For rant-master Denis Leary, finding material in this day and age is like shooting the proverbial fish in a barrel. Which is why his new book, Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy, and Stupid (Viking), is 240 pages of society-skewering observation that, true to form, spares no one. “I knew the things I wanted to talk about, I knew where I wanted to start,” says the comic-turned-actor-turned-writer who grew up in an Irish-American family in Massachusetts. “Then I knew I wanted to rant and also to include personal things from my growing up—my mother, and how I was brought up, and my father, and personal stories that related. I had a blast writing it, I gotta tell you.”
Leary fans will have an equally good time reading it. With chapters like “Why Everyone Hates Us,” “Self- Esteem This,” and “The Pope Is a Pimp,” the book lays into everyone and everything. It’s upfront, damn funny, and all Leary. While he uses a more free-form strategy in his stand-up act—going in with a handful of words in mind and connecting the dots from there—he admits that translating his style into a book required a little more structure. “I just started making observations and ranting the way that I would off-stage,” he explains. “And that’s my natural voice, I guess. It’s tougher to put into book form because I’ve gotta make it a little more linear for the page. I can’t jump…. For the most part, you gotta kind of stay on point.”
Aside from this literary foray, Leary also writes for (and stars in) the FX show Rescue Me, which begins its fifth season in April. In addition, he’s lending his voice to next summer’s animated offering Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. But even with the acting work, he considers himself a comedian first, holding legends like George Carlin and Richard Pryor in high regard—and realizing that when it comes to going for laughs, the possibilities really are endless.
“I used to watch those Carlin specials as he was getting older—and a lot of comedians will tell you this—you watch him, and you get bummed out,” he says. “You go ‘Fuck—this stuff is so good and it’s brand new!’ So I think there’s a competitive aspect, but to me there’s great hope.”
