Chevy Chase Age, Height, Wife, Net Worth & Biography

Chevy Chase is an American actor and comedian best known as Clark Griswold in the National Lampoon’s Vacation films, as Irwin “Fletch” Fletcher in Fletch and as an original cast member of Saturday Night Live. Born on October 8, 1943, in New York City, Chase, 83, was the first breakout star of Saturday Night Live, winning two Emmy Awards in its first season, and he went on to a film career that includes Caddyshack, Three Amigos and Community.

Quick Facts

Who Is Chevy Chase?

Chevy Chase is an actor and comedian whose work on Saturday Night Live made him one of the first television stars of the 1970s. As the host of “Weekend Update” and as the star of sketches such as the pratfall openings of the show, Chase played a man who is confident, funny and, in the end, always falling down, and his catchphrase “I’m Chevy Chase, and you’re not” became a part of popular culture. He won two Emmy Awards for his work on Saturday Night Live in 1976, for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series and for Outstanding Continuing or Single Performance by a Supporting Actor, and he left the show after one season to pursue a film career.

Beyond Saturday Night Live, Chase has shown a wide range. He played Clark Griswold, a father who takes his family on a disastrous vacation, in National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983) and its sequels, including National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989), and he played Irwin “Fletch” Fletcher, a wisecracking reporter, in Fletch (1985) and Fletch Lives (1989). He starred in Caddyshack (1980), alongside Bill Murray, in Three Amigos (1986), opposite Steve Martin and Martin Short, and in Community (2009-2014), in which he played Pierce Hawthorne, a wealthy businessman who joins a community college study group.

Early Life & Background

Cornelius Crane Chase was born in New York City, the son of Cathalene, a concert pianist, and Edward Tinsley Chase, a magazine editor and writer. He grew up in Woodbury, Long Island, New York, where he attended the Riverdale Country School and the Stockbridge School in Massachusetts. He went on to study at Bard College in New York, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1967, and he worked as a writer for the National Lampoon magazine, where he met many of the writers and performers who would go on to star in Saturday Night Live.

He made his acting debut on television, playing in The Great American Dream Machine (1971-1972), and he appeared in The National Lampoon Radio Hour (1973-1974). He was cast in Saturday Night Live in 1975, as one of the original cast members, known as the Not Ready for Prime Time Players, and he became the first breakout star of the show, winning two Emmy Awards in 1976. He left the show after one season, and he was replaced by Bill Murray, his fellow comedian, who had been a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1977 to 1980.

Career

Chase’s career in film includes Tunnel Vision (1976), Foul Play (1978), Caddyshack, National Lampoon’s Vacation, Fletch, Three Amigos, National Lampoon’s European Vacation (1985), National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Fletch Lives, Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992), Man of the House (1995), Vegas Vacation (1997), and Vacation (2015), in which he reprised the role of Clark Griswold in a cameo. He won two Emmy Awards for Saturday Night Live, and he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for Foul Play.

On television, Chase has played in Saturday Night Live, in which he was a cast member in 1975-1976, in The Chevy Chase Show (1993), a late-night talk show, and in Community, in which he played Pierce Hawthorne from 2009 to 2014. He was married to Jacqueline Carlin from 1976 to 1980. He married Jayni Luke, a writer, in 1982, and they have three daughters together: Cydney, Caley and Emily. He is known for his work as a comedian, as an actor, and for a career that has lasted for more than fifty years.

Facts About Chevy Chase

• He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live and won two Emmy Awards in its first season.
• He played Clark Griswold in the National Lampoon’s Vacation films and Fletch in Fletch (1985).
• He starred in Caddyshack (1980) alongside Bill Murray and in Three Amigos (1986) with Steve Martin and Martin Short.
• He played Pierce Hawthorne in Community from 2009 to 2014.
• He has been married to Jayni Luke since 1982, and they have three daughters together.

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