About Al Franken
Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American politician, comedian, screenwriter, and actor who served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 until his resignation in 2018. Born in New York City and raised in Minnesota, he attended Harvard College and began performing comedy in high school with his longtime writing partner Tom Davis. Franken first gained fame as a writer and occasional performer on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live, working there from 1975 to 1980 and again from 1985 to 1995, where he created characters such as self-help guru Stuart Smalley and received five Emmy awards. He later became a liberal political activist, hosting a show on Air America Radio and writing best-selling satirical books including Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected to the Senate in 2008 by a margin of just 312 votes and was reelected in 2014.
Videos (212)
Videos 1 to 24 of 212.
10:01Sen. Franken Questions an Arbitration Lawyer about Binding Arbitration
320.8K views
9:45Senator Franken's Q & A with Brian Roberts, Jeff Zucker, and Dr. Mark Cooper
96.4K views
44:36Sen. Franken's Floor Statement on the Debt Crisis
31.9K views
1:18Senator Franken Explains a Tom Toles Cartoon
31K views
30:59Senator Al Franken Speaks out in Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing
11.5K views
7:17Sen. Franken's Amendment to Force Corporations To Give Assault Victims Day In Court
10.4K views
12:35Sen. Franken's Floor Speech on the Defense Authorization Bill
10K views
0:46Franken Co-Sponsors Amendment Promising that Senators will use the Public Option
9.4K views
10:11Sen. Franken's Opening Remarks On The Supreme Court Nomination Hearing Of Solicitor General Kagan
9.4K views
4:06Sen. Franken's Introductory Statement on the Comcast/NBC Merger
8.5K views
39:56Sen. Franken's Speech On The Economy, Unemployment, And The Budget
8.2K views
37:20Sen. Franken's Full Floor Speech On Health Care
8.2K views
10:01Sen. Franken's Floor Speech Against the Blunt Amendment
8.2K views
3:13Sen. Franken Questioning FBI Director Mueller about Carrier IQ in the Senate Judiciary Committee
8.2K views
2:11We Will Make It Better
8.1K views
8:06Sen. Franken's Floor Speech on Conservative Judicial Activism
7.7K views
3:04Sen. Franken questioning FBI Dir. Robert Mueller on Anti-Muslim Bigotry at the FBI
7.6K views
4:48A Message of Hope from the United States Senate
5.9K views
3:58Sen. Franken on the constitutionality of his amendment
5.6K views
1:01:29Sen. Franken's Colloquy with Sen. Whitehouse on Climate Change
5.2K views
18:26Sen. Franken's Floor Statement on Tax Cuts and Unemployment Insurance
5.1K views
17:56Chairman Franken questioning Apple, Google, and Experts on Mobile Privacy and Location Tracking
4.9K views
2:20Sen. Franken and Mr. Minnery of Focus on the Family debate a HHS Report on Families
4.8K views
22:57Sen. Franken's Speech to Netroots Nation 2011 on the Attack on the Middle Class
4.8K viewsGuest appearances (46)
Videos on other comedians' channels featuring Al Franken.
Guest appearances 1 to 24 of 46.
13:14Guest Host Al Franken on “Unannounced RAID” at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, Hating Ted Cruz & Jan 6 Hearings
Jimmy Kimmel
2.5M views
4:54Al Franken Faces Groping Accusations & Roy Moore Stays on Defense: The Daily Show
Jon Stewart
1.3M views
14:21Al Franken on Trump, Health Care & Impeachment
Jimmy Kimmel
1.2M views
5:11Senator Al Franken: Trump's Charlottesville Statement Was "Horrible" | CONAN on TBS
Conan O'Brien
614.5K views
1:49Al Franken's Inexcusable Excuse - Between the Scenes: The Daily Show
Jon Stewart
506.7K views
7:31Al Franken Gets Frustrated Watching Senate Hearings | CONAN on TBS
Conan O'Brien
345.1K views
9:31Bob Odenkirk on Better Call Saul Watch Party & Working with Al Franken on SNL
Jimmy Kimmel
340K views
4:39Trump Never Seemed Like a Guy Senator Al Franken Wanted to Know
Seth Meyers
303K views
5:59Al Franken Finds Out Where NYC's Trash Goes | The Daily Show
Jon Stewart
265.8K views
3:03The Most Shocking January 6th Hearing – Starring Al Franken & Bob Odenkirk
Jimmy Kimmel
244.3K views
18:09Al Franken brought us SNL's 'Colon Blow!'
Kevin Nealon
224.6K views
4:52Al Franken Shares What He’s Learned | CONAN on TBS
Conan O'Brien
206.2K views
6:49Al Franken Remembers His First Day As A U.S. Senator | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend
Conan O'Brien
202.9K views
6:44Senator Al Franken on Health Care Debate
Jimmy Kimmel
192.3K views
0:39Mickey Mantle- functioning alchie w/ Sam Morril, Mark Normand, & Al Franken
Sam Morril
161.8K views
4:00Senator Al Franken’s Campaign Rival Took His Beastiality Joke Out Of Context | CONAN on TBS
Conan O'Brien
132.7K views
3:19Senator Al Franken Made Fun Of Trump’s Comb Over | CONAN on TBS
Conan O'Brien
126.6K views
5:10Senator Al Franken Gives Conan The NYC Citizenship Test | CONAN on TBS
Conan O'Brien
126.2K views
4:38Al Franken Reveals Which Job is Better: Comedian or Senator
Jimmy Kimmel
121.1K views
3:28Senator Al Franken: My Staff Had To Reign My Humor In | CONAN on TBS
Conan O'Brien
117.9K views
10:14Al Franken’s Parents Got Cut From An SNL Sketch | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend
Conan O'Brien
115.8K views
2:52Senator Al Franken: This Is The Most Terrifying Election Of Our Lifetime | CONAN on TBS
Conan O'Brien
115.6K views
5:51Al Franken Isn’t As Brave As Volodymyr Zelensky | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend
Conan O'Brien
104.6K views
24:18The Best of Al Franken as Guest Host | The Daily Show
Jon Stewart
104.2K viewsChannels on this page: Jimmy Kimmel, Jon Stewart, Conan O'Brien, Seth Meyers, Kevin Nealon, Sam Morril
Frequently asked questions
Was Al Franken a writer on Saturday Night Live?
Yes. Al Franken worked on the NBC sketch series Saturday Night Live from 1975 to 1980 and again from 1985 to 1995, as a writer and occasional performer.
Which Saturday Night Live character did Al Franken create?
Franken created the self-help guru Stuart Smalley, among other characters, and received five Emmy awards for his work on the show.
Who was Al Franken's writing partner?
Al Franken began performing comedy in high school with Tom Davis, who became his longtime writing partner.
What satirical books did Al Franken write?
As a liberal political activist, Franken wrote best-selling satirical books, including Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot, and hosted a show on Air America Radio.
Was Al Franken a senator?
Al Franken, a member of the Democratic Party, served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 to 2018.
Where did Al Franken grow up?
Franken was born in New York City on May 21, 1951, was raised in Minnesota and attended Harvard College.
