Norm Macdonald, iconic stand-up comic, dies aged 61
The iconic comedian hid his battle with cancer from friends and fans as he never wanted the diagnosis to affect the way his audiences and loved ones see him
Norm Macdonald, known for being an iconic standup comedian and Saturday Night Live's (SNL) former cast member died on Tuesday after privately battling cancer for 9 years, at the age of 61.
Norms management firm 'Brillstein Entertainment' confirmed the news to Deadline.
Norm's long-time producing partner and close friend Lori Jo Hoekstra reveals that the iconic comedian hid his battle with cancer from friends and fans as he never wanted the diagnosis to affect the way his audiences and loved ones see him.
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Lori said "He was proud of his comedy," reports the Deadline.
Norm was due to appear in the New York Comedy Festival lineup in November.
He joined the SNL cast in 1993 and became best known as the anchor of the show's "Weekend Update", a news parody segment for three seasons, in which he regularly roasted "Baywatch" starring David Hasselhoff and mocked O.J. Simpson in a signature droll style. Macdonald's refusal to go easy on O.J. Simpson despite reported pressure from NBC execs stirred controversy.
After making his controversial exit from SNL in 1998, Norm went on to star in a comedy film "Dirty Work."
Upon Norm's death, the "Saturday Night Live" official Twitter page shared a tweet mourning over his loss. The excerpts of the tweet read, "There are so many things that we will miss about him. But mostly he was plain funny. No one was funny like him."
Born on 17 October 1959, in Quebec City, Norm began his career in comedy show business from the comedy clubs of Canada, developing his trademark style which highly impacted the genre of comedy.
His journey of catching the limelight started as he appeared as a contestant on Star Search in 1990.
The comedian was roped in to write for Roseanne Bar's sitcom Roseanne for the 1992-1993 season before appearing on NBC's hit Saturday Night Live.
Despite battling cancer, Norm continued to perform stand-up comedy and reached his fan with sardonic appearances on late-night talk shows.
In 2018, he hosted a 10-episode interview show titled "Norm Macdonald has a show" on Netflix, where his guests included Jane Fonda, David Spade, and "Saturday Night Live" creator Lorne Michaels.
