Story – Robert McKee's Creative Storytelling Magazine Issue 005 – Drew Carey | Page 69

CAREY

MCKEE
INTERVIEWS
DREW CAREY
Drew Carey is one of the most successful television comedians and
game show hosts of the past 20
years. Drew was born and raised
in Cleveland, Ohio. At an early age,
however, his father passed away
and his mother was compelled
to work long hours outside of the
home. Drew found solace in cartoons and comedy albums.
As a teenager, he enrolled in Kent
State University, but crises in his
personal life got him expelled
twice. Finally, dropping out of
college, he found new direction
and discipline upon joining the
Marine Corps. His six-year military stint gave him new confidence and focus.
Upon leaving the service, a close
friend of Drew’s, who worked at a
radio station, asked him to write
a few jokes to use on the air. From
there, Drew honed his wit and
channeled his enormous energy into comedy, doing stand-up
and working as an emcee at the
Cleveland Comedy Club.
Drew’s career-defining moment
came in 1991 when an appearance
on The Tonight Show with Johnny
Carson changed his life forever.
After the set, Drew was called over
to the couch to sit next to the great
Johnny Carson, the ultimate coup
for any young comedian.
A series of HBO specials and
television appearances soon fol-

Story Magazine // Issue 005

lowed, and then, in 1995, Drew
joined forces with writer/producer Bruce Helford to create
The Drew Carey Show. Drew’s
loyalty to his hometown and everyman persona endeared him
to audiences as The Drew Carey
Show became one of the most
popular sitcoms on television,
running for over nine years and
200 episodes.
In 1997, Drew published his autobiography, Dirty Jokes and
Beer: Stories of the Unrefined.
In 1998, Drew began hosting
the improvisational game show,
Whose Line Is it Anyway? The
show ran for eight years, winning
an Emmy with four more nominations.
In February 2003, Drew received
the highest of honors: a star on
the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In
2004 and 2005, Drew developed
and starred in a whole new form
of television improvisation, Drew
Carey’s Green Screen Show on the
WB network.
In 2007, he was selected to host
the CBS nighttime game show,
Power of 10. Just as that series was coming to an end, Bob
Barker, the famous host of the
long-running game show The
Price is Right, retired. When CBS
offered Drew the job, at first he
declined. But then, on The David
Letterman Show, he announced
that he was taking over.