The sketch comedy television show ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock (streaming service), Peacock. ...
'' (''SNL'') has for almost three decades aired a number of sketches parodying
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
, from her time as
First Lady, and during both her presidential campaigns in
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
and
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
.
[Liz Raftery – "Who Did the Best Hillary Clinton Impression on SNL?", ''TV Guide'', April 30, 2015. (Video)]
Retrieved 2015-08-15
A total of nine different performers have played Hillary Clinton on ''SNL''.
[Louis Virtel – Hillary Clinton has been Imitated by Nine Different People on 'SNL']
''HITFIX'', April 13, 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-16. The array of ''SNL'' cast members portraying Clinton has included
Jan Hooks
Janet Vivian Hooks[Jan Hooks obituary](_blank)
liteseyfh.com; accesse ...
,
Janeane Garofalo
Janeane Marie Garofalo ( ; born September 28, 1964) is an American comedian, actress, and former co-host on the now-defunct Air America Radio's ''The Majority Report''.
Garofalo began her career as a stand-up comedian and became a cast member on ...
,
Vanessa Bayer
Vanessa Bayer (born November 14, 1981) is an American actress and comedian. She is best known for being a cast member on '' Saturday Night Live'' from 2010 to 2017, which earned her an Emmy nomination. She co-created, co-executive produces, and ...
,
Ana Gasteyer
Ana Kristina Gasteyer (born May 4, 1967) is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1996 to 2002. She has since starred in such sitcoms as ABC's '' Suburgatory,'' TBS's ''People of Earth'', NBC's ...
,
Amy Poehler
Amy Poehler (; born September 16, 1971) is an American comedian, actress, writer, producer, and director. After studying improv at Chicago's Second City and ImprovOlympic in the early 1990s, Poehler co-founded the improvisational-comedy tro ...
, and
Kate McKinnon
Kate McKinnon Berthold (born January 6, 1984) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. She is known for her character work and celebrity impressions on the sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' (2012–2022), of which she was a cas ...
.
Guest stars playing Clinton have included
Drew Barrymore
Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, director, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a ...
and
Rachel Dratch
Rachel Susan Dratch (born February 22, 1966) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. After she graduated from Dartmouth College she moved to Chicago to study improvisational theatre at The Second City and ImprovOlympic.
Her breakthrough r ...
.
One sketch featured
Miley Cyrus
Miley Ray Cyrus ( ; born Destiny Hope Cyrus on November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her distinctive raspy voice, her music spans across varied styles and genres, including pop, country, rock, hip ho ...
in a guest appearance as Clinton, rapping: "What's up y'all? I'm like Hillary Clinton, and I wanna be president one day."
History
Jan Hooks
Janet Vivian Hooks[Jan Hooks obituary](_blank)
liteseyfh.com; accesse ...
was the first to portray Hillary Clinton, and after Hooks left the show in 1991, she returned later to make several subsequent guest appearances as Hillary, with
Phil Hartman
Philip Edward Hartman (; September 24, 1948 – May 28, 1998) was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter and graphic designer. Hartman was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, and his family moved to the United States w ...
as Hillary's husband
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
.
One of the earliest Jan Hooks sketches, which aired in May 1993, features her interpretation of Hillary eager to be a "co-president" with Bill, now the newly elected president. Hooks' Hillary tells her husband about her big plans for his health care bill, and gets into a fistfight with Senator
Bob Dole.
[Ali Elkin â€]
"The SNL Archaeology of Hillary Clinton: The satirical show may offer the truest biography of the Democratic frontrunner
Bloomberg Politics, March 27, 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-16.
Beginning with the 1994 season,
Janeane Garofalo
Janeane Marie Garofalo ( ; born September 28, 1964) is an American comedian, actress, and former co-host on the now-defunct Air America Radio's ''The Majority Report''.
Garofalo began her career as a stand-up comedian and became a cast member on ...
played Hillary as First Lady, with
Michael McKean
Michael John McKean (; born October 17, 1947) is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, composer, singer, and musician known for various roles in film and television such as Lenny Kosnowski in '' Laverne & Shirley'', David St. Hubbins in '' ...
portraying president Clinton.
Ana Gasteyer
Ana Kristina Gasteyer (born May 4, 1967) is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1996 to 2002. She has since starred in such sitcoms as ABC's '' Suburgatory,'' TBS's ''People of Earth'', NBC's ...
played Hillary during the
Lewinsky scandal
Monica Samille Lewinsky (born July 23, 1973) is an American activist and writer. President Bill Clinton admitted to having an affair with Lewinsky while she worked at the White House as an intern in 1995 and 1996. The affair, and its repercus ...
of the late 1990s, as well as during her run for the U.S. Senate in New York, with
Darrell Hammond
Darrell Clayton Hammond (born October 8, 1955) is an American actor, stand-up comedian and impressionist. He was a regular cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1995 to 2009, and has been its announcer since 2014.
Upon his departure, Hammo ...
playing the role of her husband.
In one Gasteyer sketch, set in the Clintons'
Chappaqua
Chappaqua ( ) is a hamlet and census-designated place in the town of New Castle, in northern Westchester County, New York, United States. It is approximately north of New York City. The hamlet is served by the Chappaqua station of the Met ...
kitchen, with Hillary making an attempt to appear more personable for the cameras during her Senate campaign, she says, "I can't wait to prepare some food dishes in this kitchen, such as salads and toast."
''SNL'' cast member
Amy Poehler
Amy Poehler (; born September 16, 1971) is an American comedian, actress, writer, producer, and director. After studying improv at Chicago's Second City and ImprovOlympic in the early 1990s, Poehler co-founded the improvisational-comedy tro ...
had the longest-running role as Clinton, playing the role regularly from 2003 to 2008 (and reprising it twice, in 2012 and 2015).
During the 2008–09 season, the show aired several critically acclaimed sketches featuring Poehler as Clinton, and
Tina Fey
Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey (; born May 18, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, writer, producer, and playwright. She is best known for her work on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' (1997–2006) and for creating the ...
as
Sarah Palin. Hillary Clinton first made an appearance on the show and faced off with Poehler as her
doppelgänger.
[Monica Alba and Jillian Sederholm â€]
"Hillary Clinton Tends Bar, Impersonates Trump in 'SNL' Cameo" (Video)
NBC News, October 4, 2015. Retrieved 2015-10-04
Kate McKinnon
Kate McKinnon Berthold (born January 6, 1984) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. She is known for her character work and celebrity impressions on the sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' (2012–2022), of which she was a cas ...
has portrayed Clinton regularly since March 2015. Darrell Hammond has stated that he only agreed to reprise his role as
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
because McKinnon was so good in her role, calling her a "virtuoso".
In the 2014–2015 season, ''SNL'' began airing another series of Hillary Clinton sketches, on the occasion of Clinton's announcement of her candidacy for the
2016 presidential campaign
This national electoral calendar for 2016 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2016 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included.
January
*7 January: Kiri ...
, with
Kate McKinnon
Kate McKinnon Berthold (born January 6, 1984) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. She is known for her character work and celebrity impressions on the sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' (2012–2022), of which she was a cas ...
now as Clinton.
[Jack Linshi – "Watch SNL Parody Hillary Clinton’s 2016 Announcement", ''Time'', April 12, 2015. (Video)]
Retrieved 2015-08-14[Henry Hanks – "'Saturday Night Live' takes on Hillary Clinton email controversy", CNN, March 9, 2015. (Video)]
Retrieved 2015-08-15 Former ''SNL'' cast member
Darrell Hammond
Darrell Clayton Hammond (born October 8, 1955) is an American actor, stand-up comedian and impressionist. He was a regular cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1995 to 2009, and has been its announcer since 2014.
Upon his departure, Hammo ...
returned to reprise his portrayal of Bill Clinton in previous season skits.
[Eric Bradner – "Saturday Night Live: 'The Clintons are baaack'," ''CNN Politics'', Updated April 12, 2015. (Video)]
Retrieved 2015-08-14
McKinnon again portrayed Clinton on October 17, 2015, for ''SNL''s rendering of the
Democratic Primary Presidential debate
Debate is a process that involves formal discourse on a particular topic, often including a moderator and audience. In a debate, arguments are put forward for often opposing viewpoints. Debates have historically occurred in public meetings, a ...
which had aired on ''
CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
'' on October 13.
[Nicole Hensley â€]
"Larry David and Bernie Sanders are one and the same in 'SNL' cold open" (Video)
''NY Daily News'', October 18, 2015. Retrieved 2015-10-18
On October 8, 2016, in episode 2 of season 42, Kate McKinnon played Hillary Clinton after her headquarters obtained news of Donald Trump talking about how he could
grab women "by the
pussy", something he
did say in real life.
See also
*
''Saturday Night Live'' parodies of Joe Biden
*
''Saturday Night Live'' parodies of George H. W. Bush
*
''Saturday Night Live'' parodies of Bill Clinton
*
''Saturday Night Live'' parodies of Sarah Palin
*
''Saturday Night Live'' parodies of Donald Trump
References
External links
Politicians Who've Appeared on ''SNL'' – AP
{{Saturday Night Live
Cultural depictions of Hillary Clinton
2008 United States presidential election in popular culture
2016 United States presidential election in popular culture
Clinton, Hillary
Clinton, Hillary
Clinton, Hillary
Clinton, Hillary
American political satire