Michael Patrick King was born to an Irish American family in Scranton, Pennsylvania and was raised as a Roman Catholic. In the 1980s King moved to New York, did stand-up comedy, and wrote plays. He also was a member of a comedy improv group called 'The Broadway Local' which mostly performed at Manhattan Punch Line Theatre. They were considered to be the in-house Improv group there. He is openly gay and owns Arcade Productions. He lives in Greenwich Village.