Proud Hell’s Kitchen kid Timothée Chalamet took over emcee duties on Saturday Night Live last night – and waxed lyrical about being a New Yorker through and through, sharing his memories of growing up in the city.
“I actually grew up in an arts building in Hell’s Kitchen, about 12 minutes from here,” he told a cheering, mask clad and socially distanced audience during his monologue, adding: “I’ll always be a New York City kid at heart, especially at Christmas… Ice skating on the Hudson, sledding down the side of the Chrysler Building, leaving cookies for Santa in the bathroom at the Port Authority Bus Terminal… Playing hide and seek in Grand Central and never seeing your friends ever again.”
Timothee also revealed his family has history with SNL, introducing a clip of his mom as an extra on the show back in the day: “My mom was a dance teacher, but on occasion she would do background work on Saturday Night Live. In fact, we have a clip of her in a Dana Carvey and Chris Farley sketch – she almost got spit on by Chris Farley!”
His mom, Nicole Flender, was in the audience to hear his shout out to the neighborhood and Manhattan Plaza where the family lived during Timothée’s childhood. Pointing her out in the crowd, he said emotionally: “She’s the reason I’m alive, she’s the reason I have an acting career.”
I happen to know who his first kiss really was but I’m not telling! Great to see Timmy show appreciation for Nicole and the neighborhood!