Jim Carrey ‘Unmasked’

Ritesh K Srivastav

"It started in second grade. I was in music class and we were practicing for the Christmas assembly. One day I started fooling around by mocking the musicians on a record. The teacher thought she`d embarrass me by making me get up and do what I was doing in front of the whole class. So I went up and did it. She laughed, and the whole class went nuts. My teacher asked me to do my routine for the Christmas assembly, and I did. That was the beginning of the end." Jim Carrey is unquestionably one of the funniest and most talented comic actors the world has come across in the recent times. He is perhaps one among the handful of comedians who can bring a smile on one’s face even in the face of his biggest defeat or deepest sorrow. If one wishes to experience the magic of Jim Carrey just watch one of his films and you are sure to burst into peels of laughter. The versatile actor’s rags-to-riches story, his uncanny ability to flex his facial muscles, his meteoric rise on the celluloid screen, his power-house performances in numerous Hollywood blockbusters have made him the most bankable comedians in the world. Carrey has proven himself to be a top-notch, critically acclaimed actor with his immense acting potential from Liar Liarto Bruce Almightyto Dumb and Dumber. The Canada born actor has been the driving force behind some of the most successful and memorable comedies of all time and rules the hearts of his ardent fans as well as his worst critics, who did not hesitate to write him off in his hey days. With his electrifying performances in films like The Truman Show, Man on the Moon and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Carrey has successfully transformed himself into a sensible actor and not just as a comedian. Known for his manic, slapstick performances in several flicks like Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, The Mask, Dumb and Dumber, Me, Myself & Irene, The Cable Guy, Liar Liarand Bruce Almighty,his films had been a gross earner fetching over USD 3.5 bn worldwide. Although, starting his career as a comedian, Carrey`s range of acting has taken a Tom Hanks-like turn, with more dramatic roles in The Truman Show, Man on the Moon, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and The Number 23. Rags-to-riches story The real name of this Golden Globe Award-winning Canadian-American actor is James Eugene "Jim" Carrey. Born on January 17, 1962 in Newmarket, Ontario, Canada, Carrey was an incurable extrovert in his childhood. He was the youngest of four children born to Percy (an accountant and aspiring jazz saxophonist) and Kathleen. Carrey’s family is Catholic and resembles French Canadian ancestry (as the original surname was Carré). He has three older siblings, John, Patricia, and Rita. When the actor was just 14, his family was forced to move to Scarborough, where he attended Blessed Trinity Catholic School in North York for two years. He later got enrolled at Agincourt Collegiate Institute, Scarborough`s oldest High School. Speaking about his poverty-ridden childhood days, Carrey once said, "If his career in show business hadn`t panned out he would probably be working today in Hamilton, Ontario at the Dofasco steel mill." Jim’s father had been a guiding force for the actor, as he helped him write his first routines, and his mother used to make his yellow polyester suit with tails for his stage performances. His first performance was not well received, but he didn`t give up and kept polishing his impressions of Michael Landon, Henry Fonda, Gandhi, Elvis, and James Stewart. The trouble started for Jim`s family when his father Percy lost his job. Jim was in the 9th grade then and the family was forced to sell their house and relocate to Scarborough. Just to be able to fight the odds, the whole family took on jobs at the Titan Wheels factory as security guards. Jim would work an 8-hour shift directly after school, scrubbing toilets and floors. At one point, the condition worsened so much that the whole family had to live in their VW Camper Van. Carrey started doing stand-up comedies at a tender age of 15, however not pulling up much crowds then. Undeterred by his initial failures, he returned to the same venue two years later with a more polished delivery and in the process was picked by booking agents who hired him to open for Rodney Dangerfield in Las Vegas. However, his bad showings continued and pushed him to return to Canada where he acted in the made-for-Canadian TV-movie "Rubberface" (1981), playing a struggling stand-up comic. Film career After accepting minor roles in films like Rubberface, Damian Lee`s Canadian skiing comedy Copper Mountain, which included his impersonation of Sammy Davis Jr, he got his major break in the dark comedy Once Bitten. Carrey played the role of Mark Kendall, a teen virgin pursued by a 400-year old female vampire (played by Lauren Hutton). After supporting roles in films such as Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), Earth Girls Are Easy (1988), and The Dead Pool (1988), Carrey did get a steady start but got the first taste of stardom till he starred in the 1994 comedy Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. The movie was premiered only months before In Living Color ended its run. The film was criticised by critics, and earned Carrey a 1995 Golden Raspberry Award nomination as Worst New Star. Despite criticism, the film was declared a huge commercial success at the box office followed by other blockbusters The Mask and Dumb and Dumber. All 3 movies were later adapted into cartoon series, but Carrey didn`t lend his voice in any of them. Carrey became a huge star overnight and made headlines when it was revealed that he earned 20 million dollars for upcoming project, The Cable Guy. Carrey’s signing amount for the film, which was directed by Ben Stiller, was a record sum given to a comedy actor at that time. The intense media publicity surrounding Carrey’s fat salary, coupled with some negative reviews, and the film`s dark sensibility, collectively contributed to the film`s average earnings. But the actor quickly silenced his critics by delivering a blockbuster Liar Liar, which marked his comeback to his unique comedy style. Carrey later won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama and an MTV Movie Award for Best Male Performance. That same year, Carrey appeared as a fictionalized version of himself on the final episode of Garry Shandling`s The Larry Sanders Show, making an impression by ripping deliberately into Shandling`s character. In 1999, Carrey bagged the role of comedian Andy Kaufman in Man on the Moon beating other actors like Edward Norton. During the audition, Carrey’s ability to act with the bongo drums Kaufman used in his performances, helped him win the role. The film earned critical acclaim, but he was again dropped in the Academy Award nominations. However, his failures to get Academy Award nominations were compensated when he bagged the Golden Globe award in the Best Actor category for the second consecutive year. His electrifying performance in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind in 2004 again led to speculations that he would receive an Oscar nomination, as his worst critics also praised the movie. However, Carrey’s poor show continued- the film bagged a nomination for Best Original Screenplay – but he failed to get nominated. His costar Kate Winslet also received an Oscar nomination for her performance. In the meantime, Carrey was also nominated for a sixth Golden Globe for his performance the same year. In 2004, he played the villainous character Count Olaf in Lemony Snicket`s A Series of Unfortunate Events, which was based on the popular children`s novels of the same name. In 2007, Carrey reunited with Joel Schumacher, director of Batman Forever, for The Number 23, a psychological thriller co-starring Virginia Madsen and Danny Huston. In the film, Carrey plays a man who becomes obsessed with an obscure book he believes is somehow based on his life. Commenting on his decision of not appearing in the sequels of his hit movies, Carrey once said that he finds the prospect of reprising a character to be considerably less enticing than taking on a new role. Sequels to Bruce Almighty, Dumb and Dumber, Batman Forever, and The Mask have all been released but without Carrey`s involvement. Little known facts

Jim is a vegetarian and 6`2" inches tall.

Jim has a dual citizenship in Canada and the United States.

In 2003, Jim ranked #5 on Star TV`s "Top 10 Box Office Stars of the 1990s" list. As a child, Jim stated in an interview that when he played hockey, he got the most penalty minutes in a game... and he was a goalie.

Jim once infuriated the cast and crew of The Number 23 in February 2007, by urinating on the actual movie set in front of everyone. He is known for his over-the-top antics, but cast mates think he has gone too far.

Jim fired his agent of fifteen years, Nick Stevens at United Talent Agency after two 100 million dollar plus productions that he was attached to were shelved for escalating costs.

Jim has been linked to Jenny McCarthy since July 2005. However, he has no plans to ever get married, as the two believe that they don`t need a piece of paper to be in love. They plan to fashion their relationship emulating Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, happily un-married.

Jim is regarded as a ‘genius’ in France where he is reefed to as the son of Jerry Lewis.

During his initial struggle, the actor once wrote himself a check for 10 million dollars and post-dated it for Thanksgiving day, 1995. He was so prophetic in his visualization that just three days before his father`s death, Jim was offered 10 million dollars for appearing in The Mask. His father was absolutely delighted. Jim placed the original check in his father`s breast pocket before they closed the coffin.

His father was a saxophone player with a big band, but sold his sax and dreams to take a job as an accountant.

Jim started making good money in Los Angeles, kicking his career off with a television show and two movies, so he sent for his parents in Toronto to move them to Los Angeles. Unfortunately, things fell through for Jim, his movies were failures and The Duck Factory was cancelled after thirteen shows. Money ran out, and his parents didn`t help, they smoked and watched television all day. A depressed Jim started to paint a portrait of his father with a stopwatch in one hand and a gun in the other, calling it `Waiting Around To Die`. He eventually did the hardest thing he ever had to do, and sent them back to Toronto.

Jim is an accomplished actor, comedian, comedy writer, impressionist, singer, songwriter, laborer, painter, and sculptor.

Jim is an extremely private person, going to extremes to keep out of the paparazzi`s path.

Jim married first wife Melissa on March 28, 1987. She stuck through the hard times with him, and when his professional career started to take off, he divorced her on December 11, 1995. They have a daughter named Jane.

Jim was chosen by People magazine as one of the `50 Most Beautiful People in the World` in 1997.