Brian Regan (comedian)

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Brian Regan
Birth nameBrian Joseph Regan
Born (1958-06-02) June 2, 1958 (age 66)
Miami, Florida U.S.
MediumStand-up, television
Years active1980–present
GenresObservational comedy, clean comedy, self-deprecating, physical comedy
Spouse
Kathleen Patricia Bieszczat
​
​
(m. 1997; div. 2011)​
[1][2]
Children2
Websitewww.brianregan.com Edit this at Wikidata

Brian Joseph Regan (/ˈriːɡən/) (born June 2, 1958) is an American stand-up comedian who uses observational, sarcastic, and self-deprecating humor. He is known for incorporating body language and facial expressions into his act.[3] His performances are often described as clean as he refrains from profanity as well as taboo subject matter.[3] Regan's material typically covers everyday events, such as shipping a package with UPS, mortgages, and visits to the optometrist.[4] While he does not define himself as youth-oriented, Regan makes frequent references to childhood, including little league baseball, grade school spelling bees, and science projects.[5]

Regan started out doing standup comedy in the 1980s and made his television debut on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson in 1991. Regan subsequently released his first standup album, Brian Regan: Live in 1997 and has performed on various talk shows including The Dennis Miller Show, Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. He has since gained acclaim among fans and comedians, selling out nationwide tours and continuing to release comedy albums. In 2014 he made his film debut making an appearance in Chris Rock's comedy Top Five (2014). He starred in Peter Farrelly's dark comedy series Loudermilk (2017–2020). He has appeared twice on Jerry Seinfeld's show Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee and has released three Netflix comedy specials. In 2018, Regan's sketch comedy series Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan which was produced by Seinfeld, was released on Netflix.

Early life and education

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Born in Miami, Florida to a Catholic Irish-American family,[6][7] Brian Regan was raised in Westchester, Florida.[8] He has seven siblings, including brother Dennis Regan, who is also a stand-up comedian.[9][6] He attended Christopher Columbus High School.

He attended Heidelberg College in Ohio, where he played wide receiver on the football team.[10][11] Originally he had plans of being an accountant, but one of his football coaches saw his comic routines and encouraged him to consider theater and communications. During his last semester in 1980, Regan dropped out of school to pursue stand-up comedy. He finished his degree in 1997.

Career

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In 1991, Regan made his first late night appearance on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.[12] Regan continued standup comedy, releasing his first comedy album, Brian Regan Live, in 1997. In 2004, Regan self-released a DVD of his performance at the Irvine Improv, titled I Walked on the Moon. He was a featured comedian in a Comedy Central's animated stand-up series Shorties Watchin' Shorties.[13] In April 2007, Regan signed a deal with Comedy Central to star in two one-hour stand-up specials, release the specials on DVD, develop a show for the network, and headline a theater tour, Brian Regan in Concert: A Comedy Central Live Event, which began June 8, 2007.

Brian's first one-hour special, Standing Up, debuted on Comedy Central on June 10, 2007. The special was recorded in April at The Barclay Theater in Irvine, CA, and a DVD of the performance was released August 14, 2007. His second Comedy Central special, entitled The Epitome of Hyperbole, premiered on September 6, 2008.[14] A DVD of the performance was released September 9, 2008. His performance, All By Myself, is available via CD, exclusively on his website.

In 2012, Regan was the featured guest on Jerry Seinfeld's web series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. He is also one of the few comedians to be featured on that show twice appearing in the 2018 episode: "Are There Left Handed Spoons?". After seeing him perform standup in New Jersey, Chris Rock invited Regan to appear in his film, Top Five (2014), which was his first film appearance.

In 2015, Regan made his 28th and final stand-up performance on The Late Show With David Letterman.[15] Regan recorded on September 26, 2015, the first ever live special on Comedy Central, Brian Regan: Live from Radio City Music Hall.[16] It was released as a video/audio album in Feb 2016.

In 2017, Regan was cast as Mugsy in Peter Farrelly's dark comedy series Loudermilk starring Ron Livingston.[17] The series has earned critical acclaim with a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. Creator Farrelly praised Regan on his dark subversive performance in the show by saying, "the performance [Regan] gives this year is the best performance on television this year".[18] That same year, Regan signed a deal with Netflix and Jerry Seinfeld to release two stand-up specials, Nunchucks and Flamethrowers (2017), and Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan (2018).[19] On February 23, 2021, Regan released a stand-up special, On the Rocks, on Netflix.[20]

Influences and acclaim

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Regan cites Johnny Carson, Steve Martin, George Carlin, Richard Pryor, and David Letterman as influences on his comedy.[21]

Regan has received acclaim among his comedy peers, including Jerry Seinfeld who has described him as "one of my favorite, favorite stand-up comedians". Other comedians to have praised Regan include Norm Macdonald, Chris Rock, Jimmy Fallon, Patton Oswalt, David Letterman, and Bill Burr.[22][23]

Discography

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  • 1992: Something's Wrong With The Regan Boy [TV Special]
  • 1997: Brian Regan: Live [CD]
  • 2004: I Walked on the Moon [DVD/MP3]
  • 2007: Standing Up [DVD/MP3]
  • 2008: The Epitome of Hyperbole [DVD/MP3]
  • 2010: All by Myself [CD/MP3]
  • 2015: Live From Radio City Music Hall [DVD/CD/MP3]
  • 2017: Nunchucks and Flamethrowers [Netflix]
  • 2021: On the Rocks [Netflix]

Filmography

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Film and television appearances
Year Title Role Notes
1989-1990 The Pat Sajak Show Himself 3 episodes
1990 ‘’A Pair of Jokers’’ Himself 1 episode
1991 The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson Himself Episode: "Bob Hope / Brian Regan"
1992 A-List Himself Also writer
1992 Something's Wrong with the Regan Boy Himself Also writer
1992 The Dennis Miller Show Himself 2 episodes
1993 Short Attention Span Theater Himself/host Episode: "Comedy Bootcamp"
1995–2015 Late Show with David Letterman Himself/guest 28 episodes
1998 Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist Himself 2 episodes
1999 The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn Himself Season 2, episode 82
2000 Comedy Central Presents Himself Also writer
2000 Open Mic Himself Deleted scenes
2002 Comic Remix Himself 2 episodes
2004, 2008 Late Night with Conan O'Brien Himself 3 episodes
2004 Brian Regan: I Walked on the Moon Himself Also writer and executive producer
2004 Shorties Watchin' Shorties Himself 3 episodes
2007 Brian Regan: Standing Up Himself Also writer and executive producer
2008 Brian Regan: The Epitome of Hyperbole Himself Also writer and executive producer
2011 The Marriage Ref Himself/panelist Episode: "Kathy Griffin / Ellen Pompeo / Brian Regan"
2012 Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee Himself Episode: "A Monkey and a Lava Lamp"
2014 Top Five Engineer Feature film debut
2015–2017 The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Himself 3 episodes
2015 Brian Regan: Live From Radio City Music Hall Himself Also writer and executive producer
2017 Brian Regan: Nunchucks and Flamethrowers Himself Also writer and executive producer
2017 Loudermilk Mugsy 30 episodes
2018 Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee Himself Episode: "Are There Left Handed Spoons?"
2018 Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan Himself 2 episodes and executive producer
2021 Brian Regan: On the Rocks Himself Also writer and executive producer

References

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  1. ^ Ancestry.com. (2007). "Brian Joseph Regan". Nevada, Marriage Index, 1956-2005 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.
  2. ^ Condran, Ed (October 1, 2014). "Evolving 'Clean Comedian' Brian Regan Happy Sticking To Standup". Hartford Courant.
  3. ^ a b Zinoman, Jason (2015-09-23). "How Brian Regan, Connoisseur of Clean Jokes, Became a Comic's Comic". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  4. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "brian regan UPS". YouTube. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  5. ^ "Comedian Brian Regan Sees The Dinosaurs In Everyday Life". NPR. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Parrott, Jeff (October 11, 2014). "Q&A: Comedian Brian Regan talks humor and his upcoming show in South Bend". The Elkhart Truth. Archived from the original on 2014-10-14.
  7. ^ Rubin, Jeffrey (August 17, 2018). "Brian Regan, the Traditionalist Comedian". The Crisis. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
  8. ^ Hood, Micaela (January 21, 2010). "Miami native Brian Regan joins lineup at South Beach Comedy Festival". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  9. ^ Bromley, Patrick. "Brian Regan (Stand-up Comedian) Biography". About.com Entertainment.
  10. ^ Cardon, Dustin (April 8, 2021). "Brian Regan, "On The Rocks" and Sharing Joy Through Comedy During a Pandemic". Jackson Free Press. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
  11. ^ Buell, Bill (October 18, 2018). "Regan not crude, just very funny". The Daily Gazette. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
  12. ^ "COMIC BRIAN REGAN'S BIG BREAK WAS MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR". The Chicago Tribune. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  13. ^ "Brian Regan". brianregan.com.
  14. ^ "Brian Regan". Comedy Central.
  15. ^ "Brian Regan". uproarcomedy. Archived from the original on June 13, 2017. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  16. ^ "COMEDY CENTRAL AND BRIAN REGAN ANNOUNCE THE FIRST LIVE..." Comedy Central Press. Archived from the original on May 20, 2015. Retrieved 2019-04-20.
  17. ^ "In 'Loudermilk,' Comedian Brian Regan Finds New Life In A Different Role". Forbes. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  18. ^ "Peter Farrelly Makes the Case For 'Loudermilk', Teases Season 3 & Beyond As 2 Former Audience Series Seek New Homes". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  19. ^ The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (2018-11-23), Brian Regan Teamed Up with Jerry Seinfeld for His Netflix Sketch Show, archived from the original on 2018-11-25, retrieved 2019-04-20
  20. ^ Netflix, On the Rocks, retrieved 2021-01-25
  21. ^ "Comedian Brian Regan Talks Influences, Letterman". The News Record. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  22. ^ "Comedy Central's First Live Broadcast with the Funniest Stand-Up Alive". Vanity Fair. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  23. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Comic Brian Regan Goes From Coffee With Seinfeld To Radio City". Today Show. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
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