Saturday Night Live has survived the departure of legendary comedians from Illinois before, but this latest one surprised us. It surprised us because we had no idea this big-time cast member was from the Land of Lincoln!

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Cecily Strong has left SNL after a successful 11-year run on the show. According to ew.com leaving in the middle of season 48 was part of the plan...

"EW has learned Strong always intended to return for only the first half of season 48, after missing the first few episodes of the season while putting on her one-woman show, a revival of The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, in Los Angeles."

What was shocking to me (a long-time fan of SNL, and a lifelong Illinoisian) is that Cecily Strong is from Illinois! According to IMDB.com...

"Cecily Strong was born on February 8, 1984 in Springfield, Illinois, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Saturday Night Live (1975), Schmigadoon! (2021) and Ghostbusters (2016)."

This makes Cecily Strong the latest in a long line of great comedians from the Land of Lincoln. A list that includes Bernie Mac, Bill Murray, John Belushi, Bob Odenkirk, Melissa McCarthy, Seth Meyers, Bob Newhart, Jeff Garlin, John C. Reilly, Jim Gaffigan, and many more!

Ill be honest, I haven't watched much SNL over the last couple of years. I, like many people, am a huge fan of classic SNL from the mid-70s, the early 90s, and then the Will Ferrell era in the early 2000s, but recently SNL has just not resonated with me. But I do think Cecily Strong was one of the people on the show over the last 20 years that did a good job, and her presence on the show will be missed.

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