Al Franken Biography

Unless you’re into political humor or good at guessing who’s who at a masquerade party, you probably won’t recognize Al Franken. But who can forget schmaltzy 12-stepper Stuart Smalley (“I’m good enough, I’m smart enough and doggonit, people like me”) from Saturday Night Live? Smalley, talk show host of a fictional new age show went from cable to network TV through SNL. A book (by the name of his favorite Daily Affirmation “I’m good enough…”) and a movie deal (Stuart Saves His Family) followed.Saturday Night Live eventually proved itself too small a venue for Franken. The sharp satirical candor and savvy he displayed at the White House Correspondents Dinner in 1994 and again in 1996 established him as one of the nation’s top after-dinner speakers. This SNL and college comedy circuit veteran was first able to perform in the arena he most often satirized when he was asked to commentate at the Democratic National Convention for NBC in Atlanta in 1988. This was followed by an invitation to host Indecision ‘92 for Comedy Central, and other offers. In the late ’90s, Al Franken starred in his own sitcom, Lateline, which only lasted a season, frequented the late night talk show circuit and appeared numerous times as a guest on Politically Incorrect With Bill Maher.Franken has won over five Emmys for writing and producing throughout the course of his career. He won a Grammy (Best Spoken Comedy Album, 1997) for the audio companion piece to his Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot book — a satirical critique of right wing talk show host Rush Limbaugh. In addition to the Stuart books and movie, Franken also co-wrote the feature When a Man Loves a Woman, starring Meg Ryan and Andy Garcia. Why Not Me? is his 2001 memoir “the dramatic rise and dizzying fall of Franken, who became the first Jewish President of the United States.”Franken was first discovered as half of the lambaste comedy duo “Franken and Davis” by producer Lorne Michaels. He was hired as one of the original writers on Saturday Night Live, taking walk-on and “extra” parts in the skits that he wrote for the show. He then stepped out from behind the scenes promoting the “The Al Franken Decade” — a skit named after himself in which he humorously repeated his own name and special interests several times over, “objectively” reporting for Weekend Update. Franken grew up in Minnesota talking politics at the dinner table with his family. He attended Harvard College and majored in political science. He now lives in New York City with his wife and two children.