The comedian | Andrea Martin
Toronto may not have originally been Andrea Martin’s home, but we’re so grateful we can claim her as one of our own. She arrived in the city from New York in 1972 for a production of Godspell that would include future stars Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner and Martin Short, and she later would become one of the core cast members of the legendary sketch comedy television series SCTV. It was the launch of an expansive career for Martin, one that spanned the stage and the screen and resulted in two Tony awards, countless nominations and a film repertoire that includes her iconic, scene-stealing character in My Big Fat Greek Wedding and. The Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, received by Martin this year just a few months before she returned to the Broadway stage for McNeal, has been a long time coming for everyone’s favourite comedian, actor and honourary Canadian.
By Martin Short — Actor, comedian
Andrea and I started working together in 1972, and I found her to be the funniest human being I’ve ever met. To this day — and she’s my sister-in-law now — she remains the funniest human being I’ve ever met. Her humour was just that immediate and that original from day one. I had never seen anyone do or say things like she did. We all felt that; we all felt she was an utter original. If anything, what we were trying to do was copy her — her energy, her style. What I find most inspiring about Andrea is her honesty. Andrea is endlessly honest in her opinion of you, in her opinion of people, in her comments. It’s very hard for her to be false, and that’s an amazing trait in a friend. She’s been nominated for more Tony Awards for Best Featured Actress in a Musical than any actress in the history of the Tonys — you can’t pick just one performance that stands out. And obviously, she’s also the most lovely and dear and kind — she’s the aunt to my children. From what I’m told, Andrea is one of the biggest comedic influences of them all; whether it’s Amy Poehler or Tina Fey or the generation below that, they look at Andrea Martin’s work the way that I would look at Stan Laurel. But I think that if people just view her as this brilliant comedic actress and dramatic actress, then they would have to also know she’s one of the kindest, sweetest, loveliest human beings you could ever meet.
For more of Toronto’s most inspiring women of 2024, click here.
