Dan Aykroyd attended Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada (1969), where he majored in Criminology and Sociology. He dropped out to work with Second City Stage Troupe in Toronto and started his acting career at Carleton University with Sock'n'Buskin, the campus theater/drama club. Married to Donna Dixon, he has two daughters. His parents are named Peter and Lorraine and his brother Peter Aykroyd is a psychic researcher. Dan received an honorary Doctorate from Carleton University in 1994.


As an avid blues fan, he hosted a nationally syndicated radio show "House of Blues" as his The Blues Brothers (1980) character Elwood Blues. A police buff, he rides an Ontario Provincial Police motorcycle, collects police badges, sometimes rides shotgun with detectives in squad cars, and owns a business in partnership with several Toronto police officers. Is very interested in the supernatural and has an extensive collection of books on the subject. Was once engaged to Carrie Fisher. Worked as a mail sorter for Canada's national postal service before he became an actor. Roman Catholic of English and French extraction. On his father's side, he can trace his ancestry to the 15th century. Co-owns House of Blues with friend Isaac Tigrett Has played harmonica since he was 17 years old. Once helped to subdue a drunk and disorderly passenger on a Montreal-to-Los Angeles flight. After working together on three films, Jamie Lee Curtis called him the best "screen kisser" who ever had a scene with her. Has a "Blues Brothers" type band with John Belushi's brother, James Belushi. Proposed to Donna Dixon on Fran Drescher's porch. Drescher played a major role in getting them together from the start. He met John Belushi in a Chicago speakeasy that was a favorite night spot of his and put on a blues record to play in the background while he and Belushi discussed the possibility of Aykroyd joining "Saturday Night Live" (1975). Not only did they hit it off and become good friends, Belushi became fascinated with the blues that was being played in the background because, to Aykroyd's surprise, the Chicago-born Belushi was primarily a fan of heavy metal. Aykroyd's familiarizing Belushi with blues music eventually led to them forming their popular "Blues Brothers" act, with a little input from then SNL music director Howard Shore. Was born with complete heterochromia; his right eye is blue and his left eye is brown. As a child in the early 1960s, he was diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome and Asperger syndrome. The symptoms had mostly subsided by the time he was 14. He has such a fascination with both police officers and criminals, one of the writers from the original "Saturday Night Live" (1975) said his ultimate fantasy was to commit a crime, then arrest himself for it. Ranked #14 on Tropopkin's Top 25 Most Intriguing People [Issue #100] He used to refer to the green Slimer ghost from Ghost Busters (1984) as "the ghost of John Belushi", as Slimer's party animal personality reminded him very much of his friend. Supports MUFON, a UFO study group. His parents are Lorraine and Peter Aykroyd (not to be confused with his younger brother Peter Aykroyd). His father is best known as P.H. Aykroyd. Is ambidextrous, as is evident by his writing left-handed during the examination scene in Spies Like Us (1985). Is a big fan of The Beach Boys and his first piece of writing was a sketch that appeared in the 1976 documentary The Beach Boys: It's OK (1976) (TV). He and M. Night Shyamalan, are the only two men to direct themselves in performances that "won" them a Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor. Aykroyd "won" the award for, and also directed, the film Nothing But Trouble (1991). Owns Dan Aykroyd's Wine, an Ontario-based distillery/vineyard and plans to open up for the market in 2008. His idea for the name he got from Paul Newman. Is portrayed by Dan Di Julio in Gilda Radner: It's Always Something (2002) (TV). Is part owner of a company that owns the exclusive distribution rights to Patron tequila for the entire country of Canada. Is now also distilling a vodka called "Crystal Head" to be bottled in a skull-shaped glass bottle.