Wikipedia

Darryl Lenox

Darryl O’Flynn Lenox (January 28, 1966 – April 16, 2023) was an American comedian who lived in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Darryl O’Flynn Lenox
Born(1966-01-28)January 28, 1966[1]
Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
DiedApril 16, 2023(2023-04-16) (aged 57)
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
MediumStand-up comedy
Years active1989–2023
Websitewww.darryllenox.com

His comedy was notable for its focus on the differences between Canadians and Americans, and on his struggle with blindness. His 34-year career included appearances on Conan, WTF with Marc Maron, and This American Life.[2][3] Lenox released two albums on Stand Up! Records, 2012's Blind Ambition and 2021's Super Bloom. Stage Time Magazine named Blind Ambition one of the top 5 comedy albums of 2012.[4]

Vancouver comedy writer Guy MacPherson called Lenox “one of the best comics this city—and country—has ever produced”.[5] Georgia Straight writer Chris Griffin called him "a giant" of Canadian comedy.[2]

Early life

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Lenox was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada. His father was a Vietnam War veteran who left when Lenox was four; he and his four sisters were raised by his mother and stepfather.[6][2][7][3] Despite childhood nearsightedness, Lenox was a talented athlete who wanted to be a professional basketball player.[6][3]

As a teenager, Lenox moved to Seattle, where his biological father lived.[3][7] He first performed stand-up at an open mic at Seattle's Comedy Underground.[6][8][3]

Lenox also lived in Los Angeles, New York City, and Florida, but thought of Vancouver as home. Most of his early stand-up career was in Canada.[2][7][9]

Career

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Vancouver newspaper The Georgia Straight described Lenox's comedy as "part philosophical, part therapeutic, part inspirational."[2][10] His inspirations included Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Chris Rock, and Dave Chapelle,[7] as well as Seattle comic Rod Long and Canadian comic Brent Butt.[11]

He moved to Vancouver in 1994. The tone of his comedy shifted when he found that jokes about American racial issues were often lost on Canadian audiences.[3][7] He became entrenched in the Vancouver comedy scene, including mentoring then-13-year-old Seth Rogen, who later said that Lenox was a crucial influence on his film Superbad; Lenox narrated the story in the audio version of Rogen's memoir Year Book.[3] He was kicked out of Canada in 2005 for an alleged work permit violation, but returned in 2010 after the issue was determined to have been a mistake.[12][5][13]

Lenox headlined regularly at comedy clubs and festivals across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.[14][7][3] Lenox was the winner of the Seattle International Comedy Competition in 1999.[15] He won second place at both the 2000 San Francisco Comedy Competition[16] and the 2006 Boston Comedy Festival.[17][18] He also performed at SXSW,[19] Winnipeg Comedy Festival,[11] Great American Comedy Festival,[20] Montreal's Just for Laughs Festival, HBO U.S. Comedy Arts Festival,[13] Chicago Comedy Festival,[21] Foolproof Northwest Comedy Arts Festival,[22] Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Comedy Challenge,[23] and Vancouver Comedy Festival.[24]

His television appearances included Conan O'Brien's Conan,[25] The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, BET's ComicView,[26] A&E’s Evening at the Improv, Comedy Central Presents, Live at Gotham, and Jamie Foxx’s Laffapalooza.[14][3][13] He was a celebrity judge twice on Canadian series Get Cooking With the Stars.[27]

In 2013, he was interviewed on Marc Maron's podcast WTF with Marc Maron.[1][9][2][3]

In 2022, Lenox appeared on an episode of This American Life to discuss how going blind shifted his trust in strangers.[28] The appearance led to a book deal, which he was working on before his death.[3][2]

Lenox was a guest panelist six times on Canadian radio comedy show The Debaters.

He wrote and performed a one-man show, DNA, at several festivals; it won the Vancouver Fringe Festival’s Best New Play award. HBO expressed interest in turning DNA into a sitcom.[29][30][31][8]

In 2019, Lenox founded the entertainment company Ellison Rains.[3]

Recordings

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Lenox released two albums on Stand Up! Records, 2012's Blind Ambition and 2021's Super Bloom.[32]

Lenox filmed Blind Ambition at Vancouver’s Vogue Theatre in October 2010. It was picked up by the Starz TV network.[11][9][3][33][13] Stage Time Magazine named Blind Ambition one of the top 5 comedy albums of 2012, calling it "one of the most complete experiences in comedy this year".[4] Jake Austen of Roctober called Lenox a "truly gifted comic" and praised his ability to "address mortality, race, personal failings and triumphs, what it means to be an American and what it means to be a human in very funny, touching terms."[34] Blind Ambition was also named one of the year's best by The Serious Comedy Site;[35] writer Richard Lanoie wrote that "Lenox delivers wickedly funny self-deprecating stories about himself, a hilarious and laser-sharp take on the Canadians he lived with for quite a few years".[36]

Lenox named his 2021 album Super Bloom after the desert phenomenon of sudden, massive blossoming of flowers after heavy rains.[37][7][3] It reached No.1 on the iTunes comedy chart.[38] Shawn Conner of the Vancouver Sun praised the album's positivity, saying "If there's a theme, it's that there is usually a silver lining somewhere. "[39]

Personal life

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Lenox was married twice. He divorced his first wife in 1994. His second wife was Clair Reilly-Roe, a musician; they divorced in 2019.[3][10][7]

Blindness

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Lenox was nearsighted from birth and became legally blind as a teen. His sight deteriorated, exacerbated by an injury in 1997. Despite surgery that restored his sight for several years, he became totally blind in early 2021.[5][6][37][3][7] He worked with Third World Eye Care Society, a charity devoted to helping the visually impaired in impoverished nations.[40][11]

Death

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Lenox died of an aortic dissection on April 16, 2023, at Vancouver General Hospital.[14][3]

Discography

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  • Blind Ambition (Stand Up! Records, 2012)
  • Super Bloom (Stand Up! Records, 2021)

Selected filmography

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  • Talent Talk (2022)
  • Just For Laughs: All Access (2014)
  • Get Cooking With the Stars (2012, 2017)
  • When Comedy Went To School (2013)
  • Conan (2013)
  • Darryl Lenox: Blind Ambition (2012; also executive producer, writer)
  • Alone Up There (2012)
  • Live at Gotham (2006)
  • Jamie Foxx's Laffapalooza (2005)
  • Just For Laughs (2003)
  • Comedy Night in Canada (2003)
  • BET's Comic View (2003)
  • An Evening at the Improv (1992, 1994)

Selected podcasts

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  • WTF with Marc Maron (February 2013)[1]
  • Too Opinionated (February 7, 2022)[41]
  • The Reel World: Talkin' with Members of the Entertainment Industry (April 3, 2022)[42]
  • AT Banter (August 11, 2021)[43]
  • Everything Film (October 22, 2021)[44]
  • Middle of Somewhere (December 20, 2021)[45]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Marc Maron (2013-02-28). "Episode 365 - Darryl Lenox". WTF with Marc Maron (Podcast). Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Griffin, Chris (2023-04-21). "Remembering Darryl Lenox: "This is going to hurt, and I'm sorry"". The Georgia Straight. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Donnelly, Lauren (2023-04-26). "Darryl Lenox aimed to revolutionize Canadian comedy". The Globe and Mail. Toronto, Ontario. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  4. ^ a b Milea, Chris (December 27, 2012). "Top 5 Best Comedy Albums of 2012". Stage Time Magazine. Archived from the original on 2013-05-02. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  5. ^ a b c MacPherson, Guy (2010-09-28). "Vancouver made Darryl Lenox into the comedian he is today". The Georgia Straight. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
  6. ^ a b c d Recker, Scott (2019-12-04). "Comedian Darryl Lenox: 'Uglier Than Urkel'". LEO Weekly. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Thomson, John (November 25, 2022). "Darryl Lenox: Blind Ambition". Inspired Magazine. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  8. ^ a b Nave, Howie (February 25, 2016). "Darryl Lenox and Tracey MacDonald perform comedy this week in Tahoe". Lake Tahoe Action. Lake Tahoe, Nevada. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  9. ^ a b c MacPherson, Guy (2013-02-01). "Darryl Lenox is a cool comic philosopher in Vancouver". The Georgia Straight. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  10. ^ a b Shipe, O'Hara (October 5, 2022). "Darryl Lenox makes the best damn lemonade in the business!". Anchorage Press. Anchorage, Alaska. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  11. ^ a b c d Little, Paul (2011-04-05). "Winnipeg Comedy Fest Interview: Stand-up comic Darryl Lenox". Showbiz Monkeys. Retrieved 2023-10-05.
  12. ^ Burliuk, Greg (July 17, 2010). "American funny man takes the stage". Kingston Whig-Standard. Kingston, Ontario. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  13. ^ a b c d McCarthy, Sean L. (2012-11-12). "Darryl Lenox on his "Blind Ambition" and reaching for the Starz". The Comic's Comic. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  14. ^ a b c Reuben, David (2023-04-29). "The Comedy Green Room May 2023 Newsletter". Comedy Green Room. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  15. ^ "Previous Winners". Seattle International Comedy Competition. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  16. ^ McCarthy, Sean L. "Ellis Rodriguez wins the 2017 San Francisco Comedy Competition". The Comic's Comic. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  17. ^ McCarthy, Sean L. (September 17, 2006). "I'm judging you, Boston (2006 finale)". The Comic's Comic. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  18. ^ McCarthy, Sean L. (November 14, 2010). "Nate Bargatze, Saleem tie for win in busy finale night for comedy for the 2010 Boston Comedy Festival". The Comic's Comic. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  19. ^ McCarthy, Sean L. (February 17, 2011). "Comedy at SXSW 2011". The Comic's Comic. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  20. ^ McCarthy, Sean L. (June 18, 2008). "Great American Comedy Festival hits Nebraska". The Comic's Comic. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  21. ^ "Chicago Comedy Festival". Chicago Reader. May 25, 2000. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  22. ^ "Foolproof schedule". Seattle Times. April 21, 2000. p. I5.
  23. ^ Stone, Scott (March 18, 1997). "Inside Jokes". The Sun. Bremerton, Washington. p. A4. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  24. ^ Newton, Steve (November 13, 2020). "Vancouver comics Darryl Lenox and Ivan Decker to perform live standup at the Laugh Track Comedy Club". Georgia Straight. Retrieved 2023-07-08.
  25. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: Darryl Lenox Stand-Up 02/07/13 | CONAN on TBS. YouTube.
  26. ^ "Darryl Lenox". Tampa Bay Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. June 22, 2003. p. 19. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  27. ^ Colpitts, Heather (January 3, 2019). "'Stars' Cook It Up Here". Aldergrove Star. Aldergrove, British Columbia. p. A9. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  28. ^ "Transcript: Now You See Me". This American Life. July 8, 2022. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  29. ^ Burliuk, Greg (February 8, 2001). "Comic Lenox finds stand-up circuit more challenging". Kingston Whig-Standard. Kingston, Ontario. p. 28. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  30. ^ Phalen, Tom (October 3, 1996). "Oktoberfest Falls On The Paragon". Seattle Times. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  31. ^ "Darryl Lenox". Tulsa World. Tulsa, Oklahoma. November 24, 2000. p. 6. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  32. ^ "Darryl Lenox turns pain into laughs on new stand-up special and album 'Blind Ambition' (Video)". Archived from the original on 2012-11-17. Retrieved 2013-03-27.
  33. ^ Smith, Charlie (April 22, 2023). "Vancouver comedian Darryl Lenox described as a deeply caring and compassionate man who saw the best in others". Pancouver. Vancouver, British Columbia. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  34. ^ Austen, Jake (August 2013). "The Stand Up! Records Listener's Guide". Roctober. No. 51. Chicago.
  35. ^ "2012 Top 10 Stand-up Comedy MP3 albums and CD". The Serious Comedy Site. April 9, 2018. Retrieved 2023-08-27.
  36. ^ "Darryl Lenox – Blind Ambition". The Serious Comedy Site. April 9, 2018. Retrieved 2023-08-27.
  37. ^ a b Reeder, Gabby (December 22, 2021). "Darryl Lenox Premieres Super Bloom on Treasure Island". The Gabber. Gulfport, Florida. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  38. ^ "Stand Up! Records". Facebook. 2022-07-21. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  39. ^ Conner, Shawn (December 21, 2021). "Darryl Lenox, Super Bloom". Vancouver Sun.
  40. ^ "What's On: Darryl Lenox". Montreal Gazette. Montreal, Quebec. October 14, 2011. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  41. ^ "Too Opinionated Interview: Darryl Lennox". Too Opinionated (Podcast). February 7, 2022. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  42. ^ "Darryl Lenox". The Reel World: Talkin' with Members of the Entertainment Industry (Podcast). April 3, 2022. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  43. ^ "AT Banter Podcast Episode 250 - Darryl Lenox". AT Banter (Podcast). August 11, 2021. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  44. ^ "Comedian Darryl Lenox Ripped on a Young Seth Rogen". Everything Film (Podcast). October 22, 2021. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  45. ^ Chad Daniels and Cy Amundson (December 20, 2021). "Super Bloom and Darryl Lenox". Middle of Somewhere (Podcast). Retrieved 2023-08-25.
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