W. Earl Brown
Encyclopedia
W. Earl Brown is an American
character actor
who has appeared in many mainstream film
and television
projects. He is perhaps best known as Dan Dority on the HBO series Deadwood
. He is also well known for playing Warren in the 1998 film There's Something About Mary
and Kenny the Cameraman in the highly-successful slasher film Scream
.
, and is an alumnus of Calloway County High School
. He graduated with a bachelor's degree
in theater from Murray State University
before going on to DePaul University
in Chicago
where, with his fellow classmates John C. Reilly
and Gillian Anderson
, Brown received his master's degree
. While building his résumé
in Chicago's theater scene, Brown decided to give Los Angeles
a try and moved to the City of Angels where he has remained ever since.
teaching actors to speak with a Chicago accent. He also had a brief appearance on-screen in the film. One of his first higher profile roles was as Cameron Diaz
's mentally challenged brother Warren in There's Something About Mary
.
His other film credits include Scream
(1996), Being John Malkovich
(1999), Dancing at the Blue Iguana (2000), and The Alamo
(2004) among many other projects, including television appearances on Numb3rs
(2006), CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
(2000), Six Feet Under (2001), Charmed (2001), and The X-Files
(1993). He is also the co-founder of the country
band Sacred Cowboys, performing as a vocalist and guitar
player.
Brown joined the cast of the HBO western drama Deadwood
as a star for the first season in 2004. The series was created by David Milch
and focused on a growing town in the American West. Brown played Dan Dority, a trusted henchman to ambitious criminal and bar owner Al Swearengen
. Brown remained a starring cast member for all three seasons of the show. Brown joined the crew of Deadwood
as a writer for the third season in 2006. He wrote the episode "A Constant Throb".
credit to avoid confusion with Earl Boen
. He is married to his high school
sweetheart, with whom he has one daughter.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
who has appeared in many mainstream film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
projects. He is perhaps best known as Dan Dority on the HBO series Deadwood
Deadwood (TV series)
Deadwood is an American Western drama television series created, produced and largely written by David Milch. The series aired on the premium cable network HBO from March 21, 2004, to August 27, 2006, spanning three 12-episode seasons. The show is set in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, before...
. He is also well known for playing Warren in the 1998 film There's Something About Mary
There's Something About Mary
There's Something About Mary is a 1998 American comedy film, directed by the Farrelly brothers, Bobby and Peter. It stars Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon and Ben Stiller, and it is a combination of romantic comedy and gross-out film....
and Kenny the Cameraman in the highly-successful slasher film Scream
Scream
Scream may refer to:*Vociferation, a loud vocalization*The Scream, a famous painting by Edvard Munch-Amusement rides:* Scream! , a roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain...
.
Early life
Brown was born in Murray, KentuckyMurray, Kentucky
Murray is a city in Calloway County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 17,741 at the 2010 census and has a micropolitan area population of 37,191. It is the 22nd largest city in Kentucky...
, and is an alumnus of Calloway County High School
Calloway County High School
Calloway County High School is a public high school located in Murray, Kentucky. The school was formed from the consolidation of six high schools from around the county.-Recent news:...
. He graduated with a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in theater from Murray State University
Murray State University
Murray State University, located in the city of Murray, Kentucky, is a four-year public university with approximately 10,400 students. The school is Kentucky’s only public university to be listed in the U.S.News & World Report regional university top tier for the past 20 consecutive years...
before going on to DePaul University
DePaul University
DePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
where, with his fellow classmates John C. Reilly
John C. Reilly
John Christopher Reilly, Jr. is an American film and theater actor, singer, and comedian. Debuting in Casualties of War in 1989, he is one of several actors whose careers were launched by Brian De Palma. To date, he has appeared in more than fifty films, including three separate films in 2002...
and Gillian Anderson
Gillian Anderson
Gillian Leigh Anderson is an American actress.After beginning her career in theatre, Anderson achieved international recognition for her role as Special Agent Dana Scully on the American television series The X-Files. During the show's nine seasons, Anderson won Emmy, Golden Globe, and Screen...
, Brown received his master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
. While building his résumé
Résumé
A résumé is a document used by individuals to present their background and skillsets. Résumés can be used for a variety of reasons but most often to secure new employment. A typical résumé contains a summary of relevant job experience and education...
in Chicago's theater scene, Brown decided to give Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
a try and moved to the City of Angels where he has remained ever since.
Career
His first major movie role came as a dialogue coach in the film BackdraftBackdraft (film)
Backdraft is a 1991 action thriller film directed by Ron Howard and written by Gregory Widen. The film stars Kurt Russell, William Baldwin, Scott Glenn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Rebecca De Mornay, Donald Sutherland, and Robert De Niro. Jason Gedrick and J. T. Walsh co-star in the film...
teaching actors to speak with a Chicago accent. He also had a brief appearance on-screen in the film. One of his first higher profile roles was as Cameron Diaz
Cameron Diaz
Cameron Michelle Diaz is an American actress and former model. She became famous during the 1990s with roles in the movies The Mask, My Best Friend's Wedding, and There's Something About Mary. Other high-profile credits include the two Charlie's Angels films, voicing the character Princess Fiona...
's mentally challenged brother Warren in There's Something About Mary
There's Something About Mary
There's Something About Mary is a 1998 American comedy film, directed by the Farrelly brothers, Bobby and Peter. It stars Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon and Ben Stiller, and it is a combination of romantic comedy and gross-out film....
.
His other film credits include Scream
Scream (film)
Scream is a 1996 American slasher film written by Kevin Williamson and directed by Wes Craven. The film stars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Drew Barrymore, and David Arquette...
(1996), Being John Malkovich
Being John Malkovich
Being John Malkovich is a 1999 American black comedy-fantasy film written by Charlie Kaufman and directed by Spike Jonze. It stars John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener, and John Malkovich, who plays a fictional version of himself...
(1999), Dancing at the Blue Iguana (2000), and The Alamo
The Alamo (2004 film)
The Alamo is a 2004 American war film about the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. The film was directed by Texan John Lee Hancock, produced by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, and Mark Johnson, and distributed by Touchstone Pictures....
(2004) among many other projects, including television appearances on Numb3rs
NUMB3RS
Numb3rs is an American television drama which premiered on CBS on January 23, 2005, and concluded on March 12, 2010. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, and follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes...
(2006), CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is an American crime drama television series, which premiered on CBS on October 6, 2000. The show was created by Anthony E. Zuiker and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
(2000), Six Feet Under (2001), Charmed (2001), and The X-Files
The X-Files
The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
(1993). He is also the co-founder of the country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
band Sacred Cowboys, performing as a vocalist and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
player.
Brown joined the cast of the HBO western drama Deadwood
Deadwood (TV series)
Deadwood is an American Western drama television series created, produced and largely written by David Milch. The series aired on the premium cable network HBO from March 21, 2004, to August 27, 2006, spanning three 12-episode seasons. The show is set in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, before...
as a star for the first season in 2004. The series was created by David Milch
David Milch
David S. Milch is an American writer and producer of television series. He has created several television shows, including NYPD Blue and Deadwood.-Biography:...
and focused on a growing town in the American West. Brown played Dan Dority, a trusted henchman to ambitious criminal and bar owner Al Swearengen
Al Swearengen
Ellis Albert "Al" Swearengen was a pimp and early entertainment entrepreneur in Deadwood, South Dakota, running the Gem Theater, a notorious brothel, for 22 years, and combining a reputation for brutality with an uncanny instinct for forging political alliances.Swearengen and his twin brother,...
. Brown remained a starring cast member for all three seasons of the show. Brown joined the crew of Deadwood
Crew of Deadwood
Deadwood is an American western drama that aired on the HBO network from 2004 to 2006. The crew received awards recognition and critical acclaim.-Producers:...
as a writer for the third season in 2006. He wrote the episode "A Constant Throb".
Personal life
Brown has gone by the name Earl his entire life, but added his first initial to his official SAGScreen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...
credit to avoid confusion with Earl Boen
Earl Boen
Earl Boen is an American actor and voice actor. He is perhaps best known as criminal psychologist Dr. Peter Silberman in the Terminator series...
. He is married to his high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
sweetheart, with whom he has one daughter.