Kevin Meaney

{{Infobox comedian

|name = Kevin Meaney

|image = Kevin Meaney.jpg

|caption =

|birth_date = {{birth date|1956|04|23}}

|birth_name = Kevin Gerard Meaney

|birth_place = White Plains, New York, U.S.

|death_date = {{death date and age|2016|10|21|1956|04|23}}

|death_place = Forestburgh, New York, U.S.

|resting_place = Mount Calvary Cemetery, White Plains

|medium = Stand-up, television, film

|active = 1980–2016

|genre =

|spouse = {{ubl|{{marriage|Leanne S. Fader|1995|1995|end=annulled}}|{{marriage|Mary Ann Halford|1997|2008|end=divorced}}}}

|children = Kate Meaney, born August 14, 1999

|notable_work =

}}

Kevin Gerard Meaney (April 23, 1956 – October 21, 2016) was an American stand-up comedian and actor.

Early life

Meaney graduated from Valhalla High School in Valhalla in Westchester County, New York, and attended the State University of New York at Morrisville.{{cite news |last1=LaRue |first1=William |title=Standup comic Kevin Meaney dead at 60 |url=https://www.syracuse.com/celebrity-news/2016/10/kevin_meaney_standup_comic_who_appeared_in_movie_big_dead_at_age_60.html |access-date=February 4, 2022 |newspaper=The Post-Standard |date=October 23, 2016 |location=Syracuse, New York |language=en |quote=Meaney grew up in Westchester County, graduating from Valhalla High School. He attended SUNY Morrisville}}

Career

Meaney began his career in comedy in 1980, moving first to San Francisco and then later to Boston where he continued to develop his act.{{cite news |last1=Sullivan |first1=James |title=Laugh riot: The Boston Comedy Festival turns 10 |url=https://archive.boston.com/ae/theater_arts/comedy/articles/2010/11/05/boston_comedy_festival_turns_10/ |access-date=February 5, 2022 |newspaper=The Boston Globe |date=November 5, 2010 |quote=Though Meaney had been perfecting his purse-lipped impression of his scolding mother for years on Boston stages, he was in fact raised in suburban New York and introduced in San Francisco, at one of the early International Comedy Competitions there. In San Francisco he met a contingent of comics from the Hub, including Lenny Clarke and Martin Olson, who encouraged him to make the thriving Boston scene his home. They liked his act, even if the judges didn't.}}{{cite web |title=Kevin Meaney Obituary (1956–2016) | newspaper=York Daily Record |url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/york/name/kevin-meaney-obituary?pid=182060319 |via=Legacy.com |access-date=February 4, 2022}}{{cite web |title=In Memory of Barry Crimmins |url=https://www.sevenstories.com/blogs/87-in-memory-of-barry-crimmins |website=Seven Stories Press |access-date=February 4, 2022}}{{cite book |last1=Crimmins |first1=Barry |author1-link=Barry Crimmins |title=Never Shake Hands with a War Criminal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7cjHVGqVXH0C&q=Never+Shake+Hands+with+a+War+Criminal |year=2010 |publisher=Seven Stories Press |location=New York |isbn=978-1-60980-018-5}}{{cite web |last1=Tressler |first1=Bill |title=Barry Crimmins Remembers Kevin Meaney |url=https://theinterrobang.com/barry-crimmins-remembers-kevin-meaney/ |website=The Interrobang |access-date=February 4, 2022 |date=October 26, 2016 |quote="It's tough being a 60 year old road comic, let me tell ya. Some of that would wear on him at times, but he'd take that stage and you wouldn't have a fucking hint, not a hint," said Crimmins.}}{{cite news |last1=Stedman |first1=Alex |title=Louis C.K. Pays Tribute to the Late Kevin Meaney |url=https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/louis-ck-kevin-meaney-tribute-1201898284/ |access-date=February 4, 2022 |magazine=Variety |date=October 23, 2016 |quote=He wrote that Crimmins and Meaney "were two guys from upstate New York who came to Boston and, among other guys, were the ones who made all of this happen." ...Whenever Kevin would bomb, and sometimes he would, he would start to sing a song 'I don't care! ...But Barry, for me, created the idea that comedy could be great and mean something. ...}}{{cite news |title=Comic Kevin Meaney, starred in TV's 'Uncle Buck,' dies at 60 |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-kevin-meaney-20161022-snap-story.html |access-date=February 4, 2022 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=October 22, 2016 |quote=It was his first HBO special, in 1986, that launched his comedy career after he toiled doing stand-up in San Francisco and Boston. In 1987, he took his first turn on "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson."}} He appeared on the A&E television series An Evening at the Improv, in 1982.{{cite web |title=Meaney, Kevin 1957 |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/meaney-kevin-1957 |website=Encyclopedia.com |access-date=February 4, 2022 |quote=Television Appearances; Series: Himself, An Evening at the Improv, syndicated, 1982...Saturday Night Live (also known as SNL), NBC, 1986...Stage Appearances: School principal, Hairspray, the Musical, Broadway production, 2006.}}

Meaney had a show called the Sweeney and Meaney Hour at Stitches Comedy Club in Boston.{{cite news |title=Louis CK On The Comedy Of Being A Single Dad |url=https://www.sandiego.com/articles/2011-07-29/louis-ck-comedy-being-single-dad-louie-fx-pootie-tang |access-date=February 5, 2022 |website=sandiego.com |date=July 29, 2011 |language=en |quote="The first time I did it, I went to a place called Stitches... The second time, Kevin Meaney had a show called the Sweeney and Meaney Hour and he put me on and I did even worse. It was just horrible." |archive-date=February 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205024220/https://www.sandiego.com/articles/2011-07-29/louis-ck-comedy-being-single-dad-louie-fx-pootie-tang |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |title=Louis C.K. On Life And Stand-Up: 'I Live In Service For My Kids' |url=https://www.kunr.org/2015-09-07/louis-c-k-on-life-and-stand-up-i-live-in-service-for-my-kids |series=Fresh Air |access-date=February 5, 2022 |language=en |date=September 7, 2015}} A couple of appearances on Star Search gave Meaney the opportunity to test his act on national syndicated television.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkQ2IHwzQiU|title=Kevin Meany and Evan Davis on Star Search|date=June 11, 2023|via=YouTube}} His big break into mainstream culture may be considered to be his first HBO comedy special in 1986, followed by an appearance on the December 20, 1986, episode of Saturday Night Live as a special guest.[http://December%2020,%201986%20–%20William%20Shatner%20/%20Lone%20Justice%20(S12%20E8) December 20, 1986 – William Shatner / Lone Justice (S12 E8)] Meaney made his debut performance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in 1987.{{cite news |newspaper=Miami Herald |url=http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/10/comic-kevin-meaney-shuts-door-on-his-closet-life.html |title=Comic Kevin Meaney Shuts Door On His Closet Life |date=January 30, 2012 |access-date=December 5, 2013}}

After that, his act was broadcast several times by HBO,{{cite news |last1=O'Connor |first1=John J. |title=Review/Television; Stand-Up Comedy at a Safe Distance |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/15/arts/review-television-stand-up-comedy-at-a-safe-distance.html |access-date=February 4, 2022 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=February 15, 1989 |quote=Home Box Office's latest performance entry is One-Night Stand, a series of half-hours ...taped at San Francisco's Fillmore Theater, ...On tap for the coming weeks: Kevin Meaney, Joy Behar, Blake Clark, Dom Irrera and Bill Maher.}} Comedy Central and several network television appearances on The Tonight Show, Late Night with David Letterman, Live! with Regis and Kathie Lee, The Oprah Winfrey Show and Conan.{{cite news |first=Jeff |last=Rusnak |url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1996-03-22/entertainment/9603200429_1_kevin-meaney-peanut-las-vegas |title=Kevin Meaney Turns Life's Mishaps Into His Shtick |newspaper=South Florida Sun Sentinel |location=Fort Lauderdale |date=March 22, 1996 |access-date=December 5, 2013 |archive-date=November 9, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131109140623/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1996-03-22/entertainment/9603200429_1_kevin-meaney-peanut-las-vegas |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://www.kevinmeaney.com |title=Official Website Of Kevin Meaney |website=Kevinmeaney.com |access-date=December 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19991128053134/http://kevinmeaney.com/ |archive-date=November 28, 1999}}

His most famous catchphrase was "That's not right!,"{{cite news |title=Comedian Kevin Meaney, Valhalla Native, Dies At 60 |url=https://dailyvoice.com/new-york/mountpleasant/obituaries/comedian-kevin-meaney-valhalla-native-dies-at-60/686640/ |access-date=February 4, 2022 |work=Mount Pleasant Daily Voice |date=October 22, 2016 |language=en |quote=best remembered for the catchphrase "That's not right."}} delivered while doing an impression of his mother, which was followed by, and usually preceded by, her complaints and remonstrations. Typically, his act consisted of commentary about his family and complaints about hotel service. Meaney at times closed his show with a rendition of the 1985 song "We Are the World" which included comical impressions of the various singers who originally sang the song.{{cite news |url=https://www.newportri.com/story/entertainment/2012/02/22/happy-he-knows-it/12761877007/ |title=Happy And He Knows It |first=James J. |last=Gillis |newspaper=The Newport Daily News |date=February 22, 2012 |access-date=March 9, 2024}}

He often ended his performance with a few jokes that intentionally would not get a good response to follow them up with a song reminiscent of "I Don't Care" by Jean Lenox and Harry O. Sutton sung about how he does not care whether the audience laughs at his jokes.{{cite web|date=October 23, 2016|title=Louis C.K. Pays Tribute to the Late Kevin Meaney|author=Stedman, Alex|magazine=Variety|url=https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/louis-ck-kevin-meaney-tribute-1201898284/}}

Meaney was involved in a number of television programs, including Ned & Stacey, Dr. Katz, Space Ghost Coast to Coast,{{cite web|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|title=George Lowe, voice actor known and beloved for his irreverent Space Ghost, dies at 67|author=D'Zurilla, Christine|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2025-03-04/george-lowe-dead-space-ghost-voice-actor|date=March 4, 2025}} Garfield and Friends, Rocko's Modern Life, London Underground, and Duckman. He starred as the title character on the short-lived sitcom version of Uncle Buck.{{cite web|magazine=Variety|url=https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/kevin-meaney-dead-comedian-actor-1201897875/|date=October 22, 2016|title=Kevin Meaney, Actor and Stand-Up Comedian, Dies at 60|author=Stedman, Alex}}

He was also a singer and musician, writing and producing songs for HBO and Comedy Central with his co-writer Martin Olson, with whom he wrote several television series. He intermittently appeared on The Jay Thomas Show as a co-host. In 1996, he wrote and performed a one-man play titled Vegas Vows based loosely on his brief marriage to a woman he had just met.{{cite news |last=Deffaa |first=Chip |url=https://ew.com/article/1996/07/12/kevin-meaneys-latest-act/ |title=A Veiled Threat |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=July 12, 1996 |access-date=December 5, 2013 |archive-date=April 27, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090427121618/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,293272,00.html |url-status=live }}

In the 2000s, Meaney performed in various roles in the Broadway musical Hairspray.{{cite web|url=https://playbill.com/person/kevin-meaney-vault-0000010292|work=Playbill|title=Kevin Meanry}}

Personal life

Meaney was born the third child of five in White Plains, New York. When he was 39 years old, he married a woman he had just met in Las Vegas. The marriage was annulled shortly afterward. He later married television executive Mary Ann Halford and they had one daughter.

In 2002, Meaney was arrested at the San Francisco International Airport. After his wife set off a metal detector and lifted her shirt high enough to expose her bra, he reportedly got belligerent and was asked twice not to film the security operations of the terminal. A scuffle with police ensued.{{cite news |first=Henry K. |last=Lee |url=http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Security-no-joke-for-comic-arrested-at-SFO-2867148.php |title=Security No Joke For Comic Arrested At SFO |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |date=March 5, 2002 |access-date=December 5, 2013}}

On XM Satellite Radio's "Stand Up Sit Down" on May 5, 2008, Meaney stated publicly that he was gay.{{cite web |url=http://www.kevinmeaney.com/bio.html |title=Kevin Meany biography |website=Kevinmeaney.com |date=May 28, 2008 |access-date=December 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025171913/http://www.kevinmeaney.com/bio.html |archive-date=October 25, 2016}} He explained that his time on Broadway was where he gained the courage to accept his homosexuality.{{cite web |url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0911/24/joy.01.html |title=Joy Behar Show |date=November 24, 2009 |publisher=CNN |access-date=December 5, 2013}} Soon after, he and his wife divorced.

Death

Meaney died on October 21, 2016, at age 60, after being found unresponsive in his home in Forestburgh, New York.{{cite news |author=Rosenberg, Eli |date=October 22, 2016 |title=Kevin Meaney, Veteran Stand-Up Comedian, Dies at 60 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/23/arts/television/kevin-meaney-dead.html |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date= October 24, 2016}} According to Eastern Daily News he died from a heart attack.{{cite news |work=Eastern News Daily |url=https://easterndaily.com/kevin-meaney-dead-uncle-buck-cause-of-death/ |title=Kevin Meaney From 'Uncle Buck' Dies, Cause Of Death Revealed |author=Johnson, Victor |date=October 25, 2016 |access-date=September 10, 2017 |archive-date=September 11, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911025141/https://easterndaily.com/kevin-meaney-dead-uncle-buck-cause-of-death/ |url-status=dead}}