Jim Downey

Jim Downey is an American comedy writer and performer whose long association with Saturday Night Live began in 1976. A former president of the Harvard Lampoon, he became a central contributor to the show’s political satire, writing candidate impressions, debates, and sketches across more than three decades of changing casts.

Downey also worked as a head writer on Late Night with David Letterman during its early years. His collaborations at SNL included work with Norm Macdonald on Weekend Update, and he occasionally appeared on screen. Outside television, he played the principal who judges the academic competition in Billy Madison.