Mitchell "Mitch" Leery is a fictional character

Fictional character

A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...

 from the American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 television

Television

Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...

 series, Dawson's Creek

Dawson's Creek

Dawson's Creek is an American teen drama television series which debuted on January 20, 1998, on The WB Television Network and was produced by Sony Pictures Television. The show is set in the fictional seaside town of Capeside, Massachusetts, and in Boston, Massachusetts, during the later seasons...

, portrayed by John Wesley Shipp

John Wesley Shipp

John Wesley Shipp is an American actor best known as Mitch Leery, the title character's father on the television drama Dawson's Creek from 1998 to 2001 and for roles in several daytime soap operas...

.

Biography

Mitch Leery is the husband of Gail Leery

Gail Leery

Gail Leery is a fictional character from the American television program, Dawson's Creek, played by Mary-Margaret Humes.-Biography:Gail Leery is the wife of Mitch Leery. The two were college sweethearts and married in 1979 after four years of dating. They tried for three years to get pregnant, and...

. The couple have two children - Dawson Leery

Dawson Leery

Dawson Wade Leery is the central fictional character and the main protagonist of the American television drama Dawson's Creek. The character is portrayed by American actor James Van Der Beek.-Biography:...

 and Lily Leery. He was a substitute teacher, guidance counselor and football coach at Capeside High School, and co-owner of Leery's Fresh Fish—the family restaurant.

Season one

In Season One, Mitch is unemployed and spends his days adding the finishing touches to his restaurant plans which includes scuba-suited waitresses. After learning of wife Gail's affair with her colleague, the couple struggle to maintain their relationship.

Season two

Mitch and Gail begin counselling to try to save their marriage. In another attempt to keep the relationship going, Mitch suggests an open marriage

Open marriage

Open marriage typically refers to a marriage in which the partners agree that each may engage in extramarital sexual relationships, without this being regarded as infidelity. There are many different styles of open marriage, with the partners having varying levels of input on their spouse's...

in which they are both able to see other people. Mitch becomes a substitute teacher at Capeside High School and dates the film teacher at the school, Miss Kennedy. The open marriage fails to revive their marriage and Mich and Gail decide to divorce, with Gail leaving Capeside to work in Philadelphia.

Season three

Mitch has started a new job as a substitute English teacher at Capeside High School, and goes on to become the school's football coach. He successfully recruits Jack McPhee and freshman Henry to the team and wins his first game as coach. When Gail returns to Capeside from Philadelphia, she and Mitch gradually become friends again, and he assists her in opening the fish restaurant which had always been their dream. As their friendship and professional relationship continutes, they realise they still have feelings for one another and start seeing each other again before eventually remarrying in the final episode of the season.

Season four

Having reunited with Gail, the couple have their second child, Lily. They continue to run their restaurant - Leery's Fresh Fish.

Season Five

After a large disagreement with Dawson over Dawson's decision to drop out of film school, Mitch tells Dawson that he is very disappointed in him. Dawson leaves an angry Mitch to move to Boston. That night, on his way home from buying milk, Mitch is killed in a car accident on October 24, 2001, at the age of 45. The accident was a result of Mitch dropping his ice cream, taking his eyes off the road to pick it up, and crashing the car into another driver. His death causes anxiety attacks in Dawson for some time after the accident.