Stephen Rannazzisi (born July 4, 1977)
is an American actor and stand-up comedian. He acted in the
FXX
FXX is an American basic cable channel owned by the Walt Disney Television unit of The Walt Disney Company through FX Networks, LLC. It is the partner channel of FX, with its programming focusing on original and acquired comedy series and fe ...
comedy series ''
The League
''The League'' is an American sitcom that aired on FX and later FXX from October 29, 2009, to December 9, 2015, for a total of seven seasons. The series, set in Chicago, Illinois, is a semi-improvised comedy show about a fantasy football league ...
'' as Kevin MacArthur.
Personal life
Rannazzisi, born in
Smithtown,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
on July 4, 1977, briefly attended the Catholic
St. Anthony's High School in
South Huntington, New York
South Huntington is an affluent hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) within the Town of Huntington in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 9,422 at the 2010 census. Residents have a Huntington Stat ...
on
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
, leaving after a year in what he called a mutual decision. He went on to graduate from
Smithtown High School in 1996. Rannazzisi graduated from
State University of New York at Oneonta
The State University of New York College at Oneonta, also known as SUNY Oneonta, is a public college in Oneonta, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system.
History
SUNY Oneonta was established in 1889 as the Oneon ...
, where he majored in communications.
He is of
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
and
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
descent.
9/11 controversy
Rannazzisi lied about working in the South Tower of the
World Trade Center
World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association.
World Trade Center may refer to:
Buildings
* List of World Trade Centers
* World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...
at
Merrill Lynch
Merrill (officially Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated), previously branded Merrill Lynch, is an American investment management and wealth management division of Bank of America. Along with BofA Securities, the investment bank ...
, on the 54th floor during the
September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...
, and described his experience escaping death. He had said the events inspired him to move to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
and pursue stand-up comedy. In September 2015, after being contacted by a reporter from ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' for an article debunking his claim,
Rannazzisi admitted his story was a lie.
[Rannazzisi, Twitter]
"it is to the victims of 9/11...."
/ref> Rannazzisi was never employed by Merrill Lynch, which did not have offices in the World Trade Center then.
Filmography
References
External links
Official website
*
1977 births
21st-century American male actors
American male comedians
American male film actors
American male television actors
American stand-up comedians
Living people
Male actors from New York (state)
People from Smithtown, New York
State University of New York at Oneonta alumni
Comedians from New York (state)
21st-century American comedians
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