Kevin Meaney was a stand-up for more than 35 years, with his first HBO special airing in 1986. A signature bit was to tell deliberately bad jokes and sing: ’I don't care’ when they bombed.

A regular on the late-night talk show circuit he also took the title role in the 1990 sitcom version of Uncle Buck and appeared in the Tom Hanks film Big. He was also in the Broadway musical Hairspray for seven years, during which time he came out as gay.