Mel was born in Homestead, Florida, on the Air Force Base, but was raised in Sunnyvale and San Jose, California. After graduating from Bellarmine College Preparatory in 1982, he began working in the entertainment industry. He has been a proud SAG-AFTRA member since 1988 and has earned a reputation as a versatile performer in many roles within the industry. Mel has collaborated with some of the biggest names in Hollywood and has appeared in more than 100 episodes of television and more than 35 feature films. He has also provided the voice for numerous TV and radio commercials, video games and animation projects. Mel's extensive resume also includes broadcast news, working for an NBC affiliate in California and a CBS affiliate in Arkansas, while at the latter, he earned "Associated Press" honors as a producer, writer, sports anchor and reporter. In addition, Mel's experience as a show host, extends to cable programming on ESPN and Spike TV. While at Spike TV, he collected numerous awards from the "International Automotive Media" as a producer, director, writer, host and reporter on numerous top-rated automotive shows.