Doug Heffernan
Encyclopedia
Douglas Steven "Doug" Heffernan is a fictional character in the American
situation comedy
The King of Queens
. The character has also appeared in Everybody Loves Raymond
, Becker
, and Cosby
.
The role is played by actor Kevin James, whose stand-up comedy provided the comedic themes and general style of the show. Doug, an "average joe
," lives in Rego Park, Queens
, with his wife Carrie Heffernan
(Leah Remini
), and his father-in-law Arthur Spooner
(Jerry Stiller
).
Doug is a delivery driver for the fictional International Parcel Service (a parody of United Parcel Service
), a job Doug acquired by pretending to work there after lying to then girlfriend Carrie about having a job.
, QC
, Canada
while his mother Janet (played by Jenny O'Hara) and father Joe (Dakin Matthews
) were attending a friend's wedding there. He had been told by his parents that he had been born in New York City
, and only discovered the truth as an adult, in the episode 'Dog Shelter.' He has one sister, a physical education teacher named Stephanie played by Ricki Lake
.
Doug's father owned a small hardware store in Queens, and his mother was a homemaker. References in a number of episodes indicate that the Heffernan home was a Catholic
one, although Doug seems to have strayed from this
after moving out. It also appears that Doug's father Joe had wanted Doug to assume control over the hardware store when he came of age, but Doug showed little interest in this venture. He was a chubby child and continued to have weight problems as an adult, but coped better as he aged.
Doug is an avid sports fan, and is often showing support for the New York Mets
, New York Jets
, New York Knicks
and the New York Rangers
. (He did, however, get tickets to a New York Islanders
game in one episode, and a New Jersey Nets
hat in another.) Doug, in fact, would propose to Carrie at a Jets game. One year for Christmas, when he was given a Miami Dolphins
Christmas ornament
, Doug openly didn't like it because both the Jets and Dolphins played in the AFC East
. (Despite the Jets–Patriots rivalry becoming more intense during the show's run than the Dolphins–Jets rivalry, it was never mentioned on the show; however, the Monday Night Miracle
did take place during the show's third season.) Doug's love for the Mets is reflective of James in real life; he named his daughter Shea Joelle after the then-home of the Mets, Shea Stadium
.
Doug attended St. Gregory's High School in Queens
, where he befriended Spence Olchin; he also went to school with his cousin Danny. Doug played high school football as a St. Gregory's Commodore, and was a star player and starting fullback. He was All-County in football during his Junior and Senior years. Frequent references to this era show that Doug was very popular in school, and it is because of this that he thinks of High School as the best years of his life. After graduation he went on to junior college (Nassau Community College
, located on Long Island), but dropped out after eight days, without any clear plan. He tried out for the Nassau County Rebels, a semi-professional football team, but ultimately quit.
He later acquired a job as a bouncer
at a bar. Around this time through his friend Richie Ianucchi, a firefighter for the FDNY, introduced him to his future wife, Carrie Spooner
. While dating Carrie, Doug inadvertently landed his final, and longest standing, job as a truck driver for the fictional IPS
Doug first met Carrie's father, Arthur
(Jerry Stiller
), at a Thanksgiving dinner that went horribly wrong. Doug was nearly scared away by Arthur, who disapproved of the relationship, but later in this episode he and Carrie declare their love for one another.
Doug and Carrie got engaged at a Jets game and married in 1995, prior to the start of the series. Initially, they lived with Arthur while searching for a house. After finding a house, Arthur's wife died and his home burnt down, and he was forced to move in with them.
At the end of the series, Doug and Carrie adopt a baby from China. On the same day, Carrie realizes that she is pregnant.
(Victor Williams
), who is married to Carrie's best friend, Kelly (Merrin Dungey
). His other friends include lifelong friend, subway toll booth collector Spence Olchin (Patton Oswalt
), a firefighter named Richie Ianucchi (Larry Romano
), cousin Danny (Gary Valentine
); dog walker Holly (Nicole Sullivan
); and next door neighbour bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno
(played by himself). Another friend of Doug's, Ray Barone (Ray Romano
) also appears as a guest on several episodes of the show.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
The King of Queens
The King of Queens
The King of Queens is an American sitcom that originally ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007.This show was produced by Hanley Productions and CBS Productions , CBS Paramount Television ,and CBS Television Studios in association with Columbia TriStar Television , and Sony Pictures...
. The character has also appeared in Everybody Loves Raymond
Everybody Loves Raymond
Everybody Loves Raymond is an American television sitcom that originally ran on CBS from September 13, 1996, to May 16, 2005. Many of the situations from the show are based on the real-life experiences of lead actor Ray Romano, creator/producer Phil Rosenthal and the show's writing staff...
, Becker
Becker (TV series)
Becker is an American television sitcom that ran from 1998 to 2004 on CBS. Set in the New York City borough of The Bronx, the show starred Ted Danson as John Becker, a misanthropic doctor who operates a small practice and is constantly annoyed by his patients, co-workers, friends, and practically...
, and Cosby
Cosby
Cosby is a situation comedy television series broadcast on CBS from September 16, 1996 to April 28, 2000, loosely based on the British sitcom One Foot in the Grave. The program starred Bill Cosby, Phylicia Rashād...
.
The role is played by actor Kevin James, whose stand-up comedy provided the comedic themes and general style of the show. Doug, an "average joe
Average Joe
Average Joe is an American reality television show broadcast on the NBC beginning in 2003. There were a total of four seasons, the first two following the original show premise, and the last two bringing back contestants from prior seasons.-Show Premise:...
," lives in Rego Park, Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, with his wife Carrie Heffernan
Carrie Heffernan
Carrie Spooner Heffernan is a fictional character on the American sitcom The King of Queens. She appears in all of the show's nine Seasons and is one of the show's three central characters.-Character Profile:...
(Leah Remini
Leah Remini
Leah Marie Remini is an American actress and model. She is best known for her role as Carrie Heffernan on the CBS sitcom The King of Queens and as Stacey Carosi on the NBC sitcom Saved by the Bell...
), and his father-in-law Arthur Spooner
Arthur Spooner
Arthur Eugene Spooner is a fictional character played by Jerry Stiller on the sitcom The King of Queens. He lives with his daughter Carrie and her husband, Doug Heffernan.-Biography:...
(Jerry Stiller
Jerry Stiller
Gerald Isaac "Jerry" Stiller is an American comedian and actor.He spent many years in the comedy team Stiller and Meara with his wife Anne Meara...
).
Doug is a delivery driver for the fictional International Parcel Service (a parody of United Parcel Service
United Parcel Service
United Parcel Service, Inc. , typically referred to by the acronym UPS, is a package delivery company. Headquartered in Sandy Springs, Georgia, United States, UPS delivers more than 15 million packages a day to 6.1 million customers in more than 220 countries and territories around the...
), a job Doug acquired by pretending to work there after lying to then girlfriend Carrie about having a job.
Background
Doug was born on February 9, 1965 in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, QC
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
while his mother Janet (played by Jenny O'Hara) and father Joe (Dakin Matthews
Dakin Matthews
Dakin Matthews is an American actor with a long history of work in film, television and theater. He is also a playwright, director, and theatrical scholar.-Life and career:...
) were attending a friend's wedding there. He had been told by his parents that he had been born in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and only discovered the truth as an adult, in the episode 'Dog Shelter.' He has one sister, a physical education teacher named Stephanie played by Ricki Lake
Ricki Lake
Ricki Pamela Lake is an American actress, producer, and television host. She is best known for her starring role as Tracy Turnblad in the original Hairspray, her ground-breaking documentary film The Business of Being Born, and her talk show which was broadcasted internationally from...
.
Doug's father owned a small hardware store in Queens, and his mother was a homemaker. References in a number of episodes indicate that the Heffernan home was a Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
one, although Doug seems to have strayed from this
Lapsed Catholic
A lapsed Catholic is a person who has ceased practicing the Catholic faith, in the sense of attending Mass. Such a person may still identify as a Catholic.-"Lapsed Catholic" and "ex-Catholic":...
after moving out. It also appears that Doug's father Joe had wanted Doug to assume control over the hardware store when he came of age, but Doug showed little interest in this venture. He was a chubby child and continued to have weight problems as an adult, but coped better as he aged.
Doug is an avid sports fan, and is often showing support for the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
, New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, New York Knicks
New York Knicks
The New York Knickerbockers, prominently known as the Knicks, are a professional basketball team based in New York City. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
and the New York Rangers
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...
. (He did, however, get tickets to a New York Islanders
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
game in one episode, and a New Jersey Nets
New Jersey Nets
The New Jersey Nets are a professional basketball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
hat in another.) Doug, in fact, would propose to Carrie at a Jets game. One year for Christmas, when he was given a Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
Christmas ornament
Christmas ornament
Christmas ornaments are decorations that are used to festoon a Christmas tree.Ornaments take many different forms, from a simple round ball to highly artistic designs...
, Doug openly didn't like it because both the Jets and Dolphins played in the AFC East
AFC East
The American Football Conference – Eastern Division or AFC East is a division of the National Football League's American Football Conference. There are four members: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots , and New York Jets...
. (Despite the Jets–Patriots rivalry becoming more intense during the show's run than the Dolphins–Jets rivalry, it was never mentioned on the show; however, the Monday Night Miracle
The Monday Night Miracle (American football)
In the National Football League, "The Monday Night Miracle" refers to a Monday night game between the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins played at Giants Stadium on October 23, 2000.-Background:...
did take place during the show's third season.) Doug's love for the Mets is reflective of James in real life; he named his daughter Shea Joelle after the then-home of the Mets, Shea Stadium
Shea Stadium
William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008...
.
Doug attended St. Gregory's High School in Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, where he befriended Spence Olchin; he also went to school with his cousin Danny. Doug played high school football as a St. Gregory's Commodore, and was a star player and starting fullback. He was All-County in football during his Junior and Senior years. Frequent references to this era show that Doug was very popular in school, and it is because of this that he thinks of High School as the best years of his life. After graduation he went on to junior college (Nassau Community College
Nassau Community College
Nassau Community College is a two-year college. It is located in East Garden City, New York, USA. The school is in Nassau County on Long Island. NCC maintains a nationwide reputation for academic excellence and ease of transferability to four-year institutions.- History :Created as part of the...
, located on Long Island), but dropped out after eight days, without any clear plan. He tried out for the Nassau County Rebels, a semi-professional football team, but ultimately quit.
He later acquired a job as a bouncer
Bouncer (doorman)
A bouncer is an informal term for a type of security guard employed at venues such as bars, nightclubs or concerts to provide security, check legal age, and refuse entry to a venue based on criteria such as intoxication, aggressive behavior, or attractiveness...
at a bar. Around this time through his friend Richie Ianucchi, a firefighter for the FDNY, introduced him to his future wife, Carrie Spooner
Carrie Heffernan
Carrie Spooner Heffernan is a fictional character on the American sitcom The King of Queens. She appears in all of the show's nine Seasons and is one of the show's three central characters.-Character Profile:...
. While dating Carrie, Doug inadvertently landed his final, and longest standing, job as a truck driver for the fictional IPS
IPS
- Medicine and biology :* Induced pluripotent stem cell* Intermittent photic stimulation, a neuroimaging technique* Intraparietal sulcus, a region of the brain* Ips , a genus of bark beetle- Media and entertainment :...
Marriage
Early in the series it was stated that Doug and Carrie had known each other in junior high. That story was re-written; the new plot stated that Doug and his friend Richie met Carrie at a club, then went on a double date that did not go well until the end.Doug first met Carrie's father, Arthur
Arthur Spooner
Arthur Eugene Spooner is a fictional character played by Jerry Stiller on the sitcom The King of Queens. He lives with his daughter Carrie and her husband, Doug Heffernan.-Biography:...
(Jerry Stiller
Jerry Stiller
Gerald Isaac "Jerry" Stiller is an American comedian and actor.He spent many years in the comedy team Stiller and Meara with his wife Anne Meara...
), at a Thanksgiving dinner that went horribly wrong. Doug was nearly scared away by Arthur, who disapproved of the relationship, but later in this episode he and Carrie declare their love for one another.
Doug and Carrie got engaged at a Jets game and married in 1995, prior to the start of the series. Initially, they lived with Arthur while searching for a house. After finding a house, Arthur's wife died and his home burnt down, and he was forced to move in with them.
At the end of the series, Doug and Carrie adopt a baby from China. On the same day, Carrie realizes that she is pregnant.
Friends
Doug's best friend is fellow IPS driver Deacon PalmerDeacon Palmer
Deacon John Palmer is a fictional character on TV's The King of Queens. The character is played by Victor Williams.Deacon is best friends with Doug Heffernan . He and Doug both work at IPS . They work for Supervisor Patrick O'Boyle .Deacon is married to Kelly Palmer...
(Victor Williams
Victor Williams
Victor L. Williams is an American actor.He is best known as Doug Heffernan's best friend Deacon Palmer onThe King of Queens, and he stands 6' 6" tall...
), who is married to Carrie's best friend, Kelly (Merrin Dungey
Merrin Dungey
Merrin Dungey is an American film and television actress, best known for her roles on the television series The King of Queens, Alias and Summerland.-Early life:...
). His other friends include lifelong friend, subway toll booth collector Spence Olchin (Patton Oswalt
Patton Oswalt
Patton Oswalt is an American stand-up comedian, writer, actor and voice actor. He is best known for portraying Spencer Olchin in the popular sitcom The King of Queens, voicing Remy from the film Ratatouille and Thrasher from the Cartoon Network original series Robotomy.-Early life:Oswalt was born...
), a firefighter named Richie Ianucchi (Larry Romano
Larry Romano
Lawrence John Romano better known as Larry Romano, is an American film and television actor.Born on July 31, 1963 in Staten Island, New York, he was a regular on NYPD Blue and the sitcom The King of Queens, on which he played "Richie Iannucci". He also played First Base in the motion picture Lock...
), cousin Danny (Gary Valentine
Gary Valentine
Gary Valentine is an American actor and comedian. He is the older brother of actor Kevin James.-Career:Gary was featured in the movie Comedian, and appeared as Doug Heffernan's cousin Danny on the television show The King of Queens. He's featured in the film Velocity Rules...
); dog walker Holly (Nicole Sullivan
Nicole Sullivan
Nicole Julianne Sullivan is an American actress, comedian and voice artist. Sullivan is best known for her six seasons on the sketch comedy series MADtv and five seasons on the CBS sitcom The King of Queens.She has played a recurring character on Scrubs and voices the villainous Shego in...
); and next door neighbour bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno
Lou Ferrigno
Louis Jude "Lou" Ferrigno is an American actor, fitness trainer/consultant, and retired professional bodybuilder. As a bodybuilder, Ferrigno won an IFBB Mr. America title and two consecutive IFBB Mr. Universe titles, and appeared in the bodybuilding documentary Pumping Iron...
(played by himself). Another friend of Doug's, Ray Barone (Ray Romano
Ray Romano
Raymond Albert "Ray" Romano is an American actor, writer and stand-up comedian, best known for his roles on the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond and in the Ice Age film series. He recently starred in the TNT comedy-drama Men of a Certain Age.-Early life:Romano was born in Queens, New York to Italian...
) also appears as a guest on several episodes of the show.