SJ Desk
efore we start with the exhilarating journey of Jim Carrey, one of the biggest comedians movie industry can ever boast about, I would like to tell you a story. A middle-aged man who was suffering from acute depression went to a psychiatrist and told him how he was spending sleepless nights with a major loss in appetite. He constantly felt a lack of interest in everything that life had to offer. The doctor studied this man meticulously and with a smile replied “Sir, there's nothing wrong with you, the only medication that I can prescribe to you is laughter. I would suggest that a very famous clown named Mambo has arrived in our town, why don't you go and relish his show.” Though the doctor sounded cheerful, an air of melancholy engulfed this man. After a long pause, this man said in a poignant and cracked voice “You don't get it, doctor, I am Mambo the clown.”
Who knew that Jim Carrey, who never failed to tickle our funny bones, the megastar who portrayed immortal comedy characters in epic movies like The Mask, Yes man, Ace Ventura, Bruce Almighty, Liar Liar, had to fight every inch of his way from scarcity to Stardom.
Birth and Childhood Struggles
Jim Carrey who was born by the name James Eugene Carrey was born on 17th January 1962 in Ontario, Canada. His father Percy Carrey was an accountant and his mother Kathleen, a housewife. He had three other siblings. Jim was suffering from dyslexia and hence he had difficulty in learning, reading & writing. As a result of this, he never had many friends at school and was very withdrawn. He was small when his father lost his job and he started working an 8 hours shift after school as a janitor to aid his family. Unable to cope up with the pressure of school and a full-time job, he had to quit school in 1978 and focus on work.
In his early childhood, he stood in front of a mirror and made funny faces. When his family was suffering from a severe financial crisis and when his mother fell ill, he used to do comic acts and make faces just to cheer them up. He then started performing small stand up comedy acts in front of his small circle of friends. He slowly started believing that he was gifted with an ability to make people laugh and sought a career as a comedian.
The Predicament in Early Career
Even though the family was suffering from a wide range of problems, they stuck together. His father knowing Jim’s passion for comedy acting motivated him to participate in a local club called YAK YAK as a stand-up comedian. But things went south as the crowd did not like his act and ostracized him mercilessly. He was shattered after that and the financial crisis started troubling Carrey family even more.
They left the house and started living in a VW trailer in their relative's backyard. Jim decided to give up his dream and wholeheartedly started supporting his family. But as they say, if two points are meant to meet, destiny will find a way to connect them. The Carrey family got a breather when Jim’s father Percy got a new job. In 1979, Jim Carrey formed a band called SPOONS and returned to the same club YAK YAK, where he was mortified a few months back. This time the crowd went berserk over his performance and he became the main attraction of the club. Finding success at stage events, he started shifting his focus towards movies and television. But he failed in his audition of Saturday night live by NBC in 1980.
Road to Success
Not giving up to constant failures in his early career, he kept on working hard. He used to go to Mulholland drive and other big places where he used to envision himself as a superstar who was getting big movie offers. Once he even wrote a post-dated cheque worth $10 million, which turned real after his movie Dumb and Dumber. When his father died in 1994, he kept that cheque in his father’s coffin.
He made his television debut in the year 1981 and started making his name by working in various shows like ‘An evening at the Improv’, ‘The tonight show’ & ‘Duck Factory’ at NBC. He even starred in a few B grade movies like ‘Rubberface’ and ‘Copper Mountain’ along with supporting roles in ‘The Deadpool’, ‘Earth girls are easy’ etc.
He got his first major break by bagging the lead role in Ace Ventura: pet detective in the year 1994 and the rest is history. He got nominated multiple times for the golden globe awards and even won it for movies like Man on the Moon and The Trueman Show. Not only in the comedy genre, but Jim also showed his talent in sci-fi, romance and action movies. At one point he went on to become the highest paid comedy actor of his time by charging $20 million for the movie ’The cable guy’.
Troubled Personal Life
Even after a profusely successful career, he always endured hardships in his personal life. He suffered from extreme depression and started taking a pill called ‘Prozac’ to battle the condition. He later stopped taking the medications and started using a spiritual way to deal with this problem effectively. Jim and his first wife Melissa got divorced in 1995, his second marriage with Lauren Holly lasted not even one year. Carrey’s former girlfriend Cathriona White was found dead on 19th September 2015 because of a drug overdose. And her husband pressed charges against Jim, stating he used his influential status to unlawfully procure and distribute prescription drugs that caused her demise.
Jim Carrey is not only an ace actor but also a painter, he is also a producer, a musician, and a writer. Even after struggles and problems at every step of life, Jim never gave up on his dreams. Although poverty, critical illness, and even heartbreaks made him cry on numerous occasions, he never ceased to bring a smile to the millions of fans worldwide. His hard work, passion, and determination are an inspiration to many.