Though almost completely unknown, this man was one of the originators of a highly popular and groundbreaking new form of comedy and satire. After working on the Harvard Lampoon as an undergraduate, Douglas C. Kenney co-founded the National Lampoon magazine and the National Lampoon Radio Hour. Kenney had originally collaborated at Harvard with friend, Henry Beard, and founded the National Lampoon, where the two pooled their talents and created a radical new humor magazine. Humor that was sophomoric, rebellious, off-color, vulgar and just plain laceratingly funny. The Lampoon's humor was considered radical. Not only was the magazine an all-time best seller - particularly the infamous cover of the gun pointed at the family pet: "If you don't buy this magazine, we'll kill this dog". Kenney had broadened his comic touch all over. He and other members of the Lampoon had written books - the most popular being the "1964 High School Yearbook Parody" in 1974 (co-edited by P.J. O'Rourke). Written like a real yearbook and spoofing all the things that make them almost embarrassing and funny in their own right, Kenney and his cohorts had certainly written a little masterpiece. Another best-selling classic of his was the cult favorite "Bored of the Rings", a humorous little take on Mr. J.R.R. Tolkien's legendary best-seller. The book was a best-seller and thanks to the release of Peter Jackson's Oscar-winning live-action adaptation of the novel trilogy, the book got another printing. Kenney's legacy was living on. Another piece of his was "Mrs. Agnew's Diary", that roasted the Nixon administration. IMDb Mini Biography By: dane youssef
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Biography from TMDB.
- December 10, 1946
- August 27, 1980 (aged 33)
- West Palm Beach, Florida, USA
- Writer and producer
- 5 on MovieCove · 6 credits in all
What are Douglas Kenney's films like?
Across a limited sample of 4 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Power.
What they feel like to watch
A split, not a type: Ironic 2 · Wry 0 · Earnest 1
Light 4 · Serious 0 · Dark 0
Grounded 0 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 1
Gentle 1 · Charged 3 · Intense 0
Steady 0 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 2
Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 4
Slow burn 0 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 0
Casual 4 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 4 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 0
Resolved 4 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Douglas Kenney's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 5 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (2).
Subscription and free streaming for Douglas Kenney's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
6 credits, 5 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Caddyshack II(1988)
Midcredits score: 2nd percentile of all films
Modern Problems(1981)
Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films
Caddyshack(1980)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films
Between the Lines(1977)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films
Lemmings (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)
Career shape
A full career of 6 titles from 1973 to 1988.
Biggest box office
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
Highest rated
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
Film career
- 1978Screen debut· Animal House
How do Douglas Kenney's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 66th percentile, the median of all 5; across a limited sample of 4 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 47th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up2
- 50th to 74th1
- Below 25th2
Shape of the crowd
2 of their 5 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved1
- Universally Panned1
- Crowd Pleaser2
- Mixed1
Reviewers score the dialogue 54/100 and the plot and story 26/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Douglas Kenney's work okay for kids?
Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.
Who does Douglas Kenney work with?
People who share at least 2 of Douglas Kenney's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Harold Ramis shares the most, 3.
Writers
- Harold RamisShared titles: Caddyshack II (1988), Caddyshack (1980), National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)See all 3 shared titles with Harold Ramis
- Brian Doyle-MurrayShared titles: Caddyshack II (1988), Modern Problems (1981), Caddyshack (1980)See all 3 shared titles with Brian Doyle-Murray
Actors
- Chevy ChaseShared titles: Modern Problems (1981), Caddyshack (1980)See all 2 shared titles with Chevy Chase
Producers
- Jon PetersShared titles: Caddyshack II (1988), Caddyshack (1980)See all 2 shared titles with Jon Peters
