We often wonder how our favorite movie and television stars initially met each other. Some meet through the show or movie they starred in together, while others might have been introduced through a shared acquaintance.
However, none of these scenarios describe how Dan Aykroyd met his fellow Ghostbusters alum, Bill Murray. Although their first meeting happened decades ago, Aykroyd says he remembers it as if it had happened yesterday.
Image: Dead Entertainment
During a recent guest appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Aykroyd regaled the audience with the story behind that fateful meeting, which fate would have coincided with the actor arriving in America.
Aykroyd, originally a resident of Canada, along with his comedy partner Valri Bromfield, had a comedy act that Second City liked, so they hired the team. Then when Second City, based out of Toronto, decided to switch its location to Chicago, Aykroyd and his partner found themselves heading to America.
Here is the exciting part of the story. Upon arriving in the states and to Chicago, Aykroyd was shown around his new city by none other than Bill Murray. Murray helped get the pair settled into their new apartments and showed them all the local bars and grocery stores in their neighborhood.
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When it came time for Aykroyd to apply for his first H-1 to obtain his work permit, Murray served as his sponsor. Murray and Aykroyd went on to appear together in several hit seasons of the comedy series Saturday Night Live.
Aykroyd recounted his fateful meeting with Murray as he was promoting their Ghostbusters sequel, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, which they star in together alongside fellow Ghostbusters alum Ernie Hudson. The film follows the characters of Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Winston Zeddemore, along with the family of their comrade Egon Spengler (portrayed by the late Harold Ramis.)