Denis Colin Leary born August 18, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. Born in Massachusetts, Leary 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 Leary began taking roles in film and television starting in the s, including substantial roles in the films Judgment Night , Gunmen , Operation Dumbo Drop and Wag the Dog In the s, he developed and starred in the television show The Job β and was the star and co-creator of Rescue Me β , for which he received three Primetime Emmy nominations, one for writing and two for acting.
At Emerson, he befriended fellow comic Mario Cantone. After graduating from Emerson in , Leary taught comedy-writing classes at the school for five years. Denis Leary on the cover of his book Why We Suck. Leary and Clarke both spoke about their early affiliations and influences in the Boston comedy scene in the documentary film When Standup Stood Out During Leary's time as a Boston-area stand-up comic, he developed his stage persona. 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.
In , Leary's sardonic song " Asshole ", about the stereotypical American male, achieved much notoriety. The song was voted No. In , 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. He held the lead role in two television series, The Job and 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 and a prehistoric saber-toothed tiger named Diego in the Ice Age film series.
Canterbury's Law aired in the spring of and was canceled after eight episodes. In December of the year, he appeared in a video on funnyordie. A episode first season was ordered by FX, with the premiere on July 16, Leary has been married to author Ann Lembeck Leary since They have two children, son John Joseph "Jack" born and daughter Devin born She has also written a novel, Outtakes From a Marriage , which was published in Her second novel, The Good House , was published in Leary is an ice hockey fan and has a backyard rink at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut , with piping installed under the ice surface to help it stay frozen.
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.
