Saturday Night Live veteran Norm MacDonald holds the belief that at three in the afternoon, most college students are "having unprotected sex and taking bong hits." It was therefore a relief for the comedian to find that his afternoon interview with The Spectrum was conducted on time.
MacDonald's outspoken nature and sarcastic sense of humor has enabled him to launch a successful career. Since joining the cast of SNL in 1993, he has appeared in over a dozen films and is releasing his first full-length comedy CD, "Ridiculous," this week.
"I've been working on the album for seven or eight years," said MacDonald. "There is only a certain amount of material that can fit on a CD and I had a hard time choosing what to put in and what to leave out."
The compilation features a slew of guest appearances from SNL alumni such as Molly Shannon, Tim Meadows and the beloved Will Ferrell. Longtime friend and Howard Stern Show radio personality, Artie Lange, was also invited to collaborate.
Originally from Quebec, Canada, MacDonald reflected on Buffalo, a place he often visited.
"Yeah, whenever we would go to the States we would be all excited to be in a different country," he said. "Then we would get to Buffalo and it would be exactly the same thing as Canada, kind of sh*tty."
Over the years, MacDonald has been relentlessly touring nightclubs and lounges doing his comedy routine. He got his big break when Roseanne Arnold saw his act in Los Angeles and hired him as a writer for her own sitcom. MacDonald claims that he owes all of his success to stand-up and has no plans to abandon it.
Even though MacDonald swears by standup, he has proven to be an open-minded actor. His willingness to experiment became apparent during his role in "Billy Madison."
"I asked Sandler how he wanted me to play the part and he asked if I could just be drunk the whole time," he said. "So I was really drunk the entire movie and I just don't remember any of it. Now when it's on I always want to watch it so I can see what I'm like when I'm really drunk."
While on SNL, MacDonald was best known for his Larry King and Bob Dole impressions and most notably his time spent as the anchor of "Weekend Update" for three years. Besides constantly berating Michael Jackson, one of MacDonald's other main targets is Buffalo's own, OJ Simpson.
When Simpson was found not guilty MacDonald remarked on the air, "Well, it's official: murder is legal in the state of California." Unfortunately for MacDonald, NBC president Don Ohlmeyer was a good friend of OJ's and he lost his job.
After SNL, MacDonald took the ill-fated path through Hollywood that so many stand-up comedians are inevitably forced to take.
"In Los Angeles, if you're a good standup guy they'll say, 'Hey, how would you like to be the world's worst film actor?'" MacDonald said. "Or, 'How would you like to be in a horrible sitcom?'"
Despite two failed sitcoms and several box office disappointments, MacDonald continues to tirelessly pursue comedic success. He is currently searching for an actor to be the lead role in a film that he wrote entitled "Court Appointed Attorney," which he describes as "so f***ing funny."
Norm MacDonald's comedy CD "Ridiculous" hits stores this Tuesday.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
