March 5, 2008

Whatever Happened To: Dan Aykroyd?

When was the last time you saw this guy?


Granted, I skipped last year's I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, but before that, Dan Akyroyd's last notable role came in...Blues Brothers 2000 in 1998? Well, I skipped that, too, so I'm going to have to go back even further - to Grosse Pointe Blank in 1997. If that would have been the last role for this Canadian comedic star, all would be well. Unfortunately, most of his movies since then would be lucky to make the 2:00 AM slot on WGN: Diamonds, Pearl Harbor, Loser, Crossroads (yep, with Britney Spears), and Christmas with the Kranks. Even The First Church of Dan Aykroyd has shamefully closed its doors.



In case you've forgotten, Aykroyd was a writer and cast member for the first four seasons of "Saturday Night Live." In case you've forgotten, he went on to own the 80's (along with his SNL co-stars) - find your favorite among Trading Places, Ghostbusters, Spies Like Us, Dragnet, The Great Outdoors, and Ghostbusters II. In case you've forgotten, the man was nominated for an Academy Award for Driving Miss Daisy!

So what's he doing now? You guessed it - aside from serving as the official Hollywood consultant for the Mutual UFO Network, Aykroyd moved into the wine-making business. Go figure.




Just me, or is that a perfect role for him to play next? If there is a next role...

18 comments:

  1. "Aykroyd moved into the wine-making business"

    Hey, it worked for Francis Ford Coppola ...

    Aykroyd -- despite his Oscar nomination -- never exactly tore up the big screen. It's tough for comic actors like him to find work ... he's not exactly a leading man type. And then there's the old saying "Death is easy; comedy is hard."

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  2. You are correct, Rick. I don't know how I landed on him, but it was probably because I ran across Tommy Boy on TV the other day. He was never one to carry a film by himself (teaming up with Hanks, Belushi, Candy, Murray, etc.), but he was always the solid second billing.

    The odd thing is, most of his contemporaries continued on with decent success into the 90's and even now: Murray, Eddie Murphy, Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, Harry Shearer, Martin Short. Aykroyd and Rick Moranis fell off the boat somewhere. Or maybe they just never had the talent to begin with?

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  3. I agree with Rick that Aykroyd was never as great on the big screen as he was on TV. But you did miss a couple good film performances of his in "The House of Mirth" (2000) and "Bright Young Things" (2005) - both more serious films directed by Brits, for what it's worth.

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  4. My favorite movie role of Aykroyd's was the sleazy auto parts guy in Tommy Boy.

    On the other hand, he was the one thing I did NOT like about 50 First Dates. His jokes were just... off.

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  5. True, Pat, and I have to admit I missed both of those movies. Mentioning TV, I wonder why he couldn't come out with a new sitcom character, like Alec Baldwin did with "30 Rock." Maybe not the best comparison, but still...

    Nayana, don't tell anyone, but I actually had fun at 50 First Dates, too. And yes, I think seeing Ray Zalinksy was my muse for choosing him in the first place.

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  6. Funny you should post this...some months back, I did a Whatever Happened To... post about his Spies Like Us director John Landis. Go back and look at his filmography - he did some of the biggest flicks of the 80s and then...poof, just like that, he was gone.

    Aykroyd faded out more than disappeared, but yeah, it's strange, especially considering that never got the kind of angry backlash that Chase or Murphy have gotten over the years.

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  7. I just read your Landis post - very interesting. I'm planning to do a John Hughes list one of these days, but Landis belongs in the same class. I wonder when someone will remake The Twilight Zone. Whatever happened to that, anyway?

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  8. Looking at Landis' career I would say that he suffered the same fate as the SNL regulars that starred in all of his hits. Looking at Chevy, Akroyd, Belushi, Candy, Short, Murray, Murphy, and Ramis, none of them made it past the early-90s as a comic leading man. Honestly, even stepping away from the SNL universe when was the last time any comic actor put together even a 10-year-career without reinventing themselves as a more serious actor (Murray, Hanks, Robin Williams) or cashing in their dignity (Murphy, Martin, Robin Williams) ?? I can't think of a single guy who's managed to go more than a decade maintaining a comedy career on the big screen. Farrell might want to start banging out two sports a time.

    As a footnote I would bet that Belushi and Candy would have given it a run if death wouldn't have gotten in the way.

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  9. Yeah...What the hell did happen to Dan Akroyd??

    Yet, another question to ponder along with who the hell is that one white dude rapping in that mobile cell-phone commercial??

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  10. I worshipped Aykroyd on SNL. At the time I even liked him better than Bill Murray, though the roles are reversed now.

    He lost me after Spies Like Us. I'm not sure if I just grew up or he grew old, but his schtick just didn't work for me anymore after that.

    Luckily, there's always DVD to enjoy his past glory.

    Personal favorites: Trading Places and Ghostbusters.

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  11. Wow, excellent point, Matt. I don't know if Steve Martin ever really went super-serious drama, at least not that I can remember off the top of my head. OK, I just looked him up. I had already considered Shopgirl (which I never saw), but I think the only real drama was Novocaine, of which I can remember hardly anything (for good reason). But he's still doing The Pink Panther as a franchise now anyway. In any case, he's the exception for sure and many of them have gone on to drama. I bet Ferrell could pull it off. Maybe not a war general, but similar to the recent ones he's tried. Obviously, his current character is tired, and Semi-Pro has officially bombed. For what it's worth, I think John Candy absolutely had dramatic talent. Maybe Akyroyd just doesn't, so he got stuck?

    Well, DCmoviegirl, the wine-making biz was just too tempting it seems. I guess he was out of characters anyway. I don't know the commercial, but I'll look out for it.

    Craig, I would say I last enjoyed him in The Great Outdoors. Certainly there hasn't been much of his to get excited about for about 20 years.

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  12. I always bring up The Spanish Prisoner"when Steve Martin is mentioned. Sneaky little role in a sneaky little movie.

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  13. You must sound like quite the cinephile when you bring it up, because I've never seen it and I've seen everything. I'll have to check it out. Here's a new path for Martin:

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0988047/

    ?

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  14. Aah, I was wondering what happened to him and here you are writing a post about it. How cool is that! I miss him. Going to have a Dan Aykroyd film festival soon in my own living room ;)

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  15. Really, you were wondering about him!? Glad to have been of service. He was a good chap. Maybe you can invite him to your festival and bring him out of "retirement".

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  16. I went to court a few days ago and (unjustly) got my a** handed to me on a platter. When I turned to leave court, I could hear Aykroyd in Tommy Boy "well you got one over on me kid, savor the moment cause it wont happen again". Dan, I am forever greatful, Thank you!

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  17. Ha, my pleasure, I guess. It takes a special kind of person to think of a Tommy Boy quote on their way out of court. Welcome, and come again.

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  18. 2015-Wondering if he was still Alive after seeing him in a SNL Christmas clip.

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