# Worst SNL News Anchor? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 22, 2001, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485 "2001-08-22T04:14:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/41 "2001-08-23T11:46:14Z")
Colin Quinn was good when he was a “guest commentator” on the Weekend Update, but he quickly fell out of character when he became the host, and the whole thing just became silly. Of course, I don’t care for the incredibly snooty Tina Fey (sp?) either. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Cynical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ee59a6/32.png) [@Mr.Cynical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Cynical)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/42 "2001-08-23T14:11:09Z")
Yeah, but Tina Fey is just delicious to look at, grrrowl! Best : Norm MacDonald Worst: Colin “Should Have Stayed With Remote Control” Quinn ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/43 "2001-08-23T14:34:08Z")
I didn’t realize that this was a thread for positive comments. Having seen the chart posted by BigGiantHead, I want to weigh in: Dennis Miller is the best SNL news anchor I ever saw. He had that deadpan delivery that can make you believe he was actually reporting news until he delivered his punchline. Excellent. ---
**Author:** ![Sofa\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Sofa\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sofa_King)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/44 "2001-08-23T20:30:44Z")
I’m with Chaim. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/45 "2001-08-23T21:59:48Z")
My favorites, in descending order, Dennis Miller (no relation) Chevy Chase Kevin Nealon Norm MacDonald Jane Curtain Bill Murray Dan Aykroyd Christopher Guest Tina Fey Colin Quinn Brian Doyle-Murray Jimmy Fallon Charles Rocket Mary Gross Brad Hall I’ve excluded Gail Matthias, because I have no idea who she is. You could argue, however, that this makes her worse than Brad Hall, who at least had enough presence to make remember how much he sucked. ---
**Author:** ![tevya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@tevya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tevya)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/46 "2001-08-23T22:07:53Z")
I’ve poured out my hatred of Colin Quinn in other threads and I’d like to chime in again. The man would not know good timing if he was impaled on a gigantic metronome. His delivery was terrible and his attempts at recovery from his poor delivery was even worse. I would rather be stabbed in the eyes with red hot pokers than watch Colin Quinn. Dennis Miller gets my vote as best anchor. I loved his attitude, his delivery was great, his humor seemed to be somewhat smarter than average (of course this could have been the work of his writers), and he was darn cute. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/47 "2001-08-23T22:36:06Z")
My vote for best SNL WU host would be Dana Carvey, impersonating Dennis Miller, that bit was hilarious. They even did a synchonized signoff thing at the end. ---
**Author:** ![KittyCat444](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/848f3c/32.png) [@KittyCat444](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KittyCat444)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/48 "2001-08-24T00:16:03Z")
Good God, Norm McDonald was a horrible anchor. The majority of the laughs he got were the uncomfortable, “umm…heh” kind. \ On a related note, Jimmy Fallon is HOT!!!\ ---
**Author:** ![tevya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@tevya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tevya)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/49 "2001-08-24T15:58:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KittyCat444 \* > \*\* > \ On a related note, Jimmy Fallon is HOT!!!\ \*\* Oh! I completely agree. Plus, he’s got this whole innocent little boy look that is adorable. He always looks like he could use a pat on the head for a job well done when he pulls of a good joke. Kind of beaming like a little boy who just did something he is quite proud of. ---
**Author:** ![Slacker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@Slacker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slacker)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/50 "2001-08-24T16:38:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fiver \* > \*\*[snip]That said, my biggest-ever Weekend Update laugh was from Dennis Miller’s tenure: > > > [@](#): > > > > An Indiana man’s attempt to break every record in the Guinness Book of World Records got off to a slow start today, when his recording of “White Christmas” sold only five copies. > > I still laugh every time I think about that one. \*\* LOL I remember that one too. Kevin Nealon gave me one of my favorites. After a particularly offensive joke, there was a smattering of boos and hisses (mostly good natured of course), and Kevin replied, “Hey, I just make 'em up and read 'em.” And I’ll chime in with my votes: Bad: Colin Quinn. The Alpha and the Omega of tedium. Good: Dennis Miller. I’m a big fan of his anyway - and his weekend update delivery was pretty similar to his comedy. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/51 "2001-08-24T17:38:22Z")
Here’s mine. For those of us too young to remember the 1987 political scene, here’s the situation in a nutshell: two of the top candidates for the 1988 Democratic nomination dropped out of the race, Gary Hart because of an adultery scandal and Joe Biden because of a plaigerism (sp?) scandal. Hart later decided to get back into the race. Miller’s comment: Earlier this week, Gary Hart re-entered the race for the Democratic nomination, saying, “We should let the voters decide.” Later that day, Joe Biden also re-entered the race, saying, “We should let the voters decide.” Chaim Mattis Keller ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/52 "2001-08-24T20:46:38Z")
“This week Iowa farmer Joe Blow won 4.5 million dollars in the lottery. When asked if he had any special plans for the money, Mr. Blow replied “No, I think I’ll just keep farming until it’s all gone”” From the “best forgotten” years of 80-85, I absolutely LOVED Tim Kazurinsky’s little professor character with the signes. “Prostitutes have been found to have **Whoregasms** , while Army generals frequently enjoy **Wargasms** ” LMAO ---
**Author:** ![Slacker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@Slacker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slacker)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/53 "2001-08-24T21:13:19Z")
I’m not sure who said it - but another good one is: > [@](#): > > AT&T annouced this week that they’ll be laying off 7,000 employees. A spokesman for AT&T said: “Anyone need a good spokesman?” ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/54 "2001-08-24T21:41:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tevya \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by KittyCat444 \* > > \*\* > > \ On a related note, Jimmy Fallon is HOT!!!\ \*\* > > Oh! I completely agree. Plus, he’s got this whole innocent little boy look that is adorable. He always looks like he could use a pat on the head for a job well done when he pulls of a good joke. Kind of beaming like a little boy who just did something he is quite proud of. \*\* He said one of the funniest things ever on Weekend Update. He had the hots for this model/actress who came on and was all over him, then asked him to marry her and he goes I can’t, I just got playstation 2. Cracked me up For Dennis Miller I remember he goot up took out a chainsaw and hacked Central America out of the map behind him. I haven’t seen that bit in YEARS. Makes me think they might have banned it. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2001, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/55 "2001-08-25T06:56:17Z")
This Dennis Miller line’s been running through my head: he mentions at the start of WU that he witnessed a car accident involving an old Indian man, whose spirit entered Dennis’s body. “And the worst part is…I’m pretty sure he has a hemorrhoid.” ---
**Author:** ![SpartanDC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b2d939/32.png) [@SpartanDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpartanDC)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2001, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/56 "2001-08-25T07:36:38Z")
I’ve only been watching since Dennis Miller — who I think is a comic genius, but has no business in an announcer’s booth — but I would agree that Colin Quinn was the worst of what I’ve seen. The WU anchor needs to parody a news anchor well, and Quinn was too much a gruff guy from the Bronx to pull that off. The WU anchor NEEDS to be a straight man/woman. And a curse on those who criticize Tina Fey. For one, as the show’s head writer, she had a lot to do with making the show a respected source of comedy again. (I think SNL during the Florida recount had some of the most inspired humor I had seen in a long time.). Two…[Homer]Mmmmmmmmm… Tina[/Homer]. She’s the geek-girl all of us geek-guys lust after. It’s all about the glasses, man. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sofa\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Sofa\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sofa_King)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2001, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485/57 "2001-08-25T07:38:09Z")
I’m sad to see that the Dennis Miller Routine-o-tron appears to have been disconnected from the Internet. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-snl-news-anchor/77485.md?page=2)