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When you watch an old episode of 'The Kids In The Hall', Mark McKinney is often the hardest to recognize, and the hardest to forget. More than anyone else from the show, Mark was the actor... the guy who could step into character, and disappear - from the chickenlady, to Mr. Tyzik (aka, Mr. "I'm crushing your head!")
Now, Mark's talent comes from a real, if unlikely place: The son of a diplomat, Mark moved around every couple of years, growing up all over the world - the kind of childhood that allows you to constantly re-create yourself.
Mark and the rest of the Kids came together in the comedy clubs of Toronto back in 1984. It was Lorne Michaels, the producer of 'Saturday Night Live', who helped The Kids get their own TV show, which started airing on CBC in 1989. For The Kids In The Hall, nothing was taboo. The show lasted five seasons, and earned a devoted cult following.
But for Mark, Kids was just the beginning: In 1995, he became a cast member on SNL, spending two and a half seasons on the show. After that, he returned home and continued to grow as a writer, on shows like 'Slings and Arrows', 'Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays', and as one of the driving forces behind the acclaimed comedy 'Less Than Kind'. As the show enters its third season, Mark and the cast are coping with the sudden death of their lead actor - the great Maury Chaykin. Together, they'll face the question: can great comedy come from great loss?
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