Darrell Hammond
Early Years
Darrell Hammond was born in Melbourne, Florida, and graduated from Melbourne High School, where he was a star athlete in both football and baseball. He attended Brevard Community College and the University of Florida, where he majored in broadcasting. In the late 1980s, Hammond got his feet wet in the entertainment world as a stand-up comedian on Premier Cruise Line ships. He later moved to New York City, where he eventually joined the cast of Saturday Night Live.
Saturday Night Live
Darrell Hammond became a part of the Saturday Night Live (SNL) cast in 1995 and remained until 2009, which is the longest tenure of any cast member. Hammond also holds the SNL record for impersonating more celebrities than any other cast member (107 and counting, including his frequent guest appearances since leaving the show). He has also said the show's opening catchphrase, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!" more times than any other SNL cast member. Hammond is best known on the show for his impression of former president Bill Clinton, which came to define Bill Clinton in American media culture nearly as much as Clinton's actual persona. He also did memorable impressions of Al Gore, Donald Trump, Dick Cheney, Phil Donahue, Ted Koppel, John Travolta, Jesse Jackson, Geraldo Rivera, and Sean Connery, the last of which was through recurring Celebrity Jeopardy!skits.