- Born
- Birth nameRyan Lee Stiles
- Height6′ 6″ (1.98 m)
- It's not surprising that Ryan Stiles would feel comfortable doing a comedic turn in the role of Lewis, one of Drew Carey's ever-present friends in the new comedy The Drew Carey Show (1995). After all, the first job Stiles ever had was that of a stand-up comedian. Although he was a good student, Stiles admits that "being a high-school senior gave me too much freedom." He got so carried away with his flexible schedule that he quit school a few months shy of graduation and got a job doing stand-up comedy in Vancouver. Despite his parents' objections, he was able to support himself for several years, but "I got out of stand-up when everybody else started doing it," he says. He didn't stray too far from the world of comedy. In 1986 he joined the highly acclaimed Second City comedy ensemble in Toronto, where he honed his improvisational skills. In 1990 Stiles moved to Los Angeles to perform with the Los Angeles Second City group. Film and television roles soon followed, including roles in Hot Shots! (1991) and Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993). Stiles's television credits include Parker Lewis Can't Lose (1990), Mad About You (1992), and cable's The Hitchhiker (1983). He's currently a series regular on the British improvisational series Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1988), which has been nominated for three CableACE awards. During the 1994-95 baseball strike, Stiles and acclaimed director Joe Pytka made some memorable commercials for Nike. That's Stiles in the empty baseball stadium doing the wave solo. When he's not at work, Stiles spends his time thinking about work.
- IMDb mini biography by: GLLee90298@yahoo.com
- SpousePat McDonald(1989 - present) (3 children)
- ChildrenMackenzie StilesClaire Stiles
- Nearly always dresses in a button-down shirt and tailored trousers
- His outrageous shoes
- Towering height
- Razor-sharp wit and expert comic timing
- Passionately hates the "Hoe-down" on Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1998) to such a degree that in protest, nearly all of his songs insult Drew Carey in some way. In some instances, you can see him visibly rolling his eyes as it is announced, and in one rather memorable instance, simply sat down and refused to participate when his turn came.
- Best friends with Colin Mochrie.
- Started a theater group to teach comedy and improv in Bellingham, Washington.
- His parents, Irene and Sonny, originally thought it was a joke when Ryan announced he wanted to go into comedy because his brother Robert was considered the funny one. Ryan dropped out of high school at age 17.
- Once lived in a house owned by Liberace.
- On performing improv theater: "I'm convinced to do improv. All you have to do is listen to what people are saying to you, and then just add more information to what they've just said. That's all there is to improv, but it's the hardest thing to do"
- I look like Walt Disney just threw up.
- I'm going to buy some green bananas because by the time I get home they'll be ripe.
- What do I do when we're not taping? Sit in a dark room and refine my plans for someday ruling Earth from a blimp. And chess.
- Never interrupt me when I'm eating a banana.
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