- Passionately hates the "Hoe-down" on Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1998) to such a degree that in protest, nearly all of his songs insult Drew Carey in some way. In some instances, you can see him visibly rolling his eyes as it is announced, and in one rather memorable instance, simply sat down and refused to participate when his turn came.
- Best friends with Colin Mochrie.
- Once lived in a house owned by Liberace.
- Started a theater group to teach comedy and improv in Bellingham, Washington. (2006)
- During one particularly memorable Whose Line sketch of "Party Quirks", in which Ryan had to improvise Carol Channing constantly getting her head stuck to things, he struck the top of his head against the neon lighting of Drew Carey's desk, shattering the glass in the process. Several microphones clearly picked up the sound of the glass breaking as well as the gasps from the audience when this occurred. Carey and fellow cast-member Kathy Greenwood were legitimately concerned for his safety, rushing to check on him and picking out shards of glass from his hair. Stiles, ever the consummate professional, never broke character the entire time, was able to finish the sketch, and assured everyone he was just fine, much to the delight and relief of everyone present.
- His parents, Irene and Sonny, originally thought it was a joke when Ryan announced he wanted to go into comedy because his brother Robert was considered the funny one. Ryan dropped out of high school at age 17.
- Stiles has three children with wife Patricia McDonald: two girls, Mackenzie (b. 1992) and Claire (b. January 2004) and a boy, Sam (b. July 3rd, 1994). Stiles and McDonald have been together since 1989. They lived together for about a decade before marrying.
- Auditioned for the part of Fry in Futurama (1999) but lost out to Billy West.
- Has a fear of flying.
- On Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1988), he often insulted host Clive Anderson. When he joined Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1998), he did the same thing to host Drew Carey. He has been mocked by his co-stars on Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1998) and compared to a giraffe due to his towering height, lanky frame, big nose, and his 1950s-style shoes. On Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1998), frequently does impersonations of John Wayne and Carol Channing. In episode S03E38, he accidentally broke the decorative neon light on Drew Carey's desk by slamming it with his head without ever breaking character.
- Appeared in a commercial for Yugo cars in the late 1980s.
- Tours with Greg Proops, Jeff Bryan Davis, and Charles Esten as the Improv All Stars (2001). Appears at venues within bus-driving distance of his homes in Bellingham, Washington, and L.A. (February 2007)
- Early on, fans of Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1998) erroneously believed Ryan was a Type 1 diabetic because during the Helping Hands sketches, he almost always spit out the sweet foods and drinks, especially if they contained alcohol. He simply didn't like the taste of what was on the table because by that point in the taping, the food was beginning to go bad under the stage lighting. He had to set the record straight, since if he really were diabetic, he would have put his health in serious jeopardy had he consumed any of the food that was fed to him during the sketch.
- Was photographed for life-size stand-ups displayed at Kinko's stores. His name tag said "Kenny," though.
- Can be seen in commercials for Progressive car insurance. (April 2005)
- Has a recurring role as Dr. Herb Melnick in the CBS comedy Two and a Half Men (2003). (2008)
- Born on exactly the same date as Catherine Mary Stewart (of "The Last Starfighter" fame).
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content