No Right Answer: Best Post SNL Career Ever

[the abyss gazes also]

What no love for Victoria Jackson... ha ha ha ha ha. Can't even do it.

 

[UNHchabo]

Phil Hartman.

Very well known for his SNL career, and very well known for his post-SNL work. If not for his death, I think he would still be a major player in the comedy business. Newsradio is still one of my favorite sitcoms of all time.

 

[Clankenbeard]

What no love for Victoria Jackson... ha ha ha ha ha. Can't even do it.

Victoria Jackson was awesome. She was a member of the crew that I enjoyed the most in the late 80's and early 90's.

I am suprised that nobody threw out Eddie Murphy. He had a good movie run. Dan Akroyd also did well, but his career seemed to be overshadowed by Bill Murray's. Adam Sandler? Happy Gilmore to Punch Drunk Love. He's been successful.

My personal favorite SNL player was Phil Hartman. But I guess he only did a few minor roles in movies and TV after SNL. And then he got murdered, so that didn't go well for him. Bill McNeil was an awesome character.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I would have to give this one to Bill Murray. Mostly because I don't like Will Ferrel;.

 

[RonHiler]

Next you should do who had the best post Daily Show career.

You guys are definitely right about the real winner being Tina Fey. She is pretty and an awesome actress.

Very True.

Best post Daily Show Career?? Hmmmm, Stephen Colbert versus Steve Carell? Interesting. I'd watch that episode.

And yes, Tina Fey won this round, hands down. That is my only problem with this show. When there IS a clear right answer, the guys generally ignore it and argue about the second and third place entries. They did the same thing with "Best Movie Trilogy".

But I pick at nits. Sometimes it's fun to watch a debate on second vs third place, when first place is obvious.

 

[Darth_Payn]

Next you should do who had the best post Daily Show career.

You guys are definitely right about the real winner being Tina Fey. She is pretty and an awesome actress.

Very True.

If you didn't make a follow-up pun for Tina Fey, then she must be good, and I agree. Her and Amy Poehler.
OT: I just KNEW Bill Murray would win! Ghostbusters was the game breaker in the debate, and anyone who was in Ghostbusters can do no wrong.

 

[Gorrath]

I'm an old fogey, so to me this isn't even a close race. Bill Murray blows Will Ferrel away. Stranger Than Fiction was pretty awesome, but Will Ferrel's movies tend to be very, very same-y. I like a few of his comedies (Anchor Man of course, as well as Step Brothers) but he's got nothing at all on What About Bob, Groundhog Day and, need I even say it, freaking Ghostbusters!

One can argue that Ferrel hasn't had the time to put together as impressive a record as Murray, but unless he breaks out of doing these same-y roles, he'll never get there.

Also, I LOVE Tina Fey, but I'd still not pick her over Murray.

 

[anonymity88]

A movie staring Will Farell that has romance, slapstick comedy, subtle comedy, and overwhelming sense of dread? That's Stranger than Fiction right there. Maybe Will Farell has been doing a lot of man-child things, but that one movie proved to me that he has quite a range in there that remains untapped. It's like Jim Carrey in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It's just so completely the opposite of his usual persona that it just blows you away how he could pull that off. Bill Murray may be good, but I get bored watching him now. "Morose" is spot on.

But Tiny Fey wins. Always. Love her.

I agree completely, that film really caught me off guard! Also I find Maggie Gyllenhaal weirdly attractive, but that might just be because the first thing I saw her in was secretary haha.

 

[ObsidianJones_v1legacy]

Bill Murray today (though really funny in movies and supposedly not that good of a person in real life) is more or less relevant because of the meme of Bill Murray being awesome. Much like why people in this decade knowing who Chuck Norris is because of a internet meme. If you didn't have the meme, I'm near sure no one would have ever remembered him unless you're a fan of martial arts films. Especially if you were born at any time after the 80's.

The difference there being Chuck Norris has never done anything decent in his career while Bill Murray is in movies most people know and legitimately love. To say Bill Murray is only popular because of the meme is overlooking the fact that for a lot of people actually do have a lot of respect for his work. I mean I was born in 1990 and I've been a fan of Bill Murray a lot longer than I've had an internet connection. And Rushmore and Lost In Translation came out after the 80's. Two hugely popular films, it's not hard to imagine people watching those and looking back at his early work and appreciating it.

Good films don't really spark this generation's adoration as much as something catchy does. There are exceptions everywhere to be sure. I know I am.

Chris Rock made good films, good shows, and a good documentary. Did stand up a few times there too. Of course, it falls under taste, as we can't go to something that's clear cut. Not even sales. Death at a funeral only made 2 million less than Lost in Translation (Death at a Funeral=Domestic: $42,739,347 [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=deathatafuneral10.htm] vs Domestic Total Gross: $44,585,453 [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lostintranslation.htm] for Lost in Translation). I think personally Lost in Translation probably beats the pants off of Death at a Funeral, but do I disagree with thousands of people? And if I do, does that make me 'right'? I mean how do we even judge this?

Do we go to taste? I couldn't even be bothered to see Death at a funeral. I liked Lost in Translation, but Good Hair kept me entertained, informed, and I connected to it than either. Do we go by what the masses say? What if I don't agree with the Masses? Does that make me wrong?

If we try for 'Best' in anyway, we have to talk something arbitrary like revenue. Bill probably doesn't win in that regard. Will had a lot more blockbusters. Anything else can be countered with "You count Lost in Translation/Expendables 2/Good Hair/Anchorman as a good movie? I don't agree". Like I said in my original post, It's a matter of perspective.

 

[Lightknight]

The movies of his you did not see or probably didn't even know about won out huge for other audiences. So saying that Chris Rock isn't insanely popular... well, depends on your perception.

Insanely popular is not the same as having explosive acting successes. He's VERY popular and I'd say his name has reached household status. He seems to also be doing quite well financially and is one of the funniest people I've heard. That doesn't mean he's been the lead in huge blockbuster films, though.

I'd posit that his lack of explosive successes would be related to racial or cultural factors as you seemed to indicate. I find that mildly humorous as his material is great and often relevant no matter what color a person's skin is and his appeal could have been every bit as universal as Chappelle's (man, I miss Chappelle Show). But I guess he's been typecast in a kind of way that is publically percieved as not being for other races. It's not necessarily a bad thing to be seen as one of the faces of a demographic, but when that demographic represents less than 13% of the population you're in (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_the_United_States#Race_and_ethnicity) then that can translate into less visibility and therefore less financial success. Who knows though, maybe I'm wrong and he's just not as funny or as good of an actor as I think he is and it has nothing to do with racial/cultural factors. I have to admit that Will Smith followed a similar period of acting and has arrived at a significantly different level of success than Rock appears to have reached. So maybe it's something more that I'm missing? His willingness to bravely engage sensitive topics like race and politics may have had something to do with it. If they really did mean "Best post SNL CAREER" and not just public face time then maybe none of that matters and he would be a better choice than Will. But I think Bill would still win at this point.

In any event, I'd say Chris has done more behind the camera than most other people. He's a prolific and excellent writer (holy crap if Every Body Hates Chris isn't one of my all-time favorite shows), a wonderful comedian, and a potentially decent director (time will tell) and a successful voice actor. But as far as actual face time and lead movie roles (like I assume they were talking about here, explosiveness as an actor), it's pretty sparse. I'm not 100% sure that Chris Rock's peak has been reached yet though.

What do you think? I'd be very interested in an alternate view of that.

In reference to the post you made while I was composing this. It's all well and good to compare individual successes, but that was only one of Bill's movies compared to one of Rock's best.

 

[Lightknight]

Than Fiction was pretty awesome,

You know, I'm glad other people think this too. I thought the movie really had something to it and Will was great in it. It's one my favorites of his work.

 

[malestrithe]

Al Franken.

Owned a liberal talk show network. Now a US Senator.

 

[Rituro]

I will be very interested to see what Amy Poehler does after "Parks & Recreation". If she hits another homerun, I would easily put her in this debate in a few years' time.

 

[the abyss gazes also]

What no love for Victoria Jackson... ha ha ha ha ha. Can't even do it.

Victoria Jackson was awesome. She was a member of the crew that I enjoyed the most in the late 80's and early 90's.

I am suprised that nobody threw out Eddie Murphy. He had a good movie run. Dan Akroyd also did well, but his career seemed to be overshadowed by Bill Murray's. Adam Sandler? Happy Gilmore to Punch Drunk Love. He's been successful.

My personal favorite SNL player was Phil Hartman. But I guess he only did a few minor roles in movies and TV after SNL. And then he got murdered, so that didn't go well for him. Bill McNeil was an awesome character.

Have you seen Victoria Jackson lately? She went all conservative and now complains about Glee "shoving the gay thing down our throats."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/22/victoria-jackson-slams-glee-showbiz-tonight_n_838862.html

 

[Furbyz]

We could never have this debate about In Living Color. Sorry Jim Carrey and Chris Rock, you just can't compete with Jaimie Foxx.

 

[Tono Makt]

I only have one thing to say: Maggie Gyllenhaal is attractive.

I only have one more thing to say: Pop-up dude has horrible taste in women, because Maggie Gyllenhaal is attractive.

I only have one last thing to say: Bill Murray has a far, far, far better agent than Will Ferrell.

 

[ObsidianJones_v1legacy]

The movies of his you did not see or probably didn't even know about won out huge for other audiences. So saying that Chris Rock isn't insanely popular... well, depends on your perception.

Insanely popular is not the same as having explosive acting successes. He's VERY popular and I'd say his name has reached household status. He seems to also be doing quite well financially and is one of the funniest people I've heard. That doesn't mean he's been the lead in huge blockbuster films, though.

I'd posit that his lack of explosive successes would be related to racial or cultural factors as you seemed to indicate. I find that mildly humorous as his material is great and often relevant no matter what color a person's skin is and his appeal could have been every bit as universal as Chappelle's (man, I miss Chappelle Show). But I guess he's been typecast in a kind of way that is publically percieved as not being for other races. It's not necessarily a bad thing to be seen as one of the faces of a demographic, but when that demographic represents less than 13% of the population you're in (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_the_United_States#Race_and_ethnicity) then that can translate into less visibility and therefore less financial success. Who knows though, maybe I'm wrong and he's just not as funny or as good of an actor as I think he is and it has nothing to do with racial/cultural factors. I have to admit that Will Smith followed a similar period of acting and has arrived at a significantly different level of success than Rock appears to have reached. So maybe it's something more that I'm missing? His willingness to bravely engage sensitive topics like race and politics may have had something to do with it. If they really did mean "Best post SNL CAREER" and not just public face time then maybe none of that matters and he would be a better choice than Will. But I think Bill would still win at this point.

In any event, I'd say Chris has done more behind the camera than most other people. He's a prolific and excellent writer (holy crap if Every Body Hates Chris isn't one of my all-time favorite shows), a wonderful comedian, and a potentially decent director (time will tell) and a successful voice actor. But as far as actual face time and lead movie roles (like I assume they were talking about here, explosiveness as an actor), it's pretty sparse. I'm not 100% sure that Chris Rock's peak has been reached yet though.

What do you think? I'd be very interested in an alternate view of that.

In reference to the post you made while I was composing this. It's all well and good to compare individual successes, but that was only one of Bill's movies compared to one of Rock's best.

If I could thumbs up on this site, you would get such a big one. Spot on and very true.