Dana Carvey (born June 2, 1955) is an American actor and comedian from Missoula, Montana. When he was three years old, his family moved to San Carlos, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. He attended Carlmont High School, and received his Bachelor’s degree in communications from San Francisco State University.
Carvey costarred on One of the Boys in 1982, a short-lived television sitcom that also starred Mickey Rooney, Nathan Lane, and Meg Ryan. In 1984, Carvey had a small role in Rob Reiner’s This Is Spinal Tap film, where he played a mime, with fellow comedian Billy Crystal.
In 1986, Carvey became a household name when he joined the cast of NBC’s Saturday Night Live. Carvey’s SNL impressions and characters included Johnny Carson, Garth Algar (from Wayne’s World), President George H. W. Bush, Ross Perot, The Church Lady, Franz (from Hans and Franz), President Jimmy Carter, Walter Mondale, John McLaughlin, Charles Grodin, and Woody Allen. Garth Algar is actually an affectionate caricature of Dana’s brother, Brad Carvey, an accomplished electrical engineer who invented the Video Toaster. Carvey left the show in 1993.
In 1992, Carvey joined Mike Myers to bring their popular Wayne’s World sketch to the silver screen. A sequel was filmed and released in 1993, entitled Wayne’s World 2.
In 1994, he starred in Clean Slate .
In 1996, he reprised many of his SNL characters for The Dana Carvey Show .
In 1997, he underwent open-heart surgery for a blocked artery. Unfortunately, the doctors operated on the wrong artery. Carvey later sued for medical malpractice and was awarded $7.5 million. Carvey has had to undergo a total of five operations to correct his heart problems.
In 2002, he returned to the silver screen in the comedy, Master of Disguise.
Filmography
This is Spinal Tap - 1984
Racing with the Moon - 1984
Tough Guys - 1986
Moving - 1988
Opportunity Knocks - 1990
Wayne’s World - 1992
Wayne’s World 2 - 1993
Clean Slate - 1994
The Road to Wellville - 1994
The Shot - 1996
Little Nicky - 2000
Master of Disguise - 2002