‘SNL’ pays tribute to Norm Macdonald in season premiere

“Saturday Night Live” paid tribute to former cast member Norm Macdonald, who died Sept. 14, in its season premiere.

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The 47th season of the late-night entertainment show remembered Macdonald during its “Weekend Update” segment, Variety reported.

Macdonald, 61, was known for his deadpan delivery as an anchor on the “Weekend Update’ portion of the show for three years during the 1990s. He was an “SNL” cast member from 1993 to 1998 and hosted the show in October 1999, the website reported.

Current cast member Pete Davidson joined “Weekend Update” co-anchors Michael Che and Colin Jost, wearing a T-shirt with Macdonald’s image on it. Then, the comedy series aired a montage of Macdonald’s greatest moments as a “Weekend Update” anchor, according to Variety.

The package began with Macdonald talking about former president Bill Clinton being against gay marriages, Variety reported. “What’s more,” he said, “the president said he’s not too crazy about opposite sex marriages either.”

>> Norm Macdonald, comedian and former ‘SNL’ actor, dies at 61

Another clip showed Macdonald talking about a proposed airport in the Pacific Ocean west of San Diego: “Built on 40 by 20-foot floating cylinders, it’s all part of a plan by city officials to have a huge disaster,” he said. There were also references to O.J. Simpson and a “snake man” climbing a skyscraper.

The clips ended with Macdonald using Walter Cronkite’s “And that’s the way it is, folks” sign-off.

Macdonald died following a nine-year battle with cancer.

He was born in Quebec City, Canada, in 1959, according to the Montreal Gazette and The Washington Post. Macdonald began his career as a stand-up comedian in Canada before becoming a writer on “Roseanne,” according to the Gazette and Variety.

In 1993, he left “Roseanne” to join the cast of “SNL.”

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