Gary Valentine

Gary Joseph Knipfing, known professionally as Gary Valentine, was born on November 22, 1961, in Mineola, New York. His early career began in stand-up comedy, where he gained recognition after an appearance at the Montreal Comedy Festival. This led to spots on various talk shows, including “The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn,” “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” and “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.” Valentine has maintained a presence headlining comedy clubs and theaters over the past fifteen years. His transition into television included a half-hour special on Comedy Central and hosting “The X Show” on FX, showcasing his comedic talent to wider audiences.

Valentine is widely recognized for his nine-season tenure as Cousin Danny Heffernan on the CBS sitcom “The King of Queens,” where he also contributed to the writing of several episodes. Following this, he notably appeared on “Men of a Certain Age,” a critically acclaimed series written and directed by Ray Romano. His filmography includes appearances alongside prominent Hollywood figures like Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear in “Stuck on You” (2003), and Adam Sandler in “I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry” (2007) and “Jack and Jill” (2011). He also featured in “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” (2009), “Zookeeper” (2011), and “Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2” (2015).

More recently, Valentine has made occasional appearances as a round table comedian on the E! Network’s late-night talk show “Chelsea Lately.” He also contributed to the web series “Dusty Peacock” on Crackle. From 2016 to 2018, he co-starred in the CBS sitcom “Kevin Can Wait” as Kyle Gable. His work extends to the family film genre, playing George Bannister in “The Dog Who Saved Christmas” (2009), “The Dog Who Saved Christmas Vacation” (2010), “The Dog Who Saved Halloween” (2011), “The Dog Who Saved the Holidays” (2012), and “The Dog Who Saved Summer” (2015). He also appeared in “Home Team” (2022) and “Grumpy Old Santa” (2023).