Originally published at: Comic Norm MacDonald dies at age 61 | Boing Boing
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He was a gem. I’ll miss him.
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As with most comedians, he had some very problematic aspects (in his case towards women and trans people), but when he was punching up, defying sticks in the mud like OJ pal Don Ohlmeyer, or taking the piss out of his colleagues he was the kind of funny and weird that made him the comedian’s comedian. 61 is way too young, especially after spending the previous 9 years fighting cancer in secret.
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I found out about his passing yesterday. He wasn’t one of those comedians that immediately come to mind when i’m talking about comedy but i certainly enjoyed his weird and awkward brand of humor. It’s really a shame he’s no longer with us but i’m glad for the laughs he gave me while he was here.
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Norm was extraordinary.
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Sad news. His face and delivery I always felt like he was keeping his lips stiff to prevent from cracking a smile. His delivery was certainly different. I really liked him.
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One of those “where tf is this going” but you can’t help but lol. And then the punchline.
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I just saw him in a thing! Thanks, Norm and THC.
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The history of sexual assault allegations surrounding him and the clubs and other comics who were aware of that behavior and ignored it make it impossible for me to shed tears at his passing. The age old challenge of “separating the artist from the art” continues, seemingly unslowed.
Twitter thread here for those who aren’t already familiar with this: Jenny Yang on Twitter: “im really happy Norm MacDonald inspired and brought joy to so many of you. but please let us tell an accurate history of his legacy: he disrespected and straight up sexually assaulted women in comedy for many years” / Twitter
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I was not aware of these allegations, but i do appreciate you bringing attention to this. I certainly would’ve been pointing this out myself had i known. I can’t say i’m surprised considering how toxic the male comedy world has been, and i’m sad to find out Norm was among those that engaged in that kind of behavior. I hope that the women that were on the receiving end of it are able to be heard.
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I came here expecting a comment like this, and I was not let down. The expectation was met, and the comedian failed to let me down because of course many of them are toxic. Thank you for sharing.
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And I came here expecting a comment like yours. Sadly, I was not let down.
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You saying he wasn’t rapey enough to have disappointed you?
On a scale of 0 to Bill Cosby how would you score Norm?
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Uh, I think GospelX was saying he had no expectations of him being a good person, as comedians are quite often toxic?
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And you can do that without dismissive comments to people who point out why their hero is toxic. The hero can also admit guilt for their previous abusiveness and try to be a better person in the future, while accepting that the abused may not be capable of accepting their apology at that time.
Billy Connolly and Frankie Boyle (just two examples with dodgy histories) have moved on and changed, so can everyone else. Norm MacDonald chose to double down on his dodginess, so the victims of his abuse deserve just as much attention as, if not more than, his fans.
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Does this mean that you were aware of his sexual assaults? Or that you don’t care about them?
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Not what I’m saying at all. Just wasn’t aware until now.
The comment wasn’t dismissive. It was an expectation that I’m going to learn that people like him are assholes.
That’s a really ungenerous read of my comment. I just learned that the guy did those things but have come to expect it. I was honestly thanking the person for bringing his toxicity to my attention. I meant absolutely nothing foul.
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Only 1 in a million people find Norm funny. Roughly 8,000 people.
Rest in peace.
