Bob Saget remembers times spent with Norm Macdonald: ‘He made me better’

In a monologue, Saget recalled the early days he spent with the late ‘SNL’ comedian

Bob Saget dedicated his podcast on Thursday (16 September) to longtime friend Norm Macdonald, remembering the times he spent with him.

Saget shared the devastation he was going through in a heartfelt 37-minute video tribute, after Macdonald died of cancer on 14 September, at the age of 61.

“This is just a f*****g knife in the heart for all of us that were close to him and all of you who loved him,” Saget said.

“And me, personally, I don’t know, I’m just doing this on the fly and seeing if I can make a point or give some stories that might bring you a smile and let you know, from my perspective, why this is a beloved, wonderful man who we’ve lost,” he continued.

In a monologue, Saget recalled the early days he spent with Macdonald, including their collaboration on the 1998 movie Dirty Work, days in comedy clubs, the true story behind Macdonald’s famous roast of Saget, details from their final communication and the memory of meeting Macdonald for the first time.

Saget revealed he met Macdonald for the first time when the late comedian was just 17 years old and was sitting in the audience of Saget’s show in Ottawa, Canada.

The Full House actor, who was in his early 20s, said he had his first conversation with the future Saturday Night Live star at a bar.

Saget further applauded Macdonald’s unique comedy talents, citing his jokes about OJ Simpson as an example of his “voice”.

“He found a way to do things that came from a voice that nobody had – I’d never heard anyone like him,” he said.

Since Macdonald’s death, his past roast of Bob Saget has been celebrated by fans as “one of the most brilliant pieces of comedy ever”.

Saget revealed some behind-the-scene details from the event. He spoke about his friend’s hesitancy in doing the roast, recalling that Macdonald didn’t want to “say mean things” about Saget. In fact, a 20-minute portion of the set never made the cut.

“He made me better,” Saget said. “He made me better as a comedian. More importantly, he was a genuine friend and our friendship was really very deep.”

Norm Macdonald on stage during the Comedy Central Roast of Bob Saget on 3 August 2008 in Burbank, California (Alberto E Rodriguez/Getty Images for Comedy Central)

Saget said he recently suspected something was going on with his friend’s health.

“I knew that the last month was a turn in whatever was going on,” he said, adding that he had a feeling it was cancer but the two never discussed it.

“Last week, I got a text and it just said ‘I love you’. And I didn’t say much back. I just said, ‘I love you Norm.’ And that was my [final] communication with him... One of the gifts of my life is that he loved me and that I loved him.”

“Norm Macdonald was a gift to all of us,” Saget said. “And I will miss him always, and I will always love him.”