Celebrated Canadian journalist Paul Myers has compiled a new biography of John Candy to honor the late comedian’s legacy. Titled John Candy: A Life of Comedy, Paul Myers details the life of John Candy, his successes, and his impact on the entertainment industry in the book. Fans and colleagues loved the Canadian-born comedian and generally referred to him as kind and sweet.
In an interview, Paul Myers revealed that he wrote John Candy: A Life of Comedy to bring John Candy to the page and preserve his legacy as a beloved comedian. Paul Myers found the life of the Canadian-born comedian “compelling” even though he did not get to live the fullness of his life before passing away at 43.
John Candy: A Life of Comedy
Canadian Journalist Paul Myers believes that John Candy was a great actor who could have won the Oscar if he were still alive. This drove him to write John Candy: A Life of Comedy to show fans of John Candy the part of him that was not entirely open to all.
He desires that his readers would know that John Candy was also “subject to the same pressures, stress, and anxieties as any regular mortal,” even though he always showed up for his audiences. John Candy died from a heart attack in 1994 at the age of 43, yet his legacy lives on in the hearts of those who cherish him. According to Paul Meyers, John Candy “wasn’t just a great comedian, he was a gifted actor.”
John Candy’s friendship with Dan Aykroyd
In his research for the book, Paul Myers discovered a fellow Canadian actor-comedian, Dan Aykroyd, whose life influenced Candy’s life career. He was an influence on Candy auditioning for Second City, and both John Candy and him later went on a road trip to Los Angeles.
Paul Myers recalled Dan Aykroyd’s eulogy at John Candy’s funeral that those who mourned him could not forget. This compelled him to ask Dan to write the foreword to John Candy: A Life of Comedy.