SCTV Channel
Cinemax (ended 1984)
Cast & Crew
EDIT
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Martin Short
Ed Grimley/Jackie Rogers, Jr/Irving Cohen/Various
A great comedic performer, whose expressive face and body enable him to change himself, into any one of a dozen characters. He is a native-born Canadian who initially wowed audiences as one of the "SCTV" comedy troupe. He received the Earl Grey Award for his work in SCTV at the Gemini in Toronto, 1995. Short's self-created original characters, spot-on impersonations of real-life personalities (from Jerry Lewis to Katharine Hepburn), improvisational skills, and flair for physical comedy won him a berth on "Saturday Night Live" (1984-85 season) before director John Landis paired him with Steve Martin and Chevy Chase in the cowboy-hero spoof Three Amigos (1986). He is currently living with his wife, Nancy Dolman, his 3 children - 1 daughter (Katherine born in 1984) and 2 sons (Oliver born in 1987 and Henry, born in 1990). The 5'8" year old man, and graduated from Westdale High School in Hamilton Ontario before attending McMaster University in Hamilton. He was trained to be a social worker but got bit by the acting bug after taking a part in a production of "Godspell" in Toronto, Ontario. His brother died when he was 12. By 20 years of age, both his parents also passed away.moreless -
Eugene Levy
Earl Canembert/Bobby Bittman/Alex Trebel/Various
Eugene Levy is a Canadian actor born in Hamilton, Ontario. As well as acting he has also worked as a television director, producer and writer. He is best known for his work in the Canadian produced television program Second City Television. His best know characters on SCTV were the dimwitted news anchor Earl Camembert, the comic Bobby Bittman, the 3-D horror actor Woody Tobias Jr., and the teen dance show host Rockin' Mel Slirrup. Over the years, Eugene Levy has starred and guest starred in many movies. However his career got a big boost when he played the role of the father in the blockbuster hit American Pie. In 2006, Eugene Levy had the honour to receive a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.moreless -
Andrea Martin
Edith Prickley/Edna Boil/Various
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John Hemphill
Happy Marsden/Tommy Lasorda/Various
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Joe Flaherty
Count Floyd Robertson/Guy Caballero/Sammy Maudlin/Alan Alda/Various
He was raised in Pittsburgh, but did not come to Toronto until the early 70s for the Second City theatre. Joe has joined the faculty of Humber College's Comedy: Writing & Performance course. Father of Gudrun Flaherty. -
Mary Charlotte Wilcox
Idella Voudry/Various
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Mike Short
Mike the Bartender/Blackie/Various
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Fred Willard
Fred Winston
Fred Willard radiates a unique charm that has established him as one of our generation's most gifted comic actors. A master of sketch comedy, Fred is most heralded for his quick wit and improvisational expertise. His fifty appearances in sketches on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno are indicative of his ability to transform any character into a unique comic portrayal. Fred recently completed a sold out run of his one man show, Fred Willard: Alone At Last!(with a cast of twelve) and received two Los Angeles Artistic Director Awards, for Best Comedy and Best Production. He is an alumnus of The Second City and currently heads a sketch comedy workshop, The MoHo Group.moreless -
William B. Davis
Man on the Phone
William Bruce Davis, sometimes nicknamed Bill, was born in Toronto, Ontario on January 13, 1938. He receieved his first taste in acting at the age of 11 when a murder mystery play for a summer stock festival was done by his cousins. After that performance, he didn't look back; he had found his passion in life. He attended the University of Toronto for his education, and graduated with a BA in Philosophy in 1959. From here he was lucky enough to be invited to attend the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. He took part in various stage productions there, before he joined Britain's National Theatre, where he worked alongside top British actors, including Maggie Smith and Lawrence Olivier, though he was only there for around a year before returning to Canada, where he commenced his acting career on television and movies, appearing in supporting roles.
When he is not acting, William is an avid water-skier and snow-skier, having won the Canadian National Water-skiing Competition numerous times in his division.
He became a drama professor, before opening the "William Davis Centre For Actor's Study", which is an acting school for all potential actors, from beginners to professionals.
In 1993 he signed on for a minor supporting role in a new television show, playing the character that would make him famous. The show was The X Files, and the character was unnamed, simply referred to as "The Cigarette Smoking Man", or "Cancer Man", as he was always seen smoking a cigarette. In real life, William had been a smoker, though he had quit a few years beforehand. He was given the choice to take normal or herbal cigarettes, and stating that as he was an actor he would use the real ones. However, it didn't take long for the addiction to come back, and he would anticipate his next call-up for another episode, so he could smoke again. Realising what was happening, he opted for the herbal cigarettes. He remained a constant figure in the show for much of its run, though not appearing in that many episodes, considering the importance of his character. He even wrote one of the show's episodes; "En Ami", which delved further into his character.
William is married, has two daughters and he currently lives in Vancouver.moreless -
Jessica Steen
Daughter #1
Jessica Steen was born on December 19, 1965 in Toronto, Canada. She is probably best known in the U.S. for having been a regular on two short-lived TV series: the critically acclaimed "Homefront" (1991) and the science fiction show "Earth 2" (1994). You may also recognize her recent work opposite Michael Richards (Kramer from "Seinfeld") in the film "Trial and Error" (1997). She was additionally the only female regular on the 1987 syndicated show, "Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future" (1987), and has appeared as a guest star on a number of other TV series including "ER" (1994), "Touched by an Angel" (1994), "Murder One" (1995), and "The Outer Limits" (1995).moreless -
Catherine O'Hara
Lola Heatherton
Catherine O'Hara is a Canadian actress and comedian. She is well known for her appearances in many roles on the TV series SCTV, as well as for her film roles as Delia Deetz in Beetlejuice (1988), Kate McCallister in Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas and her various roles in the films of Christopher Guest. She started her acting career in 1974 as a cast member of The Second City in Toronto. In 1976, this theatre troupe created the television series SCTV, on which O'Hara became a regular performer. Memorable O'Hara characterizations on the show included Las Vegas scorcher Lola Heatherton, buzzer-happy game show contestant Margaret Meehan, raunchy nightclub comedian Dusty Towne, soap opera seductress Sue Ellen and stage actress Sue Bopper Simpson. In the late 1970s, she did various voice-overs for a number of cartoons, which would continue throughout her career. She was hired to replace Ann Risley when Saturday Night Live was being retooled in 1981 following Jean Doumanian's disastrous stint as executive producer. However, O'Hara quit the show without ever having made an appearance on it, primarily due to her shock after witnessing a long, loud diatribe by SNL writer Michael O'Donoghue. Her SNL position was then given to fellow Canadian Robin Duke, who had also replaced O'Hara for a season on SCTV. She had an unusually dramatic role in The Last of the High Kings as a staunch Irish nationalist in 1970s Dublin. O'Hara married Bo Welch in 1992. They have two sons, born in 1994 and 1997. O'Hara is the sister of singer-songwriter Mary Margaret O'Hara, though she is a singer-songwriter in her own right, having written and performed songs in the 2003 film A Mighty Wind. She is a naturalized U.S. citizen. O'Hara can next be seen in her fourth Christopher Guest film, For Your Consideration. (following Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show and A Mighty Wind).moreless -
Catherine O'Hara
Various
Catherine O'Hara is a Canadian actress and comedian. She is well known for her appearances in many roles on the TV series SCTV, as well as for her film roles as Delia Deetz in Beetlejuice (1988), Kate McCallister in Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas and her various roles in the films of Christopher Guest. She started her acting career in 1974 as a cast member of The Second City in Toronto. In 1976, this theatre troupe created the television series SCTV, on which O'Hara became a regular performer. Memorable O'Hara characterizations on the show included Las Vegas scorcher Lola Heatherton, buzzer-happy game show contestant Margaret Meehan, raunchy nightclub comedian Dusty Towne, soap opera seductress Sue Ellen and stage actress Sue Bopper Simpson. In the late 1970s, she did various voice-overs for a number of cartoons, which would continue throughout her career. She was hired to replace Ann Risley when Saturday Night Live was being retooled in 1981 following Jean Doumanian's disastrous stint as executive producer. However, O'Hara quit the show without ever having made an appearance on it, primarily due to her shock after witnessing a long, loud diatribe by SNL writer Michael O'Donoghue. Her SNL position was then given to fellow Canadian Robin Duke, who had also replaced O'Hara for a season on SCTV. She had an unusually dramatic role in The Last of the High Kings as a staunch Irish nationalist in 1970s Dublin. O'Hara married Bo Welch in 1992. They have two sons, born in 1994 and 1997. O'Hara is the sister of singer-songwriter Mary Margaret O'Hara, though she is a singer-songwriter in her own right, having written and performed songs in the 2003 film A Mighty Wind. She is a naturalized U.S. citizen. O'Hara can next be seen in her fourth Christopher Guest film, For Your Consideration. (following Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show and A Mighty Wind).moreless -
Dave Thomas
Harvey K-Tel
Dave lived in Toronto through age 6, then moved to Durham, North Carolina, where his dad got his Ph.D. in Philosophy at Duke University. His mother worked with Drs. Zeiner and Rhine, whose work in parapsychology is famous) in the Psychology Lab there. His family moved to Britain (both his parents were British). His father's parents lived in Birmingham, England and they had relatives in Edinburgh, Scotland and Wales as well. They spent time (and previous summers) with them all. They moved back to Toronto when he was twelve. He also lived in Vancouver, British Columbia. As the 5'10" Thomas states, he's still growing up in Los Angeles. His father went on to become a famous philosopher and medical ethicist, authoring several books. He died in 1996. His mother is church organist, whose original music has been published by Lyon and Healy in Chicago. His younger brother, Ian, is a musician with 18 albums to his credit, a dozen movie scores, and original songs, covered by artists like Air Supply, America, Chicago, Manfred Mann, and Bette Midler. Dave got a master's degree in English Literature from McMaster University, where he met Martin Short, Eugene Levy, and Ivan Reitman. After college, he worked for advertising agency, McCann-Erickson, in Toronto until he was transferred to their New York office. In 1974, he auditioned for the Second City Stage Show in Toronto and got in. Wanting to supplement his income and having all those connections from advertising, he and fellow Second City stager, Dan Akroyd, started writing ads for local retailers and CBC scripts for television shows while doing the stage show at night. In 1976, the producers of the Second City theater in Toronto decided to start up "SCTV" and he was cast for that. He also wrote a screenplay with Dan that year that didn't get made. Then they wrote "Spies Like Us", which Dan ended up shooting with Chevy Chase several years later. In 1979, he went to California and wrote a screenplay for Columbia Pictures--on the same lot where John Candy and Dan Aykroyd were shooting "1941" for Steven Spielberg. Somewhere around that time, he had a small part in "Stripes" for his college pal, Ivan Reitman. He met Rick Moranis at a party, who had been writing for the CBC and performing stand-up in nightclubs in and around Toronto. He convinced the producers of "SCTV" to hire him. "SCTV" replaced "The Midnight Special" on NBC Friday late nights, where it started to get noticed, was nominated for Emmys and won. Dave and Rick improvised the McKenzie Brothers, their breakout roles, which was intended to mock the CBC's request for two minutes of Canadian content since the Canadian version of the show was two minutes longer than the U.S. version (fewer commercials). Having run short of programming, some of the McKenzies' segments crept into the U.S. version, which caught on faster in the U.S. than in Canada. They went on to do the "Great White North" album for Polygram, which went Gold, then Platinum. It is often reported that Dave was a schoolmate of Geddy Lee of Rush, guest vocalist on their Number One hit single, "Take Off", when in fact, it was Rick Moranis who was Geddy's schoolmate at Faywood Public School in Downsview, Ontario. They got an offer from MGM and decided to leave "SCTV" in 1983 to do the movie, "The Adventures of Bob & Doug McKenzie: Strange Brew", which Thomas co-wrote, co-directed, and co-starred in with Moranis. It received Canada's Golden Reel Award, as the highest grossing film of 1983. When a sequel was floated a few years ago, there were no takers and that project seems to have been permanently shelved. At the time of "Strange Brew", success was starting to bother Dave. He took a break, left Hollywood, and went home to Canada. He didn't stop working, however, and in addition to spending time with his family, he kept busy writing and producing network television pilots. He returned to Hollywood when he began to miss performing in sketch comedy. Dave co-created and co-executive produced "America's Funniest People" for ABC in 1990. Dave has appeared in numerous movies and television shows. Dave served as Executive Producer of Family Challenge for the Family Channel, through his production company, Maple Palm Productions. Most recently, as Creative Director of Los Angeles-based Animax Interactive, Dave has assembled a bullpen of Hollywood writers and artists with experience in TV, Film, and Radio. Animax Interactive is a digital animation studio that develops and produces dynamic content for entertainment and advertising clients. The company creates animation for existing brands and develops new characters for a variety of applications: TV series, commercials, short films, games, and interactive advertising, among others. They deliver Hollywood-quality concepts and execution using new technologies for television, Internet, wireless, e-mail, DVD, and other delivery systems. Samples on their website include animated shorts, featuring celebrity voiceovers by Thomas, Rick Moranis, and Paul Shaffer, demonstrate and explain Animax Interactive's business. Visit their site at http://wwwanimaxinteractive.com or click on More Info in the News section of this page. Dave lives in Malibu, California with his wife of 11 years, Kim, and their three children, John, Emily, and Harry.moreless -
Dave Thomas
Various
Dave lived in Toronto through age 6, then moved to Durham, North Carolina, where his dad got his Ph.D. in Philosophy at Duke University. His mother worked with Drs. Zeiner and Rhine, whose work in parapsychology is famous) in the Psychology Lab there. His family moved to Britain (both his parents were British). His father's parents lived in Birmingham, England and they had relatives in Edinburgh, Scotland and Wales as well. They spent time (and previous summers) with them all. They moved back to Toronto when he was twelve. He also lived in Vancouver, British Columbia. As the 5'10" Thomas states, he's still growing up in Los Angeles. His father went on to become a famous philosopher and medical ethicist, authoring several books. He died in 1996. His mother is church organist, whose original music has been published by Lyon and Healy in Chicago. His younger brother, Ian, is a musician with 18 albums to his credit, a dozen movie scores, and original songs, covered by artists like Air Supply, America, Chicago, Manfred Mann, and Bette Midler. Dave got a master's degree in English Literature from McMaster University, where he met Martin Short, Eugene Levy, and Ivan Reitman. After college, he worked for advertising agency, McCann-Erickson, in Toronto until he was transferred to their New York office. In 1974, he auditioned for the Second City Stage Show in Toronto and got in. Wanting to supplement his income and having all those connections from advertising, he and fellow Second City stager, Dan Akroyd, started writing ads for local retailers and CBC scripts for television shows while doing the stage show at night. In 1976, the producers of the Second City theater in Toronto decided to start up "SCTV" and he was cast for that. He also wrote a screenplay with Dan that year that didn't get made. Then they wrote "Spies Like Us", which Dan ended up shooting with Chevy Chase several years later. In 1979, he went to California and wrote a screenplay for Columbia Pictures--on the same lot where John Candy and Dan Aykroyd were shooting "1941" for Steven Spielberg. Somewhere around that time, he had a small part in "Stripes" for his college pal, Ivan Reitman. He met Rick Moranis at a party, who had been writing for the CBC and performing stand-up in nightclubs in and around Toronto. He convinced the producers of "SCTV" to hire him. "SCTV" replaced "The Midnight Special" on NBC Friday late nights, where it started to get noticed, was nominated for Emmys and won. Dave and Rick improvised the McKenzie Brothers, their breakout roles, which was intended to mock the CBC's request for two minutes of Canadian content since the Canadian version of the show was two minutes longer than the U.S. version (fewer commercials). Having run short of programming, some of the McKenzies' segments crept into the U.S. version, which caught on faster in the U.S. than in Canada. They went on to do the "Great White North" album for Polygram, which went Gold, then Platinum. It is often reported that Dave was a schoolmate of Geddy Lee of Rush, guest vocalist on their Number One hit single, "Take Off", when in fact, it was Rick Moranis who was Geddy's schoolmate at Faywood Public School in Downsview, Ontario. They got an offer from MGM and decided to leave "SCTV" in 1983 to do the movie, "The Adventures of Bob & Doug McKenzie: Strange Brew", which Thomas co-wrote, co-directed, and co-starred in with Moranis. It received Canada's Golden Reel Award, as the highest grossing film of 1983. When a sequel was floated a few years ago, there were no takers and that project seems to have been permanently shelved. At the time of "Strange Brew", success was starting to bother Dave. He took a break, left Hollywood, and went home to Canada. He didn't stop working, however, and in addition to spending time with his family, he kept busy writing and producing network television pilots. He returned to Hollywood when he began to miss performing in sketch comedy. Dave co-created and co-executive produced "America's Funniest People" for ABC in 1990. Dave has appeared in numerous movies and television shows. Dave served as Executive Producer of Family Challenge for the Family Channel, through his production company, Maple Palm Productions. Most recently, as Creative Director of Los Angeles-based Animax Interactive, Dave has assembled a bullpen of Hollywood writers and artists with experience in TV, Film, and Radio. Animax Interactive is a digital animation studio that develops and produces dynamic content for entertainment and advertising clients. The company creates animation for existing brands and develops new characters for a variety of applications: TV series, commercials, short films, games, and interactive advertising, among others. They deliver Hollywood-quality concepts and execution using new technologies for television, Internet, wireless, e-mail, DVD, and other delivery systems. Samples on their website include animated shorts, featuring celebrity voiceovers by Thomas, Rick Moranis, and Paul Shaffer, demonstrate and explain Animax Interactive's business. Visit their site at http://wwwanimaxinteractive.com or click on More Info in the News section of this page. Dave lives in Malibu, California with his wife of 11 years, Kim, and their three children, John, Emily, and Harry.moreless -
Valri Bromfield
Various
Started her career as part of a comedy team with Dan Aykroyd. One of the original SCTV players. Wrote for the CBC/HBO series Kids in the Hall. Long recurring role in ABC's Grace under Fire as Grace's sister Faith. Has produced TV (Going Places series) since then, also numerous character roles in movies and made for TV features.
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Paul Flaherty
The Pittsburgh Midget
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John Candy
Various
John became interested in acting at a very early age acting around his home. In the early 70's he had small roles on such projects as "Coming Up Rosie," and "Dr. Zonk and the Zonkins." At the age of 25 - himself, Eugene Levy, Martin Short and a handful of other today-known actors created SCTV. A hilarious 30 minute comedy sketch that gained enormous popularity, enormously fast. Which gave America a glimpse of the man who would revolutionize comedy, and Hollywood in a way it had never seen. With the success of SCTV, it was obvious that it wouldn't be long before a movie beconned. Something Candy had longed to do. No longer than 1/2 a year after SCTV hit the airwaves - Candy starred in his first full feature-length film called, "It Seemed Like a Good Idea At The Time." It was a moderate success...but it propelled Candy's carreer into orbit spanning 51 films, a hit cartoon show, and countless numbers of fans!! John was a man who loved life to the fullest, and will forever be remembered in the hearts of many as, one who left a mark, that can't be erased. He was and still is, to many, the greatest comedian and among the greatest men to ever live.moreless -
Valri Bromfield
Writer
Started her career as part of a comedy team with Dan Aykroyd. One of the original SCTV players. Wrote for the CBC/HBO series Kids in the Hall. Long recurring role in ABC's Grace under Fire as Grace's sister Faith. Has produced TV (Going Places series) since then, also numerous character roles in movies and made for TV features.
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Bob Dolman
Writer
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Michael Short
Writer
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John McAndrew
Writer
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Dick Blasucci
Writer
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Jim Drake
Director
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John Blanchard
Director
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George Bloomfield
Director
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Andrew Alexander
Producer
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Patrick Whitley
Producer
