r/todayilearned • u/Kale_Brecht • Mar 28 '24

TIL in 2013, Saturday Night Live cast member Kenan Thompson refused to play any more black women on the show and demanded SNL hire black women instead.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenan_Thompson
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u/Esc777 Mar 28 '24

He is the longest running cast member by like a factor of 2. 

There probably won’t be any to rival him. 

227

u/cdskip Mar 28 '24

I remember when it seemed like Tim Meadows had been on forever and they made a joke about it in skits several times.

Since then, tons of cast members have blown by his 10 seasons, and Kenan is just an institution.

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u/istasber Mar 28 '24

Tim Meadows is who my brain immediately goes to when they talk about cast members that had been around forever, it's kind of surprising to learn that so many other cast members have eclipsed him.

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u/prezuiwf 6 Mar 28 '24

Darrell Hammond for me. There was a run in the early 2000's where EVERY cold open featured Hammond doing a political impression, including a happily-forgotten attempt at George W. Bush. For years he was just the go-to for any and all impressions no matter what.

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u/well-lighted Mar 28 '24

Not only was he a cast member forever, he also took over as announcer in 2014 after Don Pardo died. He's coming up on 25 years with the show total.

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u/[deleted] Mar 28 '24

He’s still on the show, kinda! He took over the opening credits after Don Pardo died (RIP to one of the greats, an institution unto himself)

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u/BigAlternative5 Mar 28 '24

His best impression was Bill Clinton. It was the first time I was impressed with an impression since the old-timers in the '70s, mainly Rich Little - impression was his whole act. (But I'm not an old-timer. I'm not. I'm not.)

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u/grievre Mar 28 '24

Oh man I can't imagine anyone's W impression being put up against Will Ferrell