Dear SNL,

2:45 am EST November 6th, 2008 | News | 17 Comments

Okay, now you really have to find someone that can actually do a Barack Obama impression. Fred Armisen sucks, big time.

Love,
Oliver

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17 Responses to “Dear SNL,”

  1. anotherbozo says:
    November 6, 2008 at 8:01 am

    AGREED! Also need better writing. Obama is very, very hard, though. Not a hypocrite, no pronounced mannerisms, perfect enunciation etc. But there’s no law that SNL or any other program HAS to lampoon the Chief Exec. Maybe they should give it a rest unless/until they hire the right talent.

  2. Michael Markman says:
    November 6, 2008 at 8:44 am

    Amen to that.

  3. Danack says:
    November 6, 2008 at 8:45 am

    That would, ah, presumably be, ah, this man

  4. Syco says:
    November 6, 2008 at 8:49 am

    They almost hired Wyatt from The Daily Show do Obama but changed their mind last minute.

  5. Danack says:
    November 6, 2008 at 8:56 am

    Or, ah, this clip also shows some, ah, comedy moments.

  6. ryptide says:
    November 6, 2008 at 9:05 am

    I think Armisen will grow into it, personally. It will get better.

  7. Duros 62 says:
    November 6, 2008 at 10:04 am

    But there’s no law that SNL or any other program HAS to lampoon the Chief Exec.

    There’s no law saying they have to be accurate in their portrayal either. See Chevy Chase as Ford and Akroyd as Carter.

  8. Bijan C. Bayne says:
    November 6, 2008 at 10:57 am

    No pronounced mannerisms? What about “…a-a-and,…”?

  9. Duros 62 says:
    November 6, 2008 at 11:12 am

    That other guy’s Joe Biden ain’t all that either.

  10. Thad says:
    November 6, 2008 at 11:35 am

    @Syco: Wyatt Cenak would’ve been a great choice IMO. (Hell, I would have been happy to see Maya Rudolph do it.)

    I think Monday’s clip show, which had a hell of a lot more Clinton and Palin than Obama, spoke volumes — among other things, it was a reminder of just how badly off the show’s been since Fey left (and now Poehler’s out too).

  11. Crusty Dem says:
    November 6, 2008 at 11:51 am

    Fred Armisen is comedy gold, by which I mean, he is as amusing as a chunk of heavy metal. His bit on weekend update last Thursday (or the week before, the one with the touchscreen) was the first thing he’s ever done on SNL where I actually chuckled a bit. I actually get the impression that the people on the show think he’s an Andy Kaufman-esque genius, which I clearly don’t get.

    I had to look up how long he’s been on the show – 6 YEARS!! 131 episodes!! Holy crap! Amusingly, he was a drummer in a punk band and blue man group before joining SNL (thanks imdb). Which makes perfect sense, he has to have some talents, but comedy ain’t one of them..

  12. Andrew says:
    November 6, 2008 at 1:05 pm

    Actually, I have seen Armisen doing some comedy with a partner (I cannot recall the partner) and he can be quite funny. He has done some stuff on SNL I have liked. I think the reason they originally chose him was the shape of his head. Seriously. Watch the debate where they first used him as Obama. He was initially a visual prop with a few lines. It was all about how the press was treating him as opposed to Hillary.

    That said, yes. Get someone else. Maybe Keegan Michael-Key is looking to leave MadTV.

    BTW, I saw Keegan at Second City Detroit back in 2000, before he got on MadTV. He was brilliant, and I think he is a solid contributor to his show.

  13. PaulW says:
    November 6, 2008 at 4:23 pm

    They could always hire Denzel Washington.

  14. Duros62 says:
    November 7, 2008 at 11:14 am

    How fortunate we all are that Dennis Kucinich dropped out.

  15. schmi says:
    November 7, 2008 at 6:50 pm

    I think Obama begins his responses to questions with, “Well look,” just as often as Reagan did, “Weeelllll….”

  16. anotherbozo says:
    November 8, 2008 at 5:48 pm

    On a morning show, Chris Rock had the definitive word on Obama impressions. He said Obama and Will Smith were both too cool to mimic–”you never see anyone try to do Will Smith, do you?” Wait, I say, till Obama is mockable–if not, then not.

  17. JET says:
    November 11, 2008 at 4:01 am

    Anyone who doesn’t laugh at Armisen’s Nicholas Fehn character or his (non-SNL) Saddam Hussein knows naught of humour.

    And his touch screen bit was one of the weakest he’s ever done; simple, predictable and corny.

    His Obama is passable, and certainly better than 80% of the increasingly identical performances Darrell Hammond has been burdening the show with during the last decade.