We all love comedians they entertain us and bring so much joy and laughter to our life. Behind all the joy there may lay some history of trials and tribulations. It is a hard world out there and most of us cannot handle it, but imagine living this life as a celebrity.
We see them on our TV screens and under the Hollywood microscope. Yes they do their job by entertaining us but sometimes the demands of entertainment can take a toll on the best of them. Let’s focus on this particular issue and how the “improv” king Chris Farley was made a star.
We all knew and loved the talented Chris Farley for being an entertainer. But there are things that most of us do not know about the talented actor/comedian. He was the middle child of 5 siblings and attend a catholic school growing up. He was typical class clown and made his classmates laugh all the time. I guess you can say that he already knew what he wanted to do in life, make people laugh. Later on in his life he attended Marquette University where he studied communications and theater.
It wasn’t until after he graduating that he started to venture out and look for acting jobs. He did find work and started to perform with the Ark Improv Theater Group and Improv Olympic Theatre in Chicago. These were his first two jobs that eventually made him a star. During his time with Improv Olympic, Chris caught his big break and was discovered. Lorne Micheals the producer of Saturday night Live saw Chris and loved the talent that he had and added him to the SNL cast.
In 1990 Chris Farley made his SNL debut and made the world laugh with all his infamous and unforgettable skits. Who can forget the famous and still talked about Chris Farley SNL skit with Patrick Swayze. They were both were Chippendale dancers It was obvious that Chris was a heavy set man. He used his weight to humor the world, he was not shy at all. That scene will live on forever!
As he soared in popularity while working for SNL he was also privelged to appear with fellow SNL cast mates in several movies. He would be given role’s in Wanye’s World starring Micheal Myers and Dana Carvey and Coneheads. It wasn’t too long before he landed his star role in the movie “Tommy Boy“, with follow comedic partner David Spade. Tommy Boy was a hit and solidified Chris Farley as comedic legend. It was after Tommy Boy that Farley would be recognized as comedic genius. He would be recruited for several more movies in a course of two years.
During his stardom Chris faced his inner demons and tried to escape with alcohol and drugs. It was an ongoing battle that his manager and friends seen him go through. Even though he tried to get helped plenty of times he still was caught up in that world. At the tender age of 33 Chris Farley died of an overdose of morphine and cocaine. He was loved by many his work will continue to live on. Farley left an everlasting imprint in Hollywood and has proved that actors use the improv channel to succeed on the big stage.