Name: norm on random show 2
Uploaded: 2022-03-25T05:00:16.000Z
Description: Watch the stand-up comedy video 'norm on random show 2' from TickleMeNorm on Comedy Buff. Published 2022-03-25. Transcript available. Be Sad Now #normmacdonald #norm.

Watch the stand-up comedy video 'norm on random show 2' from TickleMeNorm on Comedy Buff. Published 2022-03-25. Transcript available. Be Sad Now #normmacdonald #norm.

President Trump boasted at a fundraising dinner last night that he made up
information in a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Trump is
so bad at lying he lets the public immediately know he lied. If Trump ever
had to take a lie detector test he'd probably just draw the crazy lines
himself. I did not collude with Russia. Since he announced his candidacy Donald
Trump has been fodder for late-night hosts and throughout his presidency they
found new material in his policy and speeches and all those tweets. Riffing
off Trump has become a ratings bonanza and some are hitting the president
pretty
hard infusing their satire with objection and analysis but is there comedy in
today's politics. Joining me now from Santa Monica California Norm Macdonald
and
now full disclosure we shared many off-camera laughs he's my brother-in-law so
hello Norm welcome to question period. Oh it's great to be here Joyce and it's
kind of unreal that you're hosting question period but because I remember it
as a child with Bruce Phillips. So you know the show? Sure yeah yeah I know I
know a question period W5
all of the shows. When Bruce Phillips hosted Trudeau's father was prime
minister and today
it's his son who's running the political show here. Do you think Justin Trudeau
is funny?
I don't follow it that closely but you know I don't think no I don't think he's
funny not like his father was funny
you know I don't think from just my cursory knowledge and watching of Justin on
my prime minister I shouldn't call him Justin
of the prime minister on YouTube that he seems not to have inherited his father's
flinty intellect. You met Donald Trump when he was on the tonight show with on
Jimmy Fallon show. Now tell us about that encounter you had with Donald Trump.
Well I met Donald Trump many many times in New York City just because when I
was doing Saturday Night
Live he was a fixture in New York City and he come to a lot of the shows and he
was just a local eccentric you know that
people mostly loved in New York because he fixed the rink in Central Park when
the city couldn't. But no when I was on Jimmy Fallon
that's when Jimmy Fallon tussled his hair and got in trouble for it and I was
the other guest.
So I was just out in the hallway and I said Donald can I have a picture? You
can call him Donald then. I guess you can still call him Donald. We don't have
to call him president apparently.
But I said could I get a picture with you and he said yeah absolutely sure Norm.
And then he walked down the hall and
got in the elevator with his secret service guys. So uh but he was just doing
it as a joke.
A lot of times uh the problem with uh candidates that uh or political
candidates that do comedy uh is obviously uh comedy doesn't translate
well to the page sometimes you know uh sarcasm is lost obviously and uh things
like that so so
uh if someone says something that's meant uh self-disparagingly or satirically
uh and you want to
take it out of context you can. That happened a lot of a lot of times with uh
Trump on the campaign trail.
But you know he's being caricatured on Saturday Night Live like quite mercilessly
by by Alec Baldwin.
Like is it funny to you? Is that funny?
No. The only reason I don't find it funny when I was there Daryl Hammond did uh
Donald Trump.
And that shows how far back Trump goes because that was 20 years ago. But uh uh
Daryl did him then.
It was a softer Trump you know. I think it was a Trump that was a lot closer to
his real self.
But if you do the problem if you do an impression of someone you have to uh
like that person you know.
Because you're playing the person and people like themselves. So uh you can't
play someone and have
contempt for them at the same time. You know it doesn't work as an impression.
So I don't like uh I don't
like his impression. And I have no political affiliation. I just mean from a
comedy um from a comedy level.
Where is the funny in Donald Trump? Because he does think he's funny right?
Yes. But other people think he's funny too. I I attended one of his uh uh just
to see you know.
Because uh because I wanted to see it for myself. Uh his performances in front
of these grand halls.
And uh he's enormously funny and entertaining. And uh I don't know that there's
normally uh uh with
politicians um you know it takes uh you need to be humble you know to be really
funny. And I think
that's why Ronald Reagan was the funniest president that I ever saw. Because he
always had this humility
to him. I was kind of lost with uh President Obama because people told me he
was funny. But to me he was
too uh self-aware. And of course Hillary couldn't have been more strident you
know. And uh I think people
don't vote on on issues as much as they just vote on who they'd uh like that
old sob about who you'd rather
have a beer with you know. And nobody wanted to have a beer with Hillary
Clinton you know. You say that he has to be
that one person has to be humble to be funny. But I don't think Donald Trump is
very humble. Is he?
No. There's no humility to Donald Trump. Donald Trump is more funny in the way
that uh a WWE wrestler is you know. So he is a
different kind of funny which is a uh uh sort of a self-deluded uh I don't know
if it's self-delusion
though. I don't know if it's all I think it's just all an act. I don't think
really that that Trump ever wanted to be
president. I think that he was always just playing to be president or whatever
that hall he was playing in
was you know. And uh I've seen this happen with comedians too. That you start
thinking you're good
because the people that come to see you all like you you know. But the reason
they came to see you is
because they like you. So uh politicians and comedians both that make that
mistake of thinking they're much better
than they are because they're never uh uh they're never uh criticized by the
people that don't like them.
That's why social media is so good because it you can see the people that that
don't like you at all.
I listened to to an interview you you gave Larry King and you said the ruin of
Donald Trump um will be his
addiction to playing the halls right. So he's he's a great performer he just
wanted to be you like he
wanted to be a stand-up comedian and he just accidentally became a president.
My guess would be that his plan was to
to make a big splash lose oh that's not good. What should we do now Joyce? Just
don't answer okay if you if it's possible.
No I won't answer. Should I start answering that question again? Sure. Yeah I
think uh him becoming president surprised him.
I think uh you know it's it's funny that people don't remember but back in the
debates uh there was a
big big um uh issue with Donald Trump saying if he lost it meant be like uh are
you kidding me?
I know I doubt I did. Oh one second. Hello? Yes. Oh I gotta call you back I'm
on the TV man.
Yeah I'm on the TV right now. Oh my god. I'll call you right
right back. Sorry about that. Okay I'm not I'm not going to ask you the
question again.
I feel that um Trump personally I feel that he he didn't think he was going to
become president
and interestingly the thing that uh people don't remember was that but I
remember was that uh during
the debates uh there was all this talk of Donald Trump saying um if he loses it
means the election
the election is rigged and all the media were saying no no that's impossible.
You know take that back. You cannot say that about the American Republic.
No election here could ever be rigged. That's impossible.
And of course now they're saying the exact opposite.
But uh I think it was Trump's idea at that point that he would say it was going
to be rigged
thinking he thought Hillary was going to win I think and then he would start a
uh you know a network
or something like that where he could uh speak and uh and be the the loyal
opposition
uh um of his own you know something something different than Fox.
Let me ask you this. So your your your Bob Dole imitation was pretty famous uh
back in the
day. So would you do Donald Trump today? Would you do a Donald Trump imitation?
I I I try to not uh do comedy about Donald Trump because uh I think I had one
joke about Donald
Trump that I ever did uh where I said uh that that uh that people that
Americans hated Hillary Clinton
so much that they voted for someone they hated more than Hillary Clinton to rub
it in.
And uh that's the only uh time I ever made a joke about uh Trump.
But I I try to stay away from it because uh it's just you know it's low hanging
fruit and uh and
and and also you know Trump oftentimes is doing self self parody and uh nothing
looks dumber than
if you parody self parody you know you really get get caught uh uh not
understanding.
So comedy in the time of Trump is it more difficult than it was when you were
on Saturday Night Live?
It's more difficult in the time of Trump for good comedians and it's way easier
for bad comedians.
You know you don't have a world view by just saying you don't like Trump.
You know what I mean? That doesn't count. Like uh you can't uh you can't just
say I hate Trump
and and that makes you a good person and uh the Democrats just can't say I hate
Trump
and that means they have a position. You know that's no position.
Uh so so for uh for idiots it's an easier time because uh you go well that guy's
uh that guy's the idiot not me.
But uh if you try to do smart comedy it's better to stay away from uh stay away
from Trump you know.
Norm Macdonald thanks so much for being uh with us today for spending this time
with us.
It was great. Great to see you.
Great to see you. I love you Joyce.
I love you, Joyce.
Love you, too.
Bye-bye.