What exactly do Irish Americans expect when they visit Ireland and tell the local bartender, unprompted, that they have Irish ancestors?
The question was tackled head-on in the (unfortunately) cut-for-time "Irish Americans" sketch that featured host and Co Kildare native Paul Mescal.
The unaired sketch from the December 9 episode of "SNL" is a welcome departure from the show's "Irish" sketches of the past that relied on tired stereotypes - alcohol, potatoes, accents, and even Aer Lingus.
With Irish actor Mescal at the helm on December 9, some braced themselves for another "Irish" sketch in the same vein, but, thankfully, such a sketch did not materialize.
However, Mescal did - humorously! - clear up some "Irish stereotypes" in his monologue:
The cut-for-time "Irish Americans" sketch published by "SNL" on December 12 may have been set in a pub and featured some woeful Irish accents and fashion, but this time it was the Irish Americans who were the butt of the joke.
It’s a scenario that born-and-bred Irish people know all too well: the earnest Irish American visits Ireland and reveals that he, too, is Irish - a whole quarter!
Of course, Irish people - very generally speaking - don't really care about a tourist's distant Irish roots. The "SNL" sketch, which likely had some expert input from host Mescal, plays out what would happen if they did care.
In the sketch set in an Irish pub - which the tourists found on TripAdvisor - the bartender, played by Mescal, and punters are thrown into a fit of excitement when they learn that, as the bartender says, "a son of the soil has returned to us!"
In the sketch, it's as if this tourist is the first American to visit Ireland. Imagine!
Desperate to learn more about the Irish American, there are soon questions about when the tourist's ancestors left Ireland (the 1860s, he thinks) and what his surname is (Krzyzewski, but his grandmother's maiden name is O'Connor).
The tourist's partner - who isn't Irish, but is 1/16 Scottish - notes the Irish American's "gift of the gab" and the Celtic cross tattoo on his wrist, both of which further fuel the intense fascination of the locals.
Concluding the "Irish Americans" sketch, the group raises a toast as the tourist offers a hearty "slanch," obviously an attempt at "sláinte."
"He speaks our language!" the bartender, nearly maniacal with excitement, cheers.
With its "Irish Americans" sketch, "SNL" is finally in on the "Irish" jokes.
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