Eugene Levy Bio - Biography

Name Eugene Levy
Height 5' 10"
Naionality Canadian
Date of Birth 17 December 1946
Place of Birth Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Famous for
Toronto native Eugene Levy started performing in high school and college, where he was part of McMaster's ensemble theater and later performed at the Yale Drama Festival for three consecutive years. He then joined Toronto's celebrated Second City comedy troupe, but left after two seasons to start a new company in Pasadena, California, along with John Candy and Joe Flaherty. The venture failed and Levy made his way back to Toronto, where he found work in theater in the legendary production of “Godspell” (1972-1973), opposite ex-college mates Dave Thomas and Martin Short, Andrea Martin, Gilda Radner and Paul Shaffer. Levy made his first feature alongside Andrea Martin in director Ivan Reitman's Cannibal Girls (1973), starring as Clifford Sturges. The role brought Levy a Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival award for Medalla Sitges en Plata de Ley for Best Actor. He and Reitman first teamed up in the director's debut film, Foxy Lady (1971), where Levy worked as the “coffee boy” on the film's set.

A graduate of Second City Toronto, Levy reunited with Joe Flaherty, John Candy, Dave Thomas and Andrea Martin to star in the acclaimed sketch comedy series, “Second City TV” (Syndicated, NBC, Cinemax; 1977-1984). During his stint on the show, he became famous for his creation of characters like awkward newscaster Earl Camembert, the humped assistant to John Candy's Dr. Tongue, obnoxious comic Bobby Bittman and used car salesman Al Peck, among others. He was also popular for impersonating Floyd the barber from “The Andy Griffith Show,” Ricardo Montalban, mustached TV personality/movie critic Gene Shalit, James Caan, Lorne Greene, Rex Reed, Sean Connery, and Howard Cosell, to name a few. Aside from performing, Levy also served as a writer and jointly won two Emmys in the category of Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program for his work in “SCTV Network 90” on NBC.

Levy made his TV producing debut as executive producer, performer and co-writer of the HBO special The Last Polka (1985), a mock documentary on a fictional polka group. His TV directorial debut arrived three years later with another expanded skit, Autobiographies: The Enigma of Bobby Bittman (Cinemax, 1988), in which he also served as executive producer and writer, and starred as the title character. He then directed a TV special for Martin Short, I, Martin Short, Goes Hollywood (1989). Levy could also be seen acting in a number of comedy films throughout the 1980s. He appeared as a car salesman in Second City alumni Harold Ramis' National Lampoon's Vacation (1983), costarring John Candy, and with Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah in the Ron Howard-directed Splash (1984). He shared top billing with Candy in Mark L. Lester's Armed and Dangerous (1986) and was featured in the Robin Williams vehicle Club Paradise (1986), also directed by Ramis. He made his TV movie acting debut with a small part in Bride of Boogedy (1987), a Disney Sunday Movie.

Multi-talented Levy kicked off the 1990s by making his debut as a series creator for “Maniac Mansion” (1990), a fantasy sitcom for the Family Channel loosely adapted from a Lucasfilm computer game which he also wrote, directed episodes and executive produced. In 1992, he directed his first feature, Once Upon a Crime, starring Candy and James Belushi, and later that same year helmed his first TV film, Partners 'n Love, Family Channel. He rejoined Steve Martin in 1994 to direct the comic actor in the premiere episode of “The Martin Short Show.” 1994 also saw Levy pen a song, “The Sodbusters Song” for Sodbusters, a western/comedy he also directed, co-wrote and executive produced. As a movie actor, he dotted his resume with performances in such movies as Peter Hyams' Stay Tuned (1992) and I Love Trouble (1994), and appeared as the mysterious neighbor of Steve Martin in the sequel Father of the Bride Part II (1995).

1996 marked a rebirth for Levy's career when he co-wrote, with Christopher Guest, and acted in Guest's comedy film, Waiting for Guffman. He nabbed an Independent Spirit nomination for Best Screenplay. After a series of TV performances, including playing Gordon Schermerhorn in the ABC sitcom “Hiller & Diller” (1997), and subsequent supporting parts in films like Guest's Almost Heroes (1998), the actor gained additional prominence with his role as Jason Biggs' father in the highly successful comedy American Pie (1999). Delivering a notable performance, he was handed a Blockbuster Entertainment for Favorite Supporting Actor – Comedy and an American Comedy nomination for Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture. Still in 1999, he starred with Linda Hamilton in The Secret Life of Girls and had a small part in the indie-comedy Dogmatic.

With his career refreshed, Levy re-teamed with Guest in 2000 to write the satirical comedy Best in Show, in which Guest also cast Levy in the role of Gerald 'Gerry' Fleck, a man with (literally) two left feet. The film was a critical success and Levy's performance became one of the movie's highlights. For his effort, Levy picked up two Canadian Comedy awards for Pretty Funny Male Performance and Pretty Funny Writing, and earned a Writers Guild of America nomination for Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen. Before reprising his role for the second installment American Pie 2 (2001), from which he netted his next Canadian Comedy for Pretty Funny Male Performance, Levy landed a supporting role in the big screen remake Down to Earth (2001) and then played the significant role of a glossy Bloomingdale's salesman in the John Cusack-Kate Beckinsale romantic vehicle Serendipity (2001). He also starred as TV show director Gil Bender in the Fox mid-season replacement series “Greg the Bunny,” a gig he held from 2002 to 2004.

In 2003, Levy once again became the center of attention with his work in the outrageous comedy A Mighty Wind, directed by Guest. He offered an outstanding supporting turn as Mitch Cohen and won a Canadian Comedy, a Golden Satellite, a New York Film Critics Circle, and shared a Florida Film Critics Circle for Best Ensemble Cast for his performance in the film. Levy also collaborated with Guest for the script, which won a Canadian Comedy for Film - Pretty Funny Writing and was nominated for an Independent Spirit for best screenplay and for his contribution in the theme song, he jointly received such awards as a Grammy for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, a Broadcast Film Critics Association for Best Song and a Seattle Film Critics for Best Music. The same year, he also played the supporting role of the edgy pal of Steve Martin in the hilarious hit comedy Bringing Down the House, appeared as the high school principal in Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd, as well as reprised his most remarkable part, Jim's Dad, for American Wedding.

Next, the acclaimed performer portrayed a fanatical truant officer in New York Minute (2004), opposite Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, starred with Samuel L. Jackson in Les Mayfield's The Man (2005) and played Carmen Electra's husband in Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005). In 2006, he co-wrote and starred in For Your Consideration, a parody of Hollywood and the Academy Awards directed by Guest. He also provided the vocals of a porcupine named Lou in the animated Over the Hedge (2006), based on the United Media Syndicate comic strip, and Clovis in Curious George (2006), an animated-adventure about an wondering little monkey (voiced by Frank Welker).

Eugene Levy Photos