Matt Riedy
A boom-era road comic who became Hollywood's favorite annoyed authority figure.
1 special · 1991
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He leans into his craggy features and booming announcer’s voice, delivering lines with a flat, gravelly dismissal. He works like a guy who just wants to clock out. There is no pleading for laughs. He simply barks out a premise, lets a silence hang, and lets his own visible irritation do the rest.
Specials
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MTV Half-Hour Comedy Hour: Episode #1.77 with Laura Lynn Berrios, Ron Darian & 6 more
A 1991 cable comedy showcase featuring Tom Kenny and Laura Kightlinger.
MTV · 30 min
On stage
For the last two decades, audiences have encountered Matt Riedy mostly as a reliable character actor. He is the guy casting calls when a scene requires a frustrated sheriff, a skeptical judge, or a furious general. With over a hundred and thirty credits, he makes a living playing men who are profoundly annoyed by the main character. You will spot him glaring at Don Draper in Mad Men, playing an intimidating CEO on Big Time Rush, or doing quick, deadpan sketch work for Jimmy Kimmel. He also works heavily in voiceover, supplying the grit for wrestling mayor Mike Haggar in the Marvel vs. Capcom games.
This second career follows a long first act in broadcasting and comedy. Riedy started as a radio DJ in Buffalo, Miami, and Seattle before taking his act to comedy clubs. From 1986 to 1997, he worked the road full-time as a standup, surviving the eighties comedy boom and logging an appearance on the MTV Half-Hour Comedy Hour. He eventually left the club circuit, moved to Los Angeles in his late forties, and turned his stage timing into a television commodity.
He no longer has to deal with hecklers. He just gets paid to act completely exhausted by whoever is standing in front of him.
At a glance
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