Drew Allison Carey is an American comedian, actor, and game show host best known for his hit sitcom The Drew Carey Show and for hosting The Price Is Right on CBS since 2007.
He built his career from stand-up comedy clubs in Cleveland to becoming one of the longest-serving game show hosts in American daytime television.
Who is Drew Carey?
Drew Carey is the face of The Price Is Right, the longest-running game show in American television history. He took over from the legendary Bob Barker in October 2007 and has held the role ever since, now in his 19th season as host.
Before that, he charmed audiences with his self-deprecating, working-class humor on The Drew Carey Show, which ran for nine seasons and 233 episodes on ABC from 1995 to 2004.
Beyond television, Drew is a minority owner of Seattle Sounders FC, having been part of the ownership group since the club’s MLS inception in 2009.
He has also been open about personal struggles over the years, including depression, grief, and a dramatic health transformation. That honesty has made fans connect with him on a deeper level.
What sets Drew apart is his genuine everyman quality. He never played a polished TV star. He brought the personality of a regular guy from Ohio who earned his place in television the hard way.
Early Life of Drew Carey
Drew Allison Carey was born on May 23, 1958, in the Old Brooklyn neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio. His parents were Lewis Carey, who worked as a draftsman for General Motors, and Beulah Carey. He grew up as the youngest of three brothers, with siblings Roger and Neil.
Tragedy struck early. When Drew was just eight years old, his father died from a brain tumor in 1966. The loss deeply affected him, and he became a quiet, withdrawn child who struggled with depression.
He found comfort in music, playing the cornet and trumpet in his school’s marching band at James Ford Rhodes High School, where he graduated in 1975.
Drew Carey Age / Birthday
Drew Carey is 68 years old as of 2026, born on May 23, 1958, in Cleveland, Ohio. His zodiac sign is Gemini, a sign often linked with wit, adaptability, and quick thinking.
He was still performing stand-up in small Cleveland clubs well into his late twenties, a slow road that shaped the resilience he carries through his career today.
Drew Carey Ethnicity and Nationality
Drew Carey is American by nationality, born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. His ethnic background is mixed, with English, Welsh, German, and Spanish heritage.
His working-class Cleveland roots have always played a central role in both his comedy and his public identity.
Drew Carey Height and Weight
Drew Carey stands 5 feet 10 inches tall, which is 1.78 meters. At his heaviest, he weighed 262 pounds (about 119 kg), but he lost over 80 pounds through dietary changes and regular exercise in the early 2010s.
His transformation included reversing a type 2 diabetes diagnosis, a milestone he has spoken about publicly. Today, he maintains a significantly leaner frame and is notably more active than in his peak sitcom years.
Drew Carey Education
Drew attended James Ford Rhodes High School in Cleveland, graduating in 1975. After high school, he enrolled at Kent State University and joined the Delta Tau Delta fraternity.
He was expelled twice from Kent State for poor academic performance and left without a degree after three years. In 1981, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve, serving as a field radio operator until 1987.
His six years in the Marines gave him discipline, self-assurance, and his now-iconic signature look: the buzz cut and thick black-rimmed glasses.
Drew Carey Career
Early Career and Stand-Up (1986–1994)
Drew Carey’s comedy career began in April 1986 at the Cleveland Comedy Club, on the advice of a friend. He started writing jokes and performing at open-mic nights, eventually becoming the club’s emcee.
He spent years honing his act on the stand-up circuit, building sharp working-class humor rooted in his Cleveland upbringing. Early television appearances on Late Night with David Letterman and Star Search began to build his national profile.
His stand-up special Drew Carey: Human Cartoon aired on Showtime in 1994 and earned him a CableACE Award for Best Writing. That same year, his Forbes ranking showed just how far he had come from the comedy club circuit.
His major national breakthrough came in 1991, when he appeared on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. That appearance opened doors that had previously been firmly closed.
The Drew Carey Show (1995–2004)
By 1995, Drew had his own prime-time sitcom on ABC. The Drew Carey Show ran for nine seasons and 233 episodes, ending in 2004.
The show was set in Cleveland and starred Drew as a fictionalized version of himself, an ordinary guy with a dead-end job and a tight circle of eccentric friends. Its grounded, relatable humor made it a genuine hit and a staple of ABC’s lineup for nearly a decade.
During the show’s final three seasons, Drew earned $750,000 per episode. In 1998, Forbes ranked him 24th on its list of highest-paid entertainers, with earnings of $45.5 million that year.
He also served as an executive producer on the series and directed several episodes. That level of creative control was unusual for a sitcom star at the time.
Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1998–2007)
While still running his sitcom, Drew took on hosting duties for the American version of Whose Line Is It Anyway? starting in 1998. The improv comedy show ran for eight seasons and 220 episodes.
He served as both host and producer, bringing his quick wit and easygoing personality to a format that suited him perfectly.
The show introduced him to a whole new audience and ran concurrently with The Drew Carey Show for several years, giving him the rare distinction of having two hit series on air at the same time.
The show wrapped its original run in 2006. A revival later aired from 2013 to 2020.
The Price Is Right (2007–Present)
In July 2007, Drew was named the host of The Price Is Right on CBS, taking over from the legendary Bob Barker. He officially took the stage on October 15, 2007. Since then, he has become the face of America’s longest-running game show.
The show’s 10,000th episode aired on February 26, 2025, a milestone Drew described as an honor. CBS president Amy Reisenbach confirmed in 2026 that she would “never not do it without him,” signaling his continued role in any new format the show explores.
In late 2026, The Price Is Right aired in a live special format for the first time in the show’s 54-year history, with Drew leading the broadcast. Season 54 of the series is now underway, with Drew continuing as host alongside announcer George Gray.
Other Ventures and Improv Work
In 2011, Drew launched Drew Carey’s Improv-A-Ganza, filmed at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. He also made a memorable appearance in the 2001 WWE Royal Rumble and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011 as part of the celebrity wing.
His 1997 memoir, Dirty Jokes and Beer: Stories of the Unrefined, became a New York Times bestseller. He has also hosted a series of mini-documentaries on Reason.tv advocating for libertarian principles, and he worked as a press photographer at U.S. men’s national soccer team games, including the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
Drew Carey Awards and Recognition
Drew Carey has collected a range of awards across his career in stand-up, television, and sports.
- CableACE Award for Best Writing: Drew Carey: Human Cartoon (1994)
- Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy Series (1998)
- People’s Choice Award for Favourite Male Television Performer (2000)
- Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (2003, at 6664 Hollywood Blvd.)
- Comedy Central’s 100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time: ranked 84th (2004)
- Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show: The Price Is Right (2013 and 2016)
- WWE Hall of Fame inductee (2011, Celebrity Wing)
- Southern California Journalism Best Advocacy Journalism Award (2011)
- NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame inductee alongside The Price Is Right (2022)
As a co-owner of Seattle Sounders FC, he was also part of the MLS Cup-winning team in both 2016 and 2019.
Drew Carey Partner
Drew Carey has never been married. He has had two notable engagements.
He proposed to chef Nicole Jaracz in 2007. They broke off their engagement in 2012. Despite the split, he remained a father figure to her son, Connor.
In January 2018, Drew announced his engagement to marriage and family therapist Dr. Amie Harwick. They ended the engagement in November of that year.
Tragically, Harwick was murdered in February 2020 at her Hollywood Hills home by her ex-boyfriend, Gareth Pursehouse. Pursehouse was convicted of first-degree murder in December 2023 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Drew has spoken candidly about how that loss affected him deeply. As of 2025, he has stated publicly that he no longer dates and remains single.
Drew Carey Net Worth and Salary
Drew Carey’s estimated net worth is $165 million as of 2026. His salary for hosting The Price Is Right is $12.5 million per year, placing him among the top 20 highest-paid television hosts in the world.
During his peak years on The Drew Carey Show, he earned $750,000 per episode in the final three seasons. Over those last three seasons alone, that added up to more than $59 million.
He holds a 7.5% ownership stake in Seattle Sounders FC, which he joined as an original ownership group member in 2009. By mid-2026, the Sounders were valued at close to $1 billion, making his stake worth a significant sum.
His real estate holdings include a $34 million home in the Universal City Overlook area on Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles, spanning approximately 9,500 square feet. He also owns a collection of fourteen properties and eleven vehicles.
His memoir Dirty Jokes and Beer generated royalties as a New York Times bestseller. His total annual earnings from hosting, ownership income, and other ventures place him among the wealthiest entertainers in American television.
Drew Carey Social Media
Drew Carey is active on X (formerly Twitter) under the handle @DrewFromTV. He has also directed followers to find him on Threads and Bluesky under the same handle, DrewFromTV.
His official Facebook fan page operates under the handle @drewcarey.
Summary
Drew Carey built one of American television’s longest-running dual careers, going from stand-up clubs in Cleveland to hosting the most-watched daytime game show in the country for nearly two decades.
His work across The Drew Carey Show, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, and The Price Is Right reflects a consistent ability to connect with everyday audiences that few television personalities sustain across three separate eras.
