Norm Macdonald
Norm Macdonald was a Canadian comedian and actor known for his deadpan delivery and absurdist humor.
He anchored Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live from 1994 to 1998, where his refusal to soften jokes reportedly led to his dismissal.
Macdonald was celebrated by other comedians for his commitment to anti-comedy—jokes that deliberately violated expectations of timing and punchlines: He told a shaggy dog story for ten minutes just to reach a terrible pun.
He died in 2021.
Understated, expressionless comedy
- monotoneSingle unvarying pitch
- poker-facedShowing no emotion
- understatedDeliberately minimized in expression
- expressionlessShowing no feeling
stoic · laconic · matter-of-fact · unflinching · pause · smirk · stare · nonchalant
Comedy news parody segment
- sketch comedyShort comic performances
- cue cardsPortable text prompts
- cold openPre-title sequence segment
- live televisionProgramming shown as recorded
Chris Farley · Adam Sandler · Phil Hartman · David Spade · NBC · fake news · 30 Rock · musical guest
Humor's final delivery
- timingArt of choosing moments
- deliveryConveyance of goods
- anti-jokeDeliberately punchless humor
- shaggy dog storyLengthy joke with absurd anticlimax
set · routine · comedy club · microphone · heckler · observational · anecdote · callback
Believer in cosmic meaninglessness
- subversiveSeeking to undermine authority
- irreverentDisrespectful toward authority
- dark humorComedy about taboo subjects
- non sequiturIllogical conclusion or remark
transgressive · self-deprecating · sardonic · ironic · provocative · taboo · gallows humor · meta
- pigeonStout urban bird
- DeathPermanent cessation of life
- voice actingUnseen performer's vocal art
- impressionEffect on the mind
Bob Dylan · Larry King · podcast · moth · talk show appearances
dry humor
Understated, expressionless comedy
- monotoneSingle unvarying pitch
- poker-facedShowing no emotion
- understatedDeliberately minimized in expression
expressionless · stoic · laconic · matter-of-fact · unflinching · pause · smirk · stare · nonchalant · dry wit
Weekend Update
Comedy news parody segment
- sketch comedyShort comic performances
- cue cardsPortable text prompts
- cold openPre-title sequence segment
Chris Farley · Adam Sandler · Phil Hartman · David Spade · live television · NBC · fake news · 30 Rock · musical guest
punchline
Humor's final delivery
shaggy dog story · set · routine · comedy club · microphone · heckler · observational · anecdote · callback · misdirection
absurdist
Believer in cosmic meaninglessness
- subversiveSeeking to undermine authority
- irreverentDisrespectful toward authority
- dark humorComedy about taboo subjects
non sequitur · transgressive · self-deprecating · sardonic · ironic · provocative · taboo · gallows humor · meta · rambling
Burt Reynolds
- pigeonStout urban bird
- DeathPermanent cessation of life
- voice actingUnseen performer's vocal art
Bob Dylan · impression · Larry King · podcast · moth · talk show appearances
Norm MacdonaldRobin Williams
Jim Carrey · Chris Farley · Kevin Hart · Gabriel Iglesias · Gallagher
Norm MacdonaldJimmy Fallon
Jay Leno · Ellen DeGeneres · Kevin Hart · Steve Harvey · James Corden
Norm MacdonaldKim Kardashian
influencer · brand ambassador · self-promoter · attention seeker · clout chaser
norm, norms, normal, normality, normalize, normalized, normalization, normative, abnormal