Denis Colin Leary
(born August 18, 1957) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. He is known for his often biting comedic style and his chain smoking. Leary is the star and co-creator of the television show Rescue Me
now in its fifth season.
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DENIS LEARY TICKETS
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Biography
Early life
Leary was born in
Worcester, Massachusetts, the son of
Irish Catholic immigrants. His mother, Nora, was a maid, and his father, John Leary (deceased), was an auto mechanic.
[1] Since both of his parents are from
Killarney,
County Kerry,
Ireland, Leary holds both
Irish and
American citizenship. He graduated from
Saint Peter-Marian High School, in Worcester. Through marriage, Leary is a third cousin of talk show host
Conan O'Brien [2] [3] and has jokingly said on
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
that, "All Irish people are related."
Emerson College
Leary is a graduate of
Emerson College, in
Boston, where he was classmates with fellow comic
Mario Cantone, who remains his close friend. Comedian
Steven Wright and actress
Gina Gershon also attended Emerson at the same time as Leary. At the school, he and Jodi Haffner co-founded the Emerson Comedy Workshop, a troupe that continues on-campus as of at least 2009.
[4] After graduating with the Emerson Class of 1979, he took a job at the school teaching comedy writing classes and maintained the job for five years.
[5] Leary was honored with an
honorary doctorate and spoke briefly at his alma mater's undergraduate commencement ceremony on May 16, 2005
[6] and is credited as "Dr. Denis Leary" on the cover of his 2008 book,
Why We Suck
.
Career
Leary started his career as a comedian in the Boston comedy scene of the 1980s, where he hosted his own show at the underground club "Play It Again Sam's". He also wrote and appeared on a local comedy series,
Lenny Clarke's Late Show
, hosted by his friend
Lenny Clarke and written by Boston comedy writer
Martin Olson. Leary and Clarke both spoke about their early affiliations and influences in the Boston comedy scene in the documentary film
When Standup Stood Out
(2006). It was during this time that he developed his stage persona. He also appeared in skits on the
MTV game show
Remote Control
, playing such characters as
Keith Richards of the
Rolling Stones, the "brother" of co-host
Colin Quinn, and artist
Andy Warhol.
Leary first earned fame when he ranted about
R.E.M. in an
MTV sketch. Several other commercials for MTV followed, in which Leary would rant at high speeds about a variety of topics. He has released two
records of his
stand-up comedy:
No Cure for Cancer
(1993) and
Lock 'n Load
(1997). In late 2004, he released the
EP Merry F#%$in' Christmas
, which included a mix of new music, previously unreleased recordings, and some tracks from
Lock 'n Load
.
In 1993, his
sardonic song about the stereotypical American male, "
Asshole," achieved much notoriety. It was voted #1 in an
Australian youth radio poll (the
Triple J Hottest 100)
[7] as well as reaching #2 in the singles chart in that country. The video also became a staple of
MTV's late-night programming. Due to its explicit and controversial content, however, it received limited airplay on
mainstream American
radio stations. At the 2004
Comics Come Home event in Boston, Massachusetts, Leary performed a new version of the song directed at the
New York Yankees baseball team, and as the song concluded,
Bronson Arroyo walked on stage with the World Series trophy. The song was also used as part of the
Holsten Pils series of ads in the
UK, in which Leary was participating, with adapted lyrics criticizing a drunk driver.
Although he claims to be most at home on stage doing stand-up, Leary has appeared as an actor in over 40 movies, including
The Sandlot
,
Monument Ave.
,
The Matchmaker
,
The Ref
,
Suicide Kings
,
Dawg
,
Wag the Dog
,
Demolition Man
,
The Thomas Crown Affair
and
Operation Dumbo Drop
. He has had the lead role in two television series,
The Job
and
Rescue Me
. In addition, Leary has provided voices for characters in animated films, such as a fire-breathing dragon named Flame in the
The Agents
series, a prehistoric saber-toothed cat named Diego in the
Ice Age
film trilogy, and the pugnacious ladybug Francis in
A Bug's Life
. He has
produced numerous movies, television shows, and specials through his production company Apostle; these include
Comedy Central's
Shorties Watchin' Shorties
, the stand-up special
Denis Leary's Merry F#$%in' Christmas
, and the movie
Blow
. As a
Boston Red Sox fan, he narrated the official
2004 World Series film. In 2006, Leary and
Lenny Clarke appeared on television during a Red Sox telecast and, upon realizing that Red Sox first baseman
Kevin Youkilis is Jewish, delivered a criticism of
Mel Gibson's antisemitic comments.
[8] [9] As an
ice hockey fan, Leary also hosted the
National Hockey League video
NHL's Greatest Goals
.
In 2003,
Comedy Central honored Leary with the
Comedy Central Roast of Denis Leary
. Friend
Jeff Garlin acted as roastmaster. Roasters included
Mario Cantone,
Adam Ferrara,
Dane Cook,
Jim Breuer,
Nick DiPaolo, Don Gavin,
Christopher Walken,
Lenny Clarke,
Gina Gershon,
Conan O'Brien,
Jon Stewart,
Gilbert Gottfried,
Colin Quinn, and
Michael J. Fox.
As of 2004, Leary is the star and co-creator of the
FX cable-network series
Rescue Me
. He plays
Tommy Gavin, a
New York City firefighter dealing with
alcoholism, family dysfunction, and other issues in post-
9/11 New York City. Leary received
Emmy nominations in 2006 and 2007 for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his performance. For this TV series, he turned down roles in two films:
The Departed
(Mark Wahlberg got the role after Leary turned down the role) and
Bobby
, which his close friend Emilio Estevez directed.
Leary did the TV voiceover for
MLB 2K8 ads, where he used his trademark rant style in baseball terms, and ads for the 2009
Ford F-150 pickup truck. He has also appeared in commercials for
Hulu and
DirecTV's
NFL Sunday Ticket package. Leary was a producer of the
Fox Broadcasting series
Canterbury's Law
and wrote and directed its pilot episode.
Canterbury's Law
aired in the spring of 2008 and was canceled after eight episodes.
On September 9, 2008, Leary hosted the sixth annual
Fashion Rocks
event, which aired on
CBS. During one part of the show, Leary came onstage dressed in a long gold halter dress and wearing diamond earrings and a bracelet; he carried a purse and a pair of high heels. In another segment, he let out a controversial rant about
Britney Spears, the birth of
Ricky Martin's twins, and
David Duchovny going to rehab for
sex addiction.
In December 2008, Leary appeared in a video on
funnyordie.com critiquing a list of some of his "best" films, titled "Denis Leary Remembers Denis Leary Movies".
[10]
In 2008, Leary was a guest star on
The Simpsons
. In this episode titled "Lost Verizon", the second episode of season 20, Leary was exaggerated as a "very epic" superstar.
On March 21, 2009 Leary began the "Rescue Me Comedy Tour" in
Atlantic City, New Jersey. The 11-date tour, featuring
Rescue Me
co-stars Lenny Clarke and Adam Ferrara, will be Leary's first stand-up comedy tour in 12 years.
Personal life
Denis Leary has been married to writer Ann Lembeck Leary since 1989.
They met when he was her instructor for an English class at
Emerson College. They have two children, son John Joseph "Jack" (born 1990) and daughter Devin (born 1992). Ann Leary published a memoir,
An Innocent, a Broad
, about the
premature birth of their son on an overseas visit to
England. She has also written a novel,
Outtakes From a Marriage,
which was published in 2008.
Leary is an
ice hockey fan and has his own backyard hockey rink at his home in New York with piping installed under the ice surface to help the ice stay frozen. His favorite
National Hockey League team is the
Boston Bruins.
[11] He is also a diehard
Boston Red Sox fan, as well as a fan of the
Green Bay Packers.
Leary is a liberal
Democrat.
[ He has said, "I'm more interested in my issues than I am in the guy" and "I was a life-long Democrat, but now at my age, I`ve come to realize that the Democrats suck, and the Republicans suck, and basically the entire system sucks. But you have to go within the system to find what you want." [12] Leary supported Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election. [13]
]
Leary defines his religious beliefs as "I'm a lapsed Catholic in the best sense of the word. You know, I was raised with Irish parents, Irish immigrant parents. My parents, you know, prayed all the time, took us to mass. And my father would sometimes swear in Gaelic. It doesn`t get more religious than that. But, no, after a while, they taught us wrong. I didn`t raise my kids with the fear of God. I raised my kids with the sense of, you know, to me, Jesus was this great guy...".[
]
Despite jokes he's made, Leary watches The Oprah Winfrey Show
frequently and loves the program.[
]
Leary Firefighters Foundation
On December 3, 1999, six firefighters from Leary's hometown of Worcester were killed in a massive warehouse fire. Among the dead were Leary's cousin Jerry Lucey and his close childhood friend Lt. Tommy Spencer. In response, the comedian founded the Leary Firefighters Foundation. Since its creation in the year 2000, the foundation has distributed over $2.5 million (USD) to fire departments in the Worcester, Boston, and New York City areas for equipment, training materials, new vehicles, and new facilities. Leary won $125,000 for the foundation on the game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Leary has close ties with 107.3 WAAF-FM, which in 2000 released the station album "Survive This!" Part of the proceeds from this album were donated to the Leary Firefighters Foundation.
A separate fund run by Leary's foundation, the Fund for New York's Bravest, has distributed over $2 million (USD) to the families of the 343 firemen killed in the September 11, 2001, attacks in addition to providing funding for necessities such as a new mobile command center, first responder training, and a high-rise simulator for the FDNY's training campus. This new fund was established because the families of the Worcester fire did not want to include New York families into the fund. As a result, Leary created a separate fund for New York.
As the foundation's president, Leary has been active in all of the fundraising, usually presenting large checks and donated equipment personally. The close relationship he has developed with the FDNY as well as with individual firefighters across the New York/New England area has resulted in Leary's most recent television show, Rescue Me
, a Comedy-drama on FX. In the pilot episode of the show, he is seen wearing a Leary Firefighter Foundation 9-11 Memorial T-shirt.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, Leary donated over a dozen boats to the New Orleans fire department to aid in rescue efforts in future disasters. The foundation also rebuilt entire NOLA firehouses.
Autism-remarks controversy
In his 2008 book Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid
, Leary made a statement about autism that has angered many people.
“
| There is a huge boom in autism right now because inattentive mothers and competitive dads want an explanation for why their dumb-ass kids can't compete academically, so they throw money into the happy laps of shrinks... to get back diagnoses that help explain away the deficiencies of their junior morons. I don't (care) what these crackerjack whack jobs tell you — your kid is not autistic. He's just stupid. Or lazy. Or both.
| ”
|
In response to the controversy, Leary stated that the quote was taken out of context and that in that paragraph he had been talking about the trend of overdiagnosis of autism, which he attributed to American parents seeking an excuse for behavioral problems and underperformance. Later, he apologized to parents with autistic children whom he had offended. [14] [15]
Accusations of plagiarism
For many years, Leary had been friends with fellow comedian Bill Hicks. However, when Hicks heard Leary's No Cure for Cancer,
he felt Leary had stolen his act and material. Hicks famously told an interviewer: "I have a scoop for you. I stole his (Leary's) act. I camouflaged it with punchlines, and to really throw people off, I did it before he did". [16]
The friendship ended abruptly as a result. [17]
At least three stand-up comedians have gone on the record stating they believe Leary stole not just some of Hicks' material but also his persona and attitude. [18] [19] [20] One similar routine was about the band Judas Priest, during which Hicks specifically says "I don’t think we lost a cancer cure."
During a 2003 roast of Denis Leary, comedian Lenny Clarke, a friend of Leary's, said there was a carton of cigarettes backstage from Bill Hicks with the message, "Wish I had gotten these to you sooner." This joke was cut from the final broadcast. [21]
The controversy surrounding plagiarism is also mentioned in American Scream: The Bill Hicks Story
, by Cynthia True:
Leary was in Montreal to host the "Nasty Show," at Club Soda, and Colleen was coordinating the talent so she was standing backstage when she heard Leary doing material that sounded incredibly similar to old Hicks riffs, including his perennial Jim Fixx joke: ("Keith Richards outlived Jim Fixx, the runner and health nut dude. The plot thickens."). When Leary came offstage, Colleen, more stunned than angry, said, "Hey, you know that's Bill Hicks' material! Do you know that's his material?" Leary stood there, stared at her without saying a word and briskly left the dressing room. [22]
She reportedly said, upon hearing a tape of Leary's album No Cure for Cancer
, "Bill was furious. All these years, aside from the occasional jibe, he had pretty much shrugged off Leary's lifting. Comedians borrowed, stole stuff and even bought bits from one another. Milton Berle and Robin Williams were famous for it. This was different. Leary had, practically line for line, taken huge chunks of Bill's act and recorded
it."
In the August 2006 Playboy
, an interviewer told Leary, "Much has been written about you and comedian Bill Hicks.... People have accused you of appropriating his persona and material." Leary replied:
Awards
Year
| Result
| Award
| Category
| Film/Show
|
2009
| Nominated
| Golden Globe Awards
| Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
| Recount
(2008)
|
2008
| Nominated
| Emmy Awards
| Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
| Recount
(2008)
|
2007
| Nominated
| Emmy Awards
| Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
| Rescue Me
|
2007
| Nominated
| Satellite Awards
| Best Actor in a Series, Drama
| Rescue Me
|
2007
| Nominated
| Prism Awards
| Performance in a Drama Series, Multi-Episode Storyline
| Rescue Me
|
2006
| Nominated
| Emmy Awards
| Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
| Rescue Me
|
2006
| Nominated
| Satellite Awards
| Best Television Series, Drama
| Rescue Me
|
2006
| Nominated
| Satellite Awards
| Best Actor in a Series, Drama
| Rescue Me
|
2006
| Nominated
| Prism Awards
| Performance in a Drama Series, Multi-Episode Storyline
| Rescue Me
|
2005
| Nominated
| Emmy Awards
| Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series
| Rescue Me
|
2005
| Nominated
| Golden Globe Awards
| Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama
| Rescue Me
|
2005
| Nominated
| Satellite Awards
| Best Actor in a Series, Drama
| Rescue Me
|
2005
| Won
| Satellite Awards
| Best Ensemble - Television
| Rescue Me
|
2005
| Nominated
| Satellite Awards
| Best Television Series, Drama
| Rescue Me
|
2005
| Nominated
| Television Critics Association Awards
| Outstanding Achievement in Drama
| Rescue Me
|
2005
| Nominated
| Television Critics Association Awards
| Outstanding New Program of the Year
| Rescue Me
|
2003
| Nominated
| Kids' Choice Awards
| Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie
| Ice Age
|
2003
| Nominated
| DVD Exclusive Awards
| Best Actor
| Double Whammy
(2001)
|
2002
| Nominated
| Television Critics Association Awards
| Individual Achievement in Comedy
| The Job
|
2002
| Nominated
| Television Critics Association Awards
| Best New Show
| The Job
|
2000
| Won
| Blockbuster Entertainment Awards
| Favorite Supporting Actor - Drama/Romance
| The Thomas Crown Affair
(1999)
|
1996
| Won
| CableACE Awards
| Best Directing: Comedy
| National Lampoon's Favorite Deadly Sins
(1995)
|
1992
| Won
| Edinburgh International Arts Festival
| Critic's Award
| No Cure for Cancer
(1992)
|
1992
| Won
| BBC Festival
| Recommendation Award
| No Cure for Cancer
(1992)
|
Filmography
Films
Year
| Title
| Role
| Notes
|
1987
| Long Walk to Forever
| Newt
| short film
|
1991
| Strictly Business
| Jake
| cameo
|
1993
| The Sandlot
| Bill
|
|
Who's the Man?
| Sergeant Cooper
|
|
Demolition Man
| Edgar Friendly
|
|
National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1
| Mike McCracken
| cameo, performing You Really Got Me
|
Judgment Night
| Fallon
|
|
1994
| The Ref
| Gus
|
|
Gunmen
| Armor O'Malley
|
|
Natural Born Killers
| Prison Inmate
| director's cut, cameo
|
1995
| National Lampoon's Favorite Deadly Sins
| Jake
| TV-movie, also directed segment "Lust"
|
Operation Dumbo Drop
| CW3 David Poole
|
|
The Neon Bible
| Frank
|
|
1996
| Underworld
| Johnny Crown/Johnny Alt
|
|
Two If by Sea
| Francis "Frank" O'Brien
| also writer
|
1997
| The Second Civil War
| Vinnie Franko
| TV-movie
|
Love Walked In
| Jack Hanaway
| also producer
|
Subway Stories
| Guy in wheel chair
| TV movie, segment "The Red Shoes"
|
Wag the Dog
| Fad King
|
|
Suicide Kings
| Lono Veccio
|
|
The Real Blonde
| Doug
|
|
The MatchMaker
| Nick
|
|
1998
| Monument Ave.
| Bobby O'Grady
| a.k.a Snitch
, also uncredited writer
|
Wide Awake
| Mr. Beal
|
|
Small Soldiers
| Gil Mars
|
|
A Bug's Life
| Francis
| voice
|
1999
| True Crime
| Bob Findley
|
|
Jesus' Son
| Wayne
|
|
Do Not Disturb
| Simon
|
|
The Thomas Crown Affair
| Det. Michael McCann
|
|
2000
| Sand
| Teddy
|
|
Lakeboat
| The Fireman
|
|
Company Man
| Officer Fry
|
|
2001
| Double Whammy
| Det. Raymond Pluto
| also uncredited producer
|
Final
| Bill
| performing Little Sister
|
2002
| Dawg
| Douglas "Dawg" Munford
| a.k.a Bad Boy
|
Ice Age
| Diego
| voice
|
The Secret Lives of Dentists
| Slater
|
|
2003
| When Stand Up Stood Out
| Himself
| documentary
|
The Curse of the Bambino
| Himself
| documentary
|
Reverse of the Curse of the Bambino
| Himself
| documentary (sequel)
|
2006
| Ice Age: The Meltdown
| Diego
| voice
|
2008
| Recount
| Michael Whouley
| TV-movie
|
2009
| Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
| Diego
| voice
|
2009
| G.I.Joe
| Lee
|
Gross (films)
Year
| Title
| US Gross
|
1993
| The Sandlot
| US$32.1 million
|
Demolition Man
| US$134.0 million
|
Judgment Night
| US$12.1 million
|
1994
| Gunmen
| US$3.4 million
|
Natural Born Killers
| US$11.1 million
|
1995
| The Neon Bible
| US$780,072
|
1997
| The MatchMaker
| US$3.3 million
|
1998
| Wide Awake
| US$58,212
|
Small Soldiers
| US$71.7 million
|
A Bug's Life
| US$162.7 million
|
1999
| The Thomas Crown Affair
| US$69.3 million
|
2006
| Ice Age: The Meltdown
| US$195.3 million
|
TV shows
Year
| Title
| Role
| Note(s)
|
1987
| Remote Control
| Various roles
| All episodes
|
1990
| Afterdrive
| Himself
| Talk show
|
1992
| Tonight with Jonathan Ross
|
| 2 episodes
|
1998
| The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder
| Himself
| Episode dated 24 April 1998
|
1998
| Fantasy World Cup
| Himself
| Episode #1.15
|
1998
| Space Ghost Coast to Coast
| Himself
| Episode: Waiting For Edward
|
2001-2002
| The Rosie O'Donnell Show
| Himself
| Guest at two episodes
|
2001-2002
| The Job
| Mike McNeil
| Also writer and producer All episodes
|
2002
| Contest Searchlight
| Fictionalized version of himself
| All episodes
|
2002
| Crank Yankers
| Joe Smith (voice)
| Episode: 1.2
|
2004
| Rescue Me
| Tommy Gavin
| nominated for Golden Globe and Emmy also creator,producer and writer
|
2005
| The Charlie Rose Show
| Himself
| one episode
|
Last Call with Carson Daly
| Himself
| two episodes (2004-2005)
|
The Tony Danza Show
| Himself
| episode dated 13 July 2005
|
The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch
| Himself
| one episode
|
2006
| Rachael Ray
| Himself
| 1 episode
|
Late Show with David Letterman
| Himself
| 5 episode (2003, -4, -5, -6, -7)
|
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
| Himself
| 6 episode (1997-2007)
|
The Daily Show
| Himself
| 5 episode (2002, -3, -6, -7, -8)
|
Live with Regis and Kathie Lee
| Himself
| 2 episode
|
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
| Himself
| 6 episode (1997-2007)
|
2007
| Jimmy Kimmel Live!
| Himself
| Episode dated 12 September 2007
|
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
| Himself
| Episode dated 2 October 2007
|
The View
| Himself
| 4 episodes (2005-2007)
|
2008
| The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
| Himself
| 3 episodes (two of them in last seasons)
|
The Simpsons
| Himself
| 1 episode - Lost Verizon
|
Family Guy
| Himself
| 1 episode
|
The Daily Show
| Himself
| 1 episode
|
The Bonnie Hunt Show
| Himself
| Episode dated 3 December 2008
|
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
| Himself
| Episode dated 3 December 2008
|
TV Commercials
- Quaker State Motor Oil
- MTV Promos (1991-93)
- Lotus Notes
- Holsten O'Pils beer
- 2009 Ford F-150 (voice only)
- Hulu 2009
- Direct TV Sunday Ticket (2009)
Discography
- 1993: No Cure for Cancer
- 1997: Lock 'n Load
- 2004: Merry F#%$in' Christmas
Bibliography
- 2008: Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid
, Viking ISBN 978-0-670-03160-3
References
- Title Unavailable
- Denis Leary: Playing with Fire
- http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1073718,00.html
- Emerson Comedy Workshop History
- Denis Leary
- They came, they saw, they addressed the graduating class
- Title Unavailable
- Denis Leary hates Mel Gibson
- Leary & Clarke a big hit in Sox’ out-of-control booth
- "Denis Leary Remembers Denis Leary Movies"
- ESPN.com
- Honest Questions with Denis Leary. '''Glenn Beck Show'''. Aired July 4, 2007.
- Oprah Fridays Live in Chicago with Denis Leary - Show Recap. By Elizabeth Borer. About.com Published January 16, 2009.
- http://www.usmagazine.com/news/denis-leary-says-autism-Criticism-taken-out-of-context
- http://news.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view/2008_10_28_Denis_Leary_Tells_Parents:_I_m_Sorry:_%E2
- Profile: Bill Hicks
- Bill Hicks: Agent of Evolution
- Carlos Mencia is a weak minded joke thief
- Title Unavailable
- Dark Times: Bill Hicks: Frequently Asked Questions
- Roasting a Comic They Turn Up the Flames Gently
- American Scream: The Bill Hicks Story
- Title Unavailable