Cathrine O'Hara was born on March 4, 1954, in Toronto, Ontario. She was one of seven children. Her younger sister was singer-songwriter Mary Margaret O'Hara. She graduated from the Burnhamthorpe Collegiate Institute in Toronto in 1974. She was 20 when she joined legendary comedy troupe The Second City. She started out as an understudy to Gilda Radner before becoming part of the main cast.
Catherine O'Hara made her television debut in an episode of The Wayne & Shuster Show. When Second City launched their show Second City TV in 1976, she was a regular on it. She also guest starred on the TV show Coming Up Rosie. She was a voice on the animated television specials Witch's Night Out. Intergalactic Thanksgiving, and Easter Fever. She appeared in the mini-series You've Come a Long Way, Katie. She appeared in the movies Nothing Personal (1980) and Double Negative (1980).
In the Eighites, Catherine O'Hara was a regular on the Second City show SCTV Network 90 and had a recurring role on the Second City show SCTV Channel. She was a regulr voice on the animated series The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley. She guest starred on the TV series The New Show, George Burns Comedy Week, Really Weird Tales, Trying Times, The Dave Thomas Comedy Show, and Dream On. She appeared in the TV specials Dave Thomas: The Incredible Time Travels of Henry Osgood and I, Martin Short, Goes Hollywood. She appeared in the movies After Hours (1985), Heartburn (1986), Beetlejuice (1988), Dick Tracy (1990), (1990), Betsy's Wedding, Home Alone (1990), and Little Vegas (1990). She was the voice of Aunt Edith in the animated classic Rock & Rule (1983).
In the Nineties, Catherine O'Hara guest starred on the TV shows Morton & Hayes, The Larry Sanders Show, The Hidden Room, Tales from the Crypt, The Outer Limits, Oh Baby, and MADtv. She appeared in the movies There Goes the Neighbourhood (1992), Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), The Paper (1994), (1994), Wyatt Earp (1994), A Simple Twist of Fate (1994), Tall Tale (1995), Waiting for Guffman (1996), The Last of the High Kings (1996), Home Fries (1998), (1998), and The Life Before This (1999). She provided the voice of Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas (1994) and was a voicei n the animated movie Pippi Longstocking (1997).
In the Naughts, Catherine O'Hara was a regulra voice on the animated TVshows Committed and Glen Martin DDS. She guest starred on the shows Bram & Alice, Six Feet Under, and Curb Your Enthusiasm. She was a guest voice on Odd Job Jack. She appeared in the TV movie The Rutles 2: Can't Buy Me Lunch. She appeared in the movies Speakng of Sex (2001), Orange County (2002), A Mighty Wind (2002), Surviving Christmas (2004), A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004), Game 6 (2006), (2006), Penelope (2006), For Your Consideration (2006), Away We Go (2009), and Killers (2010). She was a vocie in the movies Chicken Little (2005), Over the Hedge (2006), Monster House (2006), and Where the Wild Things Are (2009).
It was in 2015 that Catherine O'Hara began her run as Moira Rose on Schit's Creek. She won the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2020 for the role and was nominated one other time. She was also a regular voice on Skylanders Academy and The Last Kids on Earth. She appeared on the mini-series Leslie and What Lives Inside. She guest starred on the shows 30 Rock, The Greatest Event in Television History, Modern Family, and A Series of Unfortunate Events. She was a guest voice on the animated shows Harvey Beaks and The Magic School Bus Rides Again. She appearedi in the movies A.C.O.D. (2013), and The Right Kind of Wrong (2013). She was a voice in the movies Frankenweenie (2012) and The Addams Family (2019)
In the 2020s, she guest starred on the shows The Kids in the Hall, The Last of Us, and The Studio. She was a guest voice on the animated show Central Park. She appearedi in the movies Pain Hustlers (2023), Argylle (2024), and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024). She was a voice in the movies Elemental (2023) and The Wild Robot (2024).
Catherine O'Hara was also a writer, writing for the Second City TV shows The Steve Allen Comedy Hour, and Really Weird Tales.
As both a comedian and an actress, Catherine O'Hara had extraordinary talent. Indeed, she leaves behind a legacy of several memorable roles, including Delia (the sculptor entirely lacking in talent) in Beetlejuice, Kevin's mom Kate in Home Alone, the voice of Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Moira Rose, the eccentric one-time soap opera star, on Schitt's Creek. While chances are good she will be best remembered for these roles, she played a wide variety of other roles throughout her career. She was the voice of Aunt Edith, the aunt of drummer Dizzy (Dan Hennessey), in the classic animated film Rock & Rule. Of course, she was a voice in many animated films from the title character's adversary Mrs. Prysselius in Pippi Longstocking to the mom in Monster House. She played some of her most memorable roles in Christopher Guest's mockumentaries, including Sheila Albertson, a travel agent who has never left her small, hometown, in Waiting for Guffman; Cookie Fleck, the dog owner with many former lovers, in Best in Show; and folk singer Mickey Crabbe, one half of the former couple Mitch & Mickey, in A Mighty Wind. Catherine O'Hara had a gift for comedy, with perfect timing, and she was a bit of a chameleon, able to play a wide variety of roles. She certainly died much too soon.
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