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Presidents on SNL
By
Jen Chung
Published Aug 4, 2004
Modified Mar 6, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Aug 4, 2004
Modified Mar 6, 2008
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The other night, when Bill Clinton went on Late Show with David Letterman to shill his heavy book, Gothamist was thinking about rumors that Clinton was weighing an offer to host Saturday Night Live. While Darrell Hammond's Clinton impression was great, the memory of Phil Hartman, playing a McDonald's eating, smooth talking Secret Service nightmare is burned in our memory. Whether it's stuffing a Sausage McMuffin in his mouth and almost choking (luckily Rob Schneider was on hand to give him some soda) or explaining foreign situations with french fries, Hartman and that season's writers defined Clinton. You can catch Hartman's performance on SNL reruns, or on the SNL: Best of Phil Hartman DVD. And in another SNL presidential spoofing vein, check out White House West where Will Ferrell plays a Crawford-enjoying Dubya.
There's a video compilation of SNL's Clinton-Lewinsky scandal sketches, with Hammond as Clinton, Molly Shannon as Monica, Ana Gasteyer as Hillary, and in a brilliant stroke of casting, John Goodman as Linda Tripp. Other SNL takes on presidental types (and wannabes): Chevy Chase as Gerald Ford, Dana Carvey as George Bush, Darrell Hammond as Al Gore, Norm MacDonald as Bob Dole, and Dan Ackroyd as Nixon and Jimmy Carter, not to mention The X-Presidents. Also, there's the book Live From New York, the extremely comprehensive (just no Eddie Murphy) look at SNL.
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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