-
- Oh, Jim!
- Dad.
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- I was just, uh, looking at
the old family portrait out here.
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- Well that was a fun day, wasn't it?
- Oh, yeah. Yeah.
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- Jim, I want to talk about masturbation.
-
- [Narrator] This is Eugene Levy.
-
You might know him as Jim's
awkward dad in the 'American Pie' franchise
-
or as various offbeat and nerdy
characters in Christopher Guest mockumentaries
-
or as the entitled patriarch of the
Rose family in "Schitt's Creek".
-
- Thank you for having us!
- John. No.
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But he is so much more than that.
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He's a national treasure.
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A Canadian national treasure!
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When he went to college at
McMaster University and was
-
vice president of the film board there,
-
he met legendary
director Ivan Reitman.
-
Ivan cast him in a couple of his films,
including the 1973 horror comedy 'Cannibal Girls',
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in which Eugene's character
falls prey to...
-
...well, I guess the title
says it all, you know?
-
- I think you'll enjoy what
we have prepared for you.
-
- Well we'll have two.
-
- [Narrator] But Eugene's first real
claim to fame was when he became
-
a part of Toronto's chapter of
the Second City improv troupe and,
-
along with fellow members like
Catherine O'Hara, John Candy,
-
and Rick Moranis, co-created "SCTV".
-
The sketch comedy show was
a perfect platform for Eugene
-
featuring his various
impersonations and characters.
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- How are ya!! Hahahahaha!
-
- [Narrator] After winning two Emmys
for his work on "SCTV",
-
Eugene began appearing in more films.
-
He played a pitch perfect
sleazy car salesman
-
in 'National Lampoon's Vacation'...
-
- You think you hate it now,
but wait 'til you drive it!
-
- [Narrator] ...an eccentric
scientist in 'Splash'...
-
- Be careful with that!
-
What do you think you're loading there?
This is delicate scientific equipment!
-
- [Narrator] ...and he would frequently co-star
in comedies with other "SCTV" cast members.
-
Then after popping up as two
separate characters
-
in the 'Father of the Bride' films,
-
Eugene began a long, fruitful collaboration
with writer-director Christopher Guest
-
when he starred as Dr. Allan Pearl,
a small town dentist with stars in his eyes
-
as he auditions for an amateur musical
in the improvised mockumentary 'Waiting for Guffman'.
-
- "You must have been the class clown!"
And I say, uh, no I wasn't!
-
But I sat beside the class
clown and, I... I studied him.
-
- [Narrator] In Guest's followup film, 'Best in Show',
Eugene played another nerdy character,
-
Gerry Fleck, a canine enthusiast
entering his terrier into a dog show.
-
And his sympathetic performance
as Mitch Cohen, an aging,
-
spaced-out folk singer in 'A Mighty Wind'
brought him critical acclaim.
-
- Well... we'll just tell your mother
that uh... that uh... we ate it all.
-
- [Narrator] Eugene's improvisational
skills continued to come in handy,
-
especially in scenes like this as
Jim's dad in the sex comedy 'American Pie'.
-
- Yeah.
- It almost looks like a...
-
...tropical plant or something. Underwater... thing.
- Yeah.
-
- [Narrator] He would eventually
return for seven additional
-
'American Pie' movies.
- Take your pants off!
-
- Ooooohhh!
-
- [Narrator] And hey! The narrator of
this video (there I am), worked with him
-
for a couple days on
'American Pie Presents: The Book of Love'.
-
It's definitely the best of the series.
-
Eugene also had a good string of films
going on in which he was pretty much
-
the token nerdy white guy in
comedies like 'Down to Earth',
-
'The Man', and 'Madea's
Witness Protection'.
-
And for the past five years,
after creating the comedy
-
series "Schitt's Creek" with
his son Dan Levy,
-
Eugene has been playing, really,
the only practical member of a
-
riches-to-rags family.
-
- I have a question.
- Yes, your cologne is too strong.
-
- [Narrator] As "Schitt's Creek"
comes to an end,
-
Eugene Levy will only continue
to leave his indelible mark
-
in the world of comedy.
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- One happy squaw in wigwam!
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Happy as mongoose!
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That, uh... is, of course,
from Johnny Carson,
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who, uh... one of my heroes
in a very funny bit.
