Dan Akroyd was tough to leave out, but there are only ten options.

......... but you decided to leave Molly Shannon in instead?? She was horrible, everyone of her characters had the same traits. She was NOT funny at all.

I thought she was amazing.....the best female performer on the show.....ever.

Sally O'Mally
Mary Catherine Gallagher
Monica Lewinsky
Helen Madden
Teri Rialto
Courtney Love

Ana Gasteyer is also fantastic.

Phil Hartman. Very talented comedian.

Best female performer ever? Better than EVERY female performer? Better than Victoria Jackson?

Oh, sorry, bad example...

Phil Hartman all the way... man, why do the best ones go so quickly? Phil, Chris Farley, Jim Belushi...

Edit: John Belushi, not Jim Belushi. Oops.

Phil Hartman.. not just the best SNL performer.. but one of the best performers period.

And I agree Molly Shannon was horrible

I did my best . I still think I have the best ten performers of SNL as selections.

Plus, you're an Aggie....what the hell do you know?

Sorry. I couldn't vote. There are just too many wonderful alumni to choose from. One of my absolute favorites that you didn't have room for is Steve Martin. He's a wild and crazy guy! But I would also call Will Ferrell, Bill Murray, Phil Hartman, Molly Shannon, Ana Gasteyer (prior to this year...even though it is understandable why her work has been curtailed), Eddie Murphy, Dana Carvey, and Mike Meyers favorites. There are probably more, but I can't remember right now My current faves (and we'll see how they stack up at the end of their tenure) are Chris Parnell and Maya Rudolph. Chris just barely edged out Jimmy in my adoration.

Steve Martin is a comic genius, but was never a cast member. Yes, it is tough to pick one.

Word up. I bow to your superior knowledge Seriously, I said Steve because I remember watching him with my cool aunt when I was a kid and should have been in bed. But you know, memories can often be faulty Still, he was my first memory of SNL regardless of his cast status

No need to feel embarrassed. Many people think Steve-O was a cast member.

Disco Tut is one of the all-time great SNL moments.

While we're on the subject, here is a super-cool website for SNL info: http://snltranscripts.jt.org/

Sorry, I can't vote in a poll that includes Molly Shannon and her one character with many names over Dan Aykroyd, Nora Dunn, Jane Curtin, Garrett Morris, Jon Lovitz, Bill Murray, Kevin Nealon, Cheri Oteri, John Belushi, Gilda Radner, or Jan Hooks, just to name a few.

das

My favorite is there (Belushi), but to not include Aykroyd, Murray and Radner is a sin. Molly Shannon is unwatchable and annoying. Martin Short was okay, but not one of the best.

Voted for Phill but only because the all time champ JOHN Belushi isn't on the list.

Frankly I'd rank them like this:

John Belushi
Dan Ackroid
Bill Murray
Gilda Radner


Everyone else is well below this fantastic four.

OMG! I can't believe I forgot Gilda Radner. I loved her so, so much. I blame the late night for my forgetfulness. Definitely, Gilda is my absolute favorite female SNLer ever.

I. Can. Not. Believe. Jim. Belushi. Has. Just. One. Vote. And That. Gilda. Radner. Isn't. Even. On. This. List.

Just? Now he has two votes. K-9 was funny and everything, but seriously folks. I know the selections listed for this poll are seriously lacking and the implication that Molly Shannon is the only female cast member worthy of consideration is sickening, but even from that list, can't people vote for someone better? I guess I underestimate the fan base for Mr. Destiny.

das

I voted for Molly Shannon, because she's my favorite of those listed, but my all-time favorite is Gilda Radner.

Rob

Actually, I meant John Belushi, but I can't change it. I'm emailing a mod now.

Poll choice changed. Bet you didn't think you'd be taking so much crap for a simple poll, huh? - Static

Yeesh....no kidding. Thank you for changing the option.

chris farley simple as that

No vote here either. But I loved the show back in the early 90s. Dennis Miller, Chris Rock, David Spade, Farley, Lovitz...

My vote goes to Mike Myers.

Wow, tough choice. But, I went with Phil Hartman.

I gotta agree with those who say that Molly Shannon sucks. She's so damn annoying. So is Will Ferrell. He's just not funny IMO.

I know. I'm such an ass. Never underestimate how much some people dislike Molly Shannon. To be fair, I actually enjoyed some of her more subtle work. I think she was quite talented, but her recurring characters, those who had most of the focus, were way too repetitive and juvenile. Probably the only recurring skit I liked with her was 'The Delicious Dish'. She and Kattan are of the same mold. They can be very funny, but they so often got bogged down in the same repetitive sillyness. There's more to comedy than running into walls and falling down or yelling real loud.

So to the question at hand, I'm not sure how to interpret "best." I think some of the most talented performers were in the early seasons, but the writing wasn't as strong then, and they shined after they left SNL. Guys like Phil Hartman and Mike Myers were insanely talented and had so much range, but they were always surrounded by such great casts; whereas someone like Will Ferrell carried the show all by himself (with Oteri) for a few years. In the end, I think I have to just cave and vote for my favorite, and that's probably Mike Myers.

Speaking of cast members, anyone else feel a little bad for what I call the "role players?" People like Kevin Nealon and Jan Hooks and Ana Gasteyer were in every sketch. And they were good every single time. But they so often played the straight man to someone else's outrageous recurring character that people rarely seem to mention them in the same breath with the other great cast members. Without them, however, so many sketches would have fallen flat. Kevin Nealon is my favorite from that group. He was so good in so many things, but he just got lost amid a sea of so much talent.

das