any voices for the film series, the films are all produced in association with Bagdasarian Productions, which owns the rights to all of the characters.

Portrayed by

Filmography

Films

Television

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seville, David Fictional characters introduced in 1958 Alter egos Alvin and the Chipmunks Fictional managers Fictional producers American male characters in television

Portrayed by

Filmography

Films

Television

See also

References