Jim Carrey

James Eugene Carrey (born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and writer. Known for his energetic slapstick performances, Carrey first gained recognition in 1990, after landing a regular role in the American sketch comedy television series In Living Color. His first leading roles in motion pictures came with Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), The Mask (1994), Dumb and Dumber (1994), and Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995), as well portraying the Riddler in Batman Forever (1995), and the lead role in Liar Liar (1997).

In the 2000s, he gained further notice for his portrayal of the Grinch in How the Grinch Stole Christmas and for the comedy Me, Myself & Irene (both in 2000), as well as Bruce Almighty (2003), Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004), Fun with Dick and Jane (2005), Yes Man (2008), Horton Hears a Who! (2008), and A Christmas Carol (2009). In the 2010s, Carrey starred in Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011), The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013), Kick-Ass 2 (2013), and reprised his role as Lloyd Christmas in Dumb and Dumber To (2014). He portrayed Dr. Robotnik in Sonic the Hedgehog (2020).

Although largely typecast as a comedic actor, Carrey has had success in dramatic roles. His first dramatic success was for starring in the Emmy-nominated made-for-television film Doing Time on Maple Drive (1992). Carrey gained attention for his leading roles in The Truman Show (1998) and Man on the Moon (1999), earning Golden Globe Awards for each film. He later starred in the psychological science fiction romantic drama film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), this performance is repeatedly lauded as one of the most important and seminal in Carrey's career and for which he was nominated for both the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and another Golden Globe Award. He was also praised for his dramatic role of Jeff Piccirillo in the Showtime tragicomedy series Kidding. The Guardian named him one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination.

In 2013, Carrey published his first book, a children's story, entitled How Roland Rolls; the book was awarded a 2013 Gelett Burgess Children’s Book Award. In 2020, Carrey published his first novel, Memoirs and Misinformation, which he co-authored with Dana Vachon.

Carrey was born in the Toronto suburb of Newmarket, Ontario, Canada, to Kathleen (née Oram), a homemaker, and Percy Carrey, a musician and accountant. He was raised a Roman Catholic and has three older siblings, John, Patricia, and Rita. His mother was of French, Irish, and Scottish descent, and his father was of French-Canadian ancestry (the family's original surname was Carré).

At age eight he began making faces before a mirror and discovered a talent for doing impressions. At age ten, Carrey wrote a letter to Carol Burnett of the Carol Burnett Show pointing out that he was already a master of impressions and should be considered for a role on the show; he was overjoyed when he received a form letter reply. A fan of Monty Python whose TV show aired in the 1970s, in 2014 Carrey appeared on Monty Python's Best Bits (Mostly) and recalled the effect on him of Ernest Scribbler (played by Michael Palin) laughing himself to death in "The Funniest Joke in the World" sketch. Radio Times states, "You’ll see why immediately: Palin’s performance is uncannily Carreyesque.”

Carrey spent his early years in the borough of Scarborough, Ontario, part of Metropolitan Toronto, where he attended Blessed Trinity Catholic Elementary School in North York. His family later moved to Burlington, Ontario, where they would spend eight years; Jim attended Aldershot High School while there. Some time later, his family became homeless and lived together in a Volkswagen van while teenage Jim and his brother spent months living in a tent in Charles Daley Park on the Lake Ontario shore in Lincoln, Ontario. The family struggled financially, however, their situation started improving once his father found employment in the accounting department at the Titan Wheels tire factory in Scarborough. Furthermore, in return for living in the house across the street from the factory, the family—primarily teenage sons Jim and John—would work as janitors and security guards at the tire factory, doing eight-hour shifts from 6p.m. into the next morning. Moving back to Scarborough, teenage Jim started attending Agincourt Collegiate Institute before dropping out of school on his sixteenth birthday. He began to perform comedy in downtown Toronto while continuing to work at the factory.

In a 2007 Hamilton Spectator interview, Carrey said, "If my career in show business hadn't panned out I would probably be working today in Hamilton, Ontario, at the Dofasco steel mill." As a young man, he could see the steel mills across the Burlington Bay and often thought that was "where the great jobs were."

Carrey suffers from depression and has taken Prozac to combat the symptoms. He has stated that he no longer takes medications or stimulants of any kind, including coffee.

Carrey received U.S. citizenship in October 2004 and remains a dual citizen of the United States and his native Canada.

In 1983, Jim Carrey dated singer Linda Ronstadt for eight months. Carrey has been married twice. His first marriage was to former actress and Comedy Store waitress Melissa Womer, whom he married on March 28, 1987. Their daughter, Jane Erin Carrey, was born September 6, 1987. Jane was a 2012 contestant on American Idol. Carrey and Womer divorced in 1995.

A year later, on September 23, 1996, Carrey married his Dumb and Dumber co-star Lauren Holly; the marriage lasted less than a year. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Carrey had a much-publicized, short-lived romance with his Me, Myself and Irene co-star Renée Zellweger, to whom he was engaged from 1999 to 2000.

Carrey met model and actress Jenny McCarthy in 2005 and made their relationship public in June 2006. In April 2010, the two ended their relationship. Despite the split and media circulations, in October 2010 McCarthy said, "Jim and I are still good friends".

Carrey met Cathriona White in 2012, who was a makeup artist and native of County Tipperary, Ireland. They dated for some period of time between 2012 and 2015. On September 28, 2015, White was found dead from a prescription drug overdose; ruled a suicide by the LA County Medical Examiner. Carrey was a pallbearer at her funeral in Cappawhite, County Tipperary, Ireland.

Carrey attended the Golden Globes 2019 Party with his new girlfriend Ginger Gonzaga in January 2019. However, the couple split after less than a year of dating.

Source - Wikipedia