"The Drew Carey Show," which premiered in 1995, is written, created and produced by Carey and Bruce Helford. In its first season, Carey received a People's Choice Award for Best Actor in a New Series. As a stand-up comedian, audiences enjoyed Carey's humorous interpretation of his very average life in Cleveland. This became the basis for the show, a single, every-guy just trying to get by and have a little fun along the way.

Carey 's varied interests and comedic influence can next be observed as he serves as host and executive producer of the American version of the long-running British improv series, "Whose Line Is It Anyway?," along with fellow "Drew" castmate Ryan Stiles. The project airs as a summer series on ABC.

Carey's debut book, "Dirty Jokes and Beer: Stories of the Unrefined," is a hilarious look at life from Carey's unique and comical perspective. The book, like his stand-up comedy, is raw, honest, explicit and politically incorrect. It includes his personal thoughts on subjects such as Vegas, football, tabloid journalism, women, growing up in Cleveland and political criticisms. Published by Hyperion in 1997, "Dirty Jokes and Beer" spent three months on the New York Times best-seller list.

Carey returned to his stand-up comedy roots in July, 1997, when he and the showgirls hosted HBO's "Mr. Vegas All-Night Party." Carey also hosted the 1997 CableACE Awards and the 1998 American Music Awards.

Carey began his career as a comedian in April of 1986 at the now defunct Cleveland Comedy Club. He went on to compete on "Star Search '88." (While he won four out of four stars on the first show, he lost on the second show.)

In 1991, Carey landed a spot on HBO's "14th Annual Young Comedians Special" and moved to Los Angeles. That same year, he experienced a dream come true during his first appearance on "The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson." When Johnny bestowed upon him the rare honor of coming over and sitting on the couch after his set, it was the turning point of Carey's career. Part of that performance is included in the "Best of Carson" home video.

A development deal at Disney led to an opportunity for Carey to co-star in the series, "The Good Life." Although the show was short-lived, it was there that he met Helford, with whom he would begin a successful, collaborative writing relationship.

Carey also wrote and starred in his own Showtime special, "Drew Carey: Human Cartoon," for which he won a CableACE award. He was also nominated for a CableACE award in 1993 for his performance at the "Tenth Anniversary of the Montreal Comedy Festival."

Personal Information

Hometown: Cleveland, OH
Birthdate: May 23

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