John Candy
John Franklin Candy was born on October 31, 1950. The son of Evangeline (Aker) and Sidney James Candy. He was born in Newmarket, Ontario. Raised in a Roman Catholic working class home, he attended Neil McNeil High School which was an all-boys Catholic school in Toronto. He found his passion for drama while attending a community college. John Candy’s first movie role was an uncredited spot in the 1973 film ’44.
Through the 1970′s he appeared in several films, It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time, Tunnel Vision, The Clown Murders, Find the Lady, The Silent Partner, Lost and Found and 1941. His fame in the 1980′s began to rise when he appeared in big budget films such as Deadly Companion, The Blues Brothers, Stripes, Heavy Metal, National Lampoon’s Vacation, Going Berserk, Splash, Brewter’s Millions, Sesame Street Presents: Follow the Bird, Summer Rental, Volunteers, Armed and Dangerous, Little Shop of Horrors, Spaceballs, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, The Great Outdoors, She’s Having a Baby, Hot to Trot, Who’s Harry Crumb?, Speed Zone and Uncle Buck.
Sadly by the 1990′s John Candy’s career began to decline. Although his roles in Master of Menace, Home Alone, The Rescuers Down Under, Nothing But Trouble, Career Opportunities, Only the Lonely, Delirious, JFK, Once Unpon a Crime, Boris and Natasha: The Movie, Rookie of the Year, Cool Runnings, Wagons East and Canadian Bacon were memorable, some were commercial failures. John Candy was nominated in 1985 for an Saturn Award for Splash and an ACE award for The Last Polka. He won an Emmy in 1981 for Outstanding writing in a Variety or Music Program for SCTV Network for the episodes The Energy Ball.
He was nominated in 1983 for The Christmas Show, Joe Walsh episode, Towering Inferno and the Robin Williams episode. Nominated again in 1982 for the Christmas Show, Cycle Two and the episode with Tony Bennett. The 43-year-old Candy died in his sleep from a heart attack on March 4, 1994, while on location in Durango, Mexico, where he was filming Wagons East. He was survived by wife of 22 years Rosemary Margaret Hobor and two children, Jennifer and Christopher. His funeral was at St. Martin of Tours Church. He was cremated, and was placed in an upper crypt in Room 7 alcove, at the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California Mausoleum.
A special service was held for John Candy by his former inprov troupe The Second City, and was broadcast over Canada. Several tributes to Candy were held at The Laugh Factory, who honored him and fellow comedian Bill Hicks. Canada’s Walk of Fame inducted him in May 2006, the John Candy Visual Arts Studio in honor of his death at his home High School. As well as a tribute hosted by Dan Aykroyd at the 2007 Grey Cup festivities in Toronto in November 2007. John Candy today remains a very beloved and missed actor and his movies are in constant replay on many networks.