Early Life
Famed for his comedic roles in classic 80’s movies, John Candy was born in Toronto, Canada, in the year 1950. The Ontario native, full name John Franklin Candy, was born on October 31st, a day notable for Halloween fun and the arrival of a much-loved funnyman. John’s parents lived in East York, a middle-class suburb to the east of Toronto. It was here that his father passed away when John was barely 4 years of age, and here that he was educated at Holy Cross Separate School, returning home at day’s end to be cared for by his mother and aunts. John finished his school days at Neil McNeil High School, moving on to study economics and acting at Toronto’s Centennial Community College. It was 1969 and life was about to take a big turn for the larger than life comedian.
Torn between his college classes and his acting aspirations, John made the pivotal move to hone his acting abilities and his comedic timing in a nearby underground theater, eventually gaining enough confidence to alter the course of his life. In 1971 John Candy waved goodbye to college life, boosted on his way by long time friend and associate, Dan Akroyd. He auditioned for the prestigious Second City Comedy Troupe, a legendary venue that gave us comic icons such as John Belushi and Bill Murray, and was accepted into their company. The next few years saw his life transformed by productions with the troupe in Chicago, but he returned to Toronto in 1974 to join other Canadian comedy greats in the SCTV comedy-making machine, one of the finest examples of comic antics ever produced in Canada. In 1979, having fully established his comic genius, John Candy married Rosemary Margaret Hobor. They would later bring up two children, Jennifer and Christopher.
Career Highlights
Having taken his first dip into the big time in Stripes and The Blues Brothers (1980), the Tom Hanks comedy vehicle, Splash, is where his name began to carry real weight. A co-starring role in Brewster’s Millions led to his first starring part in Summer Rental. His rich resume of comedic parts was growing apace, building his legendary status. Indeed, as great movies go, Uncle Buck was and still is an international phenomenon, and The Great Outdoors is a must-see for aficionados of 80’s comedies.
John Candy passed away on March the 4th 1994. His career had been waning since the arrival of the 1990’s, and he was busy recapturing his rightful place among top comedy actors when he suffered a fatal heart attack in Durango, Mexico. His last finished movie was Canadian Bacon and his tragic loss occurred while on location filming Wagons East. Candy recently made Canadian news when he was inducted to Canada’s Walk of Fame.
