EST. 1959 - Second City

Looking back, it seems perfect that The Second City would take its name from the title of
A.J. Liebling’s disparaging profile of Chicago. It was at that very moment that a collective
of artists from around the University of Chicago area were laying the groundwork for what
would become renowned as one of the most influential and prolific comedy theatres in
the world.
Those artists — including Paul Sills, Mike Nichols, Elaine May, Zorah Lampert and Sheldon
Patinkin — shared a love for performance with a voice of truth. Politically active in a time
when making waves could prove disastrous, they left the south side campus in search of a
space to present exactly the work in which they were interested. Together with David
Shepherd, Barbara Harris, Ed Asner, and Byrne and Joyce Piven, they found a home in the
form of an ex-chop suey house on the corner of North and Lasalle street in Chicago’s Old
Town neighborhood. The Playwright’s Theatre Club had been born, creating over twenty-five
productions during their lifespan. By all accounts, it would prove to be the most important exchop
suey house in documented theater history.
With the momentum of the Playwright’s Theater in their stride, Shepherd and Sills went on to
form the improvisational group The Compass Players – an incarnation that is credited with
advancing the fledgling art form to exciting levels that audiences had never experienced. New
talents including Shelley Berman, Severn Darden, Roger Bowen, Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara were
also part of the troupe, and together they fashioned a style and criterion still widely reflected in
comedy today – one nightclub at a time. When the time came in 1959 to find a permanent home
for the group, Sills joined forces with Howard Alk and producer Bernard Sahlins. They naturally
thought to approach the owner of an ex-Chinese laundry in Old Town. After a bout of
polite hard-selling, the doors opened on The Second City and haven’t closed since.
As if the 60’s didn’t provide enough excitement for the growing enterprise, in 1973
producers Bernard Sahlins and Joyce Sloane headed north and opened the doors to a
permanent space in downtown Toronto.
Though the venture was met with positive reviews and faithful support from the public,
the inability to secure a liquor license put the group’s new settlement in jeopardy. Faced
with the prospect of leaving Toronto, Sloane and Sahlins met with local theatre producer
Andrew Alexander, a long-time fan of The Second City who had faith the company would thrive
if it could find the right home.
1963
First performance in Toronto
First television special
1961 • Avery Schreiber, Joan Rivers, Bill Alton
THE SECOND CITY: A BRIEF HISTORY
1965
First national tour
1964 • David Steinberg, Ann Elder
1967
New home in Piper's Alley
1967 • Sandy Holt, Peter Boyle
1968
First Second City film
In a matter of months, Alexander did just that – and by 1974 Second City Toronto was
creating revues within the regal confines of a century-old firehouse at 110 Lombard St. His
commitment to The Second City just beginning, he produced the first revue in the new
building, with a cast consisting of Joe Flaherty, John Candy, Eugene Levy, Rosemary Radcliffe
and Gilda Radner. It was clear from the ensemble’s fearlessness and innovative character
work that this was a place where legends came to play. Without missing a beat, the Toronto
location quickly became recognized as the city’s premier improvisational theatre.
In the decades that followed, Second City’s role as the principal training ground for young
comic actors became evident as alums like Robert Klein, Joan Rivers, Fred Willard, and Peter
Boyle achieved national fame for their talents. The theatre’s foray into television would yield
monumental results with the advent of the series SCTV, debuting stars like Harold Ramis, Martin
Short, Joe Flaherty and Andrea Martin. The sketch show Saturday Night Live began recruiting
Second City alums at an alarming rate – making faces like Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, Dan
Aykroyd, and John Belushi ones that the world would never forget.
The Second City’s pace only increased throughout the 80’s and 90’s, when performers Stephen
Colbert, Steve Carrell, Mike Myers, Chris Farley, Tim Meadows, Rachel Dratch, and Tina Fey ushered
in a new era of comedy with a persistent succession of groundbreaking revues. In 1985, Andrew
Alexander and his partner Len Stuart acquired Bernie Sahlins’ interest in The Second City -
Chicago. Currently, Alexander operates and oversees Second City’s ever expanding sphere of
activities. In addition to its resident theatres in Chicago and Toronto, the company has
training centers in each of those locations as well as Los Angeles; four touring
companies that perform at arts centers, theatres and festivals worldwide; a
corporate communications division that offers consulting, training and customized
entertainment to a diverse array of clients; Second City Theatricals which produces
plays and musicals for both resident and road houses; and Second City Television and
Film, producers of the award-winning series SCTV and currently developing new
television and film projects.
In the words of the New York Times, The Second City has become “a comedy empire.”
1973
Second City Toronto Opens
1976
SCTV begins filming
1971 •Eugenie Ross-Leming, John Belushi 1973 • John Candy, Bill Murray 1974 • Dan Aykroyd
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