American actor (1949–1982)
John Adam Belushi
bə-
LOO
-shee
; January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American actor, comedian, and musician. He was one of seven
Saturday Night Live
cast members
of the first season.
Belushi had a partnership with
Dan Aykroyd
; they had first met while at Chicago's
the Second City
comedy club, remaining together as cast members on
Saturday Night Live
Born in Chicago to
Albanian-American
parents, Belushi started his own comedy troupe with
Tino Insana
and Steve Beshekas, called "The West Compass Trio".
Bernard Sahlins
recruited him for The Second City comedy club. Once there he met Aykroyd,
Brian Doyle-Murray
, and
Harold Ramis
. In 1975,
Chevy Chase
and
Michael O'Donoghue
recommended Belushi to
Saturday Night Live
creator and showrunner
Lorne Michaels
, who accepted him as a new cast member of the show after an audition. Belushi developed a series of characters on the show that reached great success, including
Henry Kissinger
and
Ludwig van Beethoven
Belushi appeared in several films such as
National Lampoon's Animal House
1941
The Blues Brothers
, and
Neighbors
. He also pursued interests in music: with Aykroyd,
Lou Marini
Tom Malone
Steve Cropper
Donald "Duck" Dunn
, and
Paul Shaffer
, he founded
The Blues Brothers
, which led to the film of the same name.
Belushi was dismissed from
Saturday Night Live
several times and rehired more than once. He died on March 5, 1982, at the age of 33.
Cathy Smith
confessed to dosing him with a lethal mixture of
heroin
and
cocaine
at the
Chateau Marmont
Smith was charged with
involuntary manslaughter
, was convicted and sentenced to 15 months in prison.
Belushi was honored with a
posthumous award
of the star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame
in 2004. He was the older brother of
Jim Belushi
Early life and education
edit
Belushi as a senior at Wheaton Central High School (1967)
John Adam Belushi was born to Agnes Demetri (
née
Samaras) Belushi
and Adam Anastos Belushi
in
Humboldt Park, Chicago
. Agnes was a pharmacy worker,
who was born in
Ohio
to Albanian immigrants from
Korçë
, Albania.
Adam Anastos Belushi was an Albanian immigrant from
Qytezë
, Albania, and was the owner of the Fair Oaks restaurant on
North Avenue
in Chicago.
10
11
Belushi was raised in
Wheaton
along with his three siblings—younger brothers Billy and
Jim
and sister Marian.
12
13
He was
Eastern Orthodox Christian
, attending the
Albanian Orthodox Church
. He was educated at
Wheaton Central High School
, where he met his future wife,
Judith Jacklin
14
15
In 1965, Belushi formed a band, the Ravens, together with four fellow high-school students (Dick Blasucci, Michael Blasucci, Tony Pavilonis, and Phil Special). They recorded one single, "Listen to Me Now/
Jolly Green Giant
". Belushi played drums and sang vocals. The record was not successful, and the band broke up when he enrolled at the
College of DuPage
. He also attended the
University of Wisconsin–Whitewater
for a year, that time being the inspiration for the
Animal House
scene of a motorcycle driving up stairs.
16
Belushi then attended The University of Illinois Chicago Circle (UICC) (now the
University of Illinois Chicago
) before joining the cast of Saturday Night Live. He acquired the iconic "College" crewneck, worn by his character in
Animal House
, at a print shop when visiting his brother Jim, who attended
Southern Illinois University
17
1972–1975: Career beginnings: The Second City and National Lampoon
edit
Belushi started his own comedy troupe in Chicago, the West Compass Trio (named after the improvisational cabaret revue
Compass Players
active from 1955 to 1958 in Chicago), with
Tino Insana
and Steve Beshekas. Their success piqued the interest of Bernard Sahlins, the founder of The Second City, who asked Belushi to join the cast.
At Second City, Belushi met and began working with
Harold Ramis
Joe Flaherty
, and
Brian Doyle-Murray
In 1972, Belushi was offered a role, together with Chevy Chase and
Christopher Guest
, in
National Lampoon Lemmings
a parody of
Woodstock
, which played
off-Broadway
in 1972. Belushi and Jacklin moved to New York City. There, Belushi started working as a writer, director, and actor for
The National Lampoon Radio Hour
, a comedy radio show that was created, produced, and written by staff from
National Lampoon
magazine
18
Cast members on the shows produced by Belushi included Ramis, Flaherty, Guest, Brian Doyle Murray, his brother
Bill Murray
Gilda Radner
, and
Richard Belzer
. In 1974, Belushi and Chevy Chase voice-acted on a Lampoon LP record, the
Official National Lampoon Stereo Test and Demonstration Record
. During a trip to
Toronto
in 1974, Belushi met
Dan Aykroyd
Jacklin became an associate producer for the show, and she and Belushi were married on December 31, 1976.
The National Lampoon Show
toured the country in 1974;
citation needed
it was produced by Ivan Reitman.
Lampoon
owner
Matty Simmons
was offered a TV show on NBC at this time, but he declined the offer.
19
1975–1978: Work at
Saturday Night Live
and breakthrough
edit
In 1975, Chase and writer
Michael O'Donoghue
recommended Belushi to
Lorne Michaels
as a potential member for a television show Michaels was about to produce for
NBC
called
NBC's Saturday Night
, later
Saturday Night Live
. Michaels was initially reluctant, as he was not sure if Belushi's physical humor would fit with what he was envisioning, but he changed his mind after giving Belushi an audition.
He appeared alongside O'Donoghue in
Saturday Night Live
's first sketch (subsequently titled "the Wolverines") which aired on October 11, 1975.
20
Over his four-year tenure at
Saturday Night Live
Belushi developed a series of successful characters, including the belligerent
Saturday Night Live
Samurai
; Henry Kissinger; Ludwig van Beethoven; the Greek owner (Pete Dionisopoulos) of the
Olympia Café
; Captain
James T. Kirk
; and a contributor of furious opinion pieces on
Weekend Update
, during which he coined a catchphrase, "But N-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O!"
With Aykroyd, Belushi created Jake and Elwood,
the Blues Brothers
. Originally intended to warm up the studio audience before broadcasts of
Saturday Night Live
, the Blues Brothers were eventually featured as musical guests.
21
Belushi also reprised his Lemmings imitation of
Joe Cocker
. Cocker himself joined Belushi in 1976 to sing "
Feelin' Alright?
" together.
Like many other
Saturday Night Live
cast members and writers, Belushi was a
recreational drug user
. He attended concerts including
Fleetwood Mac
Meat Loaf
Kiss
The Dead Boys
Warren Zevon
The Grateful Dead
, and
The Allman Brothers
. In 1990, Michaels remembered him as a loyal trouper, to writers, a team player, yet he was fired and rehired at
Saturday Night Live
22
In
Rolling Stone
s February 2015 appraisal of all 141
Saturday Night Live
cast members, Belushi received their top ranking. "Belushi was the 'live' in
Saturday Night Live
", they wrote, "the one who made the show happen on the edge
… Nobody embodied the highs and lows of
Saturday Night Live
like Belushi."
23
1978–1982: Film debut, established actor and musician, and final years
edit
In 1978, Belushi performed in the films
Old Boyfriends
(directed by
Joan Tewkesbury
),
Goin' South
(directed by
Jack Nicholson
), and
National Lampoon's Animal House
(directed by
John Landis
). Upon its initial release,
Animal House
received generally mixed reviews from critics, but
Time
magazine
and
Roger Ebert
proclaimed it one of the year's best movies. Filmed at a cost of $2.8
million, it is one of the most profitable movies of all time,
24
garnering an estimated gross of more than $141
million in the form of theatrical rentals and home video, not including merchandising.
Animal House
was written by
Doug Kenney
Harold Ramis
, and Chris Miller, and followed in the tradition of the
Marx Brothers
films that featured subversive and satirical plots that took on traditional institutions.
Hollywood
studios tried to copy the film's success without the satire, resulting in a string of "nerds vs. jocks" films in the 1980s with cheap sight gags involving nudity and gross-out humor.
25
Following the success of the Blues Brothers on
Saturday Night Live
, Belushi and Aykroyd, with the help of pianist-arranger
Paul Shaffer
, assembled studio talent forming a proper band.
Saturday Night Live
saxophonist
"Blue"
Lou Marini
and trombonist-saxophonist
Tom Malone
, who had previously played in
Blood, Sweat & Tears
were there. At Shaffer's suggestion, guitarist
Steve Cropper
and
bassist
Donald "Duck" Dunn
, the powerhouse combo from
Booker T and the M.G.'s
, who played on dozens of hits from
Memphis
's
Stax Records
during the 1960s,
26
were signed as well.
27
In 1978 the Blues Brothers released their debut album,
Briefcase Full of Blues
, with
Atlantic Records
. The album reached number 1 on the Billboard 200 and went
double platinum
. Two singles were released: "Rubber Biscuit", which reached number 37 on the
Billboard
Hot 100, and "Soul Man", which reached number 14.
In 1979, Belushi along with Aykroyd left
Saturday Night Live
. They filmed
The Blues Brothers
movie, which conflicted with the schedule of
Saturday Night Live
. Michaels also decided to leave at the end of his contract. NBC's pressure to use recurring characters was also a factor in their decision. Belushi and Aykroyd made two movies together after leaving:
Neighbors
(directed by
John Avildsen
), and most notably
The Blues Brothers
(directed by John Landis). Released in the U.S. on June 20, 1980,
The Blues Brothers
received generally negative reviews.
28
It earned just under $5
million in its opening weekend, and went on to gross $115.2
million in theaters worldwide before its release on home video. The Blues Brothers band toured to promote the film, which led to a third album (and second live album),
Made in America
, recorded at the
Universal Amphitheatre
in 1980. The track "Who's Making Love" peaked at number 39.
The only film Belushi made without Aykroyd following their departure from
Saturday Night Live
was the romantic comedy
Continental Divide
(directed by
Michael Apted
). Released in September 1981, it starred Belushi as Chicago hometown hero writer Ernie Souchack (loosely based on newspaper columnist and long-time family friend
Mike Royko
), who gets an assignment researching a scientist (played by
Blair Brown
) who studies birds of prey in the remote
Rocky Mountains
By 1981, Belushi had become a fan and advocate of the punk rock band
Fear
after seeing them perform in several after-hours New York City bars and brought them to
Cherokee Studios
to record songs for the soundtrack of
Neighbors
. Blues Brothers band member Tom Scott, along with producing partner and Cherokee owner Bruce Robb, initially helped with the session, but later pulled out due to conflicts with Belushi. The session was eventually produced by Cropper. The producers of
Neighbors
refused to use the song in the movie. As penance for the refusal, Belushi, along with O'Donoghue and
Saturday Night Live
writer
Nelson Lyon
, booked Fear to play
Saturday Night Live
Halloween
broadcast on October 31, 1981 (doing so by agreeing to make a cameo in the episode for free; indeed, he makes a silent cameo in the cold opening of the episode, in what was ultimately his last appearance on the show during his lifetime); the telecast of the performance featured then-novel
moshing
and
stage diving
, and was cut short by NBC due to the band's profanity. The
New York Post
published an account of these and other sensationalistic details of the event the following day.
29
Up to his death, Belushi was pursuing movie projects,
30
including an
ABSCAM
-related caper called
Moon Over Miami
, to be directed by
Louis Malle
; and a diamond-smuggling caper called
Noble Rot
with
Jay Sandrich
, based on a script he adapted and rewrote with former
Saturday Night Live
writer
Don Novello
. However,
Paramount Studios
offered to produce
Noble Rot
only if Belushi starred in
The Joy of Sex
, which would have featured him in a diaper. Aykroyd advised him to turn down
The Joy of Sex
and return to the East Coast, where Aykroyd was writing
Ghostbusters
. Belushi also talked about producing a film in a
High Times
tribute article from 1982: "Belushi wanted to give these daring captains courageous of consciousness the credit they deserved, he told me. He wanted to star in a major marijuana movie to be called
Kingpin
. He wanted to play the title role."
31
Belushi made a "guest-star appearance" on an episode of the television series
Police Squad!
(1982). Each opening of the show featured a running gag that featured the guest star dying right away. Belushi died shortly before the episode was to air. The scene was cut and replaced by a segment with
William Conrad
32
Belushi had health issues in the early to mid 1970s due to his
drug use
Cocaine
was frequently used by the cast and writers of
Saturday Night Live
, but Belushi's use quickly got out of control and he was temporarily banned from the
Saturday Night Live
set. Belushi was aware of warnings that he was headed for an early death, warnings that eventually were mentioned in the 1978 short film "Don't Look Back in Anger," in which Belushi ironically is the last surviving member of the cast and remarks "They all thought I’d be the first one to go. I was one of those ‘live fast, die young, leave a good-looking corpse’ types, you know?"
33
During the production of
The Blues Brothers,
director
John Landis
confronted Belushi in his trailer after finding a stash of cocaine. Belushi tearfully admitted his addiction during the argument. Belushi was also frequently late for his call times and would delay shooting by wandering off set. The production hired Smokey Wendell to prevent Belushi from accessing more drugs.
34
He managed to quit his habit during the production of
Continental Divide
, but severely
relapsed
during the production of
Neighbors
A few months after the filming on
Neighbors
ended, on the evening of February 28, 1982, he checked in to a bungalow at the
Chateau Marmont
in
Los Angeles
35
For several days, he frequented various nightclubs on the
Sunset Strip
and
Santa Monica Boulevard
35
On March 4, 1982, Belushi visited the Los Angeles office of his long-time manager
Bernie Brillstein
and asked him for money. Brillstein declined, suspecting that Belushi wanted more drugs.
36
Later that day, Belushi returned and again asked for money while Brillstein was in a meeting. Brillstein was reluctant to rebuke Belushi in front of the other person and gave him the money. In the early morning hours of March 5, 1982, Belushi, while in his Chateau Marmont bungalow, was visited separately by friends
Robin Williams
and
Robert De Niro
, as well as
Cathy Smith
35
37
38
Around noon on March 5, 1982, Belushi's fitness trainer,
Bill Wallace
, found Belushi dead at the Chateau Marmont bungalow.
39
During a
preliminary hearing
held in September 1985, two pathologists testified that Belushi's cause of death was an overdose from
cocaine and heroin
Cathy Smith was arrested by the
Los Angeles Police Department
on March 5, 1982, for possession of narcotics. This arrest was not in relation to Belushi's death.
40
Later in 1982,
Rolling Stone
magazine
described the circumstances of her arrest: "On the afternoon of March 5th, Cathy Evelyn Smith had appeared driving the wrong way into the one-way exit of the Chateau Marmont Hotel on Sunset Strip behind the wheel of John Belushi's rented red Mercedes
… At that moment, a hundred feet away, Belushi lay naked and dead on the floor of his $200-a-day bungalow. The police who had cordoned off the area were reflexively insisting it had been 'death from natural causes'."
40
The LAPD released Smith after questioning.
40
In an interview with the
National Enquirer
in May 1982, Smith admitted that she had been with Belushi at the Chateau Marmont on the night of his death. After the appearance of the
Enquirer
article, Smith was
extradited
from Canada, and charged with
second-degree murder
The case was delayed for four years while her lawyers negotiated. Smith pled no contest on June 11, 1986, to involuntary manslaughter and three counts of furnishing and administering controlled substances to Belushi in the hours before he was found dead.
She served fifteen months in prison at Chino,
California Institution for Women
Belushi's funeral was conducted by an Albanian Orthodox priest.
41
Belushi was interred at Abel's Hill Cemetery in
Chilmark, Massachusetts
, on
Martha's Vineyard
42
Belushi's tombstone has a skull and crossbones with the inscription, "I may be gone but Rock and Roll lives on."
After the success of
The Blues Brothers
, his fame further escalated after his death. Members of his family, along with Chilmark officials, gradually became more concerned over his gravesite becoming a tourist attraction like that of
Jim Morrison
. Reports increased of excess noise, damaging grass and disturbing the peace of others buried there, along with fans paying bizarre tributes by littering his gravesite with liquor bottles, beer cans, and other paraphernalia. His widow arranged to have him reinterred in an unmarked grave near the original site.
43
The tombstone of Belushi's mother at
Elmwood Cemetery (River Grove, Illinois)
, has Belushi's name inscribed on it and thus serves as a
cenotaph
44
Belushi was scheduled to present the
Best Visual Effects Oscar
at the
1982 Academy Awards
with Dan Aykroyd. Aykroyd presented the award alone, and stated from the lectern: "My partner, he would have loved to have been here tonight to present this award, since he was somewhat of a visual effect himself."
45
Tributes, legacy, and popular culture
edit
A 2008 stamp from
Albania
During the first live
Saturday Night Live
episode following Belushi's death with host
Robert Urich
and musical guest
Mink DeVille
, airing live on March 20, 1982, cast member
Brian Doyle-Murray
gave a tribute to him.
46
During the preproduction of
Ghostbusters
, Reitman remarked that
Slimer
bore a resemblance to Belushi's character Bluto from
Animal House
47
Since then, Slimer has been described as "the ghost of John Belushi" by Aykroyd in many interviews.
Belushi's life was detailed in 3 books: the 1984 biography
Wired: The Short Life and Fast Times of John Belushi
by
Bob Woodward
, the accuracy of which has been questioned by journalists and by people close to Belushi,
48
and the 1990 memoir
Samurai Widow
by his widow Judith. Woodward's book was adapted into a
film of the same name
in 1989, which was denounced by Aykroyd and Judith, and was given poor reviews by critics. Belushi's career and death were prominently featured in the 1999 memoir of his manager Bernie Brillstein, who wrote that he was haunted by the comedian's death. He wrote that he learned how to better deal with clients.
36
In 2005 Tanner Colby produced
Belushi: A Biography
, a collection of first-person interviews and photographs of Belushi's life, written in collaboration with Judith Belushi, his widow.
49
50
Eddie Money
wrote "Passing by the Graveyard (Song for John B.)", from his 1982 album
No Control
, in tribute to Belushi. The two became friends after Money was a musical guest on
Saturday Night Live
during the show's third season.
51
The
thrash metal
group
Anthrax
penned a song about Belushi on their 1987 album
Among the Living
, titled "Efilnikufesin (N.F.L.)".
52
Polish rock band
Lady Pank
recorded a song "John Belushi" for their 1988 album
Tacy sami
, with references to his Albanian ancestry. In 2025
Angus Stone
, also known as Dope Lemon, released a song called "John Belushi" in his honor.
53
Belushi was portrayed in biographical films by actors
Tyler Labine
Michael Chiklis
and
John Gemberling
54
Chris Farley
, who was heavily influenced by Belushi, died in 1997 at age 33 due to a drug overdose, which has fueled many comparisons between Belushi and Farley.
54
Belushi's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
In 2004, Belushi was posthumously inducted into the
Hollywood Walk of Fame
with a
motion pictures star
located at 6355
Hollywood Boulevard
55
In 2006,
Biography Channel
aired an episode of
Final 24
, a documentary following Belushi during the last 24 hours leading to his death. Four years later, Biography aired a full documentary of Belushi's life. In 2015, Belushi was ranked by
Rolling Stone
as the greatest
Saturday Night Live
cast member of all time.
56
Belushi's widow later remarried and became Judith Jacklin Belushi Pisano. However, she and her second husband, Victor Pisano, divorced in 2010.
57
58
59
Saturday Night Live
castmate
Jane Curtin
, who appeared on
The Oprah Winfrey Show
in 2011, stated that Belushi was a
misogynist
who would deliberately sabotage the work of female writers and comics while working on the show: "So you'd go to a table read, and if a woman writer had written a piece for John, he would not read it in his full voice. He felt as though it was his duty to sabotage pieces written by women."
60
Saturday Night Live
writer
Anne Beatts
suggested that because she was writing a book with his wife at the time, Belushi was frustrated with them spending more time on the book than with him. He complained to Michaels about Beatts and Rosie Shuster.
61
Judith said that Belushi was a "
Women's Libber
" and did not hate women.
62
Judith, who worked to keep Belushi's legacy alive and who was credited for her role in assisting Belushi and Dan Aykroyd with
The Blues Brothers
, died in July 2024.
57
58
59
Listen to Me Now/
Jolly Green Giant
(Alonas Dream Records, 1965) (with the Ravens)
National Lampoon's Lemmings
(Blue Thumb Records, 1973) (bass guitar, lead vocals on
Lonely At The Bottom
Old Boyfriends: Original Soundtrack
(Columbia, 1978) (lead vocals on
Jailhouse Rock
You Belong to Me
Get Up and Down
and
Tush
National Lampoon's Animal House: Original Soundtrack
(Universal, 1978) (lead vocals on
Money (That's What I Want)
and
Louie Louie
Briefcase Full of Blues
(Atlantic, 1978)
US
#1 (with the Blues Brothers)
The Blues Brothers: Music from the Soundtrack
(Atlantic, 1980) US #13 (with the Blues Brothers)
Made in America
(Atlantic, 1980) US #49 (with the Blues Brothers)
Best of The Blues Brothers
(Atlantic, 1981) US #143 (with the Blues Brothers)
Dancin' wid da Blues Brothers
(Atlantic, 1983) (with the Blues Brothers)
Everybody Needs the Blues Brothers
(Atlantic, 1988) (with the Blues Brothers)
The Definitive Collection
(Atlantic, 1992) (with the Blues Brothers)
The Very Best of The Blues Brothers
(Atlantic, 1995) (with the Blues Brothers)
The Blues Brothers Complete
(Atlantic, 2000) (with the Blues Brothers)
The Essentials
(Atlantic, 2003) (with the Blues Brothers)
Neighbors
(Fear Records, 2015) (with
Fear
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Gary Belkin
, Peter Bellwood,
Thomas Meehan
Herb Sargent
and
Judith Viorst
(1970)
Herbert Baker
Hal Goodman
Larry Klein
Bob Schiller
Norman Steinberg
Bob Weiskopf
and
Flip Wilson
(1971)
Art Baer
Roger Beatty
Stan Burns
Stan Hart
Don Hinkley
Ben Joelson
Woody Kling
Mike Marmer
, Arnie Rosen and
Larry Siegel
(1972)
Bill Angelos,
Roger Beatty
Stan Hart
, Robert Hilliard,
Woody Kling
Arnie Kogen
Buz Kohan
Gail Parent
, Tom Patchett,
Larry Siegel
and
Jay Tarses
(1973)
Rosalyn Drexler
Ann Elder
Karyl Geld Miller
Robert Illes
Lorne Michaels
Richard Pryor
Jim Rusk
Herb Sargent
James R. Stein
Lily Tomlin
Jane Wagner
Rod Warren
and
George Yanok
(1974)
Roger Beatty
Gary Belkin
Dick Clair
Rudy De Luca
Arnie Kogen
, Barry Harman,
Barry Levinson
Jenna McMahon
, Gene Perret,
Bill Richmond
and
Ed Simmons
(1974)
Roger Beatty
Gary Belkin
Dick Clair
Rudy De Luca
Arnie Kogen
Barry Levinson
Jenna McMahon
, Gene Perret,
Bill Richmond
and
Ed Simmons
(1975)
Anne Beatts
Chevy Chase
Tom Davis
Al Franken
Lorne Michaels
Marilyn Suzanne Miller
Michael O'Donoghue
Herb Sargent
Tom Schiller
Rosie Shuster
and
Alan Zweibel
(1976)
Dan Aykroyd
John Belushi
Tom Davis
James Downey
Al Franken
Lorne Michaels
Marilyn Suzanne Miller
Bill Murray
Michael O'Donoghue
Herb Sargent
Tom Schiller
Rosie Shuster
and
Alan Zweibel
(1977)
Roger Beatty
Dick Clair
Tim Conway
, Rick Hawkins,
Robert Illes
Jenna McMahon
, Gene Perret,
Bill Richmond
, Liz Sage,
Larry Siegel
, Franelle Silver,
Ed Simmons
and
James R. Stein
(1978)
Alan Alda
(1979)
US