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Toronto Sun
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Toronto Sun
Dana Carvey was challenged by ‘SNL' impersonation of ‘mentally compromised' Joe Biden
Maya Rudolph as Kamala Harris and Dana Carvey as Joe Biden on 'Saturday Night Live.' YouTube Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. Dana Carvey is reflecting on his take on former U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday Night Live , calling it a 'real challenge' to play his 'obvious' declining cognitive health. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account During a recent episode of his Fly on the Wall podcast, the comedian was asked by Modern Family actress Julie Bowen about his impersonation of the 82-year-old and if he had any regrets 'now that you know that Biden is severely diminished.' Carvey responded: 'I knew that he was compromised mentally. I mean, it was obvious. But it was a delicate thing in the comedy world.' He explained: 'There were a lot of people who did not want to do anything that would kind of ding him in an awkward way.' Bowen noted that 'it's comedy,' to which Carvey replied, 'That's the key. If I can do Biden, if I can make Biden funny to everybody, then I am where I want to be. And to make it funny, it had to be recognizable.' Carvey's co-host, David Spade, noted: 'I think it's easier to make fun of him if he's the president' than if it was 'a 90-whatever-year-old man and just [going], 'Look at this a–hole.'' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Spade added: 'So once he's president, then he's more fair game to say, but no one made fun of him forever.' Biden has strongly denied reports of his alleged cognitive decline while in office. RECOMMENDED VIDEO Carvey, who was an SNL cast member from 1986 to 1993, explained that he worked to create a respectful, yet still identifiable impression of the ex-president by adopting several key Biden sayings, like, 'I'm not kidding around here' and 'I'm being serious.' He did admit that it took him two years to perfect the impersonation, which eventually became his 'favourite.' Read More 'The first six months it was just sweet Joe… it was just that it doesn't have the pop or energy of Trump, or even Obama, or [George W. Bush],' Carvey recalled. 'And then I heard him whisper and yell, and I thought, 'Oh, here we go.'' Carvey added that despite the impersonation being a fine line to walk, he 'loved' doing it. 'It was a real challenge to make it acceptable,' he admitted. 'And I read comments: 'Hey man, I hate Trump and whatever, but this is really f—ing funny.' So that's the main thing — it was funny.' Sports Money News MLB Editorial Cartoons Toronto Maple Leafs
USA Today
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Dana Carvey talks 'delicate' process of playing mentally 'compromised' Biden on 'SNL'
Dana Carvey is looking back on the "delicate" process of spoofing former President Joe Biden. The comedian, 70, chatted with Julie Bowen in an episode his "Fly on the Wall" podcast released June 26 about impersonating Biden during the 50th season of "Saturday Night Live." The "Modern Family" star asked Carvey if he has any regrets about the impression "now that you know that Biden is severely diminished," referring to reports about the 46th president's alleged cognitive decline. "I knew that he was compromised mentally," Carvey said. "I mean, it was obvious. But it was a delicate thing in the comedy world. A lot of people did not want to do anything that would ding him in an awkward way." Bowen objected to that notion, shooting back, "But it's comedy!" The "Wayne's World" star agreed and defended the impression by explaining his approach. "If I can make Biden funny to everybody, then I am where I want to be, and to make it funny, it had to be recognizable," he said. Still, Carvey noted there are "certain things I did not include" in the impersonation. He went on to add that it was a "real challenge" to make the Biden impression "acceptable." Carvey's podcast cohost David Spade also argued that it was "easier to make fun of" Biden while he was in office, as opposed to if he were a private citizen. "Once he's president, then he's more fair game," Spade said. Carvey debuted as Biden on "SNL" opposite Maya Rudolph as Kamala Harris in September, two months after Biden exited the 2024 presidential race due to concerns about his mental fitness. He continued to play Biden on "SNL" during the lead-up to the election. Dana Carvey talks 'top secret' Biden role on 'SNL': 'I've kept it under wraps for weeks' Carvey, who previously starred on "SNL" from 1986 to 1993, told Bowen he "fell in love" with his Biden impression, which took two years to perfect. The initial versions depicted him as "sweet," but the impression lacked "pop or energy," he explained. Then, Carvey added, "I heard him whisper and yell, and I thought, 'Oh, here we go.'" Dana Carvey's Church Lady returns to 'SNL' with David Spade as Hunter Biden Carvey also revealed that Biden's staff told him they loved the impression and even invited him to the White House for lunch, but the meeting never happened. Carvey previously broke down his role as Biden on his "Superfly" podcast in September, saying he felt there was a lack of Biden impressions out there in comparison to impressions of Trump. "Biden is trickier," he said.
Fox News
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
SNL Biden impersonator Dana Carvey knew former president was 'compromised mentally'
Comedian Dana Carvey, who played former President Biden during the last season of "Saturday Night Live," said last week that he knew the former president was "compromised mentally" while doing his portrayal. "I knew that he was compromised mentally. I mean, it was obvious to me, but it was a delicate thing in the comedy world. There were a lot of people [who] did not want to do anything that would kind of ding him in like an awkward way," Carvey said during his "Fly on the Wall" podcast last week. Carvey played Biden on SNL throughout the 2024-2025 season, often mocking the president and his administration, and receiving plaudits for his portrayal of the president as confused and forgetful. "If I can do Biden, if I can make Biden funny to everybody, then, then I am where I want to be. And then to make it funny, it had to be recognizable. And so there's certain things I did not include in my package," Carvey told co-host David Spade and guest Julie Bowen, in a clip flagged by Mediaite. He repeated a phrase he used while playing Biden and said, "I'm not kidding around here, I'm being serious." "I think it's easier to make fun of him if he's the president. If it's just a 90-whatever-year-old man, just go look at this a------. So once he's president then he's more fair game to say, but no one made fun of him forever," Spade added. Bowen, known for her role on ABC's "Modern Family," applauded Carvey's Biden impressions as he discussed how he went about portraying the former president. "And then the defiant, 50s guy. 'There's no crisis at the border,' yeah, but you said, 'Yeah, you got to get your facts right, Jack, I'll beat the hell out of you, you want to do some push-ups, you dog-faced pony soldier," Carvey joked, repeating several famous phrases the former president used. Carvey said playing Biden was his favorite because he "had like 10 hooks." The comedian and impressionist also played George H.W. Bush and Ross Perot on "Saturday Night Live," among numerous other roles. Carvey said during the podcast that one of Biden's staffers came to one of the shows and said he loved the impressions. The staffer said Carvey should come have lunch at the White House, but the comedian said it never happened.
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Dana Carvey Reveals The Moment He Knew HIs SNL Impression Of President Biden Was Doomed
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Dana Carvey had a plan. On the request of longtime Saturday Night Live showrunner Lorne Michaels, he was going to spend six weeks in New York along with his wife Paula. They'd get to enjoy autumn in the city, and he'd appear each week on SNL to do his impression of the then-president, who was running for a second term. It would have been a fantastic little work trip, but it was not to be, at least not in its original form. Months later, Carvey still remembers the moment when he realized it wasn't going to happen. He was watching the first Presidential Debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden alongside his wife. One lost train of thought turned into another flub which turned into a general sense of uneasiness about President Biden's performance. At some point, Carvey realized the entire Presidential race had suddenly just changed and whatever plans he'd discussed with Michaels were probably going to be out the window. Here's what he told Page Six… When that first debate was sort of going awry with President Biden, I turned to my wife and I said, 'We're not going to New York,' during the debate. That's absolutely true. Of course President Biden didn't drop out immediately. He hung on for a few more weeks, and Carvey ended up appearing almost a dozen times on SNL in 2024. It wasn't always to do his President Biden impression, however, as the politician eventually stepped aside in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz, who took over the Democratic ticket. They eventually lost the election but were featured prominently on SNL in the lead-up, played by Maya Rudolph and Jim Gaffigan. Carvey appeared sometimes as Biden and other times in supporting roles, including one week where he revived his beloved Church Lady impression. During his interview, Carvey also talked about his goal with political impressions, as he also famously portrayed President George HW Bush in the late 80s and early 90s. He said he's never been interested in scoring 'political points' or trying to 'put them down.' Instead, he's always tried to find something 'fun' to lean into and poke fun at. That helps explain why his skillful impressions have usually been popular with people of all political leanings and why the subjects themselves have typically to him, especially President Bush who had him come stay at the White House. Saturday Night Live has always been a show that comments on popular culture and what people are talking about right now. It's not unusual for something to happen mid-week and get talked about on the show that weekend. That's why there's no promises. An impression only matters if it's needed. Fortunately, given how many impressions Carvey can do and how friendly he still is with Michaels and the rest of the SNL crew, something tells me we haven't seen the last of him.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Dana Carvey explains why he did not attend the ‘SNL' 50th anniversary special
Dana Carvey was one of the biggest former 'Saturday Night Live' stars not to attend 'SNL50' last week. Now, we know why. Carvey, known during his time on 'SNL' for such characters as the Church Lady, Garth in 'Wayne's World' and Hans in 'Pumping Up with Hans & Franz,' as well as his spot-on impressions of George H.W. Bush, Johnny Carson and Ross Perot, says he missed the 50th anniversary celebration because he was sick. 'I wasn't there. I had the flu,' he told fellow 'SNL' alum David Spade on the Feb. 20 episode of their 'Fly on the Wall' podcast. 'I was on the downside of it, but I still didn't have the oomph to travel. Wasn't recommended. So you went to represent our podcast.' Spade said people asked him where Carvey was. 'You did want to be there, and you would've f------ killed it, of course,' Spade said. Carvey remains one of the most popular 'SNL' stars in the show's history. He appeared on the program beginning in Season 12 in 1986 and remained for seven seasons until 1993, the same year he won an Emmy Award for outstanding individual performance in a variety or music program for his work on the series. A pair of 'SNL' greats who did attend 'SNL50' have since fallen ill, too. Frequent host Steve Martin, who performed the monologue during the special, says performing partner Martin Short and Maya Rudolph have contracted COVID-19, prompting him and Short to bump back a few dates on their comedy tour. 'Maya had Covid. Marty has Covid. I wonder why? The SNL 50th Covid curse is real,' he captioned a photo of Short and Rudolph kissing on Instagram on Feb 20. 'Unfortunately, we have to reschedule our sold out Durham and Knoxville dates to 10/17 Knoxville and 10/18 Durham. So sorry for the inconvenience. I think we'll be funnier then, anyway.' Like Carvey, original cast member Dan Aykroyd was also absent at 'SNL50,' but said he loved watching it. 'All Heads up toasting triumphant SNL 50th,' he wrote Feb. 19 on X, without explaining why he wasn't on hand for the event. 'Advantage of not attending — got to see every second of concert and show on TV. Quote from my children: 'Look at daddy's smile!' Had it from start to finish. Congratulations Lorne. Well done as usual.' Bill Hader was another beloved star who missed 'SNL50.' A representative for the actor told he couldn't go to the special because he had 'a longstanding schedule conflict.' This article was originally published on
