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1. Norm Macdonald (1994-97)
He turned the Saturday Night Live
news desk into his own absurdist playground, brilliantly mocking not so
much the news as âWeekend Updateâ itself. Frank Stallone owes Norm his
livelihood, whatever that happens to be.
2. Jane Curtin and Dan Aykroyd (1977-78)
Splitting them up just seems wrong. They
were the first and only tandem that really felt like a partnership, and
understood that actual news teams are inherently comedy duos. Disagree?
Then youâre an ignorant something-or-other.
3. Bill Murray (1978-80)
Itâs Bill fucking Murray. Any further questions?
4. Tina Fey (2000-06)
Backlash and Christopher Hitchens be
damned: Fey was funny and smart without being smug, and never allowed
herself to get dragged down by the two giggling ankle weights she was
saddled with for six years.
5. Chevy Chase (1975-76)
He laid the template, and that alone
earns him top-five placement. Plus, if we ranked him lower, heâd
probably try to poison us with strychnine.
6. Dennis Miller (1985-91)
Before Osama bin Laden crashed a 747 into
his brain and transformed him into a Fox News shill, Miller was the
proto Jon Stewartâa fake newsman with a real ax to grindâand the most
hyper-intelligent mullethead on television. OK, maybe he was a bit of a
twat even back then, but he was our twat, yâknow?
7. Seth Meyers (2008-present)
The current anchor, in town this weekend, is now also the longest tenured. A comic this beige belongs smack in the middle. Like SNL
itself these days, Meyers is inoffensive, good for a laugh now and
then, and keeps you watching just long enough to consistently disappoint
you.
8. Kevin Nealon (1991-94)
He had problems following the
teleprompter and stammered through jokes, but he was the last anchor to
approach the position with Brokaw-esque faux gravitas, and thatâs worth
something.
9. Colin Quinn (1998-2000)
Now employed as a professional Twitter
troll, Quinn brought to âUpdateâ an off-putting Massholishness (even
though heâs from Brooklyn) that made watching his segment feel like you
got stuck at a bar in Worcester next to a loudmouth yelling at CNN like
he was at a Sox game.
10. Amy Poehler (2004-08)
Hard to imagine the future Leslie Knope
being anything less than likable, but her run as sidekick to Fey and
Meyers was distinguished only by having the most self-satisfied smirk of
any anchor in history.
11. Charles Rocket (1980-81)
Fuck!
12. Gail Matthius (1981)
Who?
13. Jimmy Fallon (2000-04)
Inaugurated the era of the smirking,
tittering âUpdateâ anchor, and for that he belongs in the basement. If
only he sat next to Questlove during his tenure, then maybe he would
have been halfway tolerable.
SEE IT: Seth Meyers is at the Newmark Theatre, 1111 SW Broadway, on Friday, Feb. 1. 8 pm. $44.75. All ages.
Headout Picks
WEDNESDAY JAN. 30
HARMONTOWN
[LIVE PODCASTING] Community creator
and Chevy Chase arch nemesis Dan Harmon is, in all likelihood, a crazy
personâwho else gets fired from their own show?âbut that just makes his
podcast more of a must-hear. Helium Comedy Club, 1510 SE 9th Ave., 888-643-8669. 7:30 pm. $20-$25. 21+.
RARE VERMOUTH UNCORKING
[BOOZE] A 99-year-old bottle of Cinzano vermouth found in the basement of a Portland home will be made into $40 Manhattans. Sidecar 11, 3955 N Mississippi Ave., 208-3798. 6 pm. 21+.
THURSDAY JAN. 31
COMPAGNIE MARIE CHOUINARD
[DANCE] Stravinskyâs The Rite of Spring
has been an irresistible challenge to choreographers since Nijinksy and
the Ballets Russes set it in motion a century ago. Montreal-based Marie
Chouinard approaches the pagan spectacle with vigorous writhing and
animalistic eroticism. Lincoln Hall, Portland State University, 1620 SW Park Ave., 725-3307. 8 pm. $20-$30.
CITY GOATS
[BOOKS] Chickens are so over. If you want
to be a real hipster farmer, you need to get yourself some goats.
Longtime urban goat keeper Jennie Grant reads from City Goats: The Goat Justice Leagueâs Guide to Backyard Goat Keeping. Powellâs City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651. 7:30 pm. Free.
FRIDAY FEB. 1
VENUS IN FUR
[THEATER] David Ivesâ sinister,
Tony-nominated comedy centers on a self-important writer-director and
the actress vying for a role in his play, which he has adapted from the
1870 novel Venus in Furs. Gerding Theater, 128 NW 11th Ave., 445-3700. 7:30 pm. $25-$54.
X
[MUSIC] To celebrate its 13th
anniversary, Danteâs booked one of the greatest American rock bands of
the last 30 years. Sure, the roots-punk ensemble hasnât recorded new
music in two decades, but it also hasnât played a club this small since
it was tearing up L.A. in the â80s. Danteâs, 350 W Burnside St., 226-6630. 9 pm. $25. 21+.
TUESDAY FEB. 5
INFAMOUS SHIPWRECKS
[HISTORY] Author Finn J.D. John gives the lowdown on Oregonâs biggest maritime disasters. Jack London Bar, 529 SW 4th Ave., 228-7605. 7:30 pm. Free.
DAVE EGGERS
[BOOKS] Novelist and McSweeneyâs founder Dave Eggers signs copies of his new book, A Hologram for the King. No reading, but you can bask in his staggering genius. Powellâs City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651. 6 pm. Free.
WWeek 2015