Denis Leary

Denis Colin Leary (born August 18, 1957) is an American stand-up comedian and actor . He first came to prominence as a stand-up comedian, especially through appearances on MTV (including the comedic song "Asshole") and through the stand-up specials No Cure for Cancer and Lock 'n Load (1997). Leary began taking roles in film and television starting in the 1990s, including substantial roles in the films Judgment Night (1993), Demolition Man (1993), The Ref (1994), Two If By Sea (1996), Suicide Kings (1997), Wag the Dog (1997), Monument Ave. (1998) and The Thomas Crown Affair (1999).

In the 2000s, Leary developed and starred in the television show The Job (2001–2002) and was the star and co-creator of Rescue Me (2004–2011), for which he received three Primetime Emmy nominations, one for writing and two for acting. He received another Emmy nomination for his portrayal as Michael Whouley in the political drama television film Recount (2008). Leary has continued to take starring roles in films, including Captain George Stacy in The Amazing Spider-Man and Cleveland Browns head coach Vince Penn in Draft Day. He has done voice work, including Francis in A Bug's Life and Diego in the Ice Age franchise.

From 2015 to 2016, Leary wrote and starred in the comedy series Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll on FX.

Early life Denis Colin Leary was born on August 18, 1957, in Worcester, Massachusetts, the son of Catholic immigrant parents from Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland. His mother, Nora (née Sullivan; 1927–2025), was a maid, and his father, John Leary (1924–1985), was an auto mechanic. He is a citizen of both the United States and Ireland. He is a third cousin once removed of talk show host and fellow comedian Conan O'Brien.

Leary attended Saint Peter-Marian High School in Worcester and graduated from Emerson College in Boston. At Emerson, he befriended fellow comic Mario Cantone. While a student, Leary founded the Emerson Comedy Workshop, a troupe that continues on the campus today.

After graduating from Emerson in 1981, Leary taught comedy-writing classes at the school for five years. In May 2005, he received an honorary doctorate and spoke at his alma mater's undergraduate commencement ceremony; and is credited as Dr. Denis Leary on the cover of his 2009 book Why We Suck.

Career Leary began working as a comedian at the Boston underground club Play It Again Sam's. His first real gig was at the Rascals Comedy Club as part of the TV show The Rascals Comedy Hour, on October 18, 1990. Leary wrote and appeared on a local comedy series, Lenny Clarke's Late Show, hosted by his friend Lenny Clarke and written by 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). During Leary's time as a Boston-area stand-up comic, he developed his stage persona.

Leary appeared in sketches on the MTV game show Remote Control, playing characters such as Keith Richards, co-host Colin Quinn's brother, and artist Andy Warhol. He earned fame when he ranted about R.E.M. in an early 1990s MTV sketch. Several other commercials for MTV quickly followed, in which Leary would rant at high speeds about a variety of topics, playing off the then-popular and growing alternative scene. One of these rants served as an introduction to the video for "Shamrocks and Shenanigans (Boom Shalock Lock Boom)" by House of Pain. Leary released two records of his 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, Leary's sardonic song "Asshole", about the stereotypical American male, achieved much notoriety. The song was voted No. 1 on the Triple J Hottest 100 poll of 1993. and was used in Holsten Pils ads in the UK, with Leary's participation, and with adapted lyrics criticizing a drunk driver. The single was a minor hit there, peaking at No. 58 in the UK Singles Chart in January 1996.

In 1995, Leary was asked by Boston Bruins legend Cam Neely to help orchestrate a Boston-based comedy benefit show for Neely's cancer charity; this became Comics Come Home, which Leary has hosted annually ever since. left Leary behind Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes at a U2 concert in Madison Square Garden, October 2005 Leary has appeared in many films, including The Sandlot (1993) (as Scott's stepfather Bill), Demolition Man (1993) (as an Emmanuel Goldstein-esque revolutionary to Nigel Hawthorne's Big Brother), Judgment Night (1993), The Ref (1994), Gunmen (1994), Operation Dumbo Drop (1995), Wag the Dog (1997), Suicide Kings (1997), The Matchmaker (1997), Monument Ave. (1998), The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) Dawg (2002), and Draft Day (2014). He had a role in Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers (1994) that was eventually cut. He held the lead role in two television series, The Job and Rescue Me. He co-created the latter, in which he played 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 Award nominations in 2006 and 2007 for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for Rescue Me, and in 2008 for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for the HBO movie Recount. Leary was offered the role of Dignam in The Departed (2006) but turned it down because of scheduling conflicts with Rescue Me. He provided voices for characters in animated films, such as a fire-breathing dragon named Flame in the series The Agents, a pugnacious ladybug named Francis in A Bug's Life (1998) and a prehistoric saber-toothed tiger named Diego in the Ice Age film series. 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 (2001).

As a Boston Red Sox fan, Leary 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. As an ice hockey fan, Leary hosted the National Hockey League video NHL's Greatest Goals. In 2003, he was the subject of the Comedy Central Roast of Denis Leary.

Leary did the TV voiceover for MLB 2K8 advertisements, using 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 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. In December of the year, he appeared in a video on funnyordie.com critiquing a list of some of his "best" films, titled "Denis Leary Remembers Denis Leary Movies". Also in 2008, Leary voiced a guest role as himself in The Simpsons episode "Lost Verizon".

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, was Leary's first stand-up comedy tour in 12 years. The Comedy Central special Douchebags and Donuts, filmed during the tour, debuted on American television on January 16, 2011, with a DVD release on January 18, 2011.

Leary played Captain George Stacy in the movie The Amazing Spider-Man, released in July 2012. He wrote the American adaptation of Sirens. Leary is an executive producer of the documentary Burn, which chronicles the struggles of the Detroit Fire Department. Burn won the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival Audience Award.

Leary created a television series for FX called Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, taking the starring role himself. A 10-episode first season was ordered by FX, with the premiere on July 16, 2015. The show ran for two seasons.

In 2022, Leary was cast in the recurring role of Frank Donnelly, an NYPD officer on Law & Order: Organized Crime.

Leary has been the narrator for NESN's documentary show about the Boston Bruins called Behind the B since the show began in 2013.

Personal life

Leary has been married to author Ann Lembeck Leary since 1989. They met when he was her instructor in an English class at Emerson College. They have two children. Ann Leary published a memoir, An Innocent, a Broad, about the premature birth of their son on a visit to London. She has also written a novel, Outtakes From a Marriage, which was published in 2008. Her second novel, The Good House, was published in 2013. Her essay in a New York Times column about her marriage to Denis inspired the Modern Love series Episode 4: "Rallying to Keep the Game Alive". They live in Tribeca, Manhattan. They also have a house in Katonah, New York and previously owned a farm in Roxbury, Connecticut.

Leary is an ice hockey fan and had a backyard rink at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut, with piping installed under the ice surface to help it stay frozen. He is a fan of the Boston Bruins, Boston Celtics, and Boston Red Sox, as well as the Green Bay Packers.

Leary describes himself as a "Jack Kennedy Democrat" with some conservative ideologies, including support for the military. Leary told Glenn Beck, "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."

Leary has said of his religious beliefs, "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...."

Leary Firefighters Foundation

On December 3, 1999, six firefighters from Leary's hometown of Worcester were killed in the Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse fire. Among the dead were Leary's cousin Jerry Lucey, as well as Leary's close childhood friend, Lt. Tommy Spencer.

Controversies

Plagiarism For many years, Leary had been friends with fellow comedian Bill Hicks. When Leary's comedy album No Cure for Cancer was released, Leary was accused of stealing Hicks' act and material, ending their friendship abruptly. In April 1993, the Austin Comedy News remarked on the similarities of Leary's performance: "Watching Leary is like seeing Hicks from two years ago. He smokes with the same mannerisms. (Hicks recently quit.) He sports the same attitude, the same clothes. He touches on almost all of the same themes. Leary even invokes Jim Fixx." When asked about this, Hicks told the magazine, "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".

At least three stand-up comedians have gone on the record stating they believe Leary stole Hicks' material, comedic persona and attitude. One similar routine was about the so-called Judas Priest "suicide trial," during which Hicks says, "I don't think we lost a cancer cure."

During Leary's 2003 Comedy Central Roast, 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.

The feud is also mentioned in Cynthia True's biography American Scream: The Bill Hicks Story:

According to the book, True said that 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." On a later episode of the same show, Leary challenged this assertion by claiming to have co-written the song with Chris Phillips.

Autism In his 2008 book Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid, Leary wrote:

Leary later stated that the quote was taken out of context and that in that paragraph he had been talking about what he calls the trend of "unwarranted" over-diagnosis of autism, which he attributed to American parents seeking an excuse for behavioral problems and under-performance. Later, he apologized to parents with children diagnosed with autism whom he had offended.

Filmography Comedy specials Year Title Role Notes 1993 Denis Leary: No Cure for Cancer Himself Showtime special 1997 Denis Leary: Lock 'N Loaded HBO special 2005 Merry F#%$in' Christmas Christmas special 2011 Douchebags and Donuts Comedy Central special

Film

Television Year Title Role Notes 1980 Lenny Clarke's Late Show Various Series regular 1987–1990 Remote Control Various roles All episodes 1990 Afterdrive Himself Talk show Rascals Comedy Hour Stand Up 1994–1995 Mike & Spike Charles S. Baby 3 episodes 1995 National Lampoon's Favorite Deadly Sins Jake Television film, also directed segment "Lust" 1996 The Second Civil War Vinnie Franko Television film 1997 Subway Stories Guy in wheelchair 1998 The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder Himself 1 episode Fantasy World Cup Space Ghost Coast to Coast Episode: "Waiting for Edward" 2001–2002 The Rosie O'Donnell Show Guest The Job Mike McNeil Also writer and producer 2002 Contest Searchlight Himself All episodes Crank Yankers Joe Smith (voice) Episode: 1.2 2004–2011 Rescue Me Tommy Gavin 93 episodes; also creator, producer and writer 2006–2014 The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson Himself 12 episodes 2008 The Simpsons Himself (voice) Episode: "Lost Verizon" Recount Michael Whouley Television film 2011 Ice Age: A Mammoth Christmas Diego (voice) TV special 2013 Maron Himself Episode: "Dead Possum" 2015 Benders Executive producer 2015–2016 Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll Recurring role (season 3); guest role (seasons 4, 6) 2019 Family Guy Body Shop Owner (voice) Episode: "Girl, Internetted" 2019–2021 The Moodys Sean Moody Sr. Main role; also executive producer 2022 Law & Order: Organized Crime Frank Donnelly Recurring role 2024 No Good Deed Mikey Main role 2025–26 Going Dutch Colonel Patrick Quinn Lead role, also executive producer

Video games

Discography Albums No Cure for Cancer (1993) Lock 'n Load (1997) Merry F#%$in' Christmas (2004)

Singles "Asshole" (1993) "At the Rehab" (2009) "Douchebag" (2011) "Kiss My Ass" (2012)