In June of 1996 I flew to Winnipeg to interview Dan Aykroyd. At the time, the former Not Ready for Prime Time Player was on location and starring as aviation executive Gordon Crawford in the CBC miniseries The Arrow.
Gordon was the maverick behind the Avro Arrow, a twin-engine fighter-interceptor built by Toronto’s A.V. Roe in the mid- to late-’50s. Capable of speeds clocked at twice the speed of sound, it was the fastest, most advanced fighter of its day. Too fast — as the miniseries argued — for the US goverment which pressured Ottawa to mothball the costly Canadian initiative. By the end of 1959, every Arrow, finished and unfinished, had been hacked to pieces.
Thank goodness that would never happen today.
My job was to interview Aykroyd, then emerging as a capable dramatic actor after his Oscar-nominated supporting performance opposite Morgan Freeman and Jessica Tandy in 1989’s “Driving Miss Daisy.”
Aykroyd was the toast of Winnipeg during his seven-week production stay. “Dan sightings” were reported daily on Winnipeg radio stations. He rode up the steps of the Manitoba legislature on a police service BMW motorcycle as part of a Canada Day parade. It was July 1, 1996, Aykroyd’s 44th birthday.
His biker buddy from Kingston, Ont., Walter High, acted as Aykroyd’s gatekeeper on the road. Even though I had a pre-arranged interview lined up for a TV Guide Canada cover story, High was reluctant to let me into the star’s trailer. Desperate, I told High a true story I thought might curry favour — that I had once been asked to leave the Manor House, a notorious Kingston, Ont. bar.
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“Why didn’t you say that earlier?” asked High, who whisked me right in.
What I didn’t tell him was that, in 1980, me and Pat Bullock were tossed out of the pub while visiting our buddy Paul Devlin, then at teacher’s college. It wasn’t for being drunk and disorderly, however, it was for doing our stand-up comedy act. The locals felt we were watering down their suds.
Much of that interview had to do with The Arrow, but Aykroyd also touched on his fascination with the paranomal and other matters. Here, below, from that June, 1996 interview, are his comments regarding the show being celebrated this coming Sunday with a 50th season special on both NBC and Global, Saturday Night Live.
Folks in Winnipeg certainly seem to love having you in their city.
SNL was the big break for me. I’ve been around since then. People like The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters. I’ve been able to create some more things that touch people in a way. I think it’s mainly because I’m a familiar figure. It’s kind of like the way I used to react to Bob Hope or Jack Benny.
There is a benevolent side of me that people pick up on. I’m not out to do anybody any harm. It’s very gratifying. Try to create good things when you supply laughter to the world. That’s a positive thing, and people react favorably to that.
Is it true that you never look at the rushes which making movies?
I never do. I never look at rushes or clips in any work I’ve ever done. That’s just one of my rules. In fact, I will say this. I don’t often see the movies I make. I see them when I direct it. I had to watch it, but I don’t think I’ve seen half of them.
Have you seen all the Ghostbusters films?
Yeah, Ghostbusters.
Driving Miss Daisy? My Girl?
My Girl, My Girl 2, never saw, never saw all of The Great Outdoors.
Trading Places?
Never saw Trading Places. Never saw it. Seen clips in that I was there. I knew what it was like, as long as everybody else was happy. I saw the clips of some of [co-star Eddie Murphy’s] performances, and Ralph [Bellamy] and Don Ameche and Jamie [Lee Curtis].
What do you watch on television?
Cops, Most Wanted, Nightline, news.
Dave Thomas says, you’re a Star Trek buff.
We’re certainly science fiction buffs. We wrote Spies Like Us together, and we wrote a UFO movie a long time ago that never got made… Whenever I have a high-tech or science fiction project, I always go to Dave. We were going to do something on the face of Mars. Richard Hoagland’s discovery of the architectural monuments that exist on Mars. They have Vivid Viking photographs of a pyramid a face. Have you seen that stuff? Oh boy, that’s exciting…
So you were a fan of Star Trek?
I watched the old ones sure. Dave does a great Bones. I did Scotty for the sketch on SNL. My TV watching is basically confined to the Unsolved Mysteries, Most Wanted, Cops, Real Stories of the Highway Patrol. One of my favorite shows is Nightline. CNN News, Dan Rather, Tom Brokaw.
Letterman or Leno?
No.
Do you watch SNL?
Yes, I do. I’m a big fan of the show and never miss one. I was on when The Hip were on. I ended up co-hosting. I did Robert Dole for them twice. I’ve never gone back to guest host, and I don’t imagine I will. I want to be remembered as a cast member.
What do you think of the new group of players?
That kid Cheri Oteri. She’s from the Second City-SNL breeding lab. The woman was born to do that work. David Koechner is very funny. They’ve finally got repeatable characters, Molly Shannon. That kid from the Catholic school she does. That is just so out there. Physically, it’s fantastic.
You haven’t done much TV.
I did a couple of pilots for series that weren’t picked up. Mars Based was one for CBS about a family living on Mars in the year 2034.
Do you watch 3rd Rock from the Sun?
They [executive producers Bonnie and Terry Turner] wrote The Coneheads, Terry and Bonnie. So, 3rd Rock from the Sun is sort of the Coneheads without cones. They are totally equipped to handle that material in a very high quality and funny way. And I’m very happy for their success, and I think it’s great. I like them very much.
