Biography
Known for her offbeat film and television performances, Catherine O'Hara established herself as a talented comedic actor who could ably handle dramatic roles as well. The Canadian actress eschewed college in favor of Toronto's Second City improvisational comedy troupe where she quickly replaced Gilda Radner after the latter jumped ship to "Saturday Night Live" (NBC, 1975- ). O'Hara more than filled Radner's shoes, stealing scenes from such …
Catherine O'Hara SlideShow
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Career Milestones
| Appeared in commercials and on TV in Canada | ||
1973 | Hired as a waitress at Second City | |
1974 | Made professional acting debut as a member of Second City in Toronto | |
1975 | Appeared on the Canadian children's show "Comining Up Rosie" | |
1976 | Co-created (also co-wrote and co-starred) "Second City Television"; left in 1981 | |
1979 | Film debut, "Nothing Personal" | |
1980 | Appeared on NBC's "Steve Allen Comedy Hour" | |
1985 | First substantial feature supporting role, Martin Scorsese's "After Hours" | |
1986 | Appeared in "Heartburn" with Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson | |
1988 | Co-starred in Tim Burton's "Beetlejuice" | |
1988 | Provided character voice on the animated "The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley" (NBC) | |
1990 | Played Kevin MacAllister's mother in "Home Alone" | |
1990 | Played supporting roles in "Dick Tracy" and "Betsey's Wedding" | |
1991 | Directed an episode of HBO's "Dream On" entitled "And Your Little Dog, Too" | |
1992 | Reprised role of Mrs. MacAllister in "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York" | |
1993 | Voiced characters in "Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas" | |
1994 | Featured in Ron Howard's "The Paper" and Lawrence Kasdan's "Wyatt Earp" | |
1995 | Played Calamity Jane in "Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Adventures of Pecos Bill" | |
1996 | Co-starred with Fred Willard as a husband-wife pair of small town travel agents in Christopher Guest's "Waiting for Guffman" | |
1996 | Had leading role as Irish matriarch in "Last of the High Kings" | |
1997 | Portrayed the dance teacher coping with a drinking problem in TNT movie "Hope," directed by Goldie Hawn | |
1998 | Played a conniving, somewhat delusional woman who gets her two sons (Jake Busey, Luke Wilson) to scare her cheating husband to death in the quirky comedy "Home Fries" | |
1999 | Acted in the Canadian independent feature "Life Before This" | |
1999 | Featured in the independent comedy "Late Last Night" (aired on Starz! in lieu of theatrical release) | |
2000 | Reteamed with Guest, Willard, and fellow "SCTV" veteran Eugene Levy for "Best in Show" | |
2002 | Cast as a tipsy mom in "Orange County" | |
2003 | Reteamed with Michael McKean and Eugene Levy in the comedy "A Mighty Wind," written and directed by Christopher Guest | |
2004 | Cast in "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events," based on the children's books by Daniel Handler | |
2004 | Cast in the TNT special "The Wool Cap," which starred William H. Macy and Don Rickles | |
2005 | Voiced Tina (Alien Mom) in the animated feature "Chicken Little" | |
2006 | Reunited with Guest in his comedy "For Your Consideration"; earned an Independent Spirit Award Nomination for Best Female Lead | |
2008 | Cast opposite Christina Ricci in "Penelope"; produced by and co-starred Reese Witherspoon | |
2009 | Voiced Judith in Spike Jonze's live-action adaptation of Maurice Sendak's children's book classic "Where the Wild Things Are" | |
2010 | Cast opposite Claire Danes in biographical drama "Temple Grandin" (HBO); earned an Emmy (2010) nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie | |
2010 | Co-starred opposite Ashton Kutcher and Katherine Heigl in the action/comedy "Killers" | |
2010 | Nominated for the 2010 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie ("Temple Grandin") | |
2011 | Nominated for the 2011 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries ("Temple Grandin") | |
2012 | Reunited with director Tim Burton to voice Mrs. Frankenstein and other characters in animated film "Frankenweenie" | |
Awards
1982 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing In a Variety or Music Program in SCTV Network |
1983 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing In a Variety or Music Program in SCTV Network |
2006 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Supporting Actress in For Your Consideration |
2007 | Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead in For Your Consideration |
2010 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress In a Miniseries or Movie in Temple Grandin |