Norm Macdonald’s pulled back the curtain on his life with the amusing autobiographical work, Based On A True Story: A Memoir, which you’d assume contains salacious bits from his Canadian upbringing and five seasons on Saturday Night Live. But while promoting the book on Conan last night, the comedian wanted to focus on a different American hero’s backstory—that of Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, the “Miracle On The Hudson” pilot. You may think you know Sully’s inner workings thanks to Clint Eastwood’s biopic starring Tom Hanks, but Macdonald actually made a prequel that centers on the aged aviator’s pre-miracle days.
See, gliding a plane into a river was an exception in Sully’s career, which otherwise saw the pilot making uneventful arrivals in Kansas City. There were no press conferences, hearings, or even geese—just a guy with his wife in a cockpit. Okay, so it’s no Sully, but at least it’s not Amelia. Of course, Macdonald thinks his performance compares favorably with that of Hanks, who didn’t let Laura Linney land a plane, so we think it holds up.
If you insist on getting some dirt from Macdonald, he did talk about his “battle-axe” of a wife.