Andy Dick
Andrew Roane Dick (born December 21, 1965), known professionally as Andy Dick, is an American comedian, actor, musician, and producer.[1] He rose to prominence portraying the inept and eccentric news reporter Matthew Brock on the NBC sitcom NewsRadio from 1995 to 1999.[2] Dick subsequently played the flamboyant assistant Owen Kronsky on the ABC workplace comedy Less than Perfect from 2002 to 2006.[3] Throughout his career, he has appeared in various films and television shows, often in comedic supporting roles, and hosted his own sketch series, The Andy Dick Show, on MTV from 2001 to 2003.[4] However, Dick's professional trajectory has been repeatedly disrupted by legal troubles involving substance abuse and sexual misconduct, culminating in a 2022 misdemeanor conviction for sexual battery after groping an Uber driver, for which he served 90 days in jail and was required to register as a sex offender.[5]
Early life
Childhood and adoption
Andrew Thomlinson was born on December 21, 1965, in Charleston, South Carolina, to teenage biological parents who relinquished him for adoption shortly after birth.[1][6] He was adopted as a newborn by Allen Dick, a U.S. Navy serviceman, and his wife Sue Dick, who renamed him Andrew Roane Dick and raised him in a Presbyterian household.[7][8][9] Due to Allen Dick's military career, the family frequently relocated during Andy Dick's childhood, living in locations including Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York, Yugoslavia, and Illinois.[7][8] Dick has described his upbringing as lacking consistent parenting, attributing this in part to his adoptive mother's undisclosed alcoholism, and likened the family environment to being "raised by wolves" amid the instability of constant moves.[10][11]Education and early influences
Dick attended Joliet West High School in Joliet, Illinois, graduating in 1984.[12] During his senior year in fall 1983, he campaigned for homecoming king using the slogan "Don't vote for a jock. Vote for a..." to play on his surname for comedic effect.[13] Classmates and teachers recalled him as a quick-witted student who frequently turned everyday situations into jokes, foreshadowing his comedic inclinations.[14] Following high school, Dick relocated to Chicago, where he pursued training in improvisational theater by joining The Second City troupe and studying its techniques.[15] He also enrolled at Columbia College Chicago and briefly attended Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Illinois, though he did not complete a degree at either institution.[15] Additionally, he took improv classes at the iO Theater (formerly ImprovOlympic), which emphasized long-form improvisation and influenced his early performance style.[9] These experiences in Chicago's vibrant improv scene provided the foundational skills that shaped his approach to comedy, focusing on spontaneous character work and ensemble dynamics rather than scripted material.[16]Career
Stand-up comedy and early breakthroughs
Andy Dick developed his stand-up comedy routine in the Chicago area during the late 1980s, drawing from his background in improvisational theater. By 1990, at age 25, he had cultivated a consistent presence in the local scene, performing at various venues nearly every night of the week.[16] His act emphasized eccentric, unfiltered humor that tested audience boundaries, often incorporating personal anecdotes and absurd scenarios delivered with high energy. To sustain his early touring efforts, Dick took on miscellaneous jobs while gigging at comedy clubs across the Midwest, gradually expanding performances to other U.S. cities in the early 1990s. This grassroots approach built a dedicated following among fans of edgier live comedy, distinct from mainstream sketch formats.[13] His persistence in raw, confrontational sets—frequently improvising based on crowd reactions—earned him repeat bookings and word-of-mouth buzz in regional circuits. Dick's first forays into recording his material culminated in releases like the 2002 album Andy Dick & the Bitches of the Century, which captured elements of his live persona through comedic tracks and collaborations. Subsequent stand-up-focused albums, such as Do Your Shows Always Suck? in 2007, preserved routines from his ongoing tours, highlighting his signature mix of satire and provocation.[17] These efforts solidified his reputation as a boundary-pushing live performer with a cult appeal among comedy enthusiasts seeking unpolished acts.Television roles
Andy Dick gained prominence in television through his role as the eccentric, accident-prone reporter Matthew Brock on the NBC sitcom NewsRadio, which aired from March 21, 1995, to May 13, 1999, across five seasons.[18] In the ensemble cast alongside Dave Foley, Stephen Root, Maura Tierney, and Phil Hartman as Bill McNeal, Dick's character often provided comic relief through naive and overly enthusiastic antics in the newsroom setting.[19] The series received an 8/10 rating on IMDb from over 18,000 user votes, reflecting its cult following for sharp workplace satire, though it maintained modest Nielsen ratings that hovered around 10-12 million viewers per episode in early seasons before declining.[18] It earned nominations for Online Film & Television Association (OFTA) Television Awards, including Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for Hartman, underscoring the ensemble's critical recognition.[20] Following NewsRadio, Dick hosted and starred in the sketch comedy series The Andy Dick Show on MTV, which premiered on February 19, 2001, and ran for two seasons until May 2002, comprising 18 episodes.[21] The format featured Dick in various absurd characters and sketches, often incorporating celebrity guests like Ashton Kutcher, with a focus on improvised, boundary-pushing humor tailored to MTV's younger audience.[21] Despite a 6.4/10 IMDb rating from nearly 500 votes, the show was canceled after its second season amid low viewership, as MTV shifted priorities toward reality programming; it drew limited metrics, with episodes averaging under 1 million viewers in a fragmented cable landscape.[21][22] In subsequent years, Dick appeared in recurring and guest capacities on other series, including the role of the dim-witted staffer Owen Kronsky on ABC's Less than Perfect from 2002 to 2006, contributing to the sitcom's ensemble dynamic in a network TV office comedy.[23] He also hosted the MTV reality competition The Assistant in 2004, where contestants vied for a personal assistant position through challenges testing loyalty and competence, though the single-season format yielded no notable awards or sustained ratings data.[24] These mid-2000s appearances marked a shift toward shorter engagements, aligning with declining opportunities as his visibility waned post-MTV.[4]Film and voice acting
Andy Dick portrayed supporting comedic characters in various live-action films, often leveraging his manic persona for brief but memorable appearances. In Road Trip (2000), he played the unsettling Motel Clerk who propositions the protagonists with bizarre services during their chaotic journey.[25] In Zoolander (2001), Dick appeared as Olga the Masseuse, delivering an aggressive massage scene that highlighted the film's satirical take on the fashion industry.[26] His uncredited role as Barry, an oral sex instructor, in Old School (2003) featured in a fraternity training sequence, adding to the comedy's raunchy humor amid the ensemble cast.[27] In voice acting, Dick provided the vocal performance for Boingo, the scheming bunny antagonist, in the animated film Hoodwinked! (2005), where he incorporated improvisation into the character's manic energy.[28] He reprised the role in the direct-to-video sequel Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil (2011).[29] Additional voice work included Lennie the Weasel in Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001).[30] Dick extended his voice work to video games, voicing Maurice, the eccentric host of the "Gardening with Maurice" radio segment on WCTR, in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004).[31] He also appeared as a downloadable playable character voicing himself in the physics-based game PAIN (2008).[29]Music, web series, and other media
Andy Dick released his debut comedy album, Andy Dick & the Bitches of the Century, in 2002, featuring explicit tracks with vulgar, sexually themed humor such as "Damn Good Pussy" and "My Friend Drank So Much Liquor."[32] The album showcased his penchant for irreverent, boundary-pushing comedy music blending spoken-word elements with musical accompaniment.[33] Subsequent releases included Happy B-Day J.C. in 2006, a collection with holiday-inflected comedic songs, and Do Your Shows Always Suck? (Explicit Version) in 2007, a 34-track live-style comedy album capturing profane stand-up routines and musical interludes centered on personal anecdotes and debauchery.[34] His discography continued with The Darkest Day of the Year in 2009, incorporating dark humor and tracks like "Another Great Day for Drugs," reflecting themes of substance use and self-deprecation.[35] In 2023, Dick issued My Best Friend (Tom Lord-Alge Mix), a more recent musical project produced by Tom Lord-Alge, featuring reflective and upbeat content.[36]- Andy Dick & the Bitches of the Century (2002): Explicit comedy with sexual and party themes.[37]
- Happy B-Day J.C. (2006): Humorous holiday songs.[36]
- Do Your Shows Always Suck? (Explicit Version) (2007): Live comedy recordings with vulgar language.[34]
- The Darkest Day of the Year (2009): Darkly comedic tracks on drugs and excess.[35]
- My Best Friend (Tom Lord-Alge Mix) (2023): Produced mix with personal themes.[36]
Personal struggles
Substance abuse and addiction history
Andy Dick's substance abuse issues emerged prominently during the mid-1990s run of NewsRadio, amid a cast environment marked by heavy partying and co-star addictions, including David Strickland's suicide by hanging in Las Vegas on March 22, 1999.[42][43] Dick admitted in a 1999 Time magazine interview to long-standing problems with drugs and alcohol, describing a hedonistic lifestyle involving cocaine and excessive drinking that contributed to erratic behavior.[44] This era saw patterns of relapse evidenced by a May 15, 1999, incident in Hollywood where Dick, intoxicated, drove his car into a telephone pole, resulting in the discovery of cocaine and marijuana on his person, highlighting ongoing use despite professional demands.[45] From the early 2000s, Dick pursued repeated rehabilitation efforts, entering programs over a dozen times by his own account, with relapses frequently demonstrated through public intoxication and on-set disruptions. He participated in VH1's Sober House reality series in 2009-2010, aimed at addressing addiction post-incarceration, but subsequent incidents like intoxication at a winery in 2010 indicated failure to maintain sobriety.[10] In June 2012, following an intervention by co-workers during a radio appearance, Dick checked into a California rehab facility for another attempt.[46] A notable extended sobriety claim followed entry into the SOBA sober-living center in Malibu in late 2014, which Dick described as his 20th rehab stint; by July 2016, he reported 18 months sober and endorsed the program publicly.[47][10] Earlier relapses, such as drunken behavior leading to a 2004 McDonald's incident and drug-related issues in 2008, underscored a cycle where initial abstinences gave way to resumed use, often tied to social enabling and emotional triggers like anxiety, without sustained causal breaks from underlying patterns.[10] On-set lapses, including erratic conduct during a 2007 Jimmy Kimmel Live! appearance, further evidenced this volatility amid career pressures.[44]Conflict with Jon Lovitz
Andy Dick has had a longstanding feud with his former NewsRadio co-star Jon Lovitz concerning the death of their mutual colleague Phil Hartman. According to Lovitz, Dick provided cocaine to Hartman's wife Brynn, a recovering addict, at a Christmas party at the Hartmans' home in 1997, which led to her relapse and culminated in her murder of Hartman followed by her suicide on May 28, 1998.[48] When Lovitz joined the cast of NewsRadio as Hartman's replacement, he argued with Dick, shouting, "I wouldn't be here if you hadn't given Brynn coke in the first place." Lovitz later apologized to Dick for the remark.[48] Lovitz alleged that in early 2007, Dick approached him at a restaurant and said, "I put the Phil Hartman hex on you—you're the next to die."[49] On July 10, 2007, Dick and Lovitz fought at the Laugh Factory in Los Angeles; Lovitz demanded an apology from Dick, who refused and accused Lovitz of blaming him for Hartman's death, after which Lovitz grabbed Dick by the shirt and slammed him backward into the bar before they were separated by the doorman.[49]Relationships and family dynamics
Andy Dick married Ivone Kowalczyk in 1986 following her pregnancy, and the couple welcomed a son before divorcing in 1990.[50][51]Later, Dick entered a relationship with Lena Sved, whom court records and media reports identified as his wife, and they had two children together: a son named Jacob and a daughter named Meg.[52][53] In February 2018, Sved secured a temporary restraining order against Dick after incidents involving alleged drunken arguments with their son, which a judge extended to a five-year mandate requiring Dick to maintain a distance of at least 100 yards from Sved and both children.[52][54]
Dick has publicly discussed his parental efforts, including a post-divorce arrangement where he resided in a backyard structure on his ex-partner's property to facilitate proximity to his children.[55] No public statements from his children or Sved regarding family dynamics have been widely documented in verified interviews.