Ryan Stiles was born in Seattle, Washington, the youngest of five children. When he was ten, his Canadian-born parents moved the family to Richmond, British Columbia. At the age of seventeen, he dropped out of high school to pursue a career in comedy. He worked in his fathers fish-processing plant to earn a living while doing stand-up at Punchlines Comedy Club in Vancouver, British Columbia and performing improvisational comedy with the Vancouver Theatre Sports League. In 1986, Stiles successfully auditioned for a berth at Torontos renowned Second City comedy ensemble.

By 1989, he had gained the attention of the producers of the British improvisational comedy show, Whose Line Is It Anyway?. Ryan was a regular on the show until 1998, and the shows short production season allowed him to make numerous television and motion picture appearances in the United States.

In 1995, Stiles was tapped by American comic Drew Carey to be a regular on his sitcom, The Drew Carey Show. He played Drew's smart but underachieving best friend, Lewis Kiniski. In 1998, Carey successfully lobbied ABC to get an American version of Whose Line? produced. Following the final series of the British version in 1998, the American version premiered, with both Stiles and Carey credited as executive producers. Stiles was featured in every episode of the American series, which was produced until 2003. New episodes continued to air, however, for several years thereafter.

Stiles portrayed recurring character Dr. Herb Melnick on Two and a Half Men from 2004 until the show's end in 2015. Stiles also made short guest appearances on Murphy Brown, Mad About You, Mad TV, and Dharma & Greg. In July 2008, he was a guest star on Reno 911! as Sergeant Clift, an acting coach.

Ryan currently makes his home in Bellingham, Washington and has maintained a residence in Whatcom County for several years despite his busy acting career. Ryan owns a comedy club in Bellingham called The Upfront Theatre where he often drops in and performs with local improvisers and stand-up comedians.

Television Personalities, Washington,