Short Biography

Denis Colin Leary (born August 18, 1957) is a Golden Globe- and Emmy Award-nominated American actor, comedian, writer and director. He is known for his often angry comedic style, and his frequent chain smoking. Leary displays an overt affinity for libertarianism. Leary is currently the star and co-creator of the television show Rescue Me.


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. Since his parents are both 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 distant cousin of talk show host Conan O`Brien and has jokingly said on Late Night with Conan O`Brien that, "All Irish people are related." His name is often misspelled as "Dennis" instead of the correct "Denis."


Emerson College

Leary is a graduate of Emerson College, in Boston, where he was classmates with fellow comic Mario Cantone, who to this day remains his closest friend. Comedian Steven Wright and actress Gina Gershon also attended Emerson at the same time as Leary. At the school, he and Jodi Haffner Wallace co-founded the "Emerson Comedy Workshop," a troupe that continues to thrive on-campus to the present day. 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. Leary was honored with an honorary doctorate and spoke briefly at his alma mater`s undergraduate commencement ceremony on May 16, 2005.


Career

Leary started his career as a comedian in the notorious Boston comedy scene of the 1980s, where he hosted his own show at the underground club "Play It Again Sam". 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 cohost Colin Quinn and artist Andy Warhol.

Leary first became famous through an MTV sketch in which he ranted about R.E.M. 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 a major Australian youth radio poll (the Triple J Hottest 100) 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 in Boston, Massachusetts, Denis performed a new version of the song directed at the New York Yankees, and as the song concluded, Brons

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