Jeff Ross says Norm Macdonald’s death from cancer shaped the way he approached things when he was also diagnosed with cancer.
Ross, who’s known as the “Roastmaster General” for his scathing takedown of celebrities in roasts, talks about his cancer in his new one-man Broadway show, “Take a Banana for the Ride.” Macdonald, who died from cancer in 2021 at the age of 61, did not talk about his diagnosis. Ross said that shaped his own experience with cancer.
“I was very good friends with Norm Macdonald, and he didn’t tell people about his health issues,” he said July 15 while appearing on the 3rd Hour of TODAY. “And we didn’t get to give him a proper send-off.”
Jeff Ross (left) opened up about the impact Norm Macdonald’s (right) cancer had on him.Getty Images
Ross, 59, said he felt it was important to share his condition, especially with those close to him.
“And, as I went through it, with myself and chemo, it was really my family and friends that lifted me up and helped me get through it,” he said. “One of the things I talk about in the show is it’s not just the fight, it’s the army. It’s the people that help you through it. So, I thought it was important. Plus, get a colonoscopy, folks. It saved my life.”
The Emmy-nominated comedian said the reaction to his show has been good, since it helps others.
“If it was just about me, I don’t think I’d be able to sustain the show, but it’s been cathartic for people who see it, and they’re telling me their stories afterwards, and it’s kind of cool. It feels like a communal, cathartic comedic experience,” he said.
Jeff Ross talked to TODAY about his experience with cancer.TODAY
Ross previously said he got his first colonoscopy after a friend asked him to do it, injecting his trademark humor into recounting his experience.
“I was already in my 50s, and I’d never gotten a colonoscopy,” he said during a June appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” “I went in, I had no symptoms, and I had a tumor in my colon. You always think it’s never going to happen to you, and it happened to me.”
He said he had 7 inches of his colon removed. “Now I have a semicolon,” he joked.
“My oncologist was like, ‘Jeff, good news and bad news. The bad news is you’re going to need six months of chemo. The good news is you lost your hair a long time ago,’” he said.