Gary Valentine

Gary Joseph Knipfing (born November 22, 1961), better known by his stage name Gary Valentine, is an American actor and comedian. He is the older brother of actor Kevin James. He starred as Danny Heffernan in The King of Queens (1998–2007) as Kevin James' (Doug Heffernan's) cousin, as Kyle Gable in Kevin Can Wait (2016-2018), and has appeared in numerous Happy Madison Productions. Valentine was born Gary Joseph Knipfing in Mineola, New York, to Janet, who worked in a chiropractor's office, and Joseph Valentine Knipfing, Jr., who owned an insurance agency. His family is of German and Greek descent. Valentine has two siblings: Kevin George Knipfing, known as Kevin James, an actor and comedian, and Leslie Knipfing. Gary and his siblings were raised in the Catholic faith. Valentine got his start in show business on the standup comedy stage. After an appearance at the Montreal Comedy Festival, he left his native New York for Los Angeles. There he quickly landed 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. He has been headlining comedy clubs and theaters for the past fifteen years.