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People living history dont realize theyre living history at the time.
When I watchedthe last segment [ofThe Deuce] where an aged James Franco comes back I got chills.
Its almost how I feel nowadays at my age, to see what Ive seen.
Anyone who had anything to do with comedy ever was somehow called into this place.
I get up and I didnt have anything tight prepared because Id work loose, organic.
I start talking, then I get into it, a character.
I get no reaction.
Why dont all you guys just gofuckyourselves.
And I walked out.
The weird thing is, Lorne kind of dug it.
They hired me with this great rotating cast ofSNLandSCTVpeople.
A good friend of mine at the time, Allan Havey, and me were the featured players.
Your firstSNLappearance was during the season-premiere monologue with Madonna.
Shed married Sean Penn, and Robert Downey Jr. played Sean.
It was supposed to be her wedding video.
Wed shot it out in Jersey at some big manor.
I was her cousin; Madonna has this Italian family.
You remember Joan Cusack?
They had her as Cyndi Lauper.
Some waiter walks by, and I hit him with a tip.
Arguably, that season is considered … We had to make a decision.
It was either Pee-wee Herman or George C. Scott.
I was sitting there [thinking]This is a no-brainer!
George C. Scott!But Pee-wee was so hot; I guess the movie had just come out.
Like,Wait a minute!
You get the guy who shouldnt be hosting and build the madness around them.
They had lost that.I was a young guy with a lot of problems.
And I was living on that.
Then, all of a sudden, youve got this huge paycheck.
]Somebody mustve said, Thats thelastguy you want this kid hanging around with!
Wed hang out and go to an after-hours bar.
That monster is going to find you.
Any anecdotes from Chevy Chases episode?In the writers room …
There was a gay cast member named Terry Sweeney.
Were all sitting around the room, bouncing ideas.
All of a sudden, Chevystarted riffing on Terry.
It wasnt particularly funny …
But looking back, this is 1985 people still werent completely clear what AIDS was.
The line was, from Chevy, Hey, I got an idea.
Lets take Terry and put him on a scale every week and see how his weight is doing.
Thats what cleared the room.
Heard youre the guy thats holding.
And he starts going into my pockets.
And Im like, Are you crazy?
Get your hands out of my pockets, man.
He thought I was just walking around and hed reach in, see if I had any coke.
I dont know if all performers or comedians have it, but I had a certain reverence for comedy.
Especially the originalSNLwas one of the reasons I became a comedian.
Then youre hanging with these people.
Hes not in the country?Even now I always wonder why he signed on.
He had an Oscar nomination already.Exactly.
Believe it or not, Anjelica Huston was actually almost a cast member.
Then at the last minute, for some reason she didnt come on.
I think he had a bottle in his desk like a 40s movie.
I ended up going to rehab for months, because besides drinking I was doing incredible amounts of cocaine.
When I came back, I didnt have much; maybe one line.
I felt naked and vulnerable.
I knew I couldnt show up there drinking.
Like,I have to do this without all my toys.
But someone says, No, youre here, youve got to do the wave!
And he kept waving.
[I] did the dress rehearsal, and I had too much.
Joe Dicso, the [long-tenured] stage manager, was one of the sweetest guys in the world.
He drags me to the stage.
I guess I got the line out, because it made it on.
Which Im sure worked for everybody.
But I didnt vomit on Art Garfunkel.
I did go to a Yankee game with [him and Lorne.]
Arties version is, I threw up on Garfunkel and the next day I got fired.
But I never threw up on him, and I was going to be fired anyway.
So you only appeared in a couple of episodes, but they kept you the whole season?
Your last appearance is midway through.I wound up spending most of that year in rehab.
I am totally at peace with every success I did not have.
Where I am in my life, Im good, but … Its a blessing and a curse.
The weird thing is, even the people that season who showed up and worked hard … Joan Cusack is just a sweetheart and a terrifically talented actress, and she didnt make it through.
Do you still watch the show?Rarely now.
Ive probably watched it on and off.
I went,This crew I can dig.I liked them a lot.
Im not a Trump supporter, but its kind of cartoonish.
And being on TV should be really special.
Pete Davidson has been pretty open about his own experiences with rehab.
I saw him onThe Tonight Show; hes giving guys hope!
I have limited knowledge, but it seemed like it was less substance abuse and more bipolar.
Im not an expert on that behavior.
But sometimes the darkness is there, and you just have got to get through it.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
