Q&A with Jim Belushi

Though best known for his eight-year run as the title character in the TV show According to Jim, Wheaton-native Jim Belushi’s self-acknowledged shameless willingness to try anything has resulted in a truly multifaceted performing career. After getting his start in theatre at Wheaton Central High School and College of DuPage, Belushi cut his comedic teeth at Second City in Chicago and then on TV’s Saturday Night Live. Early in his career, he branched out to do a variety of dramatic film roles including serving as Rob Lowe’s boorish best friend in About Last Night. He then picked up a number of starring film roles, among them buddy cop movies K-9 and Red Heat, the latter with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Through longtime friend Dan Aykroyd, Belushi became brother Zee Blues of The Blues Brothers, doing concerts across the country. He also performs regularly with the House of Blues’ Sacred Hearts Band. More recently, the 59-year-old has returned to his comedic improv roots, touring the country with his own group, Jim Belushi and the Board of Comedy. On March 8, the group will play two shows at the MAC at College of DuPage. The first show, at 6 p.m., is a benefit to raise money for the college and the John Belushi Scholarship Fund, which Jim started in 1983 to honor the memory of his brother, also a COD alum. The second show will be at 9:30 p.m. For tickets or more information, go to www.cod.edu/foundation.

What are your favorite memories of growing up in Wheaton?  

Jim Belushi: Playing kick the can on Grant Street. Riding my Stingray bike all over town. The great feeling of independence and safety that Wheaton had to offer back then. Going to the North Side Pool, eating popcorn from the In-Between Store. And my loving neighbors across the street, Mr. and Mrs. Macy and their family. They were the nicest, kindest, most loving family I had ever met, inspirational and welcoming. I didn’t always feel liked as a kid, but I always felt loved by them. I loved working at the G & G Pharmacy, getting all the candy I wanted. And of course, the fountain at Seven Dwarfs, which is still there. It was a nice place to grow up and I was proud to be the entire crime rate of Wheaton.   

You were part of Second City in Chicago and then on Saturday Night Live, two legendary training grounds for up and coming comedic actors. How did those years shape you as a performer?

JB: The College of DuPage really shaped my craft and my desire. Second City taught me everything there is to know about character comedy, social satire, comic rhythms, what it’s like to study the craft of doing eight shows a week. When I was 16, I went to Second City and saw my brother John and Harold Ramis perform with their group. When that first act was over, I said to myself, "I’ve never seen anything like this in my life. I want a piece of this." When I got my first laugh on that stage, the adrenaline kicked in. I was dizzy, seeing colors almost. I was hooked. Second City is the foundation of all my work. Saturday Night Live taught me how to maintain under immense pressure. It was like learning to be a surgeon in a mash unit in Vietnam. It was the most difficult experience I ever had. Everything has been easy since then, including divorce. The only thing I’m frightened of now is when my wife drives.

The early part of your career was spent largely in film doing a series of supporting roles, many of which, including About Last Night, were more serious dramas. Were you intentionally trying to move away from comedy?

JB: I wasn’t steering away from anything, I was just trying to get work! It didn’t matter if it was comedy or drama to me. I’ve always done both. And in my best works, I mixed the two. Drama isn’t truly great without humor, and comedy isn’t truly great without a dramatic storyline. I’m still the same way. I do drama and comedy. I sing, I dance, I write, I direct — in all genres of media. I like to do it all. I never put the things I love in conflict with each other. But mostly . . . I like to work!

How did the concept for the show, According to Jim, come about? And how similar or different are you than the character you played?  

JB: I had done a wonderful movie called Return to Me that Bonnie Hunt, a Chicagoan and Second City veteran, wrote and directed. I played a working-class father in it. During that time, ABC was interested in doing a family comedy. They had seen the film and thought I would make a great father. So I met with a few writers and chose to collaborate with Jon Stark and Tracy Newman. I had a lot of input in the character and the context of the show, and in the relationships. But I did not create it and I did not write it. Jon and Tracy get all the credit for that. They did a spectacular job. Most of the stories came from personal experiences. Not just mine, but also from all the writers, lifted right out of our lives and then expanded. I’m very similar to the character in many, many ways. As Jon Stark once told me on the set, "This character isn’t you NOW, Jim. You’re much more insightful and perceptive. You have to think of this character as the younger you."

Part of your success, according to your website bio, is that you are shameless — that you are willing to try anything. Is there anything you ever refused to do or regretted doing after the fact?

JB: I only regret the things that I have done that didn’t work. I’m doing the craziest thing right now in Miami, shooting a film called A Change of Heart. I play a racist, homophobic exterminator who has a heart attack and needs a heart transplant. He gets the heart of a Latino, gay, hairdresser drag queen who finds himself doing a full-on drag show, only to later find out that he really got the heart of a Japanese sushi chef. It’s a very funny and charming movie about a man finding his heart again.    

You have performed in so many genres. Which are you most comfortable with and what do you enjoy doing most?   

JB: I love all genres. There is something challenging in each of them. And overcoming the challenge is the joy. But I have to say that I enjoy the live performance genre, whether it’s Broadway, improvisation, the band, or of course, According to Jim, because it was shot in front of a live audience. I enjoy the instant gratification, the exchange of energies with the audience, and the high jeopardy of "you’ve got to get it right, right now." That’s joyful. That’s fun. Movies are a different joy, done piece by piece, with no audience. It’s just a different kind of thinking and acting style, but I love when it comes together. It was so satisfying to watch About Last Night with an audience at the movie theater.

Are you naturally musically inclined or do you just wing it when you perform with the Blues Brothers and The Sacred Hearts Band? And what was it like being the opening act for the Rolling Stones?

JB: I’ve always been a little musical. I did musicals in high school and sang in the choir and sang in the choir at College of DuPage. I did Pirates of Penzance on Broadway. But the band thing was a different kind of learning altogether. Danny Aykroyd wanted me to do the Blues Brothers, so I had to retrain everything in me. It’s the most fun I’ve had, really. Being in a band and singing on stage these great classic R&B songs, it’s like singing gospel music. It opened my chest. I feel lighter and more joyful than I ever have in my life. It was a great gift that Danny gave me. For the past 20 years, I’ve been singing and dancing all over the country. There’s an element of winging it, yes, for sure. When you jump up with a band, there are certain blues progressions and structures that everybody knows. Same thing with improvising and Second City, there are certain structures that we all agree on before letting ourselves go. Opening for the Rolling Stones at Soldier Field was a TRIP! A real trip. Danny and I were on stage singing and we looked to the side and there was Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ron Wood watching us. That was an out of body experience. The Stones were smiling and laughing and were really sweet to us. It was really, really cool.  

In performing with the Board of Comedy, you are returning to your Second City and Saturday Night Live roots. What do you enjoy most about sketch comedy and improv?

JB: Oh man, I’m having a ball! Every performance is different and unique, plus these improvisational actors on stage with me are geniuses. They crack me up every night. I’m just chasing the magic. Everyone, including the audience, is fully engaged and participating, and when there’s success in the scenes, there’s nothing like it. And it feels safe when you’re up there with an ensemble as your safety net. What’s great about this show is that it reunites me and Larry Joe Campbell. He’s the best partner I’ve ever had in my career. The problem with improv is that it’s life or death. You either come off stage going, "I’m going back to being an apprentice printer or become a journeyman and do graphic arts because I’m terrible." You go right into deep depression. Or you come off that stage going, "I am God. I am a gift to all." And that’s the best part!

RAPID FIRE

1. Favorite film of all time?  

Being There

2. Favorite TV show? 

According to Jim! Currently, my favorite show to watch is Banshee.

3. Favorite places to go when back in Wheaton and Chicago? 

Portillo’s, Gene and Jude’s, Second City, Blues on Halsted, The Fudge Pot in Old Town, and the Uptown Tobacco Shop.  

4. Key friends, mentors or role models early in your career?

Les Schomas, Richard Holgate, BF Johnson, Mr. Gregory and Mr. Restivo (my probation officers) — they kept me out of jail and I had a man to talk to every week.

5. Best advice you were ever given and by whom?  

"Heroes aren’t born, they’re cornered."   - Mickey Rooney

6. Three to five words that best describe you? 

Shameless and always hungry.