1. John Adam Belushi was an American comedian, actor, singer and musician.
43 Facts About John Belushi
1. 2.
John Belushi was one of seven Saturday Night Live cast members of the first season.
3.
John Belushi was arguably the most popular member of the Saturday Night Live ensemble.
4.
John Belushi developed a series of characters on the show that reached great success, with an imitation of Henry Kissinger and a portrayal of Ludwig van Beethoven.
5.
John Belushi appeared in several films such as National Lampoon's Animal House, 1941, The Blues Brothers, and Neighbors.
6.
John Belushi pursued interests in music: with Aykroyd, Lou Marini, Tom Malone, Steve Cropper, Donald "Duck" Dunn, and Paul Shaffer, he founded The Blues Brothers, which led to the film of the same name.
7.
John Belushi was dismissed from Saturday Night Live several times and rehired more than once.
8.
John Belushi died on March 5,1982 at the age of 33.
9.
John Belushi was honored with a posthumous award of the star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2004.
10.
John Adam Belushi was born to Agnes Demetri Belushi and Adam Anastos Belushi in Humboldt Park, Chicago.
11.
Adam Anastos John Belushi was an Albanian immigrant from Qyteze, Albania, and was the owner of the Fair Oaks restaurant on North Avenue in Chicago.
12.
John Belushi was Eastern Orthodox Christian, attending the Albanian Orthodox Church.
13.
John Belushi was educated at Wheaton Central High School, where he met his future wife, Judith Jacklin.
14.
In 1965, John Belushi formed a band, the Ravens, together with four fellow high-school students.
15.
John Belushi acquired the iconic "College" crewneck, worn by his character in Animal House, at a print shop when visiting his brother Jim, who attended Southern Illinois University.
16.
John Belushi started his own comedy troupe in Chicago, the West Compass Trio, with Tino Insana and Steve Beshekas.
17.
At Second City, John Belushi met and began working with Harold Ramis, Joe Flaherty, and Brian Doyle-Murray.
18.
In 1972, John Belushi was offered a role, together with Chevy Chase and Christopher Guest, in National Lampoon Lemmings, a parody of Woodstock, which played off-Broadway in 1972.
19.
Jacklin became an associate producer for the show, and she and John Belushi were married on December 31,1976.
20.
John Belushi appeared alongside O'Donoghue in Saturday Night Live's first sketch which aired on October 11,1975.
21.
John Belushi attended concerts including Fleetwood Mac, Meat Loaf, Kiss, The Dead Boys, Warren Zevon, The Grateful Dead, and The Allman Brothers.
22.
In Rolling Stones February 2015 appraisal of all 141 Saturday Night Live cast members, John Belushi received their top ranking.
23.
In 1978, Belushi performed in the films Old Boyfriends, Goin' South, and National Lampoon's Animal House.
24.
The only film John Belushi made without Aykroyd following their departure from Saturday Night Live was the romantic comedy Continental Divide.
25.
Up to his death, John Belushi was pursuing movie projects, including an ABSCAM-related caper called Moon Over Miami, to be directed by Louis Malle; and a diamond-smuggling caper called Noble Rot with Jay Sandrich, based on a script he adapted and rewrote with former Saturday Night Live writer Don Novello.
26.
John Belushi wanted to star in a major marijuana movie to be called Kingpin.
27.
John Belushi had health issues in the early to mid 1970s due to his drug use.
28.
John Belushi was frequently late for his call times and would delay shooting by wandering off set.
29.
The production hired Smokey Wendell to prevent John Belushi from accessing more drugs.
30.
John Belushi managed to quit his habit during the production of Continental Divide, but severely relapsed during the production of Neighbors.
31.
On March 4,1982, John Belushi visited the Los Angeles office of his long-time manager Bernie Brillstein and asked him for money.
32.
Later that day, John Belushi returned and again asked for money while Brillstein was in a meeting.
33.
John Belushi served fifteen months in prison at Chino, California Institution for Women.
34.
John Belushi was interred at Abel's Hill Cemetery in Chilmark, Massachusetts, on Martha's Vineyard.
35.
John Belushi's widow arranged to have him reinterred in an unmarked grave near the original site.
36.
John Belushi was scheduled to present the Best Visual Effects Oscar at the 1982 Academy Awards with Dan Aykroyd.
37.
John Belushi wrote that he learned how to better deal with clients.
38.
Chris Farley, who was heavily influenced by John Belushi, died in 1997 at age 33 due to a drug overdose, which has fueled many comparisons between John Belushi and Farley.
39.
In 2004, John Belushi was posthumously inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame with a motion pictures star located at 6355 Hollywood Boulevard.
40.
In 2015, John Belushi was ranked by Rolling Stone as the greatest Saturday Night Live cast member of all time.
41.
John Belushi felt as though it was his duty to sabotage pieces written by women.
42.
John Belushi complained to Michaels about Beatts and Rosie Shuster.
43.
Judith said that John Belushi was a "Women's Libber" and did not hate women.