The writing on the wall earlier this year when strong miss a few Saturday Night Live episodes to perform on stage in the revival of Searching for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe. Now, after 11 seasons in the cast, Strong is officially leaving mid-season for the last time SNL episode in 2022.
“Tonight we send one of the best ever to do it,” the show’s Instagram account posted ahead of the live broadcast. “We will miss you, Cecily!”
Strong, who was nominated for her work on SNL at both the 2020 and 2021 Emmy Awards, there’s a chance bring back her Kimberly Guilfoyle scream in the open cold. Then she shined as an older fan of Sarah Sherman’s “Jewish Elvis” alongside host Austin Butler. But “Weekend Update” is where she always shines the most, and it’s there that she gets the epic farewell she deserves.
While we may not have received one more appearance by Jeanine PirroStrong has decided to say goodbye to SNL with another of her unremarkable characters: Cathy Anne, “the woman who always screams outside Michael Che’s window.”
When asked by Che this time what “having her goose” is, she replied: “Thanks for asking, sexy. But actually, I’m a little emotional tonight, because the truth is is, I’m here to say goodbye.”
She explained that she was about to go to jail, joking that she was “not too scared because I have friends inside and they seem fine.” With that line, the image of Strong just left SNL co-stars Kate McKinnon and Aidy Bryant in orange jumpsuits appeared on screen next to her.
Towards the end of her final installment, the strong character broke and was deeply moved when she said, “Listen, everyone has to go to jail at some point, right? Now is just my time. But I’ve had a lot of fun here and I feel really lucky because I’ve had so many of the best moments of my life here with the people I love so much.”
“Like another drug addict said, there’s no place like home,” she said, returning to the character. “And there’s no house like the one where I have to scream outside Michael Che’s window.”
“But don’t be sad, because remember,” she added, interrupting the song, “I did a great job, Che!”
But that’s not all. For the final sketch of the night, Kenan Thompson played a Radio Shack manager seeing off his “employees”.
“Honestly, I don’t think Radio Shack would have survived this long without Cecily,” he said as Strong fought back tears. “Every time she comes to work, she has a new personality, a new tone or a new impression that will amaze you. She will have a power and joy with her performance that will remind you of why you loved working at Radio Shack in the first place.”
The episode ends with Butler and then the rest of the cast singing Strong’s “Blue Christmas” as it snows on set. It’s not quite Mick Jagger singing “She’s a Rainbow” to Kristen Wiig, but it’s very close.
For more, listen to Melissa Villaseñor reveal why she left SNL The Last Laughter Podcast.
