Brian Michael "Q" Quinn (born March 14, 1976) is an American podcaster, improvisational comedian, actor, and retired firefighter. He is a member of The Tenderloins, a comedy troupe also consisting of Sal Vulcano, James Murray, and formerly Joe Gatto. Along with the other members of The Tenderloins, he stars in the television series Impractical Jokers, which premiered in 2011, on TruTV.
Brian Michael Quinn[1] was born on March 14, 1976,[2] in the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, but moved to Staten Island[3] at two years old. He is of Irish and Italian ancestry.[2] His mother was born in Italy, and migrated to the U.S. at the age of two. His father is of Irish descent.[4]
Despite not being an initial member of his friends' comedy troupe The Tenderloins, after one of the original members, Mike Boccio, left the group in 2006, Quinn became the troupe's then-fourth member.[8]
The Tenderloins began producing comedy sketches together, posting them on YouTube, Myspace, and Metacafe, accumulating millions of views online. In 2007, the troupe won the $100,000 grand prize in the NBCIt's Your Show competition for the sketch "Time Thugs".[9]
Impractical Jokers premiered on December 15, 2011, on TruTV. The first season was watched by over 32 million viewers. The show quickly became the most popular series on TruTV, and has boosted Quinn into the public eye.
Quinn has been doing Impractical Jokers performance’s (live comedy tours) since 2012.[10]
Quinn had a cameo in the first episode of the second season of 12 Monkeys, which first aired in the US on April 18, 2016.
In October 2019, Quinn, along with the other members of The Tenderloins, starred in The Misery Index, which is hosted by Jameela Jamil and is based on Andy Breckman's card game "Shit Happens".[12]
Quinn was in the 6th episode of Tacoma F.D., 'Full Moon Fever', released May 2, 2019.
Quinn also had a cameo in the fourth episode of the second season of Star Trek: Picard, which first aired in the US on March 25, 2022. That same year Quinn also made a cameo in the film Clerks III.[13]
Quinn made a cameo in the film Screamboat which was released on April 2, 2025.[14] He also served as the executive producer for the TV movie Foul play with Anthony Davis which was released in 2025.[15]
Quinn performing on stage in 2017
Podcasts
Tell 'Em Steve-Dave
Quinn is also a co-host of the podcast Tell 'Em Steve-Dave!, which he hosts with Bryan Johnson and Walt Flanagan. The podcast started in February 2010 with Quinn in the role of the off-mic audio engineer, then shortly after as occasional commentator and ultimately co-host. The show has won a plethora of awards In 2010, the show won two Podcast Awards, one for People's Choice and the other as Best Comedy.[16] That same year the show was named a Best of 2010 audio podcast by iTunes. Also Winning the 2012 Stitcher Award for Best Entertainment & Pop Culture, and the 2nd Annual Kevin Allison Excellence in Podcasting Award.[17]
The Tenderloins Podcast
The group began hosting a podcast in April 2012. It is available on their official website and iTunes.
What Say You?
What Say You?, an occasional podcast hosted by Sal Vulcano and Quinn, was named Best New Show at the 2013 Stitcher Awards.[18] The increased popularity of What Say You sparked a friendly competition among the comedians, spurring Joe Gatto and James Murray to release their own Tenderloins podcast without the other two members. In 2015, What Say You? was nominated for the Comedy, Entertainment, and Best Produced Podcast Awards at the 10th Annual Podcast Awards. Vulcano and Quinn have stated that the podcast is their own side project, not a replacement of The Tenderloins Podcast.[19] The group explained that it was difficult to coordinate the schedules of all four members outside of work, making it challenging to produce their troupe's official podcast with any regularity.
Personal life
Quinn suffers from arachnophobia.[20] He has three cats, Brooklyn, Boris, and Chessie. Along with that, he has a tattoo that says, "38. Lives alone. Has 3 cats" from the result of a triple punishment on Impractical Jokers in 2014. Quinn has suffered from depression, and has been very open about his struggles throughout the years.[5]
While taking a trip to Germany in 2009, Quinn was arrested for disorderly conduct while visiting Oktoberfest. An assailant punched him in the face, knocking his tooth out. Quinn was escorted back to the United States by German police, and was bailed out by his Tenderloins troupe members.[21]
Some of Quinn’s interest include professional wrestling,[22] reading comics even having the Superman logo tattooed on his right arm.[23] He is also an avid concert goer and has stated that he is a fan of the band the Wu-Tang Clan.[23]
Since his time on Impractical Jokers, Quinn has donated $50,000 to the New York City Fire Department, and he occasionally meets with his former coworkers.[24]
In August 2019, Quinn revived the Rubsam & Horrmann Brewing Company on Staten Island.[25]
↑ Green, Adam (September 14, 2018), Victor Crowley (Action, Comedy, Horror), Parry Shen, Kane Hodder, Laura Ortiz, ArieScope Pictures, IncitefulMedia, retrieved August 27, 2025
↑ Smith, Kevin (September 13, 2022), Clerks III (Comedy, Drama), Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Vincent Pereira, Mewesings, Destro Films, Three Point Capital (TPC), retrieved August 27, 2025
↑ LaMorte, Steven (April 2, 2025), Screamboat (Comedy, Horror), Tyler Posey, David Howard Thornton, Joe DeRosa, Fuzz on the Lens Productions, Kali Pictures, Reckless Content, retrieved August 27, 2025
↑ Guidry, Joe (February 16, 2025), Foul Play with Anthony Davis (Comedy, Reality-TV, Sport), Anthony Davis, Mookie Betts, D'Angelo Russell, Grandma's House Entertainment, Bad Woods Entertainment, 4.4.Forty, retrieved August 27, 2025
↑ LLC, One Technologies. "PodCastAwards.com". www.podcastawards.com. Archived from the original on December 10, 2013. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
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