Andrew Alexander
Encyclopedia
Andrew Alexander is a theatre, film, and television producer, known most widely for his leadership and co- ownership of The Second City
, and for executive producing the television show SCTV.
After Ryerson, Alexander worked around Toronto in the arts scene, most notably at Global Village Theatre, producing late night shows. He was eventually hired by the Ivanhoe Theatre in Chicago, where he met Bernard Sahlins
, owner and co-founder of The Second City
.
At the time, The Second City's Toronto location was failing. Alexander offered to assume the Toronto theatre's debts in exchange for the rights to operate The Second City in Canada. Bernie Sahlins agreed, and in 1974 Andrew Alexander took over The Second City Toronto.
, John Candy
, Dan Aykroyd
, Andrea Martin
, Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy
, Martin Short
, Joe Flaherty
and others. Two years later, Alexander joined Len Stuart in starting The Second City Entertainment Company, a TV and Film production company. Their first production was the television show SCTV
. After almost a decade of developing the Entertainment Company, Andrew Alexander and Len Stuart became owners of The Second City Chicago in 1985. Alexander has actively led The Second City in Canada and the US since then.
Andrew Alexander has produced or executive produced over 200 Second City revues in Canada and the United States. Over the past 35 years, The Second City has operated resident theatres and/or improv training facilities at one time or another in Toronto
, Chicago
, Detroit, Las Vegas
, Los Angeles
, Edmonton
, London
, Ontario
, New York
, and Cleveland. Additionally, Alexander expanded The Second City’s Training, Touring and Corporate Services divisions from niche offerings to boutique business lines in their own right. Most recently, Alexander has expanded the Second City TV and Film Division to include offices in Los Angeles and Toronto.
Andrew Alexander has developed television programming for ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox Television, Comedy Central
, HBO, Showtime, A&E
and the CBC
. Andrew Alexander has had co-production deals with MGM Television, Imagine Films, Disney Studios, United Artists and has produced movies and television shows with Ed Asner
, Dan Aykroyd
, James Belushi
, Bill Murray
, Chris Farley
, Bonnie Hunt
, Shelley Long
, Andrea Martin
, Steve Carell
, John Candy
, Mike Myers, Catherine O’Hara, Harold Ramis
, Martin Short
, Tina Fey
and Stephen Colbert
.
Recently, Andrew Alexander was executive producer for Second City’s Next Comedy Legend on CBC (2007). Andrew Alexander was also executive producer of the Canadian feature film Intern’s Academy (2004) written by Dave Thomas and featuring Dan Aykroyd, Dave Foley, Dave Thomas and Maury Chaykin.
Andrew Alexander was a founding shareholder of the Pay Television service, Super Channel, and served on the Board of Directors.
Andrew Alexander serves on the Columbia College Board of Trustees. He is Chair of the Gilda's Club Toronto Honorary Board, an Honorary Member of the Chicago Gilda's Club Board and has also served on the Board of the League of Chicago Theaters and the Canadian Walk of Fame. In 2008, Andrew Alexander facilitated a reunion of the cast of SCTV in Toronto launching The Alumni Fund, a fund that, in its first months, raised over $200,000 to assist actors and support staff during times of illness or economic hardship.
The Second City
The Second City is a improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
, and for executive producing the television show SCTV.
Early life
Andrew Alexander was born in 1944 in London, England. His father, in the aeronautical industry, moved the family to Canada in 1951. He studied at Tri-State College in Indiana and Ryerson University in Toronto.After Ryerson, Alexander worked around Toronto in the arts scene, most notably at Global Village Theatre, producing late night shows. He was eventually hired by the Ivanhoe Theatre in Chicago, where he met Bernard Sahlins
Bernard Sahlins
Bernard "Bernie" Sahlins is an American writer, director and comedian best known as a founder of The Second City improvisational comedy troupe with Paul Sills and Howard Alk in 1959. Sahlins also opened the Second City Theatre in Toronto in 1973....
, owner and co-founder of The Second City
The Second City
The Second City is a improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
.
At the time, The Second City's Toronto location was failing. Alexander offered to assume the Toronto theatre's debts in exchange for the rights to operate The Second City in Canada. Bernie Sahlins agreed, and in 1974 Andrew Alexander took over The Second City Toronto.
Career at The Second City
As head of the Toronto theatre, Alexander produced and developed live theatre revues and launched the careers of comedians Gilda RadnerGilda Radner
Gilda Susan Radner was an American comedian and actress, best known as one of the original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, for which she won an Emmy Award in 1978.-Early life:...
, John Candy
John Candy
John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...
, Dan Aykroyd
Dan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
, Andrea Martin
Andrea Martin
Andrea Louise Martin is an American and Canadian actress and comedienne. She has appeared in films such as My Big Fat Greek Wedding, on stage in productions such as My Favorite Year, Fiddler on the Roof and Candide, and in the television series, SCTV.-Personal life:Martin, the oldest of three...
, Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy
Eugene Levy
Eugene Levy, CM is a Canadian actor, comedian, television director, producer, musician, and writer. He is known for his work in Canadian television series, American movies, and television movies. He is the only actor to have appeared in all eight of the American Pie films, as Noah Levenstein...
, Martin Short
Martin Short
Martin Hayter Short, CM is a Canadian actor, comedian, writer, singer and producer. He is best-known for his comedy work, particularly on the TV programs SCTV and Saturday Night Live...
, Joe Flaherty
Joe Flaherty
Joe Flaherty is an American-Canadian actor and comedian. He is best known for his work on the Canadian sketch comedy SCTV, from 1976 to 1984, and as Harold Weir on Freaks and Geeks...
and others. Two years later, Alexander joined Len Stuart in starting The Second City Entertainment Company, a TV and Film production company. Their first production was the television show SCTV
Second City Television
Second City Television is a Canadian television sketch comedy show offshoot from Toronto's The Second City troupe that ran between 1976 and 1984.- Premise :...
. After almost a decade of developing the Entertainment Company, Andrew Alexander and Len Stuart became owners of The Second City Chicago in 1985. Alexander has actively led The Second City in Canada and the US since then.
Andrew Alexander has produced or executive produced over 200 Second City revues in Canada and the United States. Over the past 35 years, The Second City has operated resident theatres and/or improv training facilities at one time or another in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Detroit, Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and Cleveland. Additionally, Alexander expanded The Second City’s Training, Touring and Corporate Services divisions from niche offerings to boutique business lines in their own right. Most recently, Alexander has expanded the Second City TV and Film Division to include offices in Los Angeles and Toronto.
TV and Film Career
During Andrew Alexander's career as television producer, he co-developed and executive produced over 185 half-hour shows and produced over 150 hours of television comedy for SCTV. Throughout the length of its run, the series garnered an ACTRA Award, 2 Emmy Awards and 13 Emmy Award nominations.Andrew Alexander has developed television programming for ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox Television, Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
, HBO, Showtime, A&E
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
and the CBC
CBC Television
CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...
. Andrew Alexander has had co-production deals with MGM Television, Imagine Films, Disney Studios, United Artists and has produced movies and television shows with Ed Asner
Ed Asner
Edward Asner , commonly known as Ed Asner, is an American film, television, stage, and voice actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild, primarily known for his Emmy Award-winning role as Lou Grant on both The Mary Tyler Moore Show and its spin-off series, Lou Grant...
, Dan Aykroyd
Dan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
, James Belushi
James Belushi
James Adam "Jim" Belushi is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is the younger brother of comic actor John Belushi.-Early life:Belushi was born in Chicago...
, Bill Murray
Bill Murray
William James "Bill" Murray is an American actor and comedian. He first gained national exposure on Saturday Night Live in which he earned an Emmy Award and later went on to star in a number of critically and commercially successful comedic films, including Caddyshack , Ghostbusters , and...
, Chris Farley
Chris Farley
Christopher Crosby "Chris" Farley was an American comedian and actor. Farley was a member of Chicago's Second City Theatre and cast member of the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live from 1990 to 1995....
, Bonnie Hunt
Bonnie Hunt
Bonnie Lynne Hunt is an American actress, comedian, writer, director, television producer and daytime television host.- Early life :...
, Shelley Long
Shelley Long
Shelley Lee Long is an American actress best known for her role as Diane Chambers on the sitcom Cheers, for which she won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress and two Golden Globe Awards for Best Actress...
, Andrea Martin
Andrea Martin
Andrea Louise Martin is an American and Canadian actress and comedienne. She has appeared in films such as My Big Fat Greek Wedding, on stage in productions such as My Favorite Year, Fiddler on the Roof and Candide, and in the television series, SCTV.-Personal life:Martin, the oldest of three...
, Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...
, John Candy
John Candy
John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...
, Mike Myers, Catherine O’Hara, Harold Ramis
Harold Ramis
Harold Allen Ramis is an American actor, director, and writer, specializing in comedy. His best-known film acting roles are as Egon Spengler in Ghostbusters and Russell Ziskey in Stripes , both of which he also co-wrote...
, Martin Short
Martin Short
Martin Hayter Short, CM is a Canadian actor, comedian, writer, singer and producer. He is best-known for his comedy work, particularly on the TV programs SCTV and Saturday Night Live...
, Tina Fey
Tina Fey
Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer, known for her work on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live , the NBC comedy series 30 Rock, and films such as Mean Girls and Baby Mama .Fey first broke into comedy as a featured player in the...
and Stephen Colbert
Stephen Colbert
Stephen Tyrone Colbert is an American political satirist, writer, comedian, television host, and actor. He is the host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, a satirical news show in which Colbert portrays a caricatured version of conservative political pundits.Colbert originally studied to be an...
.
Recently, Andrew Alexander was executive producer for Second City’s Next Comedy Legend on CBC (2007). Andrew Alexander was also executive producer of the Canadian feature film Intern’s Academy (2004) written by Dave Thomas and featuring Dan Aykroyd, Dave Foley, Dave Thomas and Maury Chaykin.
Andrew Alexander was a founding shareholder of the Pay Television service, Super Channel, and served on the Board of Directors.
Andrew Alexander serves on the Columbia College Board of Trustees. He is Chair of the Gilda's Club Toronto Honorary Board, an Honorary Member of the Chicago Gilda's Club Board and has also served on the Board of the League of Chicago Theaters and the Canadian Walk of Fame. In 2008, Andrew Alexander facilitated a reunion of the cast of SCTV in Toronto launching The Alumni Fund, a fund that, in its first months, raised over $200,000 to assist actors and support staff during times of illness or economic hardship.