Will Ferrell
Will Ferrell, whose latest movie, Land of the Lost, hits theaters June 5, stands as one example of the opportunities that can present themselves if you’re really funny and have appeared on Saturday Night Live. Before joining the cast in 1995, the California native cut his comedic teeth on the Groundlings, a Los Angeles-based improv troupe. On SNL he seemed to show up in nearly every sketch that aired during his time, but made the biggest impact with his Spartan cheerleader bit, in which he and Cheri Oteri played an awkward peppy duo that loves to crash school functions. After leaving the show in 2006, Ferrell went on to star in comedies like Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Stranger than Fiction and Talladega Nights. He also launched Internet comedy site funnyordie.com with his writing partner, Adam McKay. The site includes the widely popular “Landlord” video — which has been viewed more than 60 million times — starring a foul-mouthed 2-year-old landlord named Pearl (McKay’s real-life daughter) who threatens Ferrell to pay his rent or risk serious consequences.
Janeane Garofalo
Garofalo quit SNL in 1995 after just one season. As the show took heat for bad writing and general unfunniness, she became “anxious and depressed,” she told TV Guide at the time. “It’s hard to say dialogue that’s not funny.”
It was not hard at all, however, for Garofalo to find post-show success with her wisecracking, outsider persona. She gave memorable performances in cult classic Reality Bites, mistaken-identities comedy The Truth About Cats and Dogs, and summer-camp send-up Wet Hot American Summer. Garofalo has appeared with Jim Carrey, Alec Baldwin and Joaquin Phoenix, been nominated for two Emmy awards, created her own production company (wryly named I Hate Myself Productions) and co-written a book with Ben Stiller. Among her more recent gigs was as co-host of The Majority Report on the left-leaning radio station Air America—which, incidentally, was also a post-SNL refuge for her cast-mate Al Franken. Could a Garofalo Senate run be far off?
