FORMER U.S. SENATOR AL FRANKEN
IS BACK IN THE COMEDY BUSINESS
WITH THRAWCH OF HIS NEW COMEDY
TOUR, "THE ONLY FORMER U.S.
SENATOR CURRENTLY ON TOUR."
THE STAND-UP SHOW WILL BE
HEADING TO 15 CITIES NATIONWIDE
AND THE FIRST STOP WILL BE RIGHT
HERE IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS AT
NORTH HAMPTON'S ACADEMY OF
MUSIC.
BEFORE HE TURNED TO POLITICS, HE
SERVED AS ONE OF THE ORIGINAL
WRITERS ON "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE"
FOR 15 SEASONS.
IN ADDITION TO HIS SNL DAYS,
HE'S RECEIVED FIVE EMMYS, TWO
GRAMMYS, AND AUTHORED FOR NUMBER
ONE "NEW YORK TIMES" BEST
SELLERS.
I SPOKE WITH FRANKEN TO LEARN
MORE ABOUT THE TOUR AND WHY HE
DECIDED TO LAUNCH IT.
>> I ALWAYS DID COMEDY.
I DID IT STARTING IN GRADE
SCHOOL.
AND YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN TALKING
TO AUDIENCES OVER THE LAST FEW
MONTHS.
I'VE BEEN GOING DOWN TO THE
COMEDY CELLAR IN GREENWICH
VILLAGE.
AND YOU KNOW, I'VE THOUGHT ABOUT
THIS.
THAT EVERY SCHOOL HAS A STAGE.
AND EVERY ADULT, THE TEACHER,
PRINCIPAL, THE ADMINISTRATIVE
STAFF, THE CUSTODIAL STAFF, THE
LUNCH -- EVERYBODY WANTS --
WANTS ENCOURAGING KIDS TO GET ON
THE STAGE.
AND THEN ONCE YOU'VE GRADUATED
SCHOOL, NO ONE WANTS YOU TO GET
ON STAGE!
BUT I JUST DID IT ALL THROUGHOUT
SCHOOL.
AND I JUST -- IT'S PART OF WHO I
AM.
AND YEAH, I'LL BE DOING --
TALKING ABOUT POLITICS AND
SATIRE.
YOU KNOW, DOING IT IS A
TIERICALLY.
SO IT'S ALL PART AND PARCEL OF
WHO I AM.
IT'S ALL ONE ASPECT OF GROWING
UP.
>> SPEAKING OF YOU DOING COMEDY
BEFORE, YOU SPENT 15 SEASONS ON
"SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE" AS AN
ORIGINAL WRITER AND YOU WON FIVE
EMMYS FOR WRITING AND PRODUCES
AS WELL AS TWO GRAMMYS.
YOU EVENTUALLY WENT ON TO SERVE
MINNESOTA IN THE SENATE FROM
HOW DOES ONE GO FROM BEING A
COMEDIAN TO A POLITICIAN?
>> FOR ME, IT MADE SENSE.
I WROTE A LOT OF THE POLITICAL
SADIRE ON SN -- SATIRE ON SNL,
ALONG WITH JIM DOWNEY, WHO IS
CONSERVATIVE.
SO WE DIDN'T REALLY FEEL
DWIEWRNG THAT TIME THAT IT WAS
OUR JOB TO BE -- JUST TO DO WELL
OBSERVED SATIRE.
AND NOW IT'S REALLY HARD, I
THINK.
THE COUNTRY IS SO DIVIDED.
AND YOU KNOW, IT WAS ODD.
I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY, NO COMEDIAN
HAD BEEN A SENATOR BEFORE.
AND I HAD TO CONVINCE PEOPLE OF
MINNESOTA THAT THAT MADE SENSE!
AND IT WAS USED AGAINST ME BY MY
OPPONENTS AND STUFF.
BUT I THINK ULTIMATELY, PEOPLE
OF MINNESOTA GOT IT, OBVIOUSLY.
AND THAT -- IN A WAY, THAT
SATTARISTS KIND OF SEE THROUGH
THINGS IN A WAY AND I THINK AS I
WAS SERVING, ANY RE-ELECTION WAS
A LOT EASIER THAN MY -- I WON
THE FIRST TIME BY 312 VOLTS.
THE SECOND TIME BY OVER 200,000.
>> HOW DIFFERENT OR HOW SIMILAR
IS LIVE IN HOLLYWOOD TO LIFE IN
WASHINGTON?
WERE THERE THINGS THAT YOU
LEARNED AS A COMEDIAN THAT
HELPED YOU AS A POLITICIAN?
>> WELL, I DIDN'T LIVE IN
HOLLYWOOD.
I WAS IN NEW YORK.
BECAUSE I WAS DOING SNL.
BUT I -- I'D TAKE -- I TAKE IT
YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT SHOW
BUSINESS.
YOU KNOW, THEY'RE BOTH PRETTY --
CAN BE PRETTY TOUGH WORLDS.
THEY'RE DIFFERENT.
BUT YEAH, YOU -- THERE'S A LOT
OF EGO INVOLVED.
YOU HAVE TO -- YOU HAVE TO BE A
PERFORMER.
I DID FIND THAT HAVING BEEN A
PERFORMER WAS VERY HELPFUL IN --
WHEN YOU'RE QUESTIONING IN
HEARINGS.
IT -- SOMETIMES WHEN YOU'RE
QUESTIONING, YOU NEED A LOT OF
NUANCE.
AND YOU HAVE TO LISTEN.
AND I FOUND THAT MY COLLEAGUES,
EVEN THOUGH -- LIKE ON THE
JUDICIARY COMMITTEE, MOST OF MY
COLLEAGUES -- I WASN'T A LAWYER.
NOT OBVIOUSLY.
BUT I WASN'T.
AND -- BUT I LISTENED DIFFERENT,
I THINK, THAN MY COLLEAGUES DID.
MANY OF WOMAN WERE -- OF WHOM
WERE PROSECUTORS, BUT I -- I
THINK I HAD AN ADVANTAGE IN THE
WAY I QUESTIONED FROM BOTH BEING
A PERFORMER AND AND A WRITER.
AND SO I BROUGHT A LOT OF TOOLS
TO THE JOB THAT NO ONE ELSE HAD
REALLY HAD.
>> NOW, YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT
HOW COMEDY AND SATIRE IS A
LITTLE DIFFERENT NOW-A-DAYS WITH
THE POLITICAL ATMOSPHERE.
CURRENTLY YOU'RE THE HOST OF THE
AL FRANKEN PODCAST WHICH TOUCHES
ON POLITICS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS.
CAN COMEDY HAVE A ROLE IN
BRIDGING THE DIVIDE WE ARE
SEEING BETWEEN THE POLITICAL
PARTIES?
>> I THINK IT CERTAINLY HAS A
ROLE -- ALWAYS HAS.
IT'S HAD A ROLE, IF DONE RIGHT,
WHICH IS A BIG -- YOU HAVE TO
UNDERSCORE, DONE RIGHT, IT CAN
SHED A LOT OF LIGHT.
AND IT'S A DIFFERENT WAY OF
LOOKING AT THINGS.
BUT I THINK IT'S A VERY -- CAN
BE A VERY HELPFUL WAY OF LOOK AT
THINGS AND CUTTING THROUGH
STUFF.
RIGHT NOW WE'RE SO DIVIDED.
AND IT'S -- I DO TALK IN MY SHOW
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT A, YOU
KNOW -- THERE ARE REALLY GOOD
AMERICANS ON BOTH SIDES.
AND IT'S HARD TO REMEMBER THAT.
I TALK ABOUT TED CRUZ NOT GOING
TO CAN -- GOING TO CANCUN DURING
THAT DISASTER.
I LEARNED A LOT ABOUT
MINNESOTANS DURING FLOODS AND
TORNADOES.
AND WHAT YOU LEARN IS HOW GREAT
PEOPLE ARE TO THEIR NEIGHBORS.
AND IT'S HARD REALLY TO NOT SEE
PEOPLE AS PEOPLE, BECAUSE YOU
DON'T -- YOU SEE PEOPLE DO
EXTRAORDINARY THINGS.
AND -- YOU SEE -- I REMEMBER I
WAS AT A FLOOD SOUTH OF DULUTH,
AND THERE WAS THIS COUPLE
ABOUT -- IN THEIR 60S WHO LOST
THEIR HOME BECAUSE IT WAS A
FLOOD AND THEIR FOUNDATION
COLLAPSED.
AND THESE TEENAGE KIDS JUST CAME
TO HELP THEM HAUL OUT THEIR
STUFF.
AND IT WAS HEAVY STUFF.
AND THESE KIDS DID IT -- THESE
OLDER PEOPLE COULDN'T DO IT.
AND THE COUPLE TOLD ME, WELL,
YOU KNOW, WE DIDN'T KNOW -- WHAT
WE WERE GOING TO DO.
WE HAVE RELATIVES OF MISSOURI,
WE'RE THINKING OF MOVING THERE.
BUT YOU KNOW WHAT?
THESE KIDS -- THEY'RE JUST
AMAZING AND THEY'RE OUR
COMMUNITY, SO WE'RE STAYING
HERE.
AND I HAD NO IDEA WHETHER THEY
WERE REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT.
I HAD NO IDEA -- YOU JUST SEE
THAT THEY'RE REALLY GOOD PEOPLE.
AND I WISH WE COULD GET BACK
ON -- TO THAT.
THERE'S A LOT OF -- PEOPLE
PROFITING FROM DIVIDING PEOPLE.
>> IN A RECENT INTERVIEW WITH
THE REPUBLICAN, YOU MENTIONED
THAT YOU WILL NOT RULE OUT A
RETURN TO PUBLIC OFFICE.
WHAT IS IT THAT DRIVES YOU TO
WANT TO KEEP THAT POLITICAL DOOR
OPEN STILL?
>> I LOVE THE JOB.
I REALLY DID.
AND I THINK -- I WAS GOOD AT IT.
AND IT -- IT'S A PLACE WHERE I
COULD ACCOMPLISH A LOT.
SO -- I'M KEEPING THE DOOR OPEN.
>> WE LOST YOUR FORMER STATISTIC
NIGHT LIFE COLLEAGUE NORM
MACDONALD WHICH PEEK -- THIS
PEEK WHO -- THIS WEEK WHO PASSED
AWAY FROM CANCER.
WHAT WAS IT LIKE WORKING WITH
NORM AND WHAT WILL YOU REMEMBER
MOST ABOUT HIM?
>> NORM WAS A BRILLIANT COMEDIAN
WHO APPROACHED THINGS
DIFFERENTLY THAN -- ALL THE
GREAT ONES KIND OF APPROACH
THINGS DIFFERENTLY.
BUT HE APPROACHED THEM VERY
DIFFERENTLY.
[LAUGHTER]
AND WAS VERY BRAVE IN THE WAY --
AND FEARLESS.
MORE FEARLESS THAN BRAVE.
I THINK THERE'S A DIFFERENCE.
HE JUST HAD A WAY OF TELLING A
JOKE AND HE HAD A PERSPECTIVE
THAT WAS DIFFERENT THAN ANYBODY
ELSE'S.
AND HE REALLY VALUED STAND-UP
COMEDY.
THAT'S WHAT HE SAW HIMSELF AS.
HE DIDN'T SEE HIMSELF AS A
SITCOM.
HE WASN'T -- REALLY -- HE LOVED
STAND-UP.
AND THAT'S PARTLY WHY I'M DOING
THIS TOUR, IS I REALLY LOVE
STAND-UP.
AND I'VE BEEN -- YOU KNOW, SORT
OF PREPPING FOR THIS AT A CLUB,
WHICH IS VERY DIFFERENT.
I'M GOING TO THE COMEDY CELLAR
IN GREENWICH VILLAGE.
THAT'S A DIFFERENT THING THAN
PEOPLE COMING TO SEE ME IN
NORTHAMPTON.
SO IT WILL BE -- I'VE BEEN DOING
THESE -- THIS CLUB FOR MONTHS,
AND I'M GOING TO SEE WHAT IT'S
LIKE WHEN I -- WHEN PEOPLE ARE
PAYING TO COME SEE ME.
♪ ♪