Dane Cook is an American writer, comedian, and actor who rose to popularity through the release of his comedy albums. Harmful if swallowed and Retaliation. As an actor, he is renowned for his roles in Employee of the Month (2006), Good Luck Chuck (2007) and My Best Friend’s Daughter (2008).
Cook is considered one of the first comedians to use Myspace and a personal web page to build a massive fanbase. In 2006, he was considered extremely popular. Dane was also the lead voice in the film titled Planes (2013) and its sequel Planes: Fire and Rescue (2014).
Dane Cook – Quick Bio
Dane Jeffrey Cook was born on March 18, 1972 in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the United States of America; to Donna Jean and George F. Cook. Cook was the second son in the family with an older half-brother, Darryl McCauley, and five sisters. He lost his mother and father in 2006 and 2007 respectively to cancer.
Cook, who is of Irish descent, grew up in Arlington, Massachusetts and attended Arlington High School where he immersed himself in theater and started doing comedy. After high school, he set out to study graphic design in college as an alternate plan, in case he didn’t succeed in the art of comedy.
As a child, Cook was often interested in comedy mimicking Johnny Carson and Bill Cosby who were his favorite comedians at the time. He started performing in comedy clubs in 1990. In 1996 he moved to Los Angeles and in 1998 he got his big break when he landed a spot on Comedy Central’s Premium Blend. This was the start of one of the collaborations with the cable network and the beginning of its rise.
In 2005, the release of Cook’s comedy album Retaliation was a huge blow and saw his career take a big boost. The album went to number one on the Billboard charts. His style of comedy is comprised of “long narratives” and “purpose phrases”.
Cook started acting with small films in the late 90s. He had his first lead role in film; Employee of the Month, in 2006, where he starred alongside Jessica Simpson. In 2007 he appeared in two films and had a major role in Good Luck Chuck.
What happened to Dane Cook?
In the mid-1900s, Dane Cook was a regular household name when it came to comedy, but today he’s not that popular. There has been a drastic drop in his popularity and screen time and several reasons are attributed for the downward spiral. There were accusations of plagiarism against Cook which suggested he copied material from other comedians. Joe Rogan accused Cook of joke theft and plagiarism. Again, Louis CK also brought up the joke theft in a public forum.
In 2015, Cook was permanently banned from performing at Hollywood’s Laugh Factory for swearing at a waitress and being rude to the club owner. In 2012, he sparked controversy when he told a joke to Laugh Factory about the tragic film being filmed in Aurora, Colorado just a week after the incident. However, he took to Twitter to apologize for his actions.
Apart from the decline in the number of off-screen appearances, his stay in the theater was also not successful and the films he appeared in did not do well at the box office. Again, his comedy albums are no longer bestsellers. Her 2006 album, Retaliation peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard charts, but her greatest hits compilation of 2010 was a mere 165, on the same charts.
Also Read: 12 Famous Jewish Women and Men Who Stand Up
Is he married? girlfriend, wife
In August 2018 Questions on Instagram Stories and Answers, Cook went out in public with his 26-year-old girlfriend Kelsi Tailor. Reportedly, he had been dating her since 2017 and he wasn’t afraid to shower her with praise on social media.
Brother
Cook has a half-brother to Darryl McCauley who was his business manager from the early 90s until 1998 when it was discovered that Darryl, alongside his wife, Erika, had embezzled money from an amount of several million dollars from Cook. Darryl and his wife were found guilty and sentenced to prison for forgery and embezzlement.