Stephen Rannazzisi (born July 4, 1977) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. He acted in the FXX comedy series ''

The League ''The League'' is an American television sitcom that aired on FX and later FXX from October 29, 2009, to December 9, 2015, for a total of seven seasons. The series, set in Chicago, is a semi-improvised comedy show about a fantasy football l ...

'' as Kevin MacArthur. In 2015, he admitted to lying about his whereabouts during the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. He has not had a role in film or television since 2018.

Personal life

Rannazzisi, born in Smithtown,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, on July 4, 1977, briefly attended the Catholic St. Anthony's High School in South Huntington, New York, on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

, leaving after a year in what he called a mutual decision. He went on to graduate from Smithtown High School in 1996. Rannazzisi graduated from

State University of New York at Oneonta The State University of New York at Oneonta, also known as SUNY Oneonta, is a public university in Oneonta, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. History SUNY Oneonta was established in 1889 as the Oneonta N ...

, where he majored in communications. He is of

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

and Irish descent.

9/11 controversy

Rannazzisi lied about working in the South Tower of the World Trade Center at

Merrill Lynch Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, doing business as Merrill, and previously branded Merrill Lynch, is an American investment management and wealth management division of Bank of America. Along with BofA Securities, the investm ...

, on the 54th floor during the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

, and described his experience escaping death. He had said the events inspired him to move to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and pursue stand-up comedy. In September 2015, after being contacted by a reporter from ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' for an article debunking his claim, Rannazzisi admitted his story was a lie.Rannazzisi, Twitter
"it is to the victims of 9/11...."
/ref> Rannazzisi was never employed by Merrill Lynch, which did not have offices in the World Trade Center then.

Filmography

References

External links

Official website
* 1977 births 21st-century American male actors American male comedians American male film actors American male television actors American stand-up comedians Living people Male actors from New York (state) People from Smithtown, New York State University of New York at Oneonta alumni Comedians from New York (state) Impostors 21st-century American comedians {{US-screen-actor-1970s-stub