The Top 50 SNL Cast Members of All Time: Number 10 – Norm MacDonald

My top 50 list of SNL cast members has been populated with numerous performers who sat behind the iconic Weekend Update desk: Chevy Chase, Jane Curtin, Dan Aykroyd, Dennis Miller, Kevin Nealon, Tina Fey, Jimmy Fallon, Amy Poehler, Seth Meyers, Colin Jost, and Michael Che. As we enter the top 10 of this countdown, we arrive at the final Update anchor. That means it’s the one I thought did it the best and that is Norm MacDonald.

The Canadian stand-up brought his flawless timing and devil may care attitude to the news desk. It could rightly be said that his Update was the last time SNL felt a little dangerous and that’s thanks to him and Jim Downey, his legendary Update cowriting partner.

No one could deliver a joke quite like Norm. Like Johnny Carson, you often laughed harder when they didn’t land due to his reaction. MacDonald’s relentless mocking of O.J. Simpson during his murder trial infuriated NBC exec Don Ohlmeyer, who was a friend of the disgraced football star. In fact, it is allegedly what got him fired from Update (a colossal error in judgment).

Norm’s contributions to SNL went beyond the signature segment airing after the musical guest’s first song. He had great impressions of Larry King and Senator Bob Dole and delivered a rather biting take on David Letterman, his comedic idol. Then, of course, there’s his 70s era Burt Reynolds who would appear on Celebrity Jeopardy.

You could spend hours going down a YouTube rabbit hole watching Norm be hilarious and I certainly have. Most of his couch work on Conan O’Brien’s shows will split your sides. The late great MacDonald did the same on SNL. #9 will be up soon!

Norm MacDonald

Years on the Show: 1993-98

The Top 50 SNL Cast Members of All Time: Number 14 – Chevy Chase

Coming from the National Lampoon Radio Hour like his costars John Belushi and Gilda Radner and his eventual replacement Bill Murray, Chevy Chase was the original breakout sensation on Saturday Night Live. He was the first person to say “Live from New York, It’s Saturday Night!”. The future star of comedy classics including Caddyshack, Vacation, and Fletch also was the initial anchor giving us the fake news on Weekend Update. And there’s that iconic Landshark sketch. And another with Richard Pryor. And his bumbling Gerald Ford which kickstarted 50 years of unforgettable POTUS impersonations.

With his opener “I’m Chevy Chase and you’re not”, it helped millions of viewers learn his name and brilliant deadpan delivery immediately. Chase’s quick rise to fame kept him on the show just a handful of episodes into season #2. Yet if it not for him, the Norms and Tinas, Colins and Michaels, Jimmys and Seths wouldn’t have followed. #13 will be up soon!

The Top 50 SNL Cast Members of All Time: Number 22 – Michael Che and Colin Jost

So we actually have 51 cast members in my all-time top 50 because it’s impossible not to put these two together. Let’s be honest – Saturday Night Live is a show that can swing from a strong episode one weekend to a weaker outing the next. Sometimes this depends on the host or maybe the third episode in as many weeks tends to run out of gas.

Yet in the past decade, Weekend Update has been a consistent highlight thanks to the coanchoring skills of Michael Che and Colin Jost. The latter has been on staff as a writer since 2005 while the former came on board in 2013. Lorne Michaels paired them together at the beginning of season 40 on air and they’re still going in season 50.

The Che/Jost Update started off shaky. It didn’t take long for them to hit their stride and this is best evidenced by the hilariously inappropriate Joke Swap bit they do each year. That’s when the anchors pen off-color gags for one another to read without the deliverer having seen it. As Banya from Seinfeld would say, it’s (comedy) gold. They also expertly manage top-notch performers including Kate McKinnon, Cecily Strong, Heidi Gardner, Pete Davidson, Bowen Yang, and more doing some of their best work on the fake news set. Che and Jost are in the upper echelon of SNLers behind the Update desk in its half century of existence. #21 will be up soon!

Michael Che and Colin Jost

Years on the Show: 2014-Present

The Top 50 SNL Cast Members of All Time: Number 32 – Cecily Strong

Over the period of a decade, Cecily Strong was one of the most consistently sturdy presences on Saturday Night Live in recent years. The longest tenured female cast member in the show’s history, the Second City alum briefly cohosted Update alongside Colin Jost before Michael Che replaced her.

Yet her best contributions came via the Update desk in non hosting segments such as playing Fox News host Jeanine Pirro. There’s memorable characters including the heavily opinionated Cathy Anne or the dimwitted Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started a Conversation with at a Party or the One-Dimensional Female Character from a Male-Driven Comedy. #31 will be up soon!

Cecily Strong

Years on the Show: 2012-22

The Top 50 SNL Cast Members of All Time: Number 36 – Bobby Moynihan

Bobby Moynihan is one of those SNL performers that I feel never gets proper due for his contributions to the show. He comes in at #36 on my top 50 cast members list. Moynihan spent nine seasons creating unique characters and side splitting impressions.

The most well-known is Drunk Uncle on the Weekend Update segments where his rants were a consistent highlight. Some other faves of mine include Vinny Vedecci Jr., son of Bill Hader’s Italian talk show host who asked clueless questions to celebrities and inevitably burst into tears. There’s also Riblet, who did Update bits as Michael Che’s old high school buddy and second-hand news reporter Anthony Crispino. His impressions of Snooki from Jersey Shore and Mindy Cohn from The Facts of Life also warrant mentions. #35 will be up soon!

Bobby Moynihan

Years on the Show: 2008-17