Mike Myers
| Mike Myers | |
|---|---|
 Myers at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival | |
| Born |
Michael John Myers May 25, 1963 Scarborough, Ontario, Canada |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Citizenship | Canada/United Kingdom/United States |
| Occupation | Actor, comedian, musician, writer, film producer, film director |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Robin Ruzan (m. 1993; div. 2007) Kelly Tisdale (m. 2010) |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Paul Myers (brother) |
|
Comedy career | |
| Medium | Stand-up, film, television, theatre, books |
| Genres | Observational comedy, satire, black comedy, self-deprecation, cringe comedy, deadpan |
| Subject(s) | American culture, American politics, current events, religion, Jewish culture, race relations, human sexuality |
Michael John "Mike" Myers (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, and film producer, who also holds British and American citizenship.[1] He is known for his run as a featured performer on Saturday Night Live from 1989 to 1995, and for playing the title roles in the Wayne's World, Austin Powers, and Shrek films. He also directed the documentary film Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon, and had a small role in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds in 2009.
Early life
Myers was born on May 25, 1963[2] in Scarborough, Ontario, the son of English-born parents Eric Myers (1922–1991), an insurance agent, and his wife, Alice E. Hind (born 1926), an office supervisor and a veteran of the Royal Air Force.[3]
Both his parents were from Liverpool and he has two older brothers, Paul, an indie rock singer-songwriter, broadcaster and author, and Peter, a Sears Canada employee.
The family is of English, Scottish and Irish ancestry. Myers was raised Protestant.[4]
Myers reportedly holds Canadian, U.S. and British citizenship.[1]
He attended Sir John A. MacDonald Collegiate Institute in Scarborough and then graduated from Stephen Leacock Collegiate Institute, also in Scarborough.
In 1986, Myers joined the Second City Theatre.[5]
Career
Early career
Myers began performing in commercials at the age of two. At the age of ten, he made a commercial for British Columbia Hydro, with Gilda Radner playing his mother.[3] A few months later, according to Myers, his brother was teasing him about his "girlfriend [Radner] being on some stupid show on Saturday". Myers swore that one day he would also be on the same show, the then-fledgling Saturday Night Live. At the age of 12, he made a guest appearance as Ari on the TV series King of Kensington.[6]
Myers graduated from high school in 1982 and was immediately accepted into the Second City Canadian touring company, after which he moved to the United Kingdom, where in 1985 he was one of the founding members of The Comedy Store Players, an improvisational group based at The Comedy Store in London.
The next year, he starred in the British children's TV program Wide Awake Club, parodying the show's normal exuberance with his own "Sound Asleep Club", in partnership with Neil Mullarkey.
He returned to Toronto and Second City in 1986 as a cast member in the Second City's Toronto main stage show. In 1988, he moved from Second City in Toronto to Chicago. In Chicago, he trained, performed, and taught at the Improv Olympic. He made numerous appearances, including as Wayne Campbell, on Toronto's Citytv in the early 1980s, on the alternative video show City Limits hosted by Christopher Ward.
Myers also appeared as Wayne Campbell in the music video for Ward's Canadian hit "Boys and Girls".
The Wayne Campbell character was featured extensively in the 1986 summer series It's Only Rock & Roll, produced by Toronto's Insight Production Company for CBC Television. Wayne appeared both in studio and in a series of location sketches directed and edited by Allan Novak. Myers wrote another sketch, Kurt and Dieter co-starring with Second City's Dana Andersen and also directed by Novak, which would later turn into the popular "Sprockets" sketch on Saturday Night Live.[7]
On July 3, 2011, Myers returned to The Comedy Store in London to reprise his role "for one night only" with the improvisational troupe (The Comedy Store Players). The UK comedy website Chortle was full of glowing praise for Myers.[8]
Film
In 1992, Myers and Dana Carvey adapted Wayne's World into a full-length motion picture based on the SNL sketch. It was among the most successful movies of the year and the following year a sequel was released—Wayne's World 2. That year Myers also starred in So I Married an Axe Murderer, which garnered a cult following.
After Wayne's World 2, Myers took a hiatus from television. Myers returned to acting in 1997 with the film Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, then a sequel in 1999, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, finally topping it off with Austin Powers in Goldmember in 2002.
Myers played both the title role (Austin Powers) and the villain (Dr. Evil), as well as other characters, in all three Austin Powers films. In 1998, he played one of his rare non-comedic roles in the film 54: Steve Rubell, proprietor of New York City's famous Studio 54, a 1970s discotheque. The film was moderately successful, and Myers's performance was widely praised. Myers later parodied the club as "Studio 69" in Goldmember.[7]
In June 2000, Myers was sued by Universal Pictures for US$3.8 million for backing out of a contract to play Dieter, the SNL character, in a feature film. Myers said he refused to honor the US$20 million contract because he did not want to cheat moviegoers with an unacceptable script—one that he himself had written. Myers countersued, and a settlement was reached after several months where Myers agreed to make another film with Universal. That film was The Cat in the Hat, which was released in November 2003 and starred Myers as the title character.
In 2001, Myers provided the voice of Shrek in the DreamWorks animated film of the same name, having taken over the role after original planned voice actor Chris Farley died in December 1997. He reprised this role in Shrek 4-D (a theme park ride) in 2003, Shrek 2 (2004), Shrek the Third, and the Christmas special Shrek The Halls, both in 2007.
In 2008, Myers co-wrote, co-produced and starred in The Love Guru.
In 2009 he played the part of British general Ed Fenech, in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds. In 2010 Myers returned for the latest film in the Shrek series, Shrek Forever After.[7]
Myers made a cameo appearance in Britney Spears' music video Boys as his film character Austin Powers.
Myers is a member of the band Ming Tea along with The Bangles' guitarist and vocalist Susanna Hoffs and musician Matthew Sweet. They performed the songs "BBC" and "Daddy Wasn't There" from the Austin Powers movies.
In a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian, he was voted among the top 50 comedy acts ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders. During a CBS interview in 2007, he noted that he normally takes three years between films. He spends one year "living his life" and then writes various screenplays, develops characters, practices them in front of live audiences, and then selects one of the screenplays to film. Myers noted this was the Marx Brothers' procedure for developing their film material.
Myers received the MTV Generation Award in June 2007, making him the second Canadian to win the award (following Jim Carrey in 2006), for bringing his unique style of comedy to small and big screens alike. His directorial debut, Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon, was selected to be screened in the Gala Presentation section at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival.[9]
Personal life
Myers began dating actress and comedy writer Robin Ruzan in the late 1980s after meeting at a hockey game in Chicago, during which Myers caught a puck and used the incident as an icebreaker to strike up a conversation with Ruzan. The couple married on 22 May 1993, and Myers later referred to Ruzan as "his muse".[10][11] The couple filed for divorce in December 2005.[12]
In 2006, café owner Kelly Tisdale confirmed reports that she and Myers were dating. Myers and Tisdale wed in New York in a secret ceremony in the fall of 2010.[13] They have three children: son Spike Alan (b. 2011) and daughters, Sunday Molly (b. 2014) and Paulina Kathleen (b. 2015).[14][15][16]
Myers is a Dungeons & Dragons player[17] and was one of several celebrities to have participated in the Worldwide Dungeons & Dragons Game Day in 2006.[18]
He supports the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League.[19] He named two characters in the first Austin Powers movie Commander Gilmour and General Borschevsky, after then-Maple Leafs players Doug Gilmour and Nikolai Borschevsky.
Myers has played for Hollywood United F.C., a celebrity soccer team.[20] He played in the 2010 Soccer Aid for UNICEF UK football match, England vs. R.O.W (Rest of the World) and scored his penalty during a sudden death shootout after the game ended 2–2 (June 6, 2010). The Rest of the World team beat England for the first time since the tournament started. Myers is a fan of Liverpool F.C..[21]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Wayne’s World | Wayne Campbell | Also Writer MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo shared with Dana Carvey Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance Soundtrack - Waynes World Theme Film debut |
| 1993 | So I Married an Axe Murderer | Charlie McKenzie/ Stuart McKenzie | First film in which Myers portrayed more than one role. |
| 1993 | Wayne's World 2 | Wayne Campbell | Also Writer Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo shared with Dana Carvey |
| 1997 | Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery | Austin Powers / Dr. Evil | Also Writer/ Producer MTV Movie Award for Best Dance Sequence MTV Movie Award for Best Villain Nominated — Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actor – Comedy Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance |
| 1998 | 54 | Steve Rubell | Nominated — Csapnivalo Award for Best Male Performance |
| 1998 | Thin Pink Line, TheThe Thin Pink Line | Tim Broderick | |
| 1998 | Pete's Meteor | Pete | |
| 1999 | Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me | Austin Powers / Dr. Evil / Fat Bastard |
Also Writer/ Producer American Comedy Award for Funniest Actor in a Motion Picture (Leading Role) Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Villain Canadian Comedy Award for Film – Performance – Male Canadian Comedy Award for Film – Writing – Original MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo shared with Verne Troyer MTV Movie Award for Best Villain Teen Choice Award for Film – Choice Sleazebag as Fat Bastard. Nominated — Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actor – Comedy Nominated — Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie Actor Nominated — Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie Couple shared with Heather Graham Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Fight shared with Verne Troyer Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Musical Performance shared with Verne Troyer Nominated — Teen Choice Award for Film – Choice Chemistry shared with Mindy Sterling Soundtrack - Just the Two of Us |
| 1999 | Mystery, Alaska | Donnie Shulzhoffer | |
| 2001 | Shrek | Shrek | Voice role Nominated — Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Team shared with Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz |
| 2002 | Austin Powers in Goldmember | Austin Powers / Dr. Evil / Fat Bastard / Goldmember |
Also Writer/ Producer Canadian Comedy Award for Film – Pretty Funny Male Performance Canadian Comedy Award for Film – Pretty Funny Writing MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance Nominated — Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie Actor Nominated — Empire Award for Best Actor Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Villain Nominated — Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actor – Comedy Soundtrack - Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem) |
| 2003 | Nobody Knows Anything! | 'Eye' Witness | |
| 2003 | Cat in the Hat, TheThe Cat in the Hat | The Cat in the Hat | Nominated — Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie Actor Nominated — Razzie Award for Worst Actor Nominated — Razzie Award for Worst Screen Couple (with either Thing 1 or Thing 2) |
| 2003 | Shrek 4-D | Shrek | Voice role Amusement Park Attraction |
| 2003 | View from the Top | John Witney | |
| 2004 | Shrek 2 | Shrek | Voice role Nominated — Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie Highest Grossing film of his acting career |
| 2006 | Home | Himself | |
| 2007 | Shrek the Third | Shrek | Voice role Favorite Voice For an Animated Movie |
| 2008 | Love Guru, TheThe Love Guru | Guru Maurice Pitka/Himself | Also Writer/Producer Razzie Award for Worst Actor Razzie Award for Worst Screenplay Razzie Award for Worst Picture Nominated — National Movie Award for Best Performance – Male |
| 2009 | Inglourious Basterds | Gen. Ed Fenech | Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Performance by an Ensemble Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
| 2010 | Shrek Forever After | Shrek | Voice role Nominated — Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Voice in an Animated Film |
| 2012 | Oscar Etiquette | Sir Cecil Worthington | Short film |
| 2013 | Being Canadian, Sometimes | Himself | Documentary |
| 2013 | Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon | Himself | Director, Documentary |
| 2015 | I Am Chris Farley | Himself | Hodgee Films and Network Entertainment documentary based on the life of Chris Farley |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | King of Kensington | Ari | Episode: "Scout's Honour" |
| 1977 | Range Ryder and the Calgary Kid | Himself | |
| 1979 | The Littlest Hobo | Tommy | Episode: "Boy on Wheels" |
| 1980 | Bizarre | Timmy Byner | |
| 1985 | John and Yoko: A Love Story | Delivery Boy (uncredited) | |
| 1987 | Meet Julie | Voice | |
| 1987 | It's Only Rock & Roll | Wayne Campbell | |
| 1989 | Elvis Stories | Cockney Man | |
| 1989–95 | Saturday Night Live | Various | |
| 1997 | Saturday Night Live | Himself (host) | |
| 2011 | Saturday Night Live | Wayne Campbell | Episode hosted by Dana Carvey |
| 2014 | Monty Python Live (Mostly) | Himself | |
| 2014 | Saturday Night Live | Dr. Evil | |
| 2015 | Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special[22] | Wayne Campbell | |
| 2015 | Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | Himself | Season 2, Episode 31 |
Awards
- Four American Comedy Awards (Best Film Performance (Male) and Best Writing in 2003 and 2000, for Austin Powers in Goldmember and Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, respectively)
- The 2000 American Comedy Award for Best Lead Actor for Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me.
- An Emmy Award in 1989 for Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program, for Saturday Night Live. He has also been nominated for two other Emmy Award.
- He has won seven MTV Movie Awards.
- In 2003 he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.[23]
- Nominated for the Worst Actor and Worst Screen Couple Razzie Awards in 2004, for The Cat in the Hat.
- For contributions to the motion picture industry, Mike Myers was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7042 Hollywood Boulevard.[24]
- He was awarded the Lucille Ball Legacy of Laughter Award at the 2008 TV Land Awards. His award was presented to him by Justin Timberlake, his co-star in The Love Guru.
- Two Razzie Awards in 2008, for Worst Actor and along with co-writer Graham Gordy Worst Screenplay for The Love Guru. The film also won Worst Film and secured 4 other nominations.
- In 2015, his face was put on a stamp by Canada Post.[25]
Notable Saturday Night Live characters
- Dieter – host of Sprockets
- Linda Richman – hostess of Coffee Talk
- Japanese Game Show Host
- "Handsome Actor" Lank Thompson
- Simon – a little boy who does drawings in the bath and complains about having "prune hands" (the theme song for this segment was a slightly modified version of the theme song from Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings by Edward MacLachlan)
- Wayne Campbell (SNL, the Wayne's World films)
- Pat Arnold (SNL, Bill Swerski's Superfans)
- Stuart Rankin – proprietor of "All Things Scottish"
- Lothar (Of the Hill People)
- Ed Miles (Middle-Aged Man) – An older man who helps young people with their problems
- Phillip – A child of the age of six (though in the sketch when arguing with another girl he claims he is six and a half, six and four-fifths, and six and infinity plus one.) who is hypoglycemic and hyperactive (quote: "I'm a hyper hypo"). Phillip appears in at least two sketches, one with Nicole Kidman and the other with Kim Basinger. The sketch centers on him at a playground while wearing a helmet and a harness tied to the monkey bars.
- Kenneth Reese-Evans – host of "Theatre Stories"
- In December 2014, Myers appeared in a cameo during the cold open as his character Dr. Evil, a super villain known for his appearances in the Austin Powers film series where he called out North Korea and Sony, in particular the logic of Kim Jong-un, and the 2014 Sony hack. as well as making comparisons between the Guardians of Peace and Grand Old Party.[26][27]
References
- 1 2 Paul Harrison (2005). Mike Myers. Heinemann-Raintree Library. p. 7. ISBN 978-1-4109-1088-2.
- ↑ "Mike Myers Biography at". TV Guide. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
- 1 2 "Mike Myers Biography at". TalkTalk. Retrieved 2013-05-01.
- ↑ Elson, Peter (2002-07-27). "Mike Myers: International Man of Mirth". Liverpool Daily Post. Retrieved 2008-10-23.
- ↑ "Mike Myers". The Second City - 50 Years of Funny. Retrieved 2015-05-31.
- ↑ "Scout's Honour".
- 1 2 3 Mike Myers at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ Butler, Marc. "Mike Myers & The Comedy Store Players 3/7/2011". Chortle Live Review. Chortle. Retrieved 2011-07-07.
- ↑ "Supermensch The Legend of Shep Gordon". TIFF. Retrieved 2013-08-06.
- ↑ "Mike and Kelly wed in secret". New York Post. 2011-03-04. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
- ↑ "Mike Myers: Why does everyone want to get into bed with him?". independent.co.uk. July 13, 2002. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
- ↑ "Mike Myers, wife file for divorce: report". MSN. 2005-12-24. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
- ↑ "Mike Myers secretly marries longtime girlfriend". CTV. 2011-03-04. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
- ↑ Mike Myers and wife welcome third child, November 2015
- ↑ "Mike Myers becomes first-time father to baby boy". CTV News. 2011-09-29. Retrieved 2011-10-01.
- ↑ "Mike Myers Welcomes Daughter". People. April 11, 2014. Retrieved April 22, 2014.
- ↑ "Mike Myers". Inside the Actors Studio. Season 7. Episode 9. 2001-02-04.
- ↑ "Dungeons and Dragons Game Day at London Dungeon". Viewlondon.co.uk. 2007-11-03. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
- ↑ "Mike Myers as proud as ever of Canadians - Sportsnet.ca". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
- ↑ Philip, Robert (2008-03-05). "Frank Leboeuf ready to act on the ball". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
- ↑ Bourne, Dianne (May 27, 2010). "US actor Mike Myers to play football in Manchester for charity". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved November 9, 2013.
- ↑ "WATCH: ‘Wayne’s World’ Returns to ‘SNL’ to Make Kanye West Sit Down". Variety. February 16, 2015. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
- ↑ "Mike Myers". Canada's Walk of Fame.
- ↑ "Hollywood Walk of Fame database". HWOF.com.
- ↑ "Canada Post honours Canuck comedians with new stamp series". cbc.ca. 29 August 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
- ↑ Leeds, Sarene (December 22, 2014). "Mike Myers’ Dr. Evil Schools North Korea and Sony Pictures". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
- ↑ "Dr. Evil Returns on ‘SNL’ to Talk Sony and North Korea". Variety. December 21, 2014. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
External links
- Mike Myers at the Internet Movie Database
- Mike Myers on National Public Radio in 2008
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