Kevin Rooney, a stand-up comedian who won two Emmy awards for his work as a writer on “Dennis Miller Live,” died at his home on July 19 after a battle with diabetes and end-stage renal failure. He was 71 years old.
Rooney’s death was confirmed by his colleague, Jay Mandyam.
“He was a sophisticated raconteur and was a modern-day H.L. Mencken or Schopenhauer,” a statement from Mandyam reads. “As curmudgeonly as he was, he was always the wittiest person in the room and was generous and kind to all.”
Rooney briefly attended Lawrence College in the 1970s before joining the military. In 1977, he began a career in comedy, performing his first stand-up set in Washington, D.C., concluding his act by an act of arguable baptism — pouring a pitcher of beer over his head. Rooney then attended the University of Massachusetts where he studied to become a teacher.
Rooney found his...
Rooney’s death was confirmed by his colleague, Jay Mandyam.
“He was a sophisticated raconteur and was a modern-day H.L. Mencken or Schopenhauer,” a statement from Mandyam reads. “As curmudgeonly as he was, he was always the wittiest person in the room and was generous and kind to all.”
Rooney briefly attended Lawrence College in the 1970s before joining the military. In 1977, he began a career in comedy, performing his first stand-up set in Washington, D.C., concluding his act by an act of arguable baptism — pouring a pitcher of beer over his head. Rooney then attended the University of Massachusetts where he studied to become a teacher.
Rooney found his...
- 7/24/2022
- by J. Kim Murphy
- Variety Film + TV
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Emmy-winning writer and comedian Kevin Rooney died on July 9 at home in Los Angeles after a long battle with diabetes and end-stage renal failure, his wife Carole Raphaelle Davis and friend and former assistant Jay Mandyam tell The Hollywood Reporter. Rooney was 71.
A stand-up veteran who worked with Jay Leno and mentored Judd Apatow among other young comics, Rooney won two Emmys, in 1994 and 1995, for writing on HBO’s Dennis Miller Live.
After accidentally making his stand-up debut in 1977 at El Brookman’s in Washington, D.C., where he had a pitcher of beer poured on his head, Rooney returned to stand-up comedy first in New York City and then in Los Angeles, where he became a regular at the Improv comedy club, where he met Leno, according to an announcement sent in by Mandyam.
Rooney co-wrote Leno’s first comedy special Jay Leno and the American Dream.
Emmy-winning writer and comedian Kevin Rooney died on July 9 at home in Los Angeles after a long battle with diabetes and end-stage renal failure, his wife Carole Raphaelle Davis and friend and former assistant Jay Mandyam tell The Hollywood Reporter. Rooney was 71.
A stand-up veteran who worked with Jay Leno and mentored Judd Apatow among other young comics, Rooney won two Emmys, in 1994 and 1995, for writing on HBO’s Dennis Miller Live.
After accidentally making his stand-up debut in 1977 at El Brookman’s in Washington, D.C., where he had a pitcher of beer poured on his head, Rooney returned to stand-up comedy first in New York City and then in Los Angeles, where he became a regular at the Improv comedy club, where he met Leno, according to an announcement sent in by Mandyam.
Rooney co-wrote Leno’s first comedy special Jay Leno and the American Dream.
- 7/24/2022
- by Hilary Lewis
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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