Kenny Hotz
| Kenny Hotz | |
|---|---|
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| Born | Kenneth Joel Hotz May 3, 1967 [1] Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation | Actor, director, screenwriter, and producer |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Website | |
| http://www.kennyhotz.com | |
Kenneth Joel "Kenny" Hotz (born May 3, 1967) is an award-winning Canadian writer, director, actor, producer and photographer. He is a former South Park consultant/writer, creator/director/co-star of the Showcase and Comedy Central television show Kenny vs. Spenny creator/co-writer/cast member of the FX series Testees and the creator/director and star of Kenny Hotz's Triumph of the Will. He is the only Canadian entertainer in history who has the achievement of creating two television series that premiered on separate American networks at the same time (FX and Comedy Central). He also has the largest Facebook fan base for any Canadian TV celebrity. He is the owner of The Hoxton, a popular concert venue in Toronto Canada.
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[edit] Early life
Hotz was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1967.[1] When Kenny was four years old, the top of his right index finger was removed in an exercise bicycle accident. At the age of 7 years old,[2] Kenny was sent to a film camp where he made his first film. He attended high school at Forest Hill Collegiate Institute. Lorne Michaels and Drake attended the same high school. Hotz began making short films in 1989, and in 2000 came up with the idea to develop a television show in which he and a friend competed in a series of challenges to prove who was the best, which eventually evolved into Kenny vs. Spenny. Though he never graduated from Ryerson University's media arts program, Hotz became a filmmaker and photographer. Hotz had been working as a photographer since the age of 13, photographing numerous countries and historic world events. The subjects of his photo essays include Gulf War 1991, Auschwitz, Dachau, Needle Park (Zurich, Switzerland), David Koresh, Mount Carmel, Waco, and New Years' in Times Square 2000.[citation needed]
[edit] Career
After returning to Canada, Hotz worked on a award winning comedic short about the life and death of a homeless dwarf in Toronto named Shorty Gordy with Spencer Rice. In that same year, he starred (with Rice) in the internationally acclaimed documentary Pitch. Hotz then moved to Los Angeles to develop television programming. Eventually, Hotz started development on Kenny vs. Spenny.
Kenny vs. Spenny was nominated for a 8 Gemini awards. Hotz was a guest with Rice on Jimmy Kimmel, Tom Green's House Tonight, Carson Daly and Late Night with Conan O'Brien in New York. Hotz notes that “I sat next to Conan.” In 2004, he finished his second feature film titled The Papal Chase, a documentary about Hotz trying to meet the Pope John Paul II. The film is directed by and stars Hotz, and features cameos by The Rolling Stones and Pope John Paul II. Hotz was given an unprecedented $10,000 prize by a jury when the film won the inaugural Phillip Borsos award for Best Canadian Feature Film in 2004 at the Whistler Film Festival. He also created the concept for the 3D video game "Versusville" for the Kenny vs. Spenny series and was nominated for the Canadian New Media Awards for "Excellence in Gaming". "Kenny vs. Spenny" is the largest international selling comedy format in Canadian history.[3]
Hotz recently consulted on the animated series South Park, also writing the episodes "Follow That Egg!" and "Two Days Before the Day After Tomorrow". He also worked as a writer for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in 1987.
In 2008, He developed a sitcom called Testees for the Fox-owned FX that year, producing 13 shows centering on product testers in various markets. The show lasted just 13 episodes and started airing in October 2008 on FX and the Canadian-owned Showcase cable channel.[4]
Kenny is Jewish, as evidenced in one episode of Kenny vs. Spenny ("Who Can Eat the Most Meat?"). As he blends up a "meat smoothie," to which he adds pork, he notes that his "rabbi is going to be so pissed." He also pretends to sing in his local synagogue choir in "First to Stop Singing Loses" (against the rules of that particular competition) and he mentions it in the "Who Do Old People Like More" episode, where he believes it will help him win. He is fluent in Hebrew, as noted in "Who's the Better Jew". However, in an interview, Hotz stated that he is apathetic toward religion and considers himself an atheist.[5]
Kenny was embroiled in a deliberate controversy with the British Columbia Human Rights Commission for alleged hate speech for his actions in the episode "Who Can Piss Off More People", where he paid to have a plane fly over Toronto dragging a banner that reads "Jesus Sucks".[6]
Hotz had a memorable cameo in Kevin Smith's 2008 film Zack and Miri Make A Porno, starring Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks.[7]
Kenny made a cameo appearance as a homeless man in the second episode of the Pure Pwnage television series, as well as a cameo in Degrassi Takes Manhattan in 2010. Kenny, in collaboration with Spencer Rice, completed the final episode of Kenny vs. Spenny ("The Kenny vs. Spenny Christmas Special"). He is currently working on his new series Kenny Hotz's Triumph of the Will which premiered on July 22, 2011.
[edit] Filmography
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987)[8]
- It Don't Cost Nothin' to Say Good Morning (1994)
- Pitch (1997)
- Kenny vs. Spenny (2003–2010)
- The Papal Chase (2004)
- South Park – Three episodes (2005)
- Elton vs. Simon (2005)
- Testees (2008)
- Zack and Miri Make A Porno (2008) as Zack #2
- Pure Pwnage (Cameo as a homeless man) (2010)
- Degrassi Takes Manhattan (Cameo as the record peddler) (2010)
- Kenny vs. Spenny Christmas Special (2010)
- Kenny Hotz's Triumph of the Will (2011–present)
[edit] Awards and nominations
- Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival (1996) – Best Canadian short for: It Don't Cost Nothin' to Say Good Morning (Winner)
- Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival (1997) - Best Canadian Documentary for: PITCH (Winner)
- Brooklyn international film festival (2005) – Audience award (best documentary) for The Papal Chase (Winner)
- Canadian Filmmakers' Festival (2005) – Audience award (documentary) for The Papal Chase (Winner)
- Whistler Film Festival (2004) – Phillip Borsos Award For the Papal Chase (Inaugural Winner)
- Gemini Awards (2004) – Best Reality Based Entertainment Program or Series for: Kenny vs. Spenny (Nomination)
- Canadian New Media Awards (2005) Versusville Game creator for: Kenny vs. Spenny Excellence in Gaming (Nomination)
- Vice Magazine (2006) – First Annual Story Awards (Winner)
- Gemini Awards (2006) – Best Comedy Program or Series for: Kenny vs. Spenny (Nomination)
- Gemini Awards (2008) – Best Comedy Program or Series for: Kenny vs. Spenny (Nomination)
- Rose D'Or (2008) - Best international comedy series for: Kenny vs. Spenny (Nomination)
- Gemini Awards (2009) – Best Comedy Program or Series for: Testees (Nomination)
- Gemini Awards (2009) – Best Comedy Writing in a program or Series for: Testees (Nomination)
- Gemini Awards (2010) – Best Ensemble Performance in a Comedy Program or Series for: Kenny vs. Spenny (Nomination)
- Canadian Comedy Awards (2010) – Best Director in a Comedy Program or Series (Winner)[9]
[edit] References
- ^ a b http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004192/
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004192/bio
- ^ http://www.telefilm.gc.ca/data/production/prod_3286.asp?lang=en&cat=nm&y=2004
- ^ The Toronto Star, Kenny 'testees' the waters, Rob Salem, July 17, 2008
- ^ http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/toronto/archive/2008/07/28/jesus-sucks-tv-duo-s-banner-tells-toronto.aspx
- ^ "B.C. man files human-rights complaint over 'Jesus sucks' banner". The Vancouver Sun. Published August 2, 2008.
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1007028/
- ^ IMDb.com
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004192/awards
[edit] External links
- Kenny Hotz Merchandise Kenny Hotz Merchandise.
- Kenny Hotz Official Website Kenny Hotz's Official Website.
- Kenny's My Space Home Kenny Hotz's MySpace.
- Kenny's Twitter Kenny Hotz's Twitter.
- Kenny's Facebook Kenny Hotz's Facebook.
- Kenny´s Blog Kenny Hotz MSN blog.
- 10 Questions: Kenny Hotz interview.
- A Hotz Comedy (Interview with Kenny Hotz): A Very Hotz Interview
- Kenny Hotz Imdb Profile
- CBC The Hour
- Tom Shales reviews Kenny Hotz in the Washington Post
- WA interview
- Fan Quarterly Interview
- Kenny Hotz South Park Article
- Kenny Hotz in Style Uninterrupted
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