Biography for
Harold Ramis

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Frequently casts himself in bit parts.

Frequently casts fellow Second City alumni: Bill Murray,

Trivia

Graduated from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

Member of the Board of National Neurofibromatosis Foundation.

Member, Board of Trustees of Washington University.

Honorary Doctor of Arts from Washington University in 1993.

Is a former active member of Zeta Beta Tau Fraternity at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

Once a mental ward orderly before finding work as a joke writer for Playboy magazine.

Teamed with John Belushi, Gilda Radner and Bill Murray on "The National Lampoon Show" but, unlike the others, was not asked by Lorne Michaels to join "Saturday Night Live." Harold went to Second City TV instead.

Sketch comedian best known for his character Moe Green on SCTV.

He has three children: Daughter Violet, born in 1977, with first wife Anne, and sons Julian, born in 1990, and Daniel, born in 1994, with present wife Erica.

Tried graduate school for a week but it didn't pan out.

The proton packs worn in Ghostbusters (1984) were much heavier than they looked, and some were heavier than others depending on what a scene demanded while filming. According to director Ivan Reitman none of the actors enjoyed wearing the packs, but Harold complained the least (Reitman would not say which actor complained the most).

Once worked at a public school in Chicago in 1968.

When he was doing his audition for Second City, it was him performing a sketch to a full house.

Shares a birthday with Björk, Goldie Hawn, Rachel Rogers, Nicollette Sheridan, & Juliet Mills

Best remembered to fans of all ages as Egon in Ghostbusters (1984) and Ghostbuster II (1989).

Said in an interview that his working relationship with actor Bill Murray ended while filming Ground Hog's Day (1993) due to differing views on what the film should be (Murray wanted it to be more philosophical, Ramis wanted it to be a comedy). Ramis also cites that Murray's real life personal problems at the time (specifically the ending of his first marriage) was having a ripple effect on his behavior at work as another factor in the unfortunate ending of their working relationship.

Personal Quotes

[During the 20 year Ghostbusters reunion commentary on the Ghostbusters DVD] "Acting is all about big hair and funny props... All the great actors knew it. Olivier knew it, Brando knew it."

"At first I would get mail saying, 'Oh, you must be a Christian because the movie [Groundhog Day (1993)] so beautifully expresses Christian belief.' Then rabbis started calling from all over, saying they were preaching the film as their next sermon. And the Buddhists! Well, I knew they loved it because my mother-in-law has lived in a Buddhist meditation centre for 30 years and my wife lived there for five years." - remarks to the New York Times on the ecumenical popularity of Groundhog Day (1993).

[On whether he and Bill Murray would consider doing a third Ghostbusters movie] "My attitude is generally like Bill's old attitude-- there's no point unless it has some interesting quality or something to say about the subject. Personally, I don't rule it out. I'm skeptical, but maybe it'll work."

" Everything we see has some hidden message. A lot of awful messages are coming in under the radar - subliminal consumer messages, all kinds of politically incorrect messages..."

"Chicago still remains a Mecca of the Midwest - people from both coasts are kind of amazed how good life is in Chicago, and what a good culture we've got. You can have a pretty wonderful artistic life and never leave Chicago."

"I'm at my best when I'm working with really talented people, and I'm there to gently suggest or guide or inspire or contribute whatever I can to their effort. It's not like I'm gonna tell Robert DeNiro how to act - but I could provide him with useful anecdotal material from my own life or other people I've known, or actual psychological information, or insights into his character. The technique's up to him. But there are ways to gently urge an actor to pick up the pace or slow it down or focus more, to go bigger or smaller. Some actors are very open right at the beginning - they say, "You only need four words with me: `Bigger, smaller, faster, slower.'"

"Well, I never made big films to make big films; the scale's been appropriate to the content."

"Well, for me, it's the relationship between comedy and life - that's the edge I live on, and maybe it's my protection against looking at the tragedy of it all. It's seeing life in balance. Comedy and tragedy co-exist. You can't have one without the other. I'm of the school that anything can be funny, if seen from a comedic point of view."

Where Are They Now

(February 2004) Living on the North Side of Chicago, still directing

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