If you haven’t heard, and how could you not, Norm Macdonald died today at 61. I believe it was cancer. According to the news, he’d been diagnosed with it for 9 (!) years.
According to his producing partner, Lori Jo Hoekstra, Macdonald kept his diagnosis private on purpose.
“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.”
Hmm..I would’ve laughed harder at his jokes if I’d known he had cancer. Grading on a curve if you will.
I don’t remember too much of his comedy. Lately, he was on Youtube and got a Netflix show. He also voiced a character on Seth MacFarlane’s The Orville. Expect huge ratings for that whenever Norm’s episode comes out.
As an aside, MacFarlane tweeted out a tribute to Macdonald.
To so many people in comedy, me included, there was nobody funnier than Norm MacDonald. You always hoped he would hang around after the work was done, just so you could hear his stories and get a laugh. So hilarious and so generous with his personality. I’m gonna miss him.
— Seth MacFarlane (@SethMacFarlane) September 14, 2021
He tweeted:
To so many people in comedy, me included, there was nobody funnier than Norm MacDonald. You always hoped he would hang around after the work was done, just so you could hear his stories and get a laugh. So hilarious and so generous with his personality. I’m gonna miss him.
Interesting how we say that whoever passed was the greatest at comedy or the best at what they did. No one says, yea, that guy Jim, was, umm…average? Didn’t really do a whole lot. I mean, his jokes were..oook I guess.