TORONTO – Mark McKinney will be awarded with the CTV Sir Peter Ustinov Award at the Banff World Television Awards on June 8.
The comedian, actor, writer and producer will join a list of prominent comedic actors who have received this award in the past, including Brent Butt, Guy A. Lepage, Barry Humphries (a.k.a. Dame Edna), John Cleese, Bob Newhart, Martin Short, Tracy Ullman, Kelsey Grammer and Rick Mercer.
“Beginning with the comedy troupe Kids in the Hall, Mark McKinney’s original characters and unconventional sketches have become a part of pop culture,” said Peter Vamos, executive director of the Banff Festival, in the announcement. “Whether as creator, producer or actor in many memorable comedic productions, Mark has made an impressive contribution to the international film and television comedy landscape.”
McKinney was first known for his work on the long-running sketch comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall, which ran from 1989 to 1995. Following that series, he appeared in Saturday Night Live from 1995 to 1997, and in 1998 wrote for Aaron Sorkin’s Sports Night. He later co-created the mini-series Slings and Arrows, which he wrote and starred in for all three seasons, before writing and acting in NBC’s Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.
As well, he directed and appeared on the CBC Radio post-apocalyptic comedy Steve, The First and its sequel Steve, The Second. He is currently the producer, senior story editor and showrunner for the Citytv series Less Than Kind, now in production on its second season.
