Editing Martin Short (section)

=== 1977–1985: ''SCTV'' and ''SNL'' stardom ===
[[File:Martin Short (41065348171) (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Short during his early career]]
Short was encouraged to pursue comedy by McMaster classmates [[Eugene Levy]] and [[Dave Thomas (actor)|Dave Thomas]], in March 1977, joining the improvisation group [[The Second City]], taking over for [[John Candy]] in ''The Wizard of Ossington'', their ninth revue.<ref name="SC/p/ms"/><ref>Martin Short's Autobiography "I Must Say"</ref><ref name=moviestimes/> 

In early 1978, Short secured his feature film debut via a supporting role in the [[Melvin Frank]]-directed British romantic comedy ''[[Lost and Found (1979 film)|Lost and Found]]'' starring [[George Segal]] and [[Glenda Jackson]]. Filmed throughout late winter and early spring 1978 in [[Banff National Park]] and Toronto, the film saw limited North American release in June 1979 and was met with lukewarm reviews and poor box office returns.<ref name="epstein">Epstein, Andrew (April 27, 1980). "The Big Thuds of 1979—Films That Flopped, Badly". ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''. Calendar, p. 6.</ref>

In 1979, after working solely in Canada for the preceding seven years, Short landed a starring role in the American sitcom ''[[The Associates (American TV series)|The Associates]]'' about a group of young novice lawyers working at a [[Wall Street]] law firm.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://thiswastv.com/2012/07/31/1970s-fun-flops-the-associates/ | title=1970s Fun Flops: "The Associates" | date=July 31, 2012 | publisher=This Was Television | access-date=December 3, 2015 | archive-date=November 3, 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151103235319/http://thiswastv.com/2012/07/31/1970s-fun-flops-the-associates/ | url-status=live }}</ref> 

In 1980, he joined the cast of ''[[I'm a Big Girl Now]]'', a sitcom starring [[Diana Canova]] and [[Danny Thomas]].<ref name=tcmlong>[http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/176806|0/Martin-Short/biography.html "Martin Short Biography"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006054905/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/176806%7C0/Martin-Short/biography.html |date=October 6, 2013 }} [[tcmdb]] [[tcm.com]], accessed August 26, 2013</ref> Canova was offered the sitcom because of her success playing Corinne Tate Flotsky on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC's]] ''[[Soap (TV series)|Soap]]'' and left ''Soap'' shortly before Short's newlywed wife [[Nancy Dolman]] joined it.<ref name="TVS">{{cite web | url=http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/soap-nancy-dolman-17546/ | title=Soap: Actress Nancy Dolman Dies at Age 58 | date=August 24, 2010 | publisher=TV Series Finale | access-date=December 2, 2015|archive-url=https://archive.today/20151202171440/http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/soap-nancy-dolman-17546/|archive-date=December 2, 2015}}</ref>

''' ''SCTV'' '''

Short achieved wider public notice when the Second City group produced a show for television, ''[[Second City Television]]'' (''SCTV''), which ran for several years in Canada, then the United States. Short appeared on ''SCTV'' in 1982–83.<ref name=moviestimes/> At ''SCTV'', Short developed several characters before moving on to ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' for the 1984–85 season:

* Aged songwriter [[Irving Cohen]],<ref name="SC/p/ms"/> commonly thought to be loosely based on American composers [[Irving Caesar]] and/or [[Irving Berlin]] and perhaps Canadian songwriter [[Leonard Cohen]], but actually (according to Short in his autobiography) inspired by [[Sophie Tucker]]
* Defense attorney [[Nathan Thurm]]<ref name="SC/p/ms">{{cite web |title=Martin Short |url=https://www.secondcity.com/people/martin-short |website=www.secondcity.com - The Second City |access-date=3 September 2024 |archive-date=September 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240903073651/https://www.secondcity.com/people/martin-short |url-status=live }}</ref>
* Albino Vegas singer, Jackie Rogers Jr. and his father, Jackie Rogers Sr., the latter of which was mauled to death by a mountain lion during a comeback special that took place in the woods.
* Oddball man-child [[Ed Grimley]],<ref name="SC/p/ms"/> later featured on ''SNL'' and in his own short-lived animated television series entitled ''[[The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley]]''. The show, which was produced by [[Hanna-Barbera]] and aired for a single season in fall 1988, is the only animated series adapted from an ''SCTV'' character and a ''Saturday Night Live'' character to date.<ref name=moviestimes/>

''' ''Saturday Night Live'' '''

Short joined ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' (''SNL'') for the [[Saturday Night Live (season 10)|1984–85 season]].<ref name=saturday>[http://snl.jt.org/cast.php?i=MaSh "Martin Short Characters, Impressions and Guest Appearances"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101229084824/http://snl.jt.org/cast.php?i=MaSh |date=December 29, 2010 }} snl.jt.org, accessed August 25, 2013</ref><ref name=nytimes2019-12-14/> He helped revive the show with his many characters for season ten (the last one produced by [[Dick Ebersol]]). "Short's appearance on ''SNL'' helped to revive the show's fanbase, which had flagged after the departure of [[Eddie Murphy]], and in turn, would launch his successful career in films and television."<ref name=tcmlong/> His ''SNL'' characters included numerous holdovers from his ''SCTV'' days, most notably, his Ed Grimley character, depicted on ''Saturday Night Live'' as a geeky everyman who is obsessed with ''Wheel of Fortune'', plays the triangle, and often finds himself in bizarre situations rather than a miscast bad actor in several film and TV show parodies (''The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley'' used the ''SNL'' characterization of him rather than the ''SCTV'' take on him). He also did impressions of such celebrities as [[Jerry Lewis]] and [[Katharine Hepburn]].<ref name=saturday/>
[[File:Martin Short in 2001.jpg|thumb|right|160px|Short in 2001]]
Since then he has made multiple appearances on the show including on the SNL Christmas special in 2012, 2024 and ''[[Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special]]'' in 2015.