Comparing Dennis and Norm These are things I've noticed that Norm MacDonald and Dennis Miller have in common...If you can think of anymore, let me know. Both have been fired.....Norm from Weekend Update and Dennis from his Tribune show. Both have hosted the Espy Awards....Norm once, Dennis twice. Both do stand-up and have been told by TPTB that they're not funny..Norm by Ohlmeyer, Dennis from Tribune. HBO specials...Dennis has done them, Norm is planning one, from the info, I have. Both have done movies although Dennis has done more....Norm has been in "Billy Madison" and "The People vs. Larry Flint", and the soon to be released "Dirty Work". Both have dark hair and a son around age six. Both were one of the best anchors SNL ever had and neither thinks they're any good in skits. Both wrote for SNL and "The Dennis Miller Show", credited or otherwise. |
The Weiner Dog Chronicle: A Norm Macdonald Home Page This page is for one of the funniest men alive, Norm MacDonald. On this page, you will find my opinions as well as a comparison of Norm and Dennis Miller. I welcome your comments and opinions. Feel free to e-mail me using the link on this page. Enjoy! More to come! My Take on the Whole Fiasco I have always thought Don Ohlmeyer has no idea what he is doing. Now I know he doesn't. Ohlmeyer's firing of Norm from Weekend Update was as much a surprise to me as anyone. I hadn't seen SNL the week the anchor switch took place, for some reason or another. So when I got a package from my best friend, which included a printed postcard out of Time Magazine asking for Norm's return as anchor, it took me all of two seconds to pick up the phone and call her in a total panic. Two seconds after I hung up with my friend, I had pen in hand writing to the weasel himself. I was so sick of the viewers and my favorite performers getting the short end of the deal, and I was NOT going to take it anymore. I have always loved Norm. Even in the beginning when he was going 55 MPH, a problem which two letters to him (from myself and my best friend) seemed to have solved, to our shock and surprise, when he slowed down considerably two weeks later. (Nice on-air response.) The man was hysterical! Four years later, Ohlmeyer says he's not funny and fires the one man from Weekend Update who could make me laugh besides Dennis Miller. Over my dead body! We of course joined in the campaign to fight such an injustice. We weren't giving up without a fight. After seeing Colin Quinn do the Update three times now and seeing the rest of the show, I find myself going "Huh?". I submit for you now, what I will call my Conspiracy Theory. First of all, WHY Colin Quinn as the anchor? I like Colin. I've always liked Colin. But as the anchor? I don't THINK so. Certainly there are other people more qualified. The man makes Nealon look good, and I never liked him as the anchor. Well, I've got a few thoughts on this. Could it be he's screwing up on purpose? Maybe he's so good, he can be that bad. Or maybe Lorne Michaels picked him because he knew full well he can't pull it off. Come on. We all know Lorne Michaels is a brilliant guy. He's the only man I've ever seen who knows exactly when to put himself in a bit, and he's been known to save a bit from total disaster every now and then. I've also noticed the quality of the show has gone down the toilet. Oddly, it started exactly when this whole fiasco did. Coincidence? I think not. Is it just because in addition to demoting Norm, they fired the only writer who wasn't a pervert or is the show being shot to hell on purpose? Lately, it seems like everyone's minds are in the gutter. The show is no longer the fun-loving show it once was. Instead, it's a contest to see what bit can be the sleaziest. The intelligence is no longer there. Instead, we are left with a show that has turned into an HBO special. No thanks. I have cable. Well, there you have it. I'd like to know what you think, so feel free to send me an e-mail. Only clean comments, please. My Take on the Feb 14, 1998 Show OK. I said I was boycotting the show now that Norm is gone. I swore I would never watch it again. I'm being faithful to "My Normie". However, TV Guide did still have him listed even though they had plenty of time to get caught up. That was enough to make me go "Hmmm....". Plus, I wanted to watch the commercials to see if there was anything else I should be boycotting, so I figured I'd watch. Besides, it doesn't hurt to gather more ammo to blast NBC, right? There, of course, was the usual sleaze that I've been noticing lately. But the first thing to make me go "Hmmm..." was Weekend Update. It was ever so slightly improved. It was more like "Update" and less like the stand-up it has become since Colin took over. Very strange. After Weekend Update, I called my best friend to see if she was watching. (Note to self: Send Ohlmeyer my phone bill.) She was being the good one and not watching. Suddenly, at the end of the show, I'm in the middle of a sentence when I see Norm on the stage. I yelled "S---! Turn on the show!" to my friend. Too late. He was gone. Now, why was he there? Especially when it's not like him to stay for the end of the show (unfortunately). Could it be he is in negotiations to come back? (Please God.) Or maybe he was there to give NBC execs. a hard time. ("Ha, ha! You're not rid of me yet!") Maybe he was just there to give all of his fans a nice Valentine's Day gift or just to prove to those of us who didn't think he was thinking too clearly when he decided he wanted out of his contract that he was just fine. Sort of another on-air response. Whatever the reason, I've never been so happy to see anyone make a surprise appearance in my life. I just wish somebody would SAY SOMETHING! After I recovered from the shock, I played it back about a half dozen times. (Can't wait for a re-run so I can get his cameo on SP instead of SLP.) Then something hit me. I remembered the slight improvement in Weekend Update. Since Norm was there, could he have given Colin a few tips? I hope not, but it does seem weird. With Norm around, Colin has improved, or so the Germans would have us believe. So what do you think? E-mail me and let me know. E-mail me with your comments, suggestions or questions. View My Guestbook Sign My Guestbook
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