Actor and comedian Eugene Levy is remembering his friend and former McMaster classmate Ivan Reitman.
The two met at McMaster in the late 1960s, alongside other notable alumni including Martin Short, Dan Goldberg, and Dave Thomas.
“McMaster was just fun back then,” Levy told CTV National News, noting that Reitman seemed to have the “golden touch.”
“We all knew he was destined to be a great producer and director. He was destined for great things – we knew that in school.”
Eugene Levy (right) behind the camera as part of the McMaster Film Board in 1969. Also in the picture Lawrence Martin, Globe and Mail columnist.
Levy recalled how Reitman took over the underground student film club at McMaster, turning it to a club that made money.
“He would run all night horror film festivals at the university,” he said. “We got great crowds and he was able to fund programs for budding filmmakers.”
Read here for more on Reitman’s time at McMaster and his legacy as a filmmaker
It was Reitman who introduced Levy to film – and even gave him his first crack into the business, having Levy get coffee on the set of the movie Foxy Lady.
He tapped Levy as his leading man in his second film, Cannibal Girls.
Reitman went on to produce and direct several films including Animal House, Meatballs and Ghostbusters.
“He went on to literally change the face of comedy in Hollywood,” said Levy. “He was destined for the top and he made it there.”
Reitman died on Saturday.