John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian who is best known for his work in Hollywood films. Candy first rose to national prominence in the 1970s as a member of the Toronto branch of the Second City and its SCTV sketch comedy series. He rose to international fame in the 1980s with his roles in comedic films such as Stripes, Splash, Brewster's Millions, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Spaceballs, The Great Outdoors, Uncle Buck, and Cool Runnings. He also appeared in supporting roles in The Blues Brothers, National Lampoon's Vacation, Little Shop of Horrors, and Home Alone, and featured in dramatic roles in Only the Lonely and JFK.
Second City Television, commonly shortened to SCTV and later known as SCTV Network and SCTV Channel, is a Canadian television sketch comedy show that ran intermittently between 1976 and 1984. It was created as an offshoot from Toronto's Second City troupe. It is a rare example of a Canadian show that moved successfully to U.S. television, where it aired on NBC in 1981–1983.
The year 1945 in television involved some significant events. Below is a list of television-related events during 1945.
Willow is a 1988 American dark fantasy drama film directed by Ron Howard and produced by Nigel Wooll. The film was executive produced by George Lucas and written by Bob Dolman from a story by Lucas. The film stars Val Kilmer, Joanne Whalley, Warwick Davis, and Jean Marsh. Davis portrays the title character, an aspiring magician who teams up with a disaffected warrior (Kilmer) to protect a young baby princess from an evil queen (Marsh).
WKRP in Cincinnati is an American sitcom television series about the misadventures of the staff of a struggling fictional AM radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The show was created by Hugh Wilson and was based upon his experiences working in advertising sales at Top 40 radio station WQXI in Atlanta, including many of the characters. Wilson once told The Cincinnati Enquirer that he selected WKRP as the call sign to stand for C-R-A-P.
Martin Hayter Short is a Canadian and American actor, comedian, and writer. Short is known as an energetic comedian who gained prominence for his roles in sketch comedy. He has also acted in numerous films and television shows. He has received various awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. Short was awarded as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2019.
Catherine Anne O'Hara is a Canadian and American actress. She is known for her comedy work on Second City Television (1976–1984) and Schitt's Creek (2015–2020) and in films such as After Hours (1985), Beetlejuice (1988), The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), and the first two installments of the Home Alone franchise: Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992). Her other film appearances include the mockumentary films written and directed by Christopher Guest: Waiting for Guffman (1996), Best in Show (2000), A Mighty Wind (2003), and For Your Consideration (2006).
Andrea Louise Martin is an American and Canadian actress, best known for her work in the television series SCTV and Great News. She has appeared in films such as Black Christmas (1974), Wag the Dog (1997), Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001), My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016), and Little Italy (2018). She has also lent her voice to the animated films Anastasia (1997), The Rugrats Movie (1998), and Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (2001). Since 2021, she co-stars in the supernatural drama series Evil.
Frederick Allan Moranis is a Canadian actor, comedian, musician, songwriter, writer, and producer.
David William Thomas is a Canadian actor, comedian and television writer, known for being one half of the duo Bob and Doug McKenzie with Rick Moranis. He appeared as Doug McKenzie on SCTV, for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award out of two nominations, and in the film Strange Brew (1983), which he also co-directed. As a duo, they made two albums, The Great White North and Strange Brew, the former gaining them a Grammy Award nomination and a Juno Award.
Timothy Lee Reid Sr. is an American actor, comedian and film director best known for his roles in prime time American television programs, such as Venus Flytrap on WKRP in Cincinnati (1978–82), Marcel "Downtown" Brown on Simon & Simon (1983–87), Ray Campbell on Sister, Sister (1994–99) and William Barnett on That '70s Show (2004–06).
Loni Anderson is an American actress. She played receptionist Jennifer Marlowe on the CBS sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati (1978–1982), which earned her three Golden Globe Awards and two Emmy Award nominations.
The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise. It is the oldest improvisational theater troupe to be continuously based in Chicago, with training programs and live theatres in Toronto and Los Angeles. The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959, and has become one of the most influential and prolific comedy theatres in the English-speaking world. In February 2021, ZMC, a private equity investment firm based in Manhattan, purchased the Second City.
Frank Bonner was an American actor and television director widely known for his role as sales manager Herb Tarlek on the television sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati.
Grant Almerin Tinker was an American television executive who served as chairman and CEO of NBC from 1981 to 1986. Additionally, he was a co-founder of MTM Enterprises and a television producer.
Hugh Hamilton Wilson Jr. was an American film director, writer and television showrunner. He was the creator of the TV series WKRP in Cincinnati and Frank's Place, and was the director of the film comedies Police Academy and The First Wives Club.
Sparky Marcus is an American former actor.
Mark Johnson is an American film and television producer. He won the Academy Award for Best Picture for producing the 1988 film Rain Man.
Steven Kampmann is an American actor, writer, and director. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He may be best-known for his role as Kirk Devane on the first two seasons of Newhart.
PJ Torokvei was a Canadian screenwriter, actor, and television producer. A trans woman, her professional credits are generally under her deadname. In 2001, she announced to friends and family her intention to transition from her original sex at birth and undergo sex reassignment surgery.
