I’m not ashamed to admit where my political loyalties lie. I’d vote Tina Fay for Vice President…no, make that President…any day of the week.
Fey – actress, comedienne, writer, and signature glasses-wearer – has returned to her old stomping grounds on Saturday Night Live to shake things up and maybe nail a few write-in votes. Yes, that’s right, SNL has just become funny again.
A part of me died a little inside when Fey left the show in 2006 to focus on her primetime show, 30Rock. Now, don’t get me wrong, everyone should immediately stop what they’re doing to watch Fey and co-star Alec Baldwin awkwardly exchange their neuroses on 30 Rock, but I have to say that SNL just kind of fizzled after she left. Much to my relief, Fey is back on SNL and funnier than ever.
Fey has officially rocked the house playing Republican Vice Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin. She has Palin down to every last detail, from the beehive hairdo to the Governor’s striking accent. In her opening kit, Fey reunited with former SNL cast member Amy Poehler as Hillary Clinton to address the issue of sexism in the campaign. But Fey didn’t stop there. She continued to make our mouths drop during her sketch about the Vice Presidential debate and Palin’s now infamous interview with CBS anchor Katie Couric.
Following her grand entrance as Sarah Palin, impersonator extraordinaire Tina Fey has officially joined the ranks of iconic SNL greats like Dan Aykroyd (as Richard Nixon and Jimmy Carter), Phil Hartman (as Bill Clinton), and Dana Carvey (as George Bush, the elder) who hit it big-time impersonating American political figureheads. Fey already has her slew of Emmy awards, but could a Nobel Peace Prize be far behind?
Now that she can add “YouTube Star” to her impressive resume, Fey’s Palin dead-on impersonation has actually done a lot more than make people laugh. Although it’s been impossible to ignore this particular election, her character has really brought some issues out into the spotlight. I’m normally pretty politically apathetic, but Tina Fey really brings out the lipstick-donning pit bull in me.
While we’re doing confessions, I have another little secret I’d like to admit: I’m quite personally upset that the elections are going to be over soon. Without the complete cast of characters to duke it out (Obama, McCain, Palin, Biden, heck, I’ll even throw in all of the good people of Saturday Night Live for good measure), late night TV will just never be as funny again.
If anyone deserves the title of “maverick” (what does that mean again?), Tina Fey is it!
