List of Everybody Loves Raymond characters

This is a list of fictional characters from Everybody Loves Raymond, an Emmy, SAG, WGA winning and Golden Globe nominated American sitcom, originally broadcast on CBS from September 13, 1996 to May 16, 2005.

The show revolves around the life of Italian-American Ray Barone, a newspaper sportswriter from Long Island, and his wife, Debra Barone. Other main characters include Ray's parents, Frank and Marie, Ray's children Ally, Michael and Geoffrey and his brother Robert, wife Amy.

Main characters

Ray Barone

Raymond Albert Barone
First appearance	"Pilot"
Last appearance	Final Everybody Loves Raymond appearance: "The Finale" Final Charater appearance: "Raygin' Bulls"
Created by	Ray Romano
Portrayed by	Ray Romano
In-universe information
Occupation	Sportswriter
Spouse	Debra Barone

Raymond Albert Barone (Ray Romano) is a sportswriter for Newsday. He lives in Lynbrook, Long Island, New York with his wife, Debra, and their children Geoffrey (Sawyer Sweeten), Michael (Sullivan Sweeten) and Ally (Madylin Sweeten). Other members of his family, who live across the street, include his brother Robert, and his parents Frank and Marie. Ray's characters are loosely based on the real-life Romano; both are the father of twin boys and a girl.

Ray grew up in an unbalanced household where one parent nurtured him, sometimes to an extreme, while the other tried to reverse his wife's work and didn't provide enough love and attention. The legacy from Marie's overprotective upbringing is the co-dependent relationship the brothers share with her and their sibling rivalry that has persisted into adulthood, while Frank's lack of affection has caused Ray to become emotionally uncommunicative.

Raymond rarely helps out his wife around the house or with the kids, partially because he is a sportswriter, and usually sits on the couch watching television. Ray and Debra are often visited—and bothered—by Frank and Marie, who barge into their house uninvited.

Very flippant, Ray doesn't take matters seriously, making corny jokes when one of his family members becomes upset with him, particularly his wife. He has a fear of confronting his mother, and the "psychological hold" that his mother has on him is Debra's pet peeve. Ray has a habit of making bad and sometimes inconsiderate choices; for example he tapes over his wedding video with the Super Bowl.

Ray Romano has also appeared in the role of Ray Barone in some other TV shows, such as The King of Queens, Cosby, and The Nanny, even after Everybody Loves Raymond ended.

Debra Barone

Debra Louise Barone
First appearance	"Pilot"
Last appearance	"The Finale"
Portrayed by	Patricia Heaton
In-universe information
Occupation	Housewife
Family	Warren Whelan (father) Lois Whelan (mother) Jennifer Whelan (sister)
Spouse	Raymond Barone

Debra Louise Barone (Patricia Heaton), née Whelan, is Ray's wife, and the mother of Ally, Michael, and Geoffrey. Debra also appeared in an episode of The King of Queens in 1999.

Debra was brought up by her loving, wealthy parents, Warren and Lois Whelan (Robert Culp and Katherine Helmond). After Debra left home, they traveled across the world, but they experienced marital trouble and eventually divorced. After learning she was pregnant with twins, Ray brought up the issue that she and Ray would need to move in a bigger home, and once Ray's parents learned of this, they showed them a house across the street from their own. Ray was terrified at the idea of moving across the street from his parents, but Debra was able to convince him—though she soon regretted it.

Formerly in public relations for Madison Square Gardens, Debra is a housewife who's often seen resentful and stressed out; major reasons for this are not only having to deal with all the housework and her three rambunctious children (without much assistance from Ray), but also Ray's obnoxious, intrusive family members. Debra tends to hold back her feelings and usually only after Ray does something she lets loose, completely losing control of herself.

Ray is frequently seen trying to get his wife to have sex with him, but is almost always rejected by Debra, who is often seen reading a book or rubbing lotion on her arms before going to sleep. Debra is active in the school PTA. In spite of taking out her frustrations on Raymond, Debra really does love her whole family.

Marie Barone

Marie Janella Barone
First appearance	"Pilot"
Last appearance	"Finale"
Portrayed by	Doris Roberts
In-universe information
Occupation	Housewife
Spouse	Frank Barone

Marie Janella Barone (Doris Roberts) is Ray's mother, the wife of Frank, and the matriarch of the Barone family. Intrusive and over-nurturing, she is a housewife who excels in cooking, cleaning, and other things dealing with keeping a good home and bringing up a nurturing and caring family. Marie and Frank live across the street from Ray and Debra in Lynbrook, Long Island, New York. The houses used for the exterior shots of the two Barone households are really across the street from each other but actually are located in North Merrick.

Except for Frank, everyone in the family has a hard time standing up to Marie because of her guilt-tripping, although Debra sometimes does take a stand, much to the chagrin of Raymond. In addition to being a profound worrier, one of Marie's trademark acts is to be outwardly helpful and sweet, but in the most catty, disparaging way, especially towards her daughter-in-law. Marie often barges into Debra's house and criticizes Debra's cooking and housekeeping, often re-cleaning after Debra.

Though Marie smothers Raymond, she is generally neglectful to Robert. Her actions have a traumatizing effect on Ray's psyche, resulting in Raymond both simultaneously fearing his mother's love and seeking refuge in her.

Frank Barone

Frank Barone
Portrayed by	Peter Boyle
In-universe information
Occupation	Bookkeeper (retired)
Spouse	Marie Barone

Francis Oscar "Frank" Barone (Peter Boyle) is Ray's wisecracking father and Marie's husband, a former accountant (he was fired, not retired) for a business called 'Pelk Accounting'. He is characterized by a stubborn masculine and deadpan personality. Frank was born in 1932 (he turned 65 in Season 2, Episode 9: "The Gift"). A war veteran, Frank served in the Korean War, which he frequently brings up, to the annoyance of his sons. He is a member of the Caribou Lodge (a fictional organization that appears to be inspired by the Elks), and was named Man of the Year by his Lodge. He also has a strong love for Jazz music.

Frank is the one member of the Barone family who will unleash anything that is on his mind. Crude and insulting, Frank does things like keep his zipper open, walk out every morning to retrieve the daily paper wearing his underwear or less and use names like Nancy and Shirley to describe men (mostly Ray and Robert) who are not macho enough. Refusing to pay for any kind of repair, Frank also considers himself a general handyman and attempts to make repairs around Ray's household, often with disastrous results.

Frank's misbehavior often results in many people disliking him. Despite his transgressions, Frank also deeply cares for Marie as he admitted when she said they had a "loveless marriage." During a moment of father-son bonding, Raymond and Robert discover that their grandfather was a physically abusive disciplinarian towards Frank, and that Frank had vowed never to be like him with his own children. Like Marie, who is sometimes perceived to have her heart in the right place, Frank also has shown responsibility and respect to others in time of need, particularly Debra since he understands her attitude toward Marie.

Robert Barone

Robert Charles Barone
Portrayed by	Brad Garrett
In-universe information
Gender	Male
Occupation	New York Police Department Officer
Spouse	Joanne Glotz (Unknown-1996) Amy MacDougall-Barone (2003-)

Robert Charles Barone (Brad Garrett) is Ray's brother and the son of Frank and Marie, conceived out of wedlock. Standing at 6' 8.5", he is the tallest Barone, and has several quirks, the biggest being a nervous habit of touching food to his chin before eating it, commonly known as the "Crazy Chin". Robert is a caring uncle and still deeply cares for little brother Raymond. Robert has been a New York City Police Department Officer for 27 years, and attains the rank of Captain by the end of the series. His height, appearance and demeanor are the source of much humor, but despite his huge size, Robert is a very skilled dancer.

After divorcing his first wife Joanne, Robert moved back in with his parents, became a workaholic and was acknowledged by the NYPD for never being absent one day of his career. Robert's diverse skills as a police officer even got him an interview with the FBI, but his mother interfered in the interview process, and he was passed over. He was injured on the job when he was gored by a bull. When he returned, he left the police force out of fear, and became a telemarketer. Later he took a side job as an alarm salesman for some time but continued returning to the NYPD.

Robert dated Debra's best friend Amy MacDougall for several years, despite a number of breakups. After a bad date with yet another woman, Robert ran into Amy in a bar and they soon got back together and married in 2003. In 2004, they purchased Frank and Marie's home, but they had to welcome them back in when they were kicked out of a retirement community in New Jersey.

Robert is very jealous of his brother Raymond, who was favored by their mother, and though Robert is four years older than Ray, he constantly feels as if he's stuck in Ray's shadow. He has a very cruel sense of humour and will make fun of Raymond to no end to get revenge and to get attention. Robert serves as the moral conscience in the family, as the most virtuous of the characters, and often pleads with others when they are considering doing something questionable.

Amy MacDougall-Barone

Amy Louise MacDougall-Barone
Portrayed by	Monica Horan
In-universe information
Gender	Female
Family	Hank MacDougall (father) Pat MacDougall (mother) Peter MacDougall (brother)
Spouse	Robert Barone

Amy Louise MacDougall-Barone (Monica Horan) is Robert Barone's wife, and the best friend of Debra, who introduced Amy to Robert. Although Amy marries Robert in Season 7, Episode 24: "Robert's Wedding", she also appears in the previous seasons. Many issues have caused Amy and Robert to break up in the first six seasons, with one being caused by Raymond. Quite often, Amy apologizes to someone even if she didn't do anything wrong.

She is a soft-spoken girl who was raised in a family of devout Protestants, who live in Pennsylvania. She describes her parents as "people who wouldn't yell if they were on fire". Amy was a virgin when she met Robert, which Ray had a hard time believing, as Amy was 33 at the time. She eventually lost her virginity to Robert before they were married, but they were spotted having sex by their neighbors, causing Robert's neighbors to sign a sheet mandating bedroom curtains in the apartment building.

Supporting characters

Hank and Pat MacDougall

Henry and Patricia MacDougall (Fred Willard and Georgia Engel) are Amy's parents and they first appear in Season 7, Episode 14: "Just a Formality". Very devout Protestant conservatives, they oppose their daughter's marriage because of Robert's previous marital status. These matters are not helped as they soon learn that the MacDougalls and the Barones are not the most compatible of families; the two sides still do not like each other after many tries at truce, although the Barones have always loved Amy, and the MacDougalls come to accept Robert. Hank refers to his wife as "mother."

Peter MacDougall

Peter MacDougall (Chris Elliott) is Amy's older brother. He has a strange personality and a sneaky, clever mind. Also opposed to his sister's marriage, he insists that he will keep trying to break it up. Peter is single but lives with his pet house cat, Miss Puss. At first, Peter and Robert do not get along very well, but in "Peter on the Couch," the two find common ground in the fact that they both suffered from being the overshadowed older sibling and living with their parents. He is also fond of Ray, although the feeling isn't mutual.

Peter was originally introduced as "Russell", the owner of a comic book shop, and was played by comedian Paul Reubens in a one-time appearance. After his cameo appearance, however, Reubens was arrested on child pornography charges, and Ray Romano objected to Reubens being part of the show's cast. Russell abruptly became Peter because in Season 7, Episode 14: "Just a Formality", Peter (Chris Elliott) mentions meeting Ray at the comic book store (which was Russell).

Barone children

• Alexandra "Ally" Barone (Madylin Sweeten) – Ray and Debra's only daughter. She is five years old at the beginning of the series, and is in fourteen by the series finale. She was named for Romano's real-life daughter. In the beginning, she is rude and naughty much like her brothers, but becomes loyal and helpful by the end. However, she still occasionally fibs and answers back to her parents if she doesn't get what she wants, for example, a $250 silk dress which was only going to be worn once.
• Geoffrey and Michael Barone (Sullivan and Sawyer Sweeten) – Ray and Debra's identical twin sons. They are one-year-olds at the beginning of the series and are ten by the series finale. A running joke is Frank's insistence that Geoffrey may have homosexual tendencies, such as when he walks into the two boys training to be fairies in a school play. The two are stereotypically playful, energetic, and are prone to causing chaos even without trying but in general very well behaved.

• In the pilot episode, Ray's twin boys were not played by Sullivan and Sawyer Sweeten. They were instead played by a different set of twins and a set of triplets. In addition, the names of his sons were referred to as "Gregory" and the other as "Matthew" (the names of Romano's real-life twin sons).

Recurring characters

• Lois Whelan (Katherine Helmond) – Debra's mother, who is gentle and sweet but easily insulted.
• Warren Whelan (Robert Culp) – Debra's father, who has a love of collecting antiques.
• Jennifer Whelan (Ashley Crow) - Debra's sister. Appears as a nun in season 4, episode 6.
• Uncle Mel (Phil Leeds) – A relative of the family who makes several appearances. A running gag is since he was never married, he mentions at least once in every episode he is in that he is not gay.
• Gerard (Fred Stoller) – Ray's annoying, unintelligent cousin who makes several appearances. He plays the accordion.
• Joanne "Cinnamon" Glotz (Suzie Plakson) - Robert's ex-wife, who formerly worked as a stripper.
• Bernie and Linda (Tom McGowan and Maggie Wheeler) – Married couple, friends of Ray & Debra.
• Gianni (Jon Manfrellotti) – A contractor, ex-futon repairman, and friend of Raymond. He was also on The King of Queens. Jon Manfrellotti first appeared as a cable guy from Lynbrook cable in Season 1, Episode 17: "The Game".
• Andy (Andy Kindler) – A fellow sportswriter and friend of Raymond.
• Doug Heffernan (Kevin James) – A friend and golf buddy of Raymond's and an IPS deliveryman (a takeoff on UPS). Before 1998 James appeared as Kevin Daniels, the announcer for the Mets. He also hosted "Sports Talk with Roy Firestone" in Season 2, Episode 1: "Ray's on TV".
• Judy (Sherri Shepherd) – Robert's NYPD patrol partner.
• Lee and Stan – Friends of Marie and Frank.
• Harriet Lichtman – Marie's bridge partner, and Frank's fantasy woman. Often talked about but only appears in Season 7, Episode 20: "Who's Next".
• Garvin (Len Lesser) – A friend of Frank. A running gag is that when he sees Ray, he goes, "Hey, Ray's here! Ha-ha!" while moving his arms in the air.
• Albert (Ray Romano's actual father, Albert Romano) – A lodge friend of Frank, seen in various lodge-related episodes.
• Max (Phil Rosenthal's actual father) - A lodge friend of Frank, seen in various lodge-related episodes
• Father Hubley (Charles Durning) - The local parish priest. He loves Marie's lasagna.
• Nemo (Joseph V. Perry, Robert Ruth) – Pizza restaurant owner. Disappears when Marco takes over his pizzeria and calls it Marco's.
• Angelina (Tina Arning) - a very attractive waitress from Nemo's. Appears in 4 episodes.
• Bill Parker (David Hunt) – Ray's nemesis neighbor (played by Patricia Heaton's real-life husband). Parker is often seen showing-up Ray as a father, and Ray often makes jokes that Debra wishes she had married him instead. Ray's character has said lines that has him thinking out loud that his kids are possibly Bill Parker's doing, because all the kids playing his children on the show are blond, like Bill Parker.
• Peggy Ardolino (Amy Aquino) – Single mother of Ally's best friend who has bullied Ray and later becomes Peter's girlfriend. Referred to as "The Cookie Lady" and "Peggy Hitler" by Ray. Whenever they see each other, Peggy says, "hello, Ally's dad," while he just says "hello.. Peggy," in a very intimidating way.
• Molly Ardolino (Ray Romano's actual daughter, Alexandra Romano) – Daughter of Peggy Ardolino and Ally's best friend. However, she was first seen as a flower girl in a flashback of Ray and Debra's wedding.
• Stefania Fogagnolo (Alex Meneses) – Robert's hot and jilted Italian ex-girlfriend he met while vacationing with the Barone clan in Italy.
• Marco Fogagnolo (David Proval) – The intimidating and threatening Italian father of Stefania.
• Richard (Ray Romano's real-life brother) – Plays a cop in Season 7, Episode 14: "Just a Formality," where Robert Proposes to Amy.
• Aunt Alda (Jean Stapleton) – Marie's sister. Only appears in Season 1, Episode 3: "I Wish I Were Gus."
• Brian Trenburg (Dan Castellaneta) - Was the T-ball "healthy snacks" overseer that Debra tangled with and Ray finally blew up on. Episode# 42, Season 2, "T-Ball." He was also Coach Brian in Episode 8, Season 6: "It's Supposed To Be Fun."