We already know that 30 Rock star Tracy Morgan is a bit like his on-screen persona, Tracy Jordan: unpredictable, hysterical, and just a little nuts. So why shouldn’t his memoir — I Am the New Black, which goes on sale Oct. 20 — be anything but unhinged?
Morgan is predictably honest about his upbringing and extracurricular activities in his book, even admitting that he once took his uncomfortable 30 Rock castmates to an illegal strip joint in New York City. But he’s also surprisingly candid about his professional life — not to mention his attitudes toward former co-workers. When discussing his 10-year stint on Saturday Night Live, Morgan writes that he was disrespected by fellow cast members Chris Kattan and Cheri Oteri, and quickly turns the tables on the comics. (“Where’s Chris Kattan now? Where’s Cheri Oteri now? That bitch can’t even get arrested.”)
But the feud doesn’t end there. Apparently, Morgan’s anger is so deep-seated, he went off-script while recording his audiobook (A tip of the hat to Gawker.com for finding this clip.): “They never going to host Saturday Night Live. And I don’t mean — that’s not even me, but that’s what happened to me over there. They never treated me well. There were people that treated me beautifully, like Will Ferrell and Colin Quinn and Molly Shannon — I love them. But Cheri Oteri and Chris Kattan — I never cared for them either. F— ‘em.”
Loopy as he may be, I never thought of Morgan as a trash-talker. But the whole excerpt does make me curious about what went down behind the scenes. Even though we don’t know the circumstances, are you Team Tracy, or Team Cheri and Chris? And what are the best Saturday Night Live feuds in history? (Jay Mohr v. Lorne Michaels, anyone?)
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I’m Team shut the heck up and act like a professional.
Amen!
I’m with Tracy – cheri otteri and chris kattan were never really funny outside of one repeating skit – they stink
I have a friend who had run-ins with Chris Kattan in the past, so it’s easy to believe Tracy on that count.
Cris Kattan was never funny anyway!!!
That’s not true. Chris Kattan’s Mango was hilarious and Oteri was partnered with Ferrell on the cheerleaders skits. Still, sucks to hear they weren’t kind to fellow castmates.
Double Amen!
OMG- that was AWESOME! lmao
AGREED!!!
You know this jerkwad will end up dead inside of 10 years. Probably self-inflicted death with a water gun.
Ha ha!
Everyone knows the best feud was between Bill Murray and Chevy Chase.
I agree.
Yes!
there was also somewhat of a feud between Dana Carvey and Mike Myers , no?
I don’t think that was so much a feud, Myers just got jealous because he was supposed to be the big star of Wayne’s World and Garth/Carvey was so much more popular.
Also Myers stole Dana Carvey’s impression of Lorne Michaels and made it into Dr. Evil.
I think Kattan and Oteri are funnier than Tracy Morgan is. His schtick gets old quick. Morgan had only 2 maybe 3 funny skits in 10 years,which I didn’t realize he was on that long. To me everything Chris Kattan was in he made funny.
If they’re so funny then why aren’t Chris Kataan and Oteri still working?
Kattan is still working. Check out “the middle” on wed nights and the recent mini series “bolywood hero”
They are. Check out their imdb pages.
Seriously, if you have to look up what they are working on…they aren’t really working. And Bollywood? Really? No. They are has-beens. Sorry kids!
Kattan just isn’t funny to me no matter what he plays!!!
Because they didn’t befriend TIna Fey?
100% correct! Studios will give work to anyone whose buddies with Tina Fey. (I’m talking to YOU, Amy Poehler!)
Funny- I could have sworn she already HAD work. I’m pretty sure Amy wasn’t hired for SNL because of Tina Fey.
Oteri is from Fey’s hometown
No, Poehler got “Parks & Rec” because she’s friends with Tina Fey.
Um no, Amy Poeher gor Parks & Rec becaues of Lorne Michaels, not Tina Fey. Maybe you can say she got Baby Mama from Fey, but not P&R
In either case Park and Recreations should be taken off the air. On no other network would this made it out of the Pilot, but NBC is hard up for anything to put on the air.
Parks & Rec was created by the creators of the office. Lorne Michaels didn’t get her that job.
Also, P & R is so much funnier this season than it was last it’s kind of amazing. I wasn’t so sure about it last year (although it had it’s moments) but this year it has been hysterical.
Hafta agree with that.. if you hafta look it up then obviously its not on the same Level as morgan.
IMO – i always thought Tracy Morgan was waay funnier then Cheri O’Teri or Chris Kattan.
Plus I’ve heard from friends that Kattan is a douchelord. so double FAIL on his part.
Amy Poehler had a holding deal with NBC. NBC also had a development deal for a new sitcom from the Office Producers. As happens all the time in Television, the two creative groups held meetings and decided to work together. Amy probably met with 4 or 5 different development teams and may have written a treatment for her own idea before settling on Parks & Rec. NBC likes to keep talent in house, like Leno, Conan, etc.
But I guess you guys know better than me. I’m just a Development Executive in Burbank.
Team Tracy, he must be doing something right if Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin and Lorne Michaels (head honcho at SNL) still work with him.
I agree with this. Tiny Fey is obviously brilliant and knows what she is doing.
Not that I care one way or the other but 2 things are obvious.
a) Like the article says Tracy Jordan and Tracy Morgan are one in the same, therefore the acting on 30 Rock is not a stretch for him, and b) Tina Faye being brilliant….not so much Tracy Jordan/Morgan.
Bottom Line he should be thankful he’s on 30 as he could just as easily be “not working.’
Agreed. Emmy Nominee. Terrific FUNNY performer on a weekly basis on the best show on television. Go TRACY!
I gotta side with Tracy Morgan on this one. Cheri Oteri was one of the funniest women to ever come out of SNL, but she’s done NOTHING since then. To me, that’s an indication that she’s either very bossy, or difficult to work with. I just don’t buy that someone with that amount of talent didn’t get her chances (or at least an invitation to return to SNL) unless she’s seen as a troublemaker.
How are any of you siding with anyone in an interpersonal conflict of which you nothing?
that should read, “of which you know nothing?”
I had read that some trauma went down in her family and one of her parents – i think- was murdered…I had thought that was why she faded from view… She was funny on SNL and i wondered why she hadn’t had a sitcom or something by now… I’m sure we’ll hear her side of the story soon enough… Chris Kattan? ummm wish i could say i though he was funny /watchable , but now , not really.
her Dad was killed… would think that could get you to rethink things and make one want to take a breather
http://hubpages.com/hub/Cheri-Oteris-Father-Killed—Sherry-Oterri-Dad-Murder-Murdered
Victoria Jackson v. Sanity.
For the win!
Team Tracy for sure. I’m surprised cheri oteri was such a biatch. but chris kattan always gave off that ‘dick’ vibe. and he was never really that funny.
I met Kataan once and he resembles that remark!
i met him as well….and yes…..he was a complete “dick”.
Tracey was horrible when he hosted SNL.
He was shockingly bad – and not in an amusing, fun way – when he hosted. I totally agree. But I like his work on 30 Rock.
I wouldn’t blame that entirely on Tracy Morgan. Have you watched SNL lately? The writing and skits are bad. Even last season. If it wasn’t for the elections and Tina Fey pretending to be Sarah Palin it would have been just as bad as this season..so far.
I completely agree. I don’t know why that show comes on anymore. I haven’t seen anything funny except sarah palin skits for years. I never thought Chris kattan was funny or Cheri Oteri. she was always supported by someone who was hilarious. Tracey at least did work prior to SNL. He was frequent on Martin and other black sitcoms, and did stand up. for a guy comming out of i think hes from Bed-stuy or flatbush…not good areas has done pretty good for himself.
Torn. Really want to side with Morgan because Cheri Oteri’s career has crashed and don’t even get me started on Chris Kattan (Uuuug! Anyone who’s ever had to deal with one of his weird, androgynous cameos in a movie knows what I mean), but Morgan should have kept his mouth shut and been professional. Those saying he’s going to be dead in 10 years are stupid and off-base. That’s insane. He is hilarious and it’s refreshing to hear someone be honest for once instead of being fake and pretending they like people they hate, but he probably should have kept his mouth shut.
hey, tracey may not make it 10…seen him twice at parties since 4th of July doing stuff that would kill Belushi and Farley
Have you ever heard Garrett Morris discuss his days with the original cast? Not vitrolic by any means, but not a warm description.
But Garrett Morris spent most of his time freebasing cocaine in his office (his description, not mine) so maybe it was just a matter of not having enough shared interests.
Not enough shard interests? Do you know nothing of the original SNL cast? They all spent the bulk of the 70’s high on cocaine. They haven’t exactly kept that secret.
Cheri Oteri was sooo good on SNL. But it does make you wonder what happened to her. Also, she didn’t seem to be on there for that long.
She was actually on for 5 years, which is a decent amount of time.
It felt like 100 years…
I side with Tracy. Tina Fey has worked with all three of them, some as just a writer, but she chose to work with Tracy on her own show over those two. And Lorne is behind Tracy, so he must have been easier to work with than Cheri or Chris. Plus, Will, Colin and Molly liked Tracy and those guys are some of the most respected out of SNL (well maybe not Colin). Also, is there a feud betweem Fey and Rachel Dratch? Remember she was is season one and then just disappeared. Also, does Fey not like Hader or Keenan? I think those are the only 2 current full time SNL cast members not to be on 30 Rock.
dratch was actually supposed to be the jenna role, but then i want to say somehow that didnt work out. whati think is that tina kept her on in all those random roles but something mustve (the network?it would get overdone?) stopped it from occuring
I heard Dratch got dumped from the Jenna role because she wasn’t attractive enough.
Yeah,I think that Tina F. wanted Rachel D. for the Jenna role, but the network intervened and insisted the role go to Jane K, but tried to mollify Tina F. by giving Rachel D. a ton of guest-spots.
Yeah, I read that the NBC suits didn’t like her. Fey tried to find various roles for her, but it didn’t work out.
Rachel Dratch was initially supposed to play Jenna. NBC wanted someone who looked less like Tina to play the role. I think I also read somewhere they wanted someone more “glamorous” or sosmething.
Sucks for Dratch, but I can’t imagine anyone other than Jane Krakowski as the delusional, narcissistic Jenna Maroney.
I also can’t imagine Jane Krakowski NOT playing Jenna. It is too bad for Rachel, but I loved the times she has popped up…Barbara Walters and the Rural Juror, hahahahahahaha!
Dratch was fired from the Jane role because NBC wanted someone who was good looking. The original pilot for 30 Rock was different than what aired. Dratch had a contrat and was stuck playing the ugly two second cameo roles on that show. Can you imagine, she was once a lead then asked to play a cat rangler for a two second cameo. Once she finished her contract she was out of there. Tina Fey was like her best friend at the time, Fey didn’t stick up for her.
Fey never was one for sticking by her best friends…
Tina did stick up for her but the network wouldn’t budge. Remenber, 30 Rock was on pretty shakey ground for the first year and Tina Fey wasn’t as well known as she is now. She quite simply didn’t have the power to challenge the network back then. Now that she has a few Emmy awards on her shelf she probably could but it’s a little late to change the show now.
Tina didn’t have the ground to make a stand on Rachel. I can’t say whether she did as much as she could (obviously), but Fey had no leverage to muscle Rachel into the lead considering it was something NBC felt strongly about.
Of course, Lorne is a notorious pain-in-the-ass, so we know what his opinion means.
Being the one with the money his opinion is the only one that matters.
Almost everyone who worked with Chevy Chase on SNL outwardly despised him. Not much of a career left there, either.
Tracy Morgan’s oversharing is a big part of his appeal. He’s an extremely post-millennial celebrity, incapable of separating his life from his career. He’s headed for a complete trainwreck, but it’s hard not to watch.
Chevy was only a cast member for the first season all the way back in 1975, and yes he was despised, but I don’t think it really affected his career, he had a long run in feature films, even working with former cast members Bill Murray and Dan Ackroyd, picking bad film roles is what affected his career, he picked “Snow Day” over “American Beauty”…. but he is making somewhat of a comeback with “Community”!
Why does everyone want him to act like a professional? He’s much more entertaining to watch this way, and he’s funny because of his bizarre persona. I don’t know why we have to be the cops sanitizing everyone to act like the most boring versions of ourselves. I think Cheri Oteri was a real talent, but Morgan’s hilarious – I say bring on the sniping!
Thanks Ethan. You put it perfectly. I love the most boring versions of ourselves line. So true. These people need to relax.
Totally agree. I am a fan of both Tracy and Cheri (NOT Chris Kattan though) and it’s refreshing to hear people’s honest opinions about work in the business. Read Kathy Griffin’s book if you want more of that.
TOTALLY agree – everything in show business is so fake it’s refreshing when someone is honest about their working relationships. plus, behind the scenes drama and feuds are part of the lore of SNL and it’s part of what has kept people interested in it for 35 years.
Can nobody, in their heart of hearts, imagine Cheri Oteri and Chris Kattan being douchebags? I know I can. And neither of them were ever particularly funny. Tracy Morgan has a schtick, but it works, and 30 Rock would not be nearly as funny without him.
I disagree with you on Cheri Oteri not being that funny, but you’re right that Tracy Morgan uses his “schtick” brilliantly on 30 Rock and it wouldn’t be the same without him.
good point. i could see it.
Yeah, I only think Cheri Oteri was funny in the cheer skit. And that’s only because it rang so true. Will probably made it up.
I can probably guess what happened but whatever Chris or Cheri are doing it’s certainly not noteworthy. Chris shouldn’t treat anyone bad with that face. I really liked their characters on SNL. It’s too bad they are jerks in real life (not that Tracy is a gentleman). Anyway, I think Tracy’s doing great on 30 but he was hit or miss (mostly miss) on SNL. I would like to hear their sides on this though. I’m sure after this someone will pay them attention for at least 15 minutes.
I wonder what they did. Chris Kataan always struck me as a jerk. Though Tracy Morgan seems not-altogether, I could believe that Kataan intentionally offended him. But Cheri Oteri is just so cute! Okay, being tiny doesn’t make someone likeable. Still, I think it’s a case of three oversized egos. Comics are often very sensitive about themselves, especially when they become successful.
Did he do one funny thing on SNL during his 10 years?
Okay so I might be the only one, but I like Brian Fellows. That’s crazy!
Don’t forget Astronaut Jones and his Star Jones on the View. “I’m a lawyer!”
I also thought Brian Fellows was hilarious! Never failed to crack me up.
FYI… the character’s name was Brian Fellow, not Fellows.
Here’s a page from Tracy site about the Brian Fellow character: http://www.tracymorgan.net/characters/brian-fellows-safari-planet
I love Tina Fey, but the reason I don’t watch “30 Rock” is that I can’t stand Tracy Morgan. I didn’t appreciate him on SNL, and I think he is an egotistical jerk whose self-confidence far outweighs any actual talent.
I agree… I also skip 30 Rock because of Tracy..
I, too, agree with you. Don’t care for Tracy Morgan and don’t watch 30 Rock because he is on it.
He is something of a blowhard and I think a bully.
I think he’s a lot funnier on 30 Rock than he ever was on SNL. He’s better with a script than with those live cue cards. he might be a better actor than he is a human being, but he is HILARIOUS on 30 Rock.
My husband won’t watch because of Morgan, but my 11 year old and I think he’s the icing on the cake. We never miss a show.
Cheri Oteri was and is totally hilarious. Katten less so. But come on, how sensitive is Jordan? I’d be surprised if anyone could be genuinely “disrespected” by Kattan. From reports I would have to say the best SNL feud is Bill Murray vs. Chevy Chase
Chevy Chase vs. the entire human race. Karma’s a b!itch, eh, Chevy?
chevy still wins!!!!
…..yawn….
I would call Oteri and Morgan even. She was funny on SNL and he wasn’t. He’s on a hit show (though he’s not the reason and still not funny) and she’s nowhere to be found.
NBC: Dratch fugly. Find someone beautiful.
Fey: Where’s the nearest bus, so I can throw her under it?
Oh please! None of you people were there so stop talking like you know what happened.
I have read an interview with Dratch. She was not happy about how it all went down at the time, but doesn’t seem bitter.
Fey has a history of dropping people that dates back to high school. MEAN GIRLS was her mea culpa to the world. Lindsey Lohan’s character was pretty much based on La Fey’s transformation in high school from cool fringer to bitchy popular gal. The 30 Rock ep in which Liz goes to her reunion and learns that she was actually a tormentor and not among the tormented is also based on Fey’s life.
Which is good. That’s the heartbreak of business decisions. You can’t get bitter about it. You just keep looking for work.
Tracy is not talented. He basically doing the same thing he did on SNL. He was only lucky to jump onto Tina Fey’s coattails. If Tina had not hired him he would be in the same place as Oter and Kattan.
I can certainly see Chris Kattan as a catty little bee-otch. Oteri kind of surprises me. The funniest thing Tracy Morgan ever did on SNL is Brian Fellows Safari Planet, in my opinion but that’s just one character in 10 years. Not the greatest record.
I have to agree with Gwen. Tracy Morgan is hard to watch. His voice is annoying and I don’t know if I have ever laughed at him.
I agree entirely, trashing the old SNL stars with no explanation doesn’t help his cause either!
I agree, I will never get past his voice. It is soooo annoying. I guess I don’t even know if he is funny because the instant I see him on anything I turn it off because I don’t want to hear that stupid voice he does. Does he really talk like that? I hope not.
I think if he left 30 Rock, it wouldn’t miss a beat.
No WAY. You people are crazy. Tracy has the craziest, most laugh-out-loud lines.
which may speak more to the writing than his performance….
Or, you know, both.
yeah, lorne loves tracy. this isnt anything new. tracy said junk about jimmy fallon. he stated the obvious, “cant act, laughs through all HIS sketches etc.” they patched things up on his show.
tracy is no sandler or rock. he is doing alot better than kattan and oteri.
Yeah, thanks to Fey. He simply is not funny.
and Rock is about as unfunny as Morgan.
Rock unfunny? ok your opinion doesn’t count anymore….lol
disagree. Rock is classic, is really funny.
Now, I just love Molly Shannon more!
Yeah, but where the hell is she after the Kath & Kim debacle?