James Eugene Carrey was born on January 17, 1962, in Newmarket, Ontario. He showed his desire to be a performer early on, entertaining family and friends with his unique brand of humor and even mailing his resume to The Carol Burnett Show at the young age of ten. His family fell on hard times, and Jim had to work eight hour shifts as a janitor in addition to attending senior high. The pressure of his responsibilities and a general lack of interest in school led to Carrey dropping out when he was sixteen. He developed his skills in small comedy clubs and moved to Los Angeles in 1979. After making a favorable impression on legendary comedian Rodney Dangerfield, Carrey was signed on as the opening act in the popular club The Comedy Store.
Over the next few years, Carrey appeared in several films, but it was when he joined the cast of the sketch comedy show In Living Color that he would become well-known to a larger audience. His subsequent starring role in the 1994 comedy Ace Ventura: Pet Detective would launch Carrey’s extremely successful movie career. Other well-known comic roles have included his appearances in Dumb and Dumber, The Cable Guy, and Me, Myself, and Irene. Jim showed his versatility and ability to be more than just a funny guy with his dramatic roles in The Truman Show and Man On the Moon, when he delivered a convincing portrayal as Andy Kaufman.
Although Academy Awards for these films remained elusive, they would earn him two Golden Globes. Carrey's film, The Number 23, was released in February 2007, and Used Guys is also slated for a 2007 release.
Named as one of People’s fifty most beautiful people, it is not surprising he has been romantically linked to several beautiful women. Jim’s first marriage was in 1987 to Melissa Womer, a waitress whom Jim met during his regular appearances at The Comedy Store. Before their divorce in 1995, Womer gave birth to daughter, Jane. Just a few months after their divorce was finalized, Jim walked down the aisle again.
This time he married Lauren Holly, an actress who, besides appearing in Any Given Sunday and What Women Want, also played Mary Swanson, the object of Carrey’s affection in the hilarious Dumb and Dumber. Their divorce was finalized in 1997, less than a year after their wedding, but it would not be the last time that Carrey would fall for one of his co-stars. He had a short romance with Me, Myself, and Irene co-star Renee Zellweger, the Academy Award nominated actress who has starred in Bridget Jones’s Diary and the hit musical Chicago.
Their relationship appeared to be quite serious; they were engaged and had even begun planning for the wedding. Ultimately, however, they went their separate ways before the ceremony took place. Since 2005, Carrey has been dating actor and Playboy model Jenny McCarthy. Although there have been rumors that the couple are engaged and intend to marry, they have publically denied the rumours and stated they dont need 'a piece of paper'.
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