Jim Zulevic (February 20, 1965 – January 7, 2006) was an American actor, improvisational comedian, television writer, and radio host. He died suddenly, most likely due to a heart attack, at age 40.

Early life

Zulevic, who was of Croatian heritage, grew up in Chicago, where he graduated from St. Thomas More Grammar School, Brother Rice High School and

Columbia College Chicago Columbia College Chicago is a Private college, private art college in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1890, it has 6,493 students (as of fall 2021) pursuing degrees in more than 60 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. It i ...

. He worked a number of jobs, from bouncer at Chicago's famed Exit Club to a runner at the Board of Trade to support himself. All the while he studied at

The Second City The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise. It is the oldest improvisational theater troupe to be continuously based in Chicago, with training programs and live theaters in Toronto and New York. Since its debut in 1959, it has b ...

, where he was taken under the wing of his mentor,

Sheldon Patinkin Sheldon Arthur Patinkin (August 27, 1935 – September 21, 2014) was a chair of the Theater Department of Columbia College Chicago, artistic director of the Getz Theater of Columbia College, Artistic Consultant of The Second City and of Steppen ...

. Before joining Second City, he performed for a short time at Chicago's Improv Institute.

Second City

Zulevic joined

comedy troupe in 1992. He starred in nine stage revues, including "Paradigm Lost" in 1997 with

Tina Fey Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey (; born May 18, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. Known for her comedic roles in sketch comedy, television and film, Fey has received List of awards and nominations received by Tina Fe ...

Scott Adsit Robert Scott Adsit (born November 26, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and writer. Born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, Adsit joined the mainstage cast of Chicago's The Second City in 1994 after attending Columbia College Chicago. He app ...

and

Rachel Dratch Rachel Susan Dratch (born February 22, 1966) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. After she graduated from Dartmouth College, she moved to Chicago to study improvisational theatre at The Second City and ImprovOlympic. Dratch's breakthr ...

. Zulevic created his most famous character of "Billy" at this time.

Television

Zulevic wrote for the '' Jamie Kennedy Experiment''. He appeared on ''

Curb Your Enthusiasm ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'', also known colloquially simply as ''Curb'', is an American television comedy of manners created by Larry David that premiered on HBO with an hour-long special in October 17, 1999, followed by 12 seasons broadcast from Oc ...

'', ''

The Drew Carey Show ''The Drew Carey Show'' is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from September 13, 1995, to September 8, 2004. Set in Cleveland, Ohio, the series revolved around the retail office and home life of "everyman" Drew Carey, a fictionaliz ...

'', ''

Early Edition ''Early Edition'' is an American fantasy comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from September 28, 1996, to May 27, 2000. Set in Chicago, Illinois, it follows the adventures of a man who mysteriously receives each ''Chicago Sun-Times' ...

'', ''

Prison Break ''Prison Break'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Paul Scheuring for Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox. The series revolves around two brothers: Lincoln Burrows (Dominic P ...

'', ''

Real Time with Bill Maher ''Real Time with Bill Maher'' is an American television talk show that airs weekly on HBO, hosted by stand-up comedy, comedian and political satire, political satirist Bill Maher. Much like his previous series ''Politically Incorrect'' on Comedy ...

'', ''

The Shield ''The Shield'' is an American crime drama television series created by Shawn Ryan and starring Michael Chiklis that aired on FX from March 12, 2002 to November 25, 2008 for seven seasons. The show is known for its portrayal of corrupt police ...

'', and the final episode of the long-running series, ''

Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, with a total of nine seasons consisting of List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It ...

''. He also created commercials for the

Fox Broadcasting Company Fox Broadcasting Company, LLC (commonly known as Fox; stylized in all caps) is an Television in the United States, American commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast television broadcaster, television network serving as the flagship proper ...

in Chicago, where he was known for his quirky comments on reruns of ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...

''.

Movies

Zulevic appeared in ''

The Bogus Witch Project ''The Bogus Witch Project'' is a 2000 American parody film directed by Victor Kargan and starring Pauly Shore. It satirizes ''The Blair Witch Project''. It uses different tellings of the Blair Witch, such as ''The Blair Underwood Project''. The ...

'', ''

50 Ways to Leave Your Lover "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the second single from his fourth studio album, '' Still Crazy After All These Years'' (1975), released on Columbia Records. Backing vocals on the sing ...

'', ''

Let's Go to Prison ''Let's Go to Prison'' is a 2006 American comedy film directed by Bob Odenkirk and starring Dax Shepard, Will Arnett, and Chi McBride. The film was loosely based on the non-fiction book, '' You Are Going to Prison'' by Jim Hogshire. The film ...

'', '' Matchstick Men'', ''

The Specials The Specials, also known as the Special AKA, were an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, J ...

'', and ''Talent''. He also directed a comedy short, ''Baby Time Share'', in 2005.

Other activities

Zulevic hosted the weekly radio show "Second City Radio" on

WCKG WCKG (1530 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Elmhurst, Illinois, and serving the Chicago metropolitan area. It broadcasts a sports radio format and is owned by DuPage Radio, LLC. WCKG is a Fox Sports Radio Network affiliate. ...

-FM, and taught

improv Improv may refer to: *Improvisation, an act of spontaneous invention **Improvisational theatre (includes improvisational comedy) **Musical improvisation Musical improvisation (also known as musical extemporization) is the creative activity of im ...

classes at

and

. He was working with

Bob Odenkirk Robert John Odenkirk (; born October 22, 1962) is an American actor, screenwriter, comedian, and producer. He started his career as a comedian and comedy writer before expanding his career by acting in dramatic works. His List of awards and no ...

on a project based on the July 1979 Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Park at the time of his death.

Filmography

References

External links

*
''Variety'' writeup
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zulevic, Jim 1965 births 2006 deaths American people of Scottish descent American male comedians American male film actors American male television actors American television writers American male television writers Male actors from Chicago American people of Croatian descent Comedians from Chicago Screenwriters from Illinois 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American male writers