Norm Macdonald didn't just like Burt Reynolds. He was obsessed with him.
Back in the nineties, when Saturday Night Live was trying to find its footing after a massive cast overhaul, Norm was the guy who decided that the best way to save a sketch show was to impersonate a movie star from twenty years prior. Most people assume the "Celebrity Jeopardy!" sketches were some high-concept satire of game shows or the decline of Western intelligence. They weren't. Honestly, Norm admitted years later that he only created the entire segment because he wanted a reason to wear a fake mustache and chew gum like a maniac.
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He needed a vessel for his Burt Reynolds impression. That's it. That is the origin of one of the most famous recurring bits in late-night history.
The Turd Ferguson Phenomenon
It’s easy to forget how weird that impression actually was. Norm didn't do the Boogie Nights version of Burt, even though that was when Reynolds was making a massive career comeback. He did the 1970s, Smokey and the Bandit era Burt. We’re talking about the bolo tie, the open shirt, and that weird, high-pitched "heh-heh" laugh that seemed to come from a guy who knew something you didn't.
Then came the name. Turd Ferguson. In a 1999 sketch, Norm-as-Burt decided he didn't want to go by his real name anymore. When Will Ferrell (playing a perpetually exhausted Alex Trebek) asked why, Norm just leaned back, adjusted an oversized yellow hat, and said, "Yeah, that's right. Turd Ferguson. It's a funny name."
There was no deeper logic. It wasn't a political statement. It was just Norm being Norm—finding something objectively stupid and hammering it until it became brilliant. The audience didn't just laugh; they adopted it. Decades later, real-life Jeopardy! contestants were still using the name as a "Final Jeopardy" joke to mess with the real Alex Trebek.
Why the impression worked
- The Gum: Norm chewed it like it was his last meal.
- The Hostility: He treated the game like a personal insult to his intelligence.
- The Props: That oversized foam hat shouldn't have been funny, but in Norm’s hands, it was a weapon.
Did the real Burt Reynolds hate it?
You’d think a guy with a reputation for being a bit "difficult" on set—Burt famously almost got into a fistfight with Paul Thomas Anderson—would hate being portrayed as a dim-witted prankster.
But he didn't. He loved it.
Burt actually reached out to Norm. He told him he appreciated the effort. There were even plans for the real Burt Reynolds to show up on the set of "Celebrity Jeopardy!" The pitch was classic: Burt would walk out, punch Norm in the face for being an idiot, and then take over the podium. The joke would be that the real Burt was even worse at the game than Norm’s version.
Unfortunately, politics got in the way. Norm was famously fired from SNL by Don Ohlmeyer in 1998, primarily over his relentless jokes about O.J. Simpson. Because of that sudden exit, the "Burt vs. Burt" showdown never happened on the Studio 8H stage. It remains one of the great "what ifs" of sketch comedy.
Working Together on "My Name Is Earl"
The relationship didn't end at the SNL stage door. Years later, the two finally got to share a screen. On the sitcom My Name Is Earl, Burt Reynolds played a wealthy, eccentric man named Richard Chubby. The casting directors had a stroke of genius: they cast Norm Macdonald to play his son, "Little Chubby."
It was a meta-joke that didn't need to be explained. They looked alike, they had the same cadence, and seeing them side-by-side felt like a fever dream for comedy nerds. Norm later said that hanging out with Burt in his trailer was one of the highlights of his career. They’d sit there and Burt would tell stories about the old days of Hollywood—stories about Johnny Carson and the Tonight Show.
Norm viewed Burt as a pioneer of "cool." He once explained to Howard Stern that Burt was the first real movie star who didn't take himself seriously. Before Burt, stars were untouchable gods. Burt was the guy who would go on a talk show and make fun of his own movies. He broke the fourth wall before it was trendy.
The Legacy of the Duo
When Burt Reynolds passed away in 2018, Norm’s tribute was surprisingly sincere for a man who usually hid behind three layers of irony. He called Burt a "trailblazer" and a "gentleman."
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"He was the first guy to go out and be self-deprecating and funny in that way. He was just a guy having fun, you know?" — Norm Macdonald on Burt Reynolds.
Norm followed him a few years later in 2021, leaving behind a body of work that is inextricably linked to the man he spoofed. You can’t talk about one without the other. They were both outsiders in their own way—Burt, the movie star who preferred Florida to the Hollywood elite; and Norm, the comedian who preferred a bad joke he liked to a good joke the audience liked.
Actionable Next Steps
If you want to truly appreciate this specific corner of pop culture history, here is how to dive in:
- Watch the 1999 SNL 25th Anniversary Sketch: This is the peak "Turd Ferguson" moment. It features the oversized hat and the most aggressive gum-chewing you'll ever see.
- Find the "My Name Is Earl" Season 2 Episode: Watch the episode "The South Shall Rise Again" to see their chemistry in person. It’s less a parody and more a passing of the torch.
- Listen to Norm's 2018 Interview with Paste: He gives a very raw, non-comedic look at why he respected Burt so much. It's one of the few times Norm drops the "persona."
- Look up the 2015 "Final Jeopardy" Clip: See the New Yorker writer Talia Lavin bait Alex Trebek into saying the name "Turd Ferguson" on a real episode. It's the ultimate proof of the bit's staying power.
Norm Macdonald and Burt Reynolds were a match that shouldn't have worked. A Canadian stand-up and a Southern sex symbol. But through a shared love of being the funniest person in the room—and not caring who they annoyed to get there—they created something that outlived them both.