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The Comedian-in-Chief
Is SNL's Fred Armisen up to the job? Jocelyn Guest says Lorne Michaels should recast the role. Plus, view clips of four actors who auditioned for the part.
Update: An NBC spokesperson says “Fred Armisen is our Barack Obama,” and that they are standing by him. We have updated the piece to reflect their input.
Barack Obama's transition is well underway, with Rahm Emanuel, Eric Holder, and Tom Daschle all signed onto his staff. But with inauguration day fast approaching, speculation is still swirling about one critical post: Obama's Saturday Night Live doppelganger.
During the primaries, when no one knew whether Obama would have a chance at victory, Lorne Michaels gave the job to Fred Armisen, a 6-year SNL veteran. At the time, Michaels did not know he would someday have to squeeze a term’s-worth of jokes out of the character (And let's face it—Barack's term will be ripe for comedy; the man's mother-in-law, and maybe a hypoallergenic puppy, are moving in!).
The trouble with finding a suitable Obama has been this: it is less about how a comedian portrays our president and more about how he portrays our first black president.
While Armisen handily pulled off the arduous task of poking fun at a man we'd follow off a cliff, many critics agreed that his interpretation left a little something to be desired. Fred neither looks nor sounds quite like Barry.
The New Yorker’s Kelefa Sanneh put it this way: “[Armisen] speeds up at the end of a phrase to make everything he says seem declarative, and the way he frowns as a sign that he’s listening intently—but not much more; his Obama has no backstory.” Because the rest of the political impressions on the show have been so spot on this season—Tina Fey’s Palin, Jason Sudeikis’ crazy-eyed Joe Biden—an imperfect Obama stands out. With four-years of Barack-baiting to go, it might be time for Michaels to let go of Armisen and pick a replacement. So now big question looms: Who, if anyone, shouuld Michaels hire to match the hype surrounding Obama himself?
Insiders say there are four comedians who auditioned for the original spot, and some argue they could be a better option than Amisen. They are:
Jordan Carlos, who currently plays Alan, Stephen Colbert's token "black friend." Carlos has made the circuits on Funny Or Die.com, the online Jeannie Tate Show, and even a Nickleback music video. Carlos has been staying busy perfecting his Obama impression including a sketch called BA-L-ACK Obama.
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Paul Schrodt is a writer living in New York City. He has contributed to New York magazine, Radar, and Esquire.com.
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The Daily Beast is dedicated to news and commentary, culture, and entertainment. We carefully curate the web’s most essential stories and bring you original must-reads from our talented contributors.
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Deborah Schoeneman has been a columnist for The New York Observer, New York magazine, and Condé Nast Portfolio and served as editor-in-chief of Hampton Style magazine. Deborah's the author of the novel 4% Famous and moved to Los Angeles last year to break into Hollywood writing and learn how to surf.
Jocelyn Guest is a writer and performer based in New York City. Her work has appeared in New York Magazine, Nerve.com, Time Out New York, and the walls of various bathroom stalls around the city. She writes and performs with the sketch comedy troupe Rhoda.
RubenRemus
That is not Jordan Peele. That is Keegan-Michael Key. It's the right person who plays (a very funny) Obama, but "Peele" is the name of a different cast member.
Maryam
My vote is for this guy-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-yJBsjatW0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0D1w2mjqzk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TE3Eum4jZo&feature=related
Inanna
I vote for Jordan Carlos.
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n--Y--eminnelitressiemc
Just thank God they are getting rid of Armisen. He is horrible!!!! There are literally tens of thousands of talented black comedians, some of whom have been doing all kinds of YouTube spoofs convincingly, who can do a better job.
KCSanders
Jordan Peele would be an inspired choice, though. He's a phenomenal impersonator.
bwoodruff
You have to be kidding me. Donald Glover's video is his cameo on 30 Rock? Donald Glover is hilarious and though I'm not sure how good his Obama is, he would be a fantastic addition (though he has already denied that he is being considered, by-the-by). If you want to see Glover at his funniest I would recommend checking him out here
http://www.derrickcomedy.com/videos/
I think his best are "Girls are not to be trusted", "Jerry", and "Opposite Day".
Daily Beast: Please add one of these videos that actually shows him acting. You can embed from CollegeHumor if you're really desperate
johnnysmoke
The bigger question here is not what can make Obama funny but what can make SNL funny? This show has sucked for years and continues to do so - out loud. Accept for Tina Fey's Palin impersonation (she's brilliant) this show is horrible. I assume there was some sort of ratings bump because of the Palin character - but short if this what is there? NBC should have cleaned house a long time ago. Micheal's is too stale and the writing just isn't funny. Period.
johnnysmoke
Oh... btw Jason Sudeikis' crazy-eyed Joe Biden is equally as lame as Armisen's Obama.
harrisd
Yes, the guy on You Tube is far and away the best choice. His Obama is hilarious and pitch-perfect.
moneyries
why not robert downey jr.?!
lsquare
Ditto johnnysmoke's comments, including the one about Sudeikis' Biden. He's no where close. The only reason SNL has done well lately is Tina Fey's Palin and the fact that the subject matter was timely and everyone was dying for someone to send up Palin. There are tons of things in the news and culture everyday that they could easily spoof and feed our intense desire for parody. But no, they insist on spoofing the most inane, non-issue banalities anyone could possibly imagine. Like the overly excited lady in the Japanese restaurant when faced with trying to keep a friend's marriage proposal a secret. Terribly dumb. And last week's kissy family was incredibly stupid. And then, they rerun skits even in the 'live' shows. When they make fun of a lifestyle as the homeschooler families, they are so hamfisted with it that it's obvious they've had little experience with these folks. That skit could have been a lot funnier with more finesse. The SNL folks are as isolated from the world in their NY lofts as those they make fun of. They are soooooo lame and out of touch.
Pick a news topic, any news topic, or an ad, any ad and send it up. It can't be that hard.
colinpperkins
SNL's issues go far beyond a bad Obama impression.
jdmiller49
This just in: Obama campaign's strategy to muzzle Hollywood endorsements revealed
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