Ken Hudson Campbell

Ken Hudson Campbell
Born
Kenneth Hudson Campbell

(1962-06-05) June 5, 1962 (age 64)
Elmhurst, Illinois, U.S.
OccupationsActor, improvisational comedian
SpouseKathleen Campbell
Children2

Kenneth Hudson Campbell (born June 5, 1962) is an American actor.

Early life

Ken Campbell attended York Community High School in Elmhurst, Illinois, Southern Illinois University Carbondale and Columbia College Chicago as a film major. He began training in comedic improvisation at The Players Worksop of The Second City in 1983. He then performed with the comedy group Contents Under Pressure before joining The Second City's National Touring Company. He then became a member of the Resident Company of The Second City Northwest, and after 3 revues there he was hired on to The Second City's e.t.c. Theater as well, before moving to Los Angeles, CA.

Career

While he was still a member of The Second City, Campbell played Santa in Home Alone. He then played "Animal" for three years on the Fox television series Herman's Head. He was Buckman in the Fox 1996 submarine comedy Down Periscope. Campbell appeared in the Seinfeld episode "The Seven", where he played Ken, the husband of Susan's first cousin, Carrie. He played "Bruce", the owner of a bookstore in the 1997 Disney Channel Original Movie Under Wraps. He appeared as oil driller Max Lennert in the film Armageddon, and as the "Man in Hall" in Groundhog Day. Campbell provided the voice of Baby Bob in the CBS television series Baby Bob and commercial campaigns for FreeInternet.com and Quiznos.

Campbell was the voice of the beaver Gordon along with Norm Macdonald in Canadian Bell Mobility phone commercials and served for a decade as the primary imaging voice for Cleveland adult hits station WHLK "106.5 The Lake". He is presently the primary voice heard on KYOT 95.5 "The Mountain" radio in Phoenix, Arizona.

He voiced the bear, Boomer, in the animated film Wonder Park (2019), and the unaired consequent animated series on Nickelodeon.

Personal life

Campbell is married to Kathleen Campbell, with whom he has two children.

Health

In October 2023, Campbell was diagnosed with a form of oral cancer called squamous cell carcinoma, which manifested as a tumor on the bottom of his mouth in which it enroached its teeth. His diagnosis came amid financial challenges, as Campbell lost his health insurance during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, leading to his daughter launching a campaign on GoFundMe to cover the costs of treatment. The campaign was supported by fans and celebrities, most notably Steve Carell and Nick Offerman, which raised over $124,000 out of its $150,000 goal, which enabled the procedure and its subsequent care such as skin grafts, a tracheotomy, and a feeding tube. He then underwent a 10-hour surgery on December 7, 2023 to remove the tumor in addition to his affected lymph nodes and portion of his jawbone, with reconstruction by using bone from his fibula in the leg.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1990 Home Alone Santa
1993 Groundhog Day Man in Hallway
1996 Down Periscope Buckman
1997 Under Wraps Bruce
1998 Armageddon Max Lennert
The Jungle Book: Mowgli's Story Wolf 1
1999 Breakfast of Champions Eliot Rosewater / Gilbert
2000 Titan A.E. Po
Coyote Ugly Biker
The Ladies Man Hal
Joseph: King of Dreams Baker
2001 Dr. Dolittle 2 Various roles
2002 Showtime Cop in Gym
Boat Trip Tom
2004 A One Time Thing Sean
2005 Bewitched Writer
2007 Stories USA Chester
2014 Live Nude Girls Cannonball Calhoun
2017 Above Ground Jake Liebig
The Trouble with Mistletoe Uber driver
2018 Adolescence Record Store Owner
2019 Wonder Park Boomer Voice role
2021 Digging to Death Mark Armstrong

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1991 Life As We Know It! Ensemble Television film
1991–1994 Herman's Head Animal (Lust) / Chuck 72 episodes
1992 Dinosaurs Crazy Lou Episode: "Leader of the Pack"
1995 What a Cartoon! Elmo Episode: "Drip Dry Drips"
1996 Seinfeld Ken Episode: "The Seven"
Duckman Guyville Denizen Episode: "Exile in Guyville"
Local Heroes Eddie Trakacs 7 episodes
1996–1997 Aaahh!!! Real Monsters Various voices 2 episodes
1997 The Naked Truth Roland, the Cab Driver Episode: "A Year in a Life"
Life with Louie Ben Glenn 2 episodes
1998 Caroline in the City Gil Episode: "Caroline and the Drycleaner"
Fantasy Island Jerry Potsweiler Episode: "Handymen"
2000 Strangers with Candy Glenn the Bus Driver Episode: "The Blank Page"
God, the Devil and Bob Barry 5 episodes
2002–2003 Baby Bob Baby Bob / Neighbor 14 episodes
2003 My Big Fat Greek Life Joe the Cop Episode: "The Free Lunch"
The Practice Roland Huff 4 episodes
2006 The Loop Spencer Episode: "Bear Drop Soup"
2007 Curb Your Enthusiasm Painter Episode: "The Ida Funkhouser Roadside Memorial"
2010 United States of Tara Caterer Episode: "From This Day Forward"
2011 Meter Men Dr. Lima Television film
2012 Gravity Falls Ergman Bratzman Episode: "Boyz Crazy"
2015 Mike & Molly Big Stain Episode: "Buy the Book"
You'll Be Fine Merlin Episode: "Merlin the Mistake"
Girl Meets World Jingles the Clown Episode: "Girl Meets Cory and Topanga"

References

  1. ↑ Etienne, Vanessa (May 29, 2024). "Home Alone Actor Ken Hudson Campbell Finishes Radiation After Cancer Surgery, Says He's Lost 100 Lbs.: 'I Feel Good'". People. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
  2. ↑ Esposito, Stefano (December 14, 2023). "'Home Alone' actor Ken Hudson Campbell, from Elmhurst, recovering after cancer surgery". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
  3. ↑ Gire, Dann (April 14, 2015). "York alum builds career as the funny 'big guy'". Daily Herald. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  4. 1 2 Etienne, Vanessa (December 11, 2023). "Home Alone Actor Ken Hudson Campbell 'Burst Into Tears' After Seeing GoFundMe Support for Cancer Surgery (Exclusive)". People. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
  5. ↑ Valdez, Jonah (December 12, 2023). "'Home Alone' actor Ken Hudson Campbell is in 'very good condition' after crowdfunded cancer surgery". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
  6. ↑ Jackson, EmilyAnn (May 31, 2024). "'Home Alone' actor rings bell following completion of radiation after cancer surgery". Penn Live. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
  7. ↑ Bourne, Nadine (May 29, 2024). "'Home Alone' actor Ken Hudson Campbell dropped 100 pounds amid cancer treatment". New York Post. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Ken Hudson Campbell: Steve Carell among stars to donate towards Home Alone actor's cancer care as he has jaw surgery". Sky News. December 12, 2023. Archived from the original on December 12, 2023. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
  9. ↑ Muir, Ellie (December 8, 2023). "Home Alone's Ken Hudson Campbell launches GoFundMe to pay for cancer surgery". The Independent. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
  10. ↑ Schmidt, Laura (December 20, 2023). "'Home Alone' Santa Gets Surgery for Mouth Cancer Thanks to GoFundMe". Cancer Health. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
  11. ↑ "A FALLEN HERO". Chicago Tribune. April 16, 1996. Retrieved June 10, 2026.