Lenny Clarke
Encyclopedia
Lenny Clarke is an American comedian and actor, famous for his thick Boston accent
and role as Uncle Teddy on the series Rescue Me
. During the 1970s, as related in the Comedy Central roast of Clarke's friend Denis Leary
, Clarke ran for mayor of Cambridge
, Massachusetts
. When asked by Leary what his platform was, Clarke replied "Fuck the Kennedys". Clarke had buttons and bumper stickers made with this slogan on them. In an attempt to spark interest in his campaign, Clarke stole a Boston
bus and began to pick up random people and drop them at their doors.
release When Standup Stood Out (2006) details Clarke's early career and affiliations with other famous Boston comics, such as Steven Wright
and Denis Leary
, his good friends. In 1980, Clarke wrote and starred in a local television show Lenny Clarke's Late Show featuring Wright and Leary, in collaboration with Boston comedy writer Martin Olson
. Clarke and Olson were roommates, and their apartment, known by comedians as "The Barracks", was a notorious "crash pad" for comics visiting Boston, and the subject of a documentary film as Clarke and Leary explain in When Standup Stood Out.
Since his early days in Boston, Clarke starred in his own short-lived network sitcom Lenny (1990), and in such TV shows as Contest Searchlight
, The Job
, The John Larroquette Show
and It's All Relative
and movies like Monument Ave.
, Fever Pitch
and Southie
. As of 2006, Clarke appears in the recurring role of Uncle Teddy
on the FX
comedy-drama
Rescue Me
.
In 2006, Clarke and Leary appeared on television during a Red Sox telecast and, upon realizing that Red Sox 1st baseman Kevin Youkilis
is Jewish, delivered a criticism of Mel Gibson
's anti-semitic comments.
In 2007, Clarke played the role of Ron Abbot on the short lived Fox
comedy series The Winner
. The show was cancelled after six episodes due to low ratings on May 16, 2007.
Clark is also an occasional guest on the WEEI radio shows in Boston. It was on the show were he announced that he would be a regular on the new Fox Sitcom "Brothers" as the racist neighbor who is married to a black woman.
On the evening of January 19, 2010, Clarke appeared on stage at the victory speech of Republican Senator elect from Massachusetts, Scott Brown
, who was elected to the U.S. Senate seat formerly held by Edward Kennedy.
He had appeared on ESPN's: 30 for 30 - 4 Days in October; along side ESPN sports and pop culture columnist Bill Simmons as a narrator giving insight on the 2004 ALCS comeback by the Red Sox against the New York Yankees.
Lenny Clarke was widely criticized for referring to Katherine Clark, a candidate at the time for State Senate who eventually won the election, as a "whore." Clarke had been performing in support of Clark's opponent, Craig Spadafora, who attempted to distance himself from Clarke's remarks.
Boston accent
The Boston dialect is the dialect characteristic of English spoken in the city of Boston and much of eastern Massachusetts. The accent and closely related accents can be heard commonly in an area stretching into much of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, and areas of south-western Nova Scotia...
and role as Uncle Teddy on the series Rescue Me
Rescue Me (TV series)
Rescue Me is an American television drama series that premiered on the FX Network on July 21, 2004, and concluded on September 7, 2011. The series focuses on the professional and personal lives of a group of New York City firefighters in the fictitious Ladder 62 / Engine 99 firehouse.The show...
. During the 1970s, as related in the Comedy Central roast of Clarke's friend Denis Leary
Denis Leary
Denis Colin Leary is an Irish-American actor, comedian, writer and director. Leary is known for his biting, fast paced comedic style and chain smoking...
, Clarke ran for mayor of Cambridge
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. When asked by Leary what his platform was, Clarke replied "Fuck the Kennedys". Clarke had buttons and bumper stickers made with this slogan on them. In an attempt to spark interest in his campaign, Clarke stole a Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
bus and began to pick up random people and drop them at their doors.
Life and career
Clarke was the most famous "saloon comic" in Boston during the 1980s, the heyday of the Boston comedy scene. The DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
release When Standup Stood Out (2006) details Clarke's early career and affiliations with other famous Boston comics, such as Steven Wright
Steven Wright
Steven Alexander Wright is an American comedian, actor and writer. He is known for his distinctly lethargic voice and slow, deadpan delivery of ironic, philosophical and sometimes nonsensical jokes and one-liners with contrived situations.-Early life and career:Wright was born in Mount Auburn...
and Denis Leary
Denis Leary
Denis Colin Leary is an Irish-American actor, comedian, writer and director. Leary is known for his biting, fast paced comedic style and chain smoking...
, his good friends. In 1980, Clarke wrote and starred in a local television show Lenny Clarke's Late Show featuring Wright and Leary, in collaboration with Boston comedy writer Martin Olson
Martin Olson
Martin Olson is a comedy writer, television producer, stage director and composer. He is also a playwright and poet known for comedic and unusual subject matter and known as an original member of the notorious "Boston Comedy Scene."...
. Clarke and Olson were roommates, and their apartment, known by comedians as "The Barracks", was a notorious "crash pad" for comics visiting Boston, and the subject of a documentary film as Clarke and Leary explain in When Standup Stood Out.
Since his early days in Boston, Clarke starred in his own short-lived network sitcom Lenny (1990), and in such TV shows as Contest Searchlight
Contest Searchlight
Contest Searchlight was a four-episode fictional comedy television series that aired in 2002 on the Comedy Central network. It was a documentary-style parody or mockumentary of the HBO network's non-fictional series Project Greenlight....
, The Job
The Job (TV series)
The Job was a single-camera television comedy drama about a New York City police officer named Mike McNeil -- who indulges in adultery, alcohol, cigarettes and prescription drug abuse—and his fellow 'bumbling detective' pals...
, The John Larroquette Show
The John Larroquette Show
The John Larroquette Show is a situation comedy that ran on the NBC network from 1993 to 1996. The show, created by Don Reo, was a vehicle for John Larroquette following his run as Dan Fielding on Night Court. The series took place in a seedy bus terminal in St. Louis, Missouri and focused on the...
and It's All Relative
It's All Relative
It's All Relative is an ABC sitcom about a man who dates the adoptive daughter of a gay couple, which forces their very different families to learn to coexist.- Overview :...
and movies like Monument Ave.
Monument Ave.
Monument Ave., originally titled Snitch and titled Noose in Australia, is a 1998 American film directed by Ted Demme and starring Denis Leary. The film centers on the Charlestown, Massachusetts Irish Mob and small-time criminal Bobby O'Grady who is dealing with the problems that arise due to...
, Fever Pitch
Fever Pitch
Fever Pitch: A Fan's Life is the title of a 1992 autobiographical book by British author Nick Hornby. The book is the basis for two films: Fever Pitch was released in 1997, and Fever Pitch in 2005...
and Southie
Southie (film)
Southie is a 1999 American film directed by John Shea and starring Donnie Wahlberg. The film centers on Danny Quinn who returns home to South Boston from New York City and gets stuck between his friends, who are supported by one Irish gang, and his family, which are members of another...
. As of 2006, Clarke appears in the recurring role of Uncle Teddy
Teddy Gavin
Theodore "Teddy" Gavin is a fictional character on the FX drama Rescue Me. The character is played by Lenny Clarke.-Family and life:Teddy is the younger brother of Michael Gavin and uncle to Tommy. Teddy made a lot of money from gambling, but made even more from modelling for a men's sports magazine...
on the FX
FX Networks
FX is the name of a number of related pay television channels owned by News Corporation's Fox Entertainment Group...
comedy-drama
Comedy-drama
Comedy-drama is a genre of theatre, film and television programs which combines humorous and serious content.-Theatre:Traditional western theatre, beginning with the ancient Greeks, was divided into comedy and tragedy...
Rescue Me
Rescue Me (TV series)
Rescue Me is an American television drama series that premiered on the FX Network on July 21, 2004, and concluded on September 7, 2011. The series focuses on the professional and personal lives of a group of New York City firefighters in the fictitious Ladder 62 / Engine 99 firehouse.The show...
.
In 2006, Clarke and Leary appeared on television during a Red Sox telecast and, upon realizing that Red Sox 1st baseman Kevin Youkilis
Kevin Youkilis
Kevin Edmund Youkilis , also known as "Youk" , is an American professional baseball player with the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball...
is Jewish, delivered a criticism of Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
's anti-semitic comments.
In 2007, Clarke played the role of Ron Abbot on the short lived Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
comedy series The Winner
The Winner (TV series)
The Winner, stylized on the title card as the winner, is an American television series that premiered on Fox on March 4, 2007. It is a comedy about a successful man named Glen Abbott looking back to the time when he was in his thirties and living with his parents in 1994 Buffalo, New York.Other...
. The show was cancelled after six episodes due to low ratings on May 16, 2007.
Clark is also an occasional guest on the WEEI radio shows in Boston. It was on the show were he announced that he would be a regular on the new Fox Sitcom "Brothers" as the racist neighbor who is married to a black woman.
On the evening of January 19, 2010, Clarke appeared on stage at the victory speech of Republican Senator elect from Massachusetts, Scott Brown
Scott Brown
Scott Brown is a United States senator.Scott Brown may also refer to:-Sportsmen:*Scott Brown , American college football coach of Kentucky State...
, who was elected to the U.S. Senate seat formerly held by Edward Kennedy.
He had appeared on ESPN's: 30 for 30 - 4 Days in October; along side ESPN sports and pop culture columnist Bill Simmons as a narrator giving insight on the 2004 ALCS comeback by the Red Sox against the New York Yankees.
Lenny Clarke was widely criticized for referring to Katherine Clark, a candidate at the time for State Senate who eventually won the election, as a "whore." Clarke had been performing in support of Clark's opponent, Craig Spadafora, who attempted to distance himself from Clarke's remarks.