Mark McKinney

Mark was born to Canadian diplomat Russell and architectural writer Chloe McKinney. Mark and his siblings spent much time traveling with their diplomat dad, and Mark attended schools in many cities around the world, including Trinidad, Paris, and Washington, D.C. His younger brother Nick is also a comedian; he appeared on the short-lived Comedy Central sketch-comedy show The Vacant Lot. Mark met Bruce McCulloch at the Loose Moose Theater Company, and the two joined two other comedians to form the comedy troupe ‘The Audience,’ which performed at Theatresports. Later, Mark and Bruce moved to Toronto and met Dave Foley and Kevin McDonald. They combined to form The Kids in the Hall. Later he starred in the TV cut sensation The Kids in the Hall (1988); after it was canceled in 1994, Mark joined the cast of Saturday Night Live (1975) from 1995 to 1997. He had roles in various movies including A Night at the Roxbury (1998), The Out-of-Towners (1999), The Ladies Man (2000), and Dog Park (1998), and Superstar (1999) which were both directed by Kids In The Hall co-star and friend Bruce McCulloch.

Movies

Superstar

Orphan Mary Katherine Gallagher, an ugly duckling at St. Monica High School, has a dream: to kiss Sky, the most popular boy in school. She decides she can realize this dream if she becomes a superstar, so her prayers, her fantasies, and her conversations with her only friend focus on…

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Fun Facts

Son, Christopher Thomas Russell McKinney, born March 4, 1996.

Has an older sister, Jane, and a younger brother Nick McKinney, who is a member of the sketch comedy troupe, The Vacant Lot.

Daughter, Emma Jane McKinney born in July of 2001.

Although all five members of the The Kids in the Hall (1988) troupe were offered a spot on Saturday Night Live (1975), McKinney was the only one who accepted.

Is the tallest member of the Kids in the Hall, being one inch taller than Scott Thompson and Kevin McDonald.

Frequently works with longtime collaborator and fellow The Kids in the Hall (1988) member, Bruce McCulloch.

Is the most verbally versatile member of the The Kids in the Hall (1988) troupe.

2021 lives in Los Angeles and Toronto.

Quotes

It took us a while to figure out what the camera did to comedy, but that was a creative lesson to learn. If you go back to our first season you'll see a few sketches without any kind of editing that television allows you to do to make the thing pace up a bit. But the half-hour format was very generous. We were indulged and coached and nurtured in such a fantastic way that it kind of spoiled us. We got to do this completely original thing at a very young age, and then we got to discover what he bigger business was actually like.

[on 'The Kids in the Hall'' in the 1980s] We get discovered by Lorne [Michaels] and then there is a whole new door of the industry opening up which is cable and which meant that you could do a show that was more specific, and more cult-y and edgy, because you didn't need to amass the gigantic audiences that at that time were required to make a network show a hit.