York alum builds career as the funny 'big guy'

A bunch of things in Ken Hudson Campbell's suburban childhood inspired his career as a comedian and actor:

Mad magazine, National Lampoon, "Saturday Night Live."

And, especially, Bozo the Clown.

"You can't overestimate the importance of 'Bozo's Circus,'" said Campbell, an Elmhurst native and York High School alumnus. "Bozo the Clown, the way he improvised his way through scenes and made kids and moms laugh? He was hilarious."

Campbell would soon have his own career making people laugh as a member of The Second City comedy troupe, on the Fox sitcom "Herman's Head" and in roles in dozens of TV and movie comedies, including "Mike & Molly" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm." He also appeared in the movies "Armageddon," "Home Alone" and "Groundhog Day."

On "Herman's Head," a comedy about a man struggling with the inner voices in his head, Campbell played "Animal," the voice of lust.

"I sat in a La-Z-Boy chair and they brought out Playboy models to sit on my lap, so that was OK," he joked. "It was a real fun show to be a part of."

The comedy business is full of niches, Campbell says - the nerdy guy, the attractive girl, etc. - and he's always fallen into the funny "big guy" category. At one point, he was Chris Farley's understudy at The Second City.

The ups and downs of being the funny big guy is the focus of Campbell's new documentary film, debuting at film festivals next year, called "You're not Jake." He won't say who "Jake" is, but he said the film covers the history of heavyset comedians from Fatty Arbuckle to Plainfield native Melissa McCarthy, and it features interviews with dozens of famous comedians.

"There's a great cast of Chicago guys in it," he said, referring to Horatio Sanz, George Wendt and others.

Campbell, whose high school nickname was "Otis" ("I haven't heard anyone call me that in quite some time"), is the son of former York High School basketball coach and teacher Dick Campbell, for whom the school gym is named. Campbell started writing comedy and making films while a student at York, and he cites teacher Richard Kamka as a major influence for showing movies by Orson Welles and Alfred Hitchcock. He continued on that path at Southern Illinois University and Columbia College, with plans to be a film director.

But then Campbell and his friend Tom Gianas (now a successful Hollywood writer) decided to try a comedy workshop at The Second City in Chicago. Both loved it and ended up getting roles in the cast, performing with people like Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert and Amy Sedaris.

Campbell did many shows in the suburbs while touring with The Second City Northwest.

"It was in Rolling Meadows, in a restaurant called Rupert's. We did great shows out there," he said. "Some of our shows, they were saying, were as good if not better than downtown."

During that time, Campbell was tapped to fly out to L.A. and be on "Herman's Head."

"I thought, this will never go (anywhere). I'll just take the money and run. But next thing you know ... " he said of the series, which aired from 1991 to 1994. "So I had to come out here (to L.A.). Which was all fine and dandy, but it disrupted my life."

He tried to split his time between Los Angeles and Chicago for a while but ultimately ended up in L.A.

"I love being a part of the film community in L.A. and the acting community. It's really unique and interesting because I'm a big fan of old Hollywood and old movies. But I really miss Chicago," he said.

Now 52, Campbell says it's gotten harder to land acting roles, but he's still doing lots of voice-over work and small projects. Plus, he's rekindled his passion for filmmaking.

"You hope to be able to have a range," he said. "Most actors think they can do anything. We need a teenage girl. Hey, that's me! But you have to be realistic at some point."

<b>- Jamie Sotonoff</b>

<i>Dann Gire and Jamie Sotonoff are always looking for people from the suburbs who are now working in showbiz. If you know of someone who would make an interesting profile, email them at dgire@dailyherald.com and jsotonoff@dailyherald.com.</i>