Actor and comedian Eugene Levy remembers his longtime friend Ivan Reitman as a 鈥渂orn producer鈥� who 鈥渨ent on to literally change the face of comedy in Hollywood.鈥�
鈥淲e all knew he was destined to be a great producer and director,鈥� Levy said in an interview with 麻豆影视 Chief Anchor and Senior Editor Lisa LaFlamme. 鈥淗e was destined for great things鈥攚e knew that in school.鈥�
Levy and Reitman met in the late 1960s at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont. Reitman would go on to produce or direct comedy classics like Animal House, Ghostbusters and Kindergarten Cop.
He died Feb. 12 at age 75.
At McMaster, Levy remembers Reitman transforming their 鈥渦nderground鈥� student film group into 鈥渁 club that actually made money.鈥�
鈥淗e would run all night horror film festivals at the university,鈥� Levy said. 鈥淲e got great crowds and he was able to fund programs for budding filmmakers like me.鈥�
Levy says Reitman even gave him his first break in the business鈥攕erving coffee on the Toronto set of the 1971 comedy Foxy Lady. For his second movie, the 1973 horror comedy Cannibal Girls, Reitman enlisted Levy as his leading man.
鈥淭hat was my first acting role on film, in a professional capacity鈥攁nd when I say professional capacity, I mean you're supposed to be paid for it!鈥� Levy said. 鈥淏ut nevertheless, that's what Ivan did for me. If he hadn't given me that job as coffee boy in 1970, I don't even know if I would have ended up in the in this business, but I owe a lot to Ivan.鈥�
Levy went on to star in the sketch comedy series SCTV before appearing in and co-writing hit films like Best in Show and A Mighty Wind. From 2015 to 2020, he worked alongside his son Dan Levy in the award-winning comedy series Schitt鈥檚 Creek, which they co-created.
While editing the show, Levy recalls bumping into Reitman at the same studio, where Reitman was working with his daughter Catherine Reitman on her comedy series Workin鈥� Moms.
鈥淲e kind of talked about, how can you believe that we're here working on our kids鈥� shows?鈥� Levy said. 鈥淚t's incredible and yet we're both sharing that experience. It鈥檚 pretty insane!鈥�
Friends for more than five decades, Levy watched as Reitman鈥檚 career catapulted to the height of Hollywood.
鈥淗e was destined for the top and he made it there,鈥� Levy said. 鈥淗e was an amazing, amazing man.鈥�
