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Left Saturday Night Live (1975) as a writer and featured cast member in 1995 after his request to be the Weekend Update news anchor was denied. He has since admitted that Norm MacDonald was the better choice for the role, due to both MacDonald's deadpan delivery and apolitical comedy style, in contrast with Franken's partisan progressive stance.

Franken resigned Congress on January 2, 2018, after several allegations of groping were made against him.

Graduated from Harvard University.

Elected to the United States Senate on November 4, 2008. The election was so close that there was a subsequent recount and legal battles, and he was not officially sworn in as a Senator until July 7, 2009.

He received a perfect score (800) on the math section of the SAT.

[at the Maine political delegation breakfast on July 26, 2004, replying to actor John Cusack, who saw Franken in the audience and said, "I'm not going to try and be funny"] I'm not going to try and act.

[2/06, in interview with Jay MacDonald entitled "Fame & Fortune: Comedian Al Franken"] No, I grew up very middle class. My parents didn't make a lot of money. My dad was not a high school graduate - he didn't have a career as such, he was a printing salesman essentially for most of his working life."

[interview with Marla Williams, Seattle Times, 3/11/96] I'm part of the mushball middle. I consider "confused" the majority position because, thankfully, most people would rather be uncertain some of the time than 100% positive all the time - even when they're wrong."

[2/96, interview with Mark Schapiro for "Salon"] The reason I chose [Rush Limbaugh] is, first of all, when I made the decision, it was late '94, right before the congressional elections. He was this huge power, he was being called the "Majority Maker" . . . and I listened to him, I just listened to him. And I thought, "How does this guy get away with this? . . . Someone's got to do something that's funny. Someone's got to do something in his face.

No one is more sensitive to the issue of overeating than the creator of Stuart Smalley.