What I'm Reading: Denis Leary

Denis Leary called it like he saw it in his 2008 book Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid. The Rescue Me star recently chatted with EW about his favorite book of all time, who should write his life story and which literary topics fascinate him most.

What books are you reading now?

When The Game Was Ours by Larry Bird and Magic Johnson with Jackie MacMullan; Sixty Feet, Six Inches by Bob Gibson and Reggie Jackson with Lonnie Wheeler; A Death In Belmont by Sebastian Junger; Clint Eastwood: Interviews edited by Robert Kapsis and Kathie Coblentz; and Chocolate Frosted – The History Of The World’s Greatest Donut by Denis Leary. Okay – so I made the last one up. But I’m actually thinking of writing it. If only for the research.

Any you can’t put down?

I can never put down anything to do with football, baseball, hockey, basketball, the Kennedys, the Kennedy assassinations or dogs.

What’s your ultimate beach read?

I don’t really read at the beach. I’m too busy smoking as I worry about sharks and other angry fish.

What was the first book you remember reading?

YAZ: The Story Of Carl Yastrzemski – my favorite baseball player of all time. I also ate YAZ bread, had a YAZ baseball glove and would have drank YAZ whiskey – if it existed.

What’s your favorite character?

John F. Kennedy. A handsome, football playing Harvard grad who became a hero in World War II then a senator and then the President of the United States and slept with Marilyn Monroe WHILE he was married to one of the most beautiful women in the history of women? Wow. Talk about fiction.

Who would you want to write the story of your life?

The story of my life should be written by my wife Ann. That way I know it would be funny.

What is your favorite book of all time?

It’s a tie between Without Feathers by Woody Allen and Orr On Ice. Okay – it’s Orr On Ice, which is a giant hockey book about Bobby Orr – the greatest hockey player of all time – and what he eats, how he skates, what he wears, how often he eats, how he scored, how many times he scored, etc. etc. It’s big and dumb and stupid and I read it at least once a year. It was published in 1972. That really shows you where my literary interests lie. Although I do think the Woody Allen book is incredibly well written and funny.