Eugene Levy Biography
Born: December 17, 1946
Date of Birth: December 17, 1946
Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Eugene Levy attended McMaster University and was vice-president of the school's film board. Levy's first film came about when founding member of the film board Ivan Reitman, director of Ghostbusters and Six Days Seven Nights, cast Levy in Cannibal Girls in 1973.
In 1976, Eugene joined the Toronto-based Second City Theatre and eventually met a circle of comics that would all go on to star in comedic films for years to come. He left the ensemble in 1981, but overlapped his time with Second City with a television offshoot of the group called SCTV (Canada's equivalent to Saturday Night Live) from 1976 to 1984.
The troupe included Catherine O'Hara, John Candy, Joe Flaherty, Rick Moranis, Martin Short, and Andrea Martin. Aside from performing, the group wrote all of their material and developed long-standing characters throughout the run of the series. They won two Emmys for Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program in '82 and '83.
Eugene went on to make appearances in notable comedies like Splash (1984), Vacation (1983), Club Paradise (1986) and Multiplicity (1996). He never seemed to lose touch with his SCTV cohorts, appearing in Father of the Bride Part II with Martin Short, and The Last Polka (which Levy wrote) and Armed and Dangerous were only two of his colloborations with the late John Candy. Levy co-wrote Waiting for Guffman (1996) with Christopher Guest (of This is Spinal Tap), and the project brought Levy back together with Catherine O'Hara.
His cameo as Jim's Dad in American Pie, the summer teen sex comedy of 1999, introduced Eugene to a whole new generation. He has since appeared in two sequels, and teamed up again with Guest to write Best in Show (2000) and A Mighty Wind (2003), which brought together many of the cast members from their previous film, Waiting for Guffman.
In 2004, along with Christopher Guest and Michael McKean, Eugene won a Grammy award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture for the title song from A Mighty Wind. In 2012, he reunited with the entire American Pie cast for American Reunion and starred in the Tyler Perry movie Madea's Witness Protection (2012). He can also be heard voicing the character of Charlie in the animated sequel Finding Dory (2016).
In 2015, Eugene and his son Dan created the Canadian sitcom Schitt's Creek, in which they star as father and son, alongside Eugene's frequent co-star, Catherine O'Hara. The series was a runaway hit, enjoying six seasons, and winning numerous awards. Additionally, Eugene has won three Canadian Screen Awards for his performance on the show.
In 2020, Eugene won an Emmy for his work on Schitt's Creek, while the show also won Best Comedy Series.
Eugene is married to TV writer Deborah Devine, and together they have two children.