Kathleen McGee

Kathleen McGee
McGee in 2017
Born(1981-04-05)April 5, 1981
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
DiedNovember 3, 2024(2024-11-03) (aged 43)
OccupationStand-up comedian
Years active2005–2024

Kathleen McGee (April 5, 1981 – November 3, 2024) was a Canadian stand-up comedian from Edmonton, Alberta. Her performance at the Winnipeg Comedy Festival was nominated for a 2019 Canadian Comedy Award.[1][2] Her debut full-length album, 2019's Deliciously Vulgar, was produced by Grammy winner Dan Schlissel for his label Stand Up! Records.

Career

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Stand-up comedy

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McGee started performing stand-up comedy in Edmonton in 2005 after a bad break-up, and quickly became known for her provocative, bawdy and sometimes sexually explicit material, winning the annual Funniest Person With a Day Job competition in 2008 at Edmonton club The Comic Strip.[3][4][5] She lived for several years in Vancouver, Toronto, and Los Angeles to advance her career, but by 2018 had settled back in Edmonton.[6][7][8]

In 2017, she was a finalist in the SiriusXM competition Canada's Top Comic.[9][10]

She was a regular columnist for Canadian magazine BeatRoute in 2015-16, writing the series Been There Done That: Questionable Advice From a Comedian.[11]

In 2016, she was a headliner in the touring show Rape Is Real and Everywhere, in which all the comedians were also survivors of sexual abuse.[12][13]

She was a guest panellist twice on the CBC Radio comedy series The Debaters.[7][10]

Albums

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McGee's Stand Up! Records debut Deliciously Vulgar, was released in 2019. Reviewer Richard Lanoie of The Serious Comedy Site called the album "clever, explicit, and extremely funny," and said he felt that McGee's likeable charm helped make her more intense material palatable and funny.[14]

Podcasts

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From 2019, she co-hosted The Dead Baby Bear Podcast with Canadian comic Sean Lecomber.[15] Previously, she hosted Kathleen McGee is a Hot Mess, which ran for 89 episodes and ended in 2018.[16]

Personal life and death

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McGee had a tattoo on her arm celebrating February 21, 2017, the day McDonald's began serving all-day breakfast in Canada,[17] and another on her thigh of Cheers actress Shelley Long.[18]

McGee was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2022. While she was considered cleared at one point, the cancer later spread to her liver, abdomen and behind her aorta.[19] She died on November 3, 2024, at the age of 43.[20]

Awards and nominations

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McGee was nominated for a 2019 Canadian Comedy Award, in the "Best Taped Live Performance" category, for her show "Hot Mess," recorded at the Winnipeg Comedy Festival.[1][2]

Discography

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Stream CBC's Canadian Comedy Award nominees". CBC.ca. 2019-04-16. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  2. ^ a b "Nominations and Awards Archives". Canadian Comedy Awards. Retrieved 2020-08-08.
  3. ^ MacPherson, Guy (2017-09-13). "Fall arts preview 2017: Kathleen McGee laughs till she cries". Georgia Straight. Vancouver, British Columbia. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  4. ^ Ross, Mike (2013-01-27). "Kathleen McGee's act is a life examined". Gig City. Edmonton, Alberta. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  5. ^ "Edmonton comics not laughing about possible cut in radio royalties". CBC.ca. February 27, 2019. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  6. ^ Atkinson, Cathryn (2016-03-23). "Kathleen McGee is a woman without boundaries". Pique Newsmagazine. Whistler, British Columbia. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  7. ^ a b Ross, Mike (September 15, 2018). "Vancouver brain drain Edmonton's gain". Gig City. Edmonton, Alberta. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  8. ^ Guy MacPherson (2018-02-21). "Kathleen McGee". What's So Funny? (Podcast). Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  9. ^ ". SiriusXM's Top Comic finalists are one step closer to $25,000 grand prize". Canada Newswire. August 24, 2017. Retrieved 2020-08-08.
  10. ^ a b "New West's House of Comedy B.C. opens its doors again". New Westminster Record. New Westminster, British Columbia. 2020-06-08. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  11. ^ "BeatRoute Magazine: Kathleen McGee Archive". BeatRoute. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  12. ^ Berman, Sarah (May 4, 2016). "The Feminist Comedy Show Where Men Tell Rape Jokes". Vice. New York City. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  13. ^ "Rape is Real and Everywhere: A National Comedy Tour Launch". Rabble. May 15, 2016. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  14. ^ Richard Lanoie (2019-09-03). "Deliciously Vulgar – Kathleen McGee". The Serious Comedy Site. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  15. ^ Kathleen McGee and Sean Lecomber. "The Dead Baby Bear Podcast". podcasts.apple.com (Podcast). Retrieved 2020-08-08.
  16. ^ Kathleen McGee. "Kathleen McGee is a Hot Mess". iheart.com (Podcast). Retrieved 2020-08-08.
  17. ^ Maimann, Kevin (2018-03-12). "Lovin' it: Canadian comedian gets tattoo celebrating McDonald's all-day breakfast". The Hamilton Spectator. Hamilton, Ontario. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  18. ^ Guy MacPherson (June 14, 2015). "Kathleen McGee". What's So Funny? (Podcast). Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  19. ^ Griwkowsky, Fish (2024-06-28). "Bruce McCulloch bringing Kathleen McGee love at Grindstone Comedy Fest, July 3-7". Edmonton Journal. Retrieved 2024-11-04.
  20. ^ "Edmonton comic Kathleen McGee dead after second bout with cancer". Edmonton. November 5, 2024.
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