Dan Aykroyd is an actor.
Daniel Edward `` Dan '' Aykroyd ( born July 1 , 1952 ) is a Canadian-American actor , comedian , producer , voice artist , screenwriter , musician and businessman . He conceived and starred in Ghostbusters ( 1984 ) , which spawned a sequel ( Ghostbusters II ) and eventually an entire media franchise . He starred in his own sitcom , Soul Man , from 1997 -- 98 .