Norm Macdonald honored by late night hosts: 'God, we're gonna miss him'

Late night hosts paid homage to Norm Macdonald Tuesday after the comedian passed away earlier in the day after secretly living with cancer for nine years. Jimmy Fallon had to hold his emotions back when he first spoke about it, but went on to recall the first time he met Macdonald shortly after being hired at Saturday Night Live. Stephen Colbert said that Macdonald helped him out during a brief stint as a guest writer at SNL, during which Colbert ended up spending the whole time writing for Weekend Update, which Mcdonald used to anchor, and Colbert had some high praise.

“I wish I were a good enough comedian to come up with a joke right now about Norm Macdonald having died. But the only comedian I know who could get away with a ‘Norm Macdonald is dead joke,’ is Norm Macdonald,” Colbert said. “And I'm going to miss the fact that there's nobody left on the planet who can do that, and the comedy world is poorer for it today.”

Seth Meyers, who also once helmed the Weekend Update desk, said that Macdonald told his favorite joke ever on the segment.

“It is a perfect Norm joke,” Meyers said, before telling it with Macdonald-like cadence. “The richest girl in the world, billionaire Athina Onassis celebrated her 10th birthday this week. What’s it like to be the richest girl in the world? Well, to give you some idea, at the party they had two cakes.”

Video transcript

[LOGO SOUND]

JIMMY FALLON: Norm MacDonald, a great comedian who passed away today at the age of 61. And gosh, you know him, you love him.

- Yeah.

JIMMY FALLON: And he's just one of the greatest comedians ever, and God, we're going to miss him.

KYLIE MAR: On Tuesday, late-night hosts paid tribute to comedian Norm MacDonald, who died earlier in the day after secretly living with cancer for nine years. On The Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon remembered the first time he met MacDonald, shortly after getting hired at Saturday Night Live.

JIMMY FALLON: I go over to him, I go, Norm. I go, hi, my name is Jimmy Fallon. I just I love you so much. You're the best. And he was eating breakfast with Bob Newhart. And he looked at me, he goes the best?

[LAUGHTER]

KYLIE MAR: Over on The Late Show, Stephen Colbert, who spent a few weeks writing for Weekend Update as a guest writer on SNL, had some high praise for MacDonald.

STEPHEN COLBERT: I wish I were a good enough comedian to come up with a joke right now about Norm MacDonald having died. But the only comedian I know who could get away with a Norm MacDonald is dad joke is Norm MacDonald.

KYLIE MAR: But Colbert also had one joke that he thought MacDonald would appreciate.

STEPHEN COLBERT: There's nobody left on the planet.

[APPLAUSE]

Who can do that. And the comedy world is poorer for it today. So I hope somewhere up there or wherever.

[LAUGHTER]

He figured that joke out.

KYLIE MAR: And finally, on Late Night, Seth Meyers, who like Fallon and MacDonald before him, helmed the Weekend Update desk at SNL, said that McDonald told his favorite Weekend Update joke of all time.

SETH MEYERS: It is a perfect Norm joke that the richest girl in the world, billionaire Athina Onassis, celebrated her 10th birthday this week. What's it like to be the richest girl in the world? Well, to give you some idea, at the party they had two cakes.

[LAUGHTER]

[LOGO SOUND]