Curmodgeonly Ottawa boy and, for all we know, his brother still hosts legendary parties above Song Bird music on Gladstone Ave.

Comedian Mike MacDonald, considered one of the top funnymen in all of Canada, son of a career Canadian Air Force officer, MacDonald isn't technically 'from' Ottawa since he was actually born in Metz, France. He spent his first fifteen years in France, West Germany and finally ended up in Canada when his father retired and the family settled in Ottawa.

During high school he developed an interest in theater and performing.After high school, MacDonald, an accomplished drummer, toured the country with a rock group sponsored by the Canadian government. When the tour ended, he returned to Ottawa and spent the next few years in various jobs, including drive-in restaurant employee, ballroom dance instructor and teacher's aide for mentally retarded children.

In 1978, at the age of 23 and at the suggestion of a friend, MacDonald began to frequent clubs where he could try his own brand of stand-up comedy. "They were mostly folk music clubs," says MacDonald. "You can imagine how shocked the audience was when I went on." But persistence kept him going. MacDonald moved to Toronto and began to perform regularly throughout the city.

As his reputation grew, so did the job offers. MacDonald quit his day job in order to make his sole living from comedy. He gradually performed throughout Canada and made frequent forays into the US. In addition to his successful and well-received live performances all over North America, MacDonald has appeared in numerous TV shows including "Late Night with David Letterman," "The Arsenio Hall Show," "HBO's 7th Annual Young Comedians Special," Showtime's "Comedy Club Network All-Star Show," and "Just for Laughs," "The Late Show with Joan Rivers," Nite Life with David Brenner" and "An Evening at the Improv."

He was also featured in the Touchstone movie "Three Fugitives" with Nick Nolte and Martin Short. Mike also recently hosted a home video for Dodge titled "Dodge Comedy Showcase."

He has hosted the Geminis for CBC, starred in the debatably entertaining sitcom "Mosquito Lake" and was the first stand-up to have his own hour-long comedy special on the CBC which won its ratings time slot.

MacDonald has starred in three Showtime and CBS specials: "Mike MacDonald On Target," "My House! My Rules!" and "Happy as I Can Be." He was the host of the "Just for Laughs" CBC tenth anniversary special.

For Christmas 1997, he hosted the highly rated "Mike MacDonald Politically Correct Christmas Special" for the CBC. Last year, Mike starred in "The Rogers' Cable," a 10-minute short film and entrant in the Cannes Film Festival.

He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Bonnie.