James Belushi, who most people just call "Jim", has had a long and successful career in show business. He has an astounding four decades of experience under his belt and has appeared in almost ninety movies to date. The gifted performer looks set to remain one of Hollywood's elite for at least several more decades!
James Belushi: His teacher was in awe of his talent
One of Belushi's teachers first spotted his talent when he starred in a school play in high school. The teacher encouraged him to sign-up for a drama class, which then lead to him pursuing a degree in Speech and Theater Arts at the Southern University of Illinois. When director Gary Marshall (†81) saw the young actor performing with the famous Chicago-based improv group Second City in 1978, he immediately booked Jim for a small part in his TV show Who’s Watching the Kids. And the rest, as they say, is history.
After his brother John’s untimely death in 1982, James went on to follow in his brother’s footsteps on NBC’s flagship programme Saturday Night Live. After two years on the sketch comedy show, he successfully transitioned to a career in film and had his big breakthrough in 1986 in About last Night…, in which he starred alongside Rob Lowe and Demi Moore. Hit movies, such as K-9, Taking Care of Business and Curly Sue, to name just a few, followed and he also regularly appeared on different TV shows throughout the nineties.
In 2001, Belushi even got his very own show on ABC. In According to Jim, he played a loving but chaotic father of three in a suburban neighborhood, who struggles from time to time, but manages to keep it together by sheer force of will and a good sense of humour.
James Belushi: New Projects
2017 was another busy year for Jim Belushi. He appeared in the long-awaited sequel to Twin Peaks, directed by David Lynch, and starred in the Woody Allen film Wonder Wheel, alongside Kate Winslet, Juno Temple and Justin Timberlake. He will soon star in the romance Fairytale.
Aside from his acting career, Jim also has his own farm in the state of Oregon! The actor grows cannabis there, and even had a special guest recently - Dan Aykroyd himself!
James Belushi's marriage
Belushi had been married to his wife Jennifer Sloan for twenty years and they have two children. The pair divorced back in 2018. He also has another child from his first marriage and, it turns out, acting talent runs in the family, Robert Belushi, now 40, is also an actor.
Check out Jim with his daughter, Jamison, dancing together right here:
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