Thomas Lennon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Thomas Lennon
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Thomas Lennon in 2015
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| Born | August 9, 1970 Oak Park, Illinois, U.S.
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| Alma mater | New York University |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1991–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Jenny Robertson
(m. 2002) |
| Children | 1 |
Thomas Lennon (born August 9, 1970) is an American comedian, actor, and screenwriter. He is well-known for playing Lieutenant Jim Dangle on the TV show Reno 911!. He also played Andrei Novak on Santa Clarita Diet and Felix Unger on The Odd Couple. Thomas Lennon is also a very successful screenwriter. He has written many popular movies with his writing partner Robert Ben Garant. These include the Night at the Museum movies, The Pacifier, Balls of Fury, and Baywatch.
Contents
Early Life and Comedy Beginnings
Thomas Lennon was born on August 9, 1970, in Oak Park, Illinois. His parents are Kathleen and Timothy Lennon. He finished high school in 1988.
When he was 16, Thomas met his future co-star Kerri Kenney at a theater camp. They both later went to NYU. There, they joined a comedy group called The New Group.
Thomas Lennon's Acting Career
Early TV Shows
The comedy group Thomas Lennon was part of changed its name to The State. They performed their comedy acts in New York City. This led to them working on the MTV show You Wrote It, You Watch It. Later, they got their own show called The State, which was on MTV from 1993 to 1995.
After The State ended, Lennon, Kenney, and Robert Ben Garant created another show for Comedy Central. This show was called Viva Variety and ran from 1997 to 1999. It was based on a funny sketch Thomas had written.
Becoming Lieutenant Dangle
After Viva Variety, Thomas Lennon, Kerri Kenney, and Robert Ben Garant created Reno 911!. This show started in 2003 and became very popular. Thomas played the funny character Lieutenant Jim Dangle, who is known for his short shorts. The show was first planned for Fox, but it ended up on Comedy Central.
In 2020, Thomas Lennon returned to play Lieutenant Jim Dangle in the seventh season of Reno 911!. This season aired on Quibi. He also appeared in the 2021 movie Reno 911! The Hunt for QAnon. The eighth season, now called Reno 911! Defunded, came out in 2022 on The Roku Channel.
Guest Roles and Movies
Thomas Lennon has appeared in many other TV shows. Some of these include The League, New Girl, and How I Met Your Mother. A memorable guest role was playing Joey Tribbiani's "identical hand twin" on the show Friends. He has also been on many late-night talk shows.
He has acted in many movies too. These include Bad Teacher, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and I Love You, Man. For I Love You, Man, he and his co-star Paul Rudd were nominated for an MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss! Thomas Lennon also played a doctor in two Christopher Nolan films: Memento (2000) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012).
Voice Acting and Recent Work
Thomas Lennon also does a lot of voice acting for cartoons. He has lent his voice to characters in shows like Kim Possible, Bob's Burgers, and Archer. He was the voice of Eddie the Shipboard Computer in the movie The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. He also voiced Munk on Dawn of the Croods and Chief O'Hara in Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders.
From 2015 to 2017, he played Felix Unger in the TV show The Odd Couple. He acted alongside Matthew Perry in this show. In 2016, he was in the movie Monster Trucks. He also had a repeating role as Leo Getz in the TV show Lethal Weapon. In 2023, he was cast in the Zoey 101 movie reboot, Zoey 102, which came out on Paramount+.
Screenwriting Success
Thomas Lennon is a very successful screenwriter. He often writes with his partner Robert Ben Garant. Their movies have made a lot of money around the world.
Some of the famous movies they wrote include the Night at the Museum movies. They also wrote the Disney comedy The Pacifier (2005) and the prison comedy Let's Go to Prison (2006). They even wrote a book about how to write movies called Writing Movies for Fun and Profit: How We Made a Billion Dollars at the Box Office and You Can Too! in 2011.
They also wrote, directed, and starred in the 2013 film Hell Baby. Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant also helped write the story for the 2017 movie version of Baywatch.
Books and Stage Work
Thomas Lennon has written three books for young adults. These books are titled Ronan Boyle and the Bridge of Riddles, Ronan Boyle and the Swamp of Certain Death, and Ronan Boyle into the Strangeplace. His first book, Ronan Boyle and the Bridge of Riddles, even made it onto The New York Times Best Seller list.
He also wrote the script for a musical play called "Trading Places: The Musical!" This show started in Atlanta in June 2022.
Personal Life
Thomas Lennon lives in Wisconsin with his wife, actress Jenny Robertson. They got married in 2002. They also have a son. Thomas is a big fan of the band The Smiths and its singer Morrissey. Sometimes, he even plays guitar live with a tribute band called Sweet and Tender Hooligans.
Images for kids
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Thomas Lennon in 2015
See also
In Spanish: Thomas Lennon para niños
