This year marks the 75th anniversary of the birth of one of the greatest comedic talents to emerge from Canada: John Candy.
Throughout his career, he has left a comedy legacy that is unforgettable, with his many characters on the cult classic series SCTV such as Johnny LaRue, Dr. Tongue and Gil Fisher aka “The Fishin’ Musician”, not to mention memorable performances in such movies as Splash, Uncle Buck, Spaceballs and of course, Trains, Planes and Automobiles.
Sadly, John Candy left us way too soon, when he succumbed to a massive heart attack on March 4, 1994 on the Mexico set of what would be his final movie Wagons East. He was only 43 years old.
In the 31 years since his untimely death, there has been a growing appreciation of John Candy, both on and off screen. Last month, a documentary that chronicled his life and career called John Candy: I Like Me debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to enthusiastic critical acclaim and can now be seen on Amazon Prime+. And now the perfect companion piece in the form of Paul Myers’ biography John Candy: A Life in Comedy has just been released.
After reading this excellent book, three things came to mind about John Candy.
Candy and Comedy were an Organic Pairing
First, comedy and John Candy were an organic pairing. A sports injury he suffered while in high school dashed any dreams of pursuing a career in pro football. Throughout his youth, Candy lived on a steady diet of Jackie Gleason, Jack Benny, Peter Sellers, Albert Brooks, TV sitcoms, and classic comedy movies. He developed a knack for comedy that became natural to him as he apprenticed at local Toronto theatre companies, Second City (Toronto and Chicago), and SCTV before he hit the big screen. It also sharpened his comedy acumen as a writer, improviser (i.e., the Orange Whip line in The Blues Brothers movie), and the ability to create memorable characters that no other actor/comedian could interpret. He also extended that talent to his own radio show called Radio Kandy (which was the precursor to the podcast), an animated series called Camp Candy, and even his own production company, where he not only worked on his radio shows but also dabbled in directing prior to his death.
A caring and gentle soul
Second, he was a caring and gentle soul who looked after the people around him, both in front of and behind the camera. His family, friends, and colleagues always regarded him as a wonderful human being (SCTV colleague Andrea Martin referred to him as a “volcano of joy”). He was a bon vivant with a lust for life who could command a room as the center of attention for hours on end. Yet he had both heart and soul and practiced it frequently, whether it be giving his Second City/SCTV castmates roles in his movies, or providing film crew members with hot coffee or extra food (which he paid out of his own pocket) during long shooting days. Another glaring example of his generosity was during the production of his first dramatic feature, Only the Lonely in 1991, when he selflessly gave the large trailer that was issued to him to his co-star — Hollywood legend Maureen O’Hara — and settled in her smaller trailer.
Personal Baggage
Third, like many comedians, Candy carried a lot of personal baggage, especially when it came to his mortality. His father died of a heart attack at a young age of 35 when John was only five years old. His premature death haunted Candy for the rest of his life. He became almost obsessed with his own mortality and a seesaw quest to improve his weight and body image via the Pritikin diet program that he constantly went on, off, and on again.
Myers tells these sides to the life of John Candy with a great deal of diligent journalistic legwork, whether it be digging up media interviews Candy conducted throughout his career, or conducting numerous interviews with his family and contemporaries, such as Andrea Martin, Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy, Tom Hanks and Steve Martin. The end result is an all-encompassing portrait of one of the greatest comedians that Canada has ever produced. And the more we learn about him from Paul Myers’ book makes us appreciate John Candy and his talents even more, and painfully miss him as a beautiful soul just as much.
Foreword from Longtime Canadian Friend Dan Aykroyd
As longtime friend and fellow actor/comedian Dan Aykroyd so eloquently stated in his foreword to the book: “He was self-effacing, somewhat shy, courteous, courtly, generous, and hospitable, with the mien of a Knight.
John leaves behind a substantial and beautiful work legacy. Those who knew him have memories of a lovable, wickedly magnetic and charismatic human being.”
by Stuart Nulman
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