From Animal House to Caddyshack , Ghostbusters to Groundhog Day , Ramis, who died Monday at 69 , helped to define modern movie comedy.
SCTV (1976-78)
Writer-actor
After cutting his comedy teeth at the Second City theater in Chicago, Ramis joined a wily crew of Canadians as they took their act to television, writing and performing alongside Catherine O'Hara, John Candy, Dave Thomas, and Eugene Levy, as well as two fellow Americans, Andrea Martin and Joe Flaherty. Building from their improvisational training, the show's humor was looser and less "hip" than their counterparts at Saturday Night Live. But for Ramis — who was the first of the cast to leave the show, as his film career began to take off — it proved to be a fabulous showcase for what was to come. —Adam B. Vary
youtube.com / Via o.canada.com
Animal House (1978) and Meatballs (1979)
Writer
John Belushi and Bill Murray may have emerged from these films as full-blown cultural icons, but it's Ramis we have, at least in part, to thank for two of the most eminently quotable comedies ever made. The former, co-written with National Lampoon colleagues Doug Kenney and Chris Miller, did nothing less than turn sophomoric raunch into box-office gold — a neat trick that has been aped often, and never as successfully. —Steve Kandell
Universal Pictures / Via youtube.com
Caddyshack (1980)
Writer-director
If you've ever been on a golf course and not yelled (or heard someone else yell) "Noonan!" as someone was putting, then congratulations, you've entered some bizarre cultural wormhole. Or perhaps, gopher-hole. It's hard to think of a movie more ubiquitous to its general subject matter. Thirty-plus years since Ramis' remarkable behind-the-scenes efforts — and far more impressive than the commercial success or star-making power (sorry it didn't take, Michael O'Keefe) — is the fact that Caddyshack doesn't feel dated or any less likely to be memorized in its entirety for generations to come. —SK
Warner Bros. Pictures / Via youtube.com
Stripes (1981)
Writer-actor
It's Murray's face on the poster, but this blockbuster Army comedy doesn't work without Ramis as not just his straight man or foil, but comedic equal. (And if anyone was asking, Ramis is also a more convincingly charismatic romantic lead.) From the opening scene, teaching a class of immigrants English via "Da Do Ron Ron," Ramis makes his own case for comedy godhood and nerd-heroism. —SK
Columbia Pictures / Via youtube.com
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