Jim Carrey
James Eugene “Jim” Carrey (born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian-American actor and stand-up comedian. Carrey is best known for his performances as multiple characters in the sketch comedy show In Living Color, as the title character in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, as lawyer Fletcher Reede in Liar Liar, and as the unlucky TV reporter Bruce Nolan in Bruce Almighty. Carrey has also achieved critical success in dramatic roles in films such as The Truman Show, Man on the Moon, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. His other roles include those in Hollywood blockbuster films such as The Mask, Dumb and Dumber, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, and Fun with Dick and Jane.
Over the span of his three-decade career he has won and been nominated for numerous awards, including a BAFTA nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind as well as winning two Golden Globe Awards for his role in The Truman Show, and Man on the Moon. He also has a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame.
Trivia:
Dropped out of high school at 16.
During the filming of Me, Myself & Irene (2000), he and the production crew attended a private music show of the band Phish on June 24th 1999 at the guitarist/vocalist house in Careystock, Vermont. There, he sang two songs with Phish, “Hey You” by Bachman Turner Overdrive and “Come Together” by The Beatles.
Ranked #54 in Empire (UK) magazine’s “The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time” list. [October 1997]
Chosen by “People” magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. [1997]
At age 10, he sent his resume to Carol Burnett.
He appeared at the 20th anniversary special for The Comedy Store wearing nothing but a sock on his penis.
Hosted “YTV Awards Show” in mid ’80s with Laurie from “Fox After Breakfast” (1996). YTV is Canada’s Youth Television station.
At one point his family lived out of their car/trailer.
Once performed “Rocket Man” on stage with Elton John at one of Elton’s concerts (1998).
At one point he and his family all worked as janitors at a factory to make a living.
Wrote himself a check for $20 million and kept it in his wallet until he earned that amount for The Cable Guy (1996).
Relationship with Renée Zellweger ended while they were already engaged and had marriage plans. [2000]
Manager is Jimmy Miller, who is the younger brother of actor-comedian Dennis Miller.
Shares the same birthday with Andy Kaufman, who he played in Man on the Moon (1999).
December, 2001: Announces his intention to become a United States citizen.
His total of nine MTV movie awards as of 2001 is the most MTV movie awards won by any person.
Although he obtained American citizenship, he still intends to keep his Canadian citizenship.
He, Michael J. Fox and the late Raymond Burr head list of top Canadians in U.S. television compiled by Banff Television Festival, June 2002.
As a child, he used to wear his tap shoes to bed just in case his parents needed cheering up in the middle of the night.
Performed his first stand-up routine (with disastrous results) in a yellow suit and tails (made by his mother) similar to what he would later wear in The Mask (1994).
Insisted that his favorite band, Cannibal Corpse, play in the movie Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994).
Melissa Womer Carrey filed court papers in Los Angeles Superior Court requesting more child support, saying that $10,000 a month “is not sufficient” to meet the needs of their 15-year-old daughter Jane, who wants to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. An April 21 hearing is scheduled on the support request. (30 January 2003)
Father of Jane Carrey with his first wife, Melissa Carrey.
Ranked #5 in Star TV’s Top 10 Box Office Stars of the 1990s (2003)
Many of his characters are ordinary men whose lives are changed by supernatural or otherwise unseen forces. As in The Mask (1994) (” (Ipkiss happens to find the mask), The Majestic (2001) (Appleton is unlucky and suffers amnesia), Liar Liar (1997) (His son’s birthday wish comes true), Bruce Almighty (2003) (Divine intervention), The Truman Show (1998) (He finds his life is a TV show), and so on.
His characters from Dumb & Dumber (1994), The Mask (1994), Batman Forever (1995), Bruce Almighty (2003), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), Man on the Moon (1999) and Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) are losers who want to be recognized and be famous.
There is some sort of a bathroom scene and car scene in almost every one of his movies.
Along with Jeff Goldblum and Damon Wayans, his voice was dubbed for certain scenes in Earth Girls Are Easy (1988).
While filming Earth Girls Are Easy (1988), it took approximately two and a half hours for him and co-stars Jeff Goldblum and Damon Wayans to be suited up as the aliens.
Many of his characters have a job or interest in TV (The Mask (1994), Batman Forever (1995), The Cable Guy (1996), The Truman Show (1998), Man on the Moon (1999), Bruce Almighty (2003))
Has said that his least favorite movie is The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969).
Owns his own $25 million dollar plane.
October 2004 – Became a U.S. citizen.
He has said that Joel, his painfully shy, lovelorn character in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), is closer to what he’s like when he’s not “on,” and that making the film lead him to reflect on his past relationships and why they didn’t work out.
Attended Agincourt Collegiate Institute (High School), in Scarborough.
Auditioned for the role of Farmer Ted in the film Sixteen Candles (1984). Eventually, actor Anthony Michael Hall won the part.
He donated a signed head-shot to Rocky Stone to be auctioned off to raise money to buy more toys for less fortunate kids as part of the Toy Mountain Campaign 2004.
While getting his start in Los Angeles, one of his frequent stops was at the Comedy Store
Went through depression in the 1980s while struggling to make ends meet as a comedian.
Wrote letters to Tupac Shakur when Tupac was in prison to help him laugh and smile. Tupac said that Carrey was his favorite actor.
Briefly attended Aldershot High School in Burlington, Ontario.
Bought a Harley Davidson motorcycle and got a vanity license plate for it which read “NO TAG” as a joke. This resulted in Jim receiving numerous traffic tickets in the mail that were meant for other people. As it turns out, when filling out a ticket, police officers write “no tag” in the license plate number slot on the ticket when the offending vehicle has no license plate. In some cases, this was interpreted as the actual license plate number, as it was in Jim’s case, which caused the tickets to be routed to him.
He was originally cast as “Dr. Evil” in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997), but he had to drop out of the role due to a scheduling conflict with Liar Liar (1997).
Was considered for the role of Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
Was considered for the role of “Willy Wonka” in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005).
His performance as “Ace Ventura” in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994) is ranked #97 on Premiere Magazine’s 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.
Was originally offered the lead role in the movie The Master of Disguise (2002).
Was a straight-A student until he dropped out.
Before Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator (2004), he spent years trying to produce and star in a film of Howard Hughes’ life as Hughes himself.
He has been nominated for 5 Golden Globes, but although more recognised for his comedic performances, the only two Globes he’s won were for dramatic performances. (The Truman Show (1998) and Man on the Moon (1999)).
Fellow Canadian comedian Mike Myers was chosen over Carrey to play in SNL.
Possibly out of slapstick to his nationality, his “Dick Harper” character of Fun with Dick and Jane (2005) has been compared by fans to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
First actor to reach 20 million dollar mark salary (for The Cable Guy (1996))
On September 13th, 2006, Carrey fired his agent of 15 years, Nick Stevens.
Along with his girlfriend Jenny McCarthy, he was among the guests at Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes’s wedding.
Often his protagonist (or antagonist) roles are associated with the color green. The Mask (1994), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), “The Riddler” in Batman Forever (1995), the alias ‘Mr. Red Green’ in Fun with Dick and Jane (2005). The Red Green reference in Fun With Dick and Jane might have been a nod to a Canadian comedy, “The Red Green Show” (1991).
Turned down the offer to induct Jerry Lawler into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2007, for he believed the people in the audience would have come to the ceremony to see him, not the legends being honored that night.
Nicole Kidman calls him her best male friend.
Is a huge fan of the cartoons Johnny Bravo, Spongebob Squarepants and Dave The Barbarian.
At one time Carrey was slated to star as the lead in “Meet the Parents” (2000) and even contributed jokes to the screenplay, such as the main character being named ‘Focker’.
With the exception of his “Ace Ventura” character, Carrey has a reputation of not repeating the same character twice in a sequel (Batman & Robin (1997)) or prequel (Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd (2003)).
Studies acting with legendary coach Larry Moss.
Is a vegetarian.
A fan of “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” (1969).
Has worked with two actresses from the TV show “Friends” (1994): Courteney Cox in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), and Jennifer Aniston in Bruce Almighty (2003).
Played a fictional man who is not (yet) aware he is on television on “The Truman Show” (1998) and a real life man who believed he was always on television “Man on the Moon” (1999).
Jack Nicholson has called him the “Jack Nicholson of the next generation”.
As of 2009, he is only one of six performers who won a Golden Globe Award as Best Lead Actor/Actress in a Motion Picture Drama without being nominated for an Oscar for that same role (his for The Truman Show (1998)). The others are Spencer Tracy in The Actress (1953), Anthony Franciosa in Career (1959), Omar Sharif in Doctor Zhivago (1965), Shirley MacLaine for Madame Sousatzka (1988) and Kate Winslet in Revolutionary Road (2008).
Was considered for the role of Ted Stroehmann in There’s Something About Mary (1998);.
As a kid, he was a member of the Royal Canadian Sea Cadets.
The characters played by him in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), The Mask (1994) and Dumb & Dumber (1994) later all became TV cartoons, whereas his “Grinch”, “Horton” and “Riddler” characters were already cartoons.
Publicist is Marleah Leslie.
Spoofed the Players’ Club TV commercials, made famous by Telly Savalas in the 1980s, on In Living Color.
He had never heard of “Doctor Who” (1963) until being offered the role of the Eighth Doctor in Doctor Who (1996) (TV), which was the key factor into turning down the role, as he felt he would cause outrage amongst Doctor Who fans if the role wasn’t played by a Doctor Who fan.
Willis O’Brien, who created the animation for King Kong, was the supervisor of special effects on this film, although by some accounts the majority of the animation was performed by Ray Harryhausen. The models (constructed by Kong’s builder Marcel Delgado) and animation are more sophisticated than Kong’s, containing more subtle gestures and even some comedic elements, such as one chase scene where Joe is riding in the back of a speeding truck and he spits at his pursuers. Despite this increased technical sophistication, this film, like Kong, features some serious scale issues, with Joe noticeably changing size between many shots. (The title character is not supposed to be as large as Kong – perhaps 10-12 feet tall.) Harryhausen has attributed these lapses to producer Cooper, who insisted Joe appear larger in some scenes for dramatic effect.
