Biography
Norm Macdonald Net Worth: Bio, Age, Career & Relationship
Norm Macdonald was a stand-up comedian, actor, and writer from Canada. Norm Macdonald had a net worth of $2.5 million at the time of his death. Norm passed away on September 14, 2021, at the age of 61, following a long fight with cancer.
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What was the net worth and salary of Norm Macdonald?
Norm was most known for his work on “Saturday Night Live,” where he was a frequent cast member and the host of the Weekend Update segment.
Norm Macdonald was widely regarded as one of the all-time great stand-up comedians. Norm was known for his deadpan comic style, which evolved into a more minimalist approach over time.
Early Years
Norman Gene Macdonald was born in Quebec City, Canada, on October 17th, 1959. Norm attended high schools in Quebec and Ottawa, where he was raised alongside two brothers by parents who were both teachers.
Neil, his brother, went on to work for CBC News as a journalist. Norm’s father, Percy, was a member of the Canadian Armed Forces during WWII and assisted in the liberation of the Netherlands.
Career
Macdonald began his career as a stand-up comedian at Yuk Yuks in Ottawa. Norm was regarded one of Canada’s top up-and-coming comics by the mid-1980s.
He was a competitor on the show “Star Search” in 1990. He got a position as a writer on the comedy “Roseanne” in the early 1990s.
In 1993, Macdonald got his big break when he was offered a spot on “Saturday Night Live.” He left “Roseanne” to do impressions of celebs on “SNL,” including Larry King, David Letterman, Quentin Tarantino, and many more.
Norm became well-known for anchoring the “Weekend Update” portion of “SNL” during his second season on the show.
Norm’s appearances on “Weekend Update” were well-received, though polarising.
He was known for making jokes about taboo themes and disparaging high-profile figures including Michael Jackson, Bill Clinton, and Marion Barry.
During his famed murder trial, O.J. Simpson was subjected to a lot of whipping by Macdonald, who kept implying that he was guilty. Michael Jackson’s sexuality and suspected pedophilic practises were also targeted by him.
In 1998, Norm left “SNL” after five years. NBC president Don Ohlmeyer claimed that Macdonald was fired because of his comments about O.J.
Simpson (who was a personal friend of Olmeyer’s), but Norm insisted that he was fired because of his jokes about O.J. Simpson.
He later claimed that the person who wrote those jokes was fired from “SNL” around the same time, and that Ohlmeyer had organised a party for the acquitted jurors.
While it’s true that “there’s no such thing as bad press,” Ohlmeyer’s ability to promote his new film, “Dirty Work,” was hampered by his feud with Macdonald. Ohlmeyer refused to air advertisements for the film on his television network.
Although the ruling was subsequently overturned, the film advertisements were never displayed on “SNL” episodes.
Norm eventually concluded that Ohlmeyer didn’t fire him from “SNL” because of the O.J. jokes, but rather because he disobeyed Ohlmeyer’s directives on a regular basis.
In 1998, the film “Dirty Work” was released. Macdonald both starred in and co-wrote the picture.
Critics were harsh on the film, and it failed to break even at the box office. Following that, he voiced Lucky the Dog in Eddie Murphy’s “Dr. Dolittle.” In each of the sequels, he repeated his voice acting role.
Norm began hosting “The Norm Show” in 1999, which was later shortened to “Norm.” It aired on ABC for three seasons. Following that, he starred in the film “Man on the Moon.”
He co-starred in the film “Screwed” with Dave Chappelle in 2000. He later appeared on “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” and won a prize of $500,000 for charity. He landed a voice acting part in “The Fairly OddParents” in 2005.
Around the mid-2000s, Macdonald began filling in for Dennis Miller on the “O’Reilly Factor” feature “Miller Time.” He also appeared on shows such as “My Name Is Earl,” “Match Game,” “Celebrity Jeopardy,” and “Million Dollar Password” during this time.
On FX’s “The Norm Macdonald Reality Show,” he began portraying a fictionalised version of himself in 2009. He started the podcast “Norm Macdonald Live” in 2013.
He served as a judge on “Last Comic Standing” in 2015. He began hosting “Norm Macdonald Has a Program,” a new chat show that aired on Netflix in 2018.
Endorsements of brands
Norm Macdonald appeared as a voice actor for Bell Mobility, a Canadian telecommunications corporation, in advertisements in 2006.
Norm worked as a voice actor for AT&T commercials in 2007 and 2008. He began working as a spokesperson for Safe Auto Insurance Company in 2012. In 2015, he appeared in several KFC commercials as Colonel Sanders.
Relationships
Norm Macdonald married Connie Macdonald in 1990. In 1993, the couple had a child together, and their divorce was formalised in 1999.
Addiction to Gambling
Norm was once afflicted with a significant and famous gambling addiction. Norm’s addiction reached a boiling point during his days working on “Saturday Night Live,” as he would later tell in interviews.
He allegedly would leave right after taping his “Weekend Update” piece each night, head to Atlantic City, and gambling until the wee hours of the morning.
When he moved into a building with a casino in the lobby, things got even worse. Norm later said that despite making millions on “Saturday Night Live,” he was only able to save roughly $200,000 from his income.
He also alleged that his gambling addiction began after he won a six-figure sum at an Atlantic City craps table. He kept coming back for more because of the “rush” he got from that one win.
On three consecutive occasions, Macdonald appears to have lost virtually all of his money while gambling. He reportedly lost $400,000 in one sitting.
All things considered, Norm was a competent poker player, finishing 20th out of 827 players in the 2007 World Series of Poker’s No-Limit Texas Hold’em tournament.
Purchasing Real Estate
In 2015, Norm Macdonald listed his condo in Santa Monica for $2.2 million on the real estate market.
The apartment has 1,630 square feet of living area with views of the ocean. Furthermore, the property is only two streets from the world-famous Santa Monica beach.
He had previously paid $1.75 million for the home in 2008. Macdonald was rumoured to have purchased another house in Playa Vista for $750,000 in 2015.
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