That Time Norm MacDonald Impersonated Tommy Lee on SNL
We lost one of the most ingenious comedic minds in history last week with the death of Norm MacDonald. Along with his timeless stand-up, talk show appearances and podcasts, MacDonald was well-known for his stint on Saturday Night Live, where he once played an enraged Tommy Lee while acting in a skit with Pamela Anderson.
Pam Anderson and Tommy Lee were the most famous (and infamous) celebrity couple in the world when the Baywatch star hosted SNL in 1997. Motley Crue’s daredevil drummer was known as a loose cannon at that point in the ‘90s — in fact, he would serve six months in jail for spousal abuse in 1998 — and SNL parodied Lee’s public persona in a skit with Norm MacDonald and Will Ferrell.
MacDonald’s Tommy Lee constantly interrupted a legal meeting between Ferrell and Anderson, threatening to beat up and shoot Ferrell’s character. Norm wore Lee’s trademark white tank top, piercings and chains, along with being covered in tattoos ala the Motley Crue drummer.
The real Tommy Lee eventually turned the skit full meta, coming in to threaten MacDonald after he shared an onscreen kiss with Pam. As Norm would say, that Tommy Lee was a real jerk!
A Norm fan posted the full skit to the comedian’s subreddit last year. Check it out below.
Rest in power, Norm.