The Washington Post profiles Norm Macdonald

The odd brilliance and sincerity of Norm Macdonald shines through this new profile of him, diligently reported by The Washington Post‘s Geoff Edgers (included online are months of their text exchanges).

Here’s an excerpt of the kind of praise Macdonald’s peers give him, including these quotes from David Letterman and Conan O’Brien:

“If we could have, we would have had Norm on every damn week,” Letterman says. “He is funny in a way that some people inhale and exhale. With others, you can tell the comedy, the humor is considered. With Norm, he exudes it. It’s sort of a furnace in him because he’s so effortless. The combination of the delivery and his appearance and his intelligence. There may be people as funny as Norm, but I don’t know anybody who is funnier.”

The problem has never been being funny, whether doing stand-up, a video podcast or another legendary talk show guest spot.

The struggle for Macdonald has always been finding the right outlet for his humor.

“Part of what makes him so compelling and so fun to watch is that he defies categorization,” O’Brien says. “He doesn’t fit into any piece of the puzzle, and I think that might have something to do with why no one has said he’s perfect to host a show.”

Read the full profile of Norm in The Washington Post.

Macdonald’s new memoir, “Based on a True Story,” comes out in hardcover Sept. 20, 2016.

And audiobook, too?!

Sean L. McCarthy

Editor and publisher since 2007, when he was named New York's Funniest Reporter. Former newspaper reporter at the New York Daily News, Boston Herald and smaller dailies and community papers across America. Loves comedy so much he founded this site.

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