Day Tripping: December 17
The one and only Earl Camembert

A funny thing happened in 1946 when Eugene Levy came into the world in Hamilton, Ontario. And he’s kept getting funnier ever since. Levy was student body president of his high school, and then attended McMaster University where he met future colleague, Ivan Reitman.
“I am the common man. I’m polite, I love my family and I play by the rules. And sometimes I get pushed around. That’s my lifestyle, and that’s what I try to bring to characters.”
In 1972, Eugene joined a cast of then unknowns for the Toronto production of Godspell for a twelve performance run at the Royal Alexandra Theatre. Fellow players included Victor Garber, Andrea Martin, Gilda Radner, Dave Thomas, and Martin Short. On the success of the initial runs, the show was moved uptown where it continued for a record 488 performances.
Levy then became a member of the Toronto chapter of Second City which went into production of its own show, SCTV. Along with John Candy and Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy became familiar to American audiences with the syndication of SCTV.
Since then, Levy has starred in some of Hollywood’s most successful comedies, and then, with his son David and good friend O’Hara, Levy originated the incredibly acclaimed, Schitt’z Creek.
Along with numerous screen awards, Eugene Levy also won a Grammy for his original song in Christopher Guest’s hilarious send-up of folk music, A Mighty Wind.
Musical Ride
The Sex Pistols were denied entry into the US in 1977, so Elvis Costello was called in last minute as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. But while playing his new hit Less Than Zero, a song about a British politician no American audience ever heard of, Costello abruptly stopped and switched songs to Radio Radio.
Believe it or not, the stunt got him banned from the show for 12 years because the Radio Radio lyrics were a direct attack on corporate radio.
Interesting Notes
One hundred and twenty feet in twelve seconds marked the first-ever powered flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in 1903. Brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright actually flew the biplane four times that day.
Gone But Not Forgotten
Thoracic surgeon and medical researcher Henry Heimlich gave millions a new lease on life with a simple maneuver. Yet, he also invented the Micro Trach portable oxygen system for patients who are ambulatory. Heimlich died in 2016 at 96.
Notable Births
1942 — Paul Butterfield: “I guess if you stay around long enough, they can’t get rid of you.”
1949 — Paul Rodgers: “A song isn’t finished until it’s played live, and then it moves on.”
K. Barrett Maria Rattray Maryam Merchant Dr. Mehmet Yildiz Tree Langdon Myriam Ben Salem Phil Truman Chelsea Mandler MAT Terry Mansfield Hollie Petit, Ph.D. Terry Trueman Dr. Preeti Singh John Gruber Bill Abbate James G Brennan ScienceDuuude Marcus Liam Ireland Claire Kelly Noorain Hassan, BMS Amy Pierovich David Acaster Nora Thewriteyard David Perlmutter Joe Luca Holly Kellums Michael Burg, MD Lucy Dan Dave Logan
All previous Day Tripping entries are available at the following links:
The Story Of Day Tripping Through History What’s Past Is Often Present
A comprehensive directory for Day Tripping