Biography
Dan Aykroyd is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter and producer. Born in Ottawa, Ontario, he studied criminology and sociology at Carleton University before joining the Second City improv troupe in Toronto and Chicago.
He was a founding member of the Not Ready for Prime Time Players on Saturday Night Live from 1975 to 1979, where he created the Blues Brothers characters with John Belushi. The 1980 feature film The Blues Brothers followed. Aykroyd co-wrote and starred as Dr. Raymond Stantz in Ghostbusters (1984) and its sequels, including Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021) and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (2024).
Other notable roles include Seymour Heller in Behind the Candelabra (2013). He received an honorary doctorate from Carleton University in 1994 and was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada in 1998.
