Kevin Brennan is an American retired stand-up comedian, podcaster, and writer. He is the host of the Misery Loves Company podcast, and is best known for his work on Saturday Night Live Weekend Update in 1999 and 2000.
Brennan was voted "Best Comedian" at the 2005 Aspen Comedy Festival and his half-hour stand-up special was featured on HBO that same year. He was featured on the 2007 cross-Canada Just for Laughs comedy tour and performed at the Just for Laughs festival in Montreal in 2009. He was also a repeat panelist on Red Eye w/ Tom Shillue in 2016 and 2017.
Early life
Brennan was born in Chicago to an Irish Catholic family and has nine siblings including brother Neal. The family also lived in Philadelphia.
Career
Early career (1980s–1998)
Brennan first started stand-up in Chicago in the 1980s at the suggestion of a coworker at a restaurant where he was working. He moved to New York City in 1987 to further pursue a career in stand-up comedy. By the early 1990s he was appearing on A&E's stand-up comedy series An Evening at the Improv and Caroline's Comedy Hour.
In 1993, Brennan appeared on the entertainment competition show Star Search where he competed unsuccessfully against 19-year-old Dave Chappelle.
Brennan first appeared as a guest on Late Night with Conan O'Brien in 1994 and went on to make multiple appearances on the show from 1995 to 2007.
In 1997, Brennan appeared in a small role in the film Half Baked, which was co-written by his brother Neal Brennan and Chappelle. By this time Brennan was established in the New York comedy circuit and had appeared twice on Late Show with David Letterman. That same year the Brennan brothers had a development deal with NBC and Universal for a sitcom based on their own experiences growing up in an Irish-Catholic family with 10 kids in Philadelphia. Quinn left Saturday Night Live in 2000 and Brennan was in contention for the anchor position but, after the job was given to Jimmy Fallon and Tina Fey, Brennan decided not to return as a writer for the following season.
Post Saturday Night Live (2001–present)
From 2003 to 2005 Brennan made multiple appearances on Last Call with Carson Daly. Brennan was voted “Best Comedian” at the 2005 Aspen Comedy Festival, which led to his half-hour stand-up special on the HBO series One Night Stand that same year. He was one of six comedians featured on the 2007 cross-Canada Just for Laughs comedy tour, which also featured Greg Behrendt, John Wing, Louis Ramey, Fiona O'Loughlin and Tom Papa. He also performed at the Just For Laughs festival in Montreal in 2009. In 2011, Brennan wrote for the Comedy Central series Sports Show with Norm Macdonald. (2018-2024)
| num_episodes = 641 (Patreon)<br>
<small>(as of )</small>
| began = January 2016
| ended =
| provider = SoundBetter Comedian Aaron Berg, who performed at the New York show, brought the show to Yuk Yuk's comedy club in Toronto, Canada that same year, causing several local comedians to take to social media to protest the show.
Brennan played himself in an episode of Pete Holmes' HBO series Crashing that aired in 2019. A roast of Kevin Brennan was held at The Stand comedy club in New York City that same year. Roasters at the event included comedians Dan Soder, Jim Norton (in character as Chip Chipperson), Krystyna Hutchinson and Corinne Fischer of the Guys We Fucked podcast, Patty Rosborough, Chad Zumock and Mike Bocchetti.
In October 2022, Brennan, along with fellow comedian Bob Levy, opened a comedy club called the Brennan & Levy's Comedy Loft in Vineland, New Jersey.
Brennan announced his retirement from comedy on March 10, 2025, during his Misery Loves Company podcast.
Comedic style
Brennan's delivery has been described as "laid-back" and "laconic".
Personal life
Brennan is married and resides in New Jersey.
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! scope="row" | 2009
| Just for Laughs
| Self
| Season 1, Episode 4 Martin Short (October 19, 2009)
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! scope="row" | 2016, 2017
| Red Eye w/ Tom Shillue
| Self (Panelist)
| June 22, 2016; August 31, 2016; October 5, 2016; December 20, 2016; February 7, 2017; March 10, 2017; March 29, 2017
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! scope="row" | 2018
| WGN Morning News
| Self
| August 17, 2018
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|-
! scope="row" | 2018
| Porsalin
| Self
| Almost Famous: A Kevin Brennan Documentary (March 27, 2021)
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|-
! scope="row" | 2019
| Crashing
| Self
| Season 3, Episode 6 The Viewing Party (February 24, 2019)
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