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Sunday, May 25, 2014

Born Today- Mike Myers- wikipedia

Mike Myers

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the actor. For other uses, see Michael Myers.
Mike Myers
MikeMyersJune07.jpg
Mike Myers at the Shrek the Third premiere, London in 2007
Birth name Michael John Myers
Born May 25, 1963 (age 51)
Scarborough, Ontario, Canada
Medium Film, television, stand up comedy
Nationality British, Canadian, and American
Years active 1975–present
Spouse Robin Ruzan (1993–2007; divorced)
Kelly Tisdale (2010–present); 2 children
Notable works and roles Saturday Night Live
Wayne Campbell in Wayne's World and Wayne's World 2
Austin Powers/Dr. Evil/Fat Bastard/Goldmember in the Austin Powers (film series)
Shrek in the Shrek (film series)
Michael John "Mike" Myers (born May 25, 1963)[1] is a Canadian actor, comedian, singer, screenwriter, and film producer.[2] He has played the title characters of the films Wayne's World, Austin Powers, and Shrek. He was on Saturday Night Live from 1989 to 1995.

Early life

Myers was born on May 25, 1963 in Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the son of English-born parents Eric Myers (1922–1991), an insurance agent, and his wife, Alice E. (née Hind; born 1926), an office supervisor and veteran of the Royal Air Force.[3]
Both of his parents were from Liverpool. Mike Myers has two older brothers, Peter and Paul; Paul is an indie rock singer-songwriter, broadcaster and author. The Myers brothers are of English, Scottish and Irish ancestry, and were raised Protestant.[4]
Myers reportedly holds Canadian, U.S. and British citizenship.[2] He attended Sir John A. Macdonald Collegiate Institute in Scarborough, Ontario and then graduated from Stephen Leacock Collegiate Institute, also in Scarborough. He began performing in commercials at age eight, and at ten he made a commercial for British Columbia Hydro Electric, with Gilda Radner playing his mother. When he graduated from high school, he joined the Second City Theatre.[citation needed]

Career

Early career

One of Myers' first acting jobs was in a TV commercial when he was ten years old.[3] Gilda Radner played his mother. 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 also would be on that show, the then-fledgling Saturday Night Live. At age 12, he made a guest appearance as Ari on the TV series King of Kensington.[5] Several years later he named "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery" heroine Vanessa Kensington in honor of the series.[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 UK 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". Later, Ward appeared as one of Austin Powers' band members in Ming Tea in Myers's popular movie series. 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 were full of glowing praise for Myers, claiming "Myers himself excelled [and was] strikingly adept and quick-witted, when his laughs came they were the biggest squeals of the night...this was no chore for Myers – being funny comes naturally to him – he could’ve spent the whole two hours farting the Canadian national anthem and the audience would’ve still lapped it up."[8]

Film

Myers' star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
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. The characters in the movie were based on people Myers knew growing up in the Bridlewood section of Scarborough. 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 $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 $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 would be The Cat in the Hat, released in November 2003 and starring Myers as the title character. In 2001, Myers played the title character in the DreamWorks animated film Shrek (2001). 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 2009 he did another non-comedic role, as British General Ed Fenech, in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds. In 2010 Myers returned for what is apparently the last 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.
Myers at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival.
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.[citation needed]
Myers received the MTV Generation award in June 2007, making him the second Canadian to win the award (Jim Carrey was the first in 2006), for bringing his unique style of comedy to small and big screens alike. His upcoming directorial debut, Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon, has been 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 in 1993, and Myers later referred to Ruzan as "his muse".[10] The couple filed for divorce in December 2005.[11]
In 2006, cafe owner Kelly Tisdale confirmed reports that she and Myers were dating, telling the National Enquirer, "we're actually surprised you didn't find out about us sooner." Myers and Tisdale wed in New York in the fall of 2010.[12] They have two children.[13][14]
Myers is a Dungeons & Dragons player[15] and was one of several celebrities to have participated in the Worldwide Dungeons & Dragons Game Day in 2006.[16]
Myers has played for Hollywood United F.C., a celebrity football team.[17] 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 FC.[18]

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 doing 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 The 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-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 Knocked Life
2003 Nobody Knows Anything! 'Eye' Witness
2003 The 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
ride
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
2008 The 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 Awards for Favorite voice in an Animated film
2013 Being Canadian, Sometimes Himself Documentary
2013 Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon Director Documentary

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, 1997, 2003, 2005, 2011 Saturday Night Live Various

Awards

Myers has won the following awards:

Notable SNL characters

The following characters were created and played by Myers on SNL:
Characters
  • Dieter - host of Sprockets
  • Linda Richman - hostess of Coffee Talk
  • 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)
  • 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 play ground while wearing a helmet and a harness tied to the monkey bars.
  • Kenneth Reese-Evans - host of "Theatre Stories"
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