MacDonald was known for his deadpan delivery style, and his impressions of Hollywood stars such as Burt Reynolds, Clint Eastwood and Quentin Tarantino.
Comedian Norm MacDonald passed away at the age of 61, nine years after being diagnosed with cancer, according to his family and representatives. MacDonald worked for the Roseanne programme before joining ‘Saturday Night Live’ to host news parody skit Weekend Update.
The Canadian comic was born in Quebec City in 1959 and got his
start in Canadian clubs before moving to the US to pursue TV comedy writing,
reports bbc.com. Known for his dry delivery, MacDonald had fans in the US
and worldwide.
“He was most proud of his comedy. He never wanted
the diagnosis to affect the way the audience or any of his loved ones saw
him. Norm was a pure comic,” Lori Jo Hoekstra, MacDonald’s long-time
producing partner, said in a statement.
“He once wrote that ‘a
joke should catch someone by surprise, it should never pander.’ He certainly
never pandered. Norm will be missed terribly.”
MacDonald was also popular for his work in comedy films such as
‘Dirty Work’, ‘Billy Madison’ and ‘Dr Doolittle’. According to Deadline, he
was slated to appear in the New York Comedy Festival in November.
MacDonald
was known for his deadpan delivery style, and his impressions of Hollywood
stars such as Burt Reynolds, Clint Eastwood and Quentin Tarantino. After
leaving ‘Saturday Night Live’, he starred in his own comedy series, ‘Norm’,
from 1999-2001. In 2018, he hosted a Netflix programme called ‘Norm
Macdonald Has A Show’.
Comedian and actor Jim Carrey called MacDonald a “precious
gem”. The actor wrote, “He was one of our most precious gems. An honest and
courageous comedy genius.” “I am absolutely devastated about Norm MacDonald.
I will never laugh that hard again. I’m so sad for all of us today,” wrote
late-night host Conan O’Brien.
Former ‘Daily Show’ host Jon Stewart wrote online, “No one
could make you break like Norm MacDonald. Hilarious and unique.” Actor Seth
Rogan recalled, “I essentially ripped off his delivery when I first started
acting. We lost a comedy giant today. One of the all-time greats.”
