Celebrating Female Comedians From the Golden Era

The present has become too depressing of late.  With inflation, the baby formula shortage, U.S. COVID deaths surpassing 1 million, abortion rights facing the most serious threat since the passing of Roe v. Wade and other 3rd world problems, it's just easier to go back to a time when this country was actually thriving.  A time when art, music, movies, sketch comedy, television & other forms of media were edgy & exciting, groundbreaking and unafraid of offending.  A time of unbridled laughter.

Back then I was just certain my favorite comediennes would go on to do great things after leaving shows like MADtv & Saturday Night Live.  How could they not?  They were so talented & carried every skit, leaving my friends and I doubled over with tears streaming down our faces.  But that's not what happened.  The men from these casts--Will Ferrell, Aries Spears, Tracey Morgan, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Key & Peele and Artie Lange went on to have careers ranging from lukewarm to piping hot, but their female counterparts fizzled out for the most part, some languishing in total obscurity.  And that's a crime.  You can't ignore the role sexism played in their lack of success because there's really no other explanation for it.  

But this is a HAPPY post, dammit, so here are some of my absolute favorite characters & skits from those shows below.  I hope they bring you as much laughter as they've brought me over the years.  

Debra Wilson:  Bunifah Latifah Halifah Sharifa Jackson.  During its heyday in the late '90s, MADtv was hailed as "definitely funnier than SNL" and one of its standouts was Debra Wilson.  Nobody could do a Whitney Houston or Oprah imitation like her, and her original characters were to die for.  Here's one of my faves:  the spicy Bunifah Latifah Halifah Sharifa (no 'H') Jackson.  Do yourself a favor & check out her Cloret character too.  She's like Bunifah on horse tranquilizers.

Alex Borstein:  Ms. Swan.  While Alex Borstein did go on to attain a decent amount of success after MADtv--she voiced Lois Griffin on Family Guy & won 3 Emmy Awards including 2 for her work on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel--she still hasn't reached the heights of some of her (in my opinion) less talented male peers.  Here she is as her most beloved MADtv character Ms. Swan.

Mo Collins:  Lorraine Swanson.  Oh, Mo.  Nobody could play a screechy, frumpy Midwestern mom or grandma character like her.  Most know her as Stuart's Mom from the hilariously disturbing skits with Michael McDonald, but her Lorraine Swanson was a favorite in my household because it reminded us of my late grandma.  Here she is at a salad bar in Vegas dirtying up the sneeze guard.

Cheri Oteri:  Nadeen.  I had a hard time choosing a skit from this funny lady's catalogue because all are equally brilliant.  She should've had a career equal to or bigger than Will Ferrell's and I'm sure he'd agree.  She stole the show at the 2020 New Year's Eve bash with Anderson Cooper & Andy Cohen with her Barbara Walters impression, reminding everyone why she's the best thing to ever happen to SNL.  Yeah, I said it.  Here she is as Nadeen, aka the "Simmadownow" lady.  But also check out her pill head Collette Reardon, Althea on the Plane & Morning Latte characters.  

Ana Gasteyer & Molly Shannon:  The Delicious Dish.  These two killer talents walked so the likes of Amy Poehler, Kristen Wiig & Kate McKinnon could run.  Ana was a reliably professional straight woman in skits where everyone else broke character & could do a mean Martha Stewart while Molly's best known for her Mary Katherine Gallagher character that got its own movie.  Here they are with guest John Goodman on their side-splitting NPR send-up The Delicious Dish.

Nicole Sullivan:  Britney Spears.  Nicole Sullivan was my first love of sketch comedy.  Her best-known character was The Vancome Lady but she killed it for years in countless other roles including the eerily foreboding one shown here.  This was made in 1999--years before Britney's breakdown. 

Bonus:  Maya Rudolph sings the National Anthem

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