When I Had The Opportunity To Interview Norm McDonald (AUDIO)
During the season premiere of Saturday Night Live last weekend, the Weekend Update folks did a tribute to the great Norm McDonald who we sadly lost last month to cancer. This reminded me of an interview my old morning show partner, Dave Justus and I did back in 1995 with Norm. Norm was just in his 2nd year of hosting Weekend Update on SNL
Norm McDonald was what you would call "a comedian's comedian". Most stand up comedians kind of fit in a mold but not Norm. He was a one of a kind stand up comedian. I don't think it is even possible to do what Norm did. If you "got" Norm McDonald, you saw the comedy genius he possessed. You either "got" him or you didn't.
During the interview, my partner and I did in '95, Norm couldn't have been a nicer guy. Five years on SNL was Norm's 1st big gig but he later went on to star in many movies and tv shows throughout his career.
Norm was a huge fan of David Letterman and actually teared up on his final appearance on the Letterman show. Likewise, Letterman was a huge fan of Norm's.
I was never fortunate enough to see Norm's stand up live but I'll always cherish the interview we did.
If you are a Norm McDonald fan, be sure to check out "The Norm Show" on Netflix. The show is a prime example of what a down to earth guy Norm was.
When I heard that Norm had passed from cancer last month, I was just as shocked as the rest of the world. No one had any idea that Norm had been battling cancer for 9 years. He somehow managed to keep this secret from us all.
Norm just wanted to continue to make us all laugh and he did just that.
Check out this interview.