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Nate Bargatze reveals the true story behind his legendary George Washington SNL sketch

The initial table read did not get the reaction Bargatze expected.

Saturday Night Live/YouTube

Seriously, what were our forefathers thinking with our measuring system?

America is definitely not afraid to do its own thing, even when its own thing is pretty weird. Ever stop to think how bizarre it is that the United States is one of the only countries to not use the metric system? Or how it uses the word “football” to describe a sport that, unlike fútbol, barely uses the feet at all?

What must our forefathers have been thinking as they were creating this brave new world? Wonder no further. All this and more is explored in a Saturday Night Live sketch that folks are hailing as an “instant classic.”

The hilarious clip takes place during the American Revolution, where George Washington rallies his troops with an impassioned speech about his future hopes for their fledgling country…all the while poking fun at America’s nonsensical measurements and language rules.

george washington, george washington's dream, snl sketch, nate bargatze "Washington Crossing the Delaware" by George Caleb BinghamPublic domain

Like seriously, liters and milliliters for soda, wine and alcohol but gallons, pints, and quarters for milk and paint? And no “u” after “o” in words like “armor” and “color” but “glamour” is okay?

The inherent humor in the scene is only amplified by comedian and host Nate Bargatze’s understated, deadpan delivery of Washington. Bargatze had quite a few hits during his hosting stint—including an opening monologue that acted as a mini comedy set—but this performance takes the cake.

Watch:

- YouTubeyoutu.be

All in all, people have been applauding the sketch, noting that it harkened back to what “SNL” does best, having fun with the simple things.

“This skit is an instant classic. I think people will be referencing it as one of the all time best SNL skits for years.”

“Dear SNL, whoever wrote this sketch, PLEASE let them write many many MANY more!”

“Instantly one of my favorite SNL sketches of all time!!!”

“I’m not lying when I say I have watched this sketch about 10 times and laughed just as hard every time.”

“This may be my favorite sketch ever. This is absolutely brilliant.”

Kenan Thompson Snl GIF by Saturday Night LiveGiphy

The sketch was so popular, they did another one when Nate Bargatze returned to SNL in October of 2024, and it's every bit as hilarious as the first one. Again, the comedy focused on the idiosyncrasies of America, including our names for animal food products, the way we count grades in school, and the design of our currency.

"A real American would never want to know what's in a hot dog, just as they will never know why our money is called the 'dollar'…" says Bargatze as Washington. "And if you think I'm worthy, put my portrait on the front of it."

"And what shall be on the back, sir?" asks Kenan Thompson's character.

"Everything, all of it," Washington replies. "Crazy stuff, squiggles, Latin words, a pyramid with a floating eye on top."

Watch:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

The sketches became so popular, people wanted to know more about how the idea for them came about and what the process of creating the original sketch was like. Jesse David Fox, the host of Good One: A Podcast About Jokes, sat down with Bargatze and SNL writers Mikey Day and Streeter Seidell to talk about the origins of the sketch and what it was like to co-create it in the week leading up to the live show. It's a fascinating insight into the SNL writing process, which is largely done within that week.

According to Day and Seidell, there had been an idea for a George Washington sketch in the vault of ideas that hadn't seen daylight yet, but it was just a vague idea without the focus of the weights and measurements and other things. Bargatze was on board with playing Washington, but apparently, the sketch was kind of a flop in rehearsals as the week went on, coming in dead last on the list of sketches they had prepared for the show. But Bargatze said he really liked the sketch, and once he was in costume and in front of a live audience for dress rehearsal, everything came together to make the magic of a classic SNL bit.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com


Bargatze has rocketed into the comedy world with his clean stand-up routines that the whole family can enjoy. You can catch even more of Bargatze’s “SNL” episodes here and here.

This article originally appeared two years ago and has been updated.

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Nate Bargatze plays a deadpan angel in Christmas-themed nativity scene sketch

"How can I feel entertained, saddened and find this to be funny at the same time?" one viewer commented.

CBS/Youtube

Heavenly good comedy.

Comedian Nate Bargatze has tickled Saturday Night Live audiences not once, but twice with his hilariously deadpan portrayals of George Washington as he inadvertently pokes fun at America’s little quirks—like our headscratcher of a measuring system and “doing our own thing with the English language.”

As part of his Nashville Christmas special for CBS, Bargatze channeled this same dry wit as he recreated a Christmas staple—the nativity scene. Playing Gabriel the angel—complete with a platinum blonde curl wig and massive feathered wings—Bargatze explained modern-day Christmas traditions to confused but reverent Joseph and Mary, played by SNL cast members Ashley Padilla and Mikey Day (who wrote the scene, as well as SNL’s George Washington sketches).

Bargatze pokes fun at everything from Christmas trees aka “big pine trees” decorated with "garbage that your kids made at school” for who knows why, to the incredibly unbalanced ratio of “boring” Jesus songs to songs “about snow and snow-related activities,” to the real star of all Christmas celebrations not being Jesus at all…but Santa. According to Gabriel’s summation, Christmas is really “90/10” in favor of Santa. Honestly, where's the lie?

But the funniest bit arguably comes at the end when Joseph proclaims that "Christmas day will forever be celebrated by all the faithful Jewish people," which draws immediate laughter from the audience. Skirting the issue, Gabriel simply replies, "I'm gonna take off. Merry Christmas, y'all."

Watch:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Yep, hitting the nail on the head in so many delightful ways, right? And while it's easy to see how a sketch like this could easily become controversial in the blink of an eye, Bargatze has managed to do what few modern-day comedians can accomplish—create comedy that's funny without offending anyone. His material is famously unpolitical, doesn't use curse words, and doesn't hide behind a mask of surliness that's customary of many of his contemporaries. It's an approach the clearly works, given his pretty fast rise to fame, and apparently makes potentially sensitive subjects—like religion—easier to tackle.

Down in the comments, people had nothing but praise.

“How can I feel entertained, saddened and find this to be funny as well, all at the same time?”

“Funniest things I’ve seen in years. I’m usually a ‘quiet appreciator’ of comedy but this makes me laugh out loud.”

“A Nate Bargatze Nativity Scene is the funniest Christmas GIFT this year! Love you dude!!”

"These are the most unique and fresh comedy skits [I've seen] in a long time."

“Ahhhhh…this just made my whole year!! (As I sit here looking at a pine tree adorned with used popsicle sticks, tabs from soda cans tied together with yarn, little brown paint handprints that… if you reaaallyyy use your imagination … look like Rudolf, and a few ‘unbroken’ glass balls held together with hot glue.) “

Fingers crossed that we have an Easter Bunny skit in our future, with Bargatze playing the title character.

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SNL's latest 'Washington's Dream’ sketch hilariously skewers the quirks in American English

Nate Bargatze is back as Washington for the second time.

via SNL/YouTube

Nate Bargatze and Kenan Thompson star in SNL's follow-up to "Washington's Dream."

In 2023, “Saturday Night Live” struck gold with a historical sketch where, in 1776, then-General George Washington laid out his dream for the future of America after the Revolutionary War. The twist is that his dream is to promote a series of nonsensical American cultural quirks, such as the refusal to adopt the metric system and the arbitrary ways American English differs from the UK’s.

The sketch was a great send-up of the cultural differences that separate Americans from their cousins across the pond and stand-up comedian Nate Bargatze, as Washington, delivered them in a pitch-perfect deadpan.

The sketch was the second most popular from SNL season 49 and introduced the low-key stand-up comedian to a much wider audience. On October 5, 2024, Bargatze returned to host SNL and once again donned the powdered wig as Washington. This time, America’s first president addressed his troops, played again by Mikey Day, Kenan Thompson and Bowen Yang, about his dream for America from a boat crossing the Delaware.

In the second “Washington’s Dream” sketch, the general tells his soldiers that he hopes the new country will "do our own thing with the English language."

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

"I dream that one day, our great nation will have a word for the number 12. We shall call it a dozen," Bargatze's Washington says.

"And what other numbers will we have a word for?" a soldier asks.

"None," Washington replies. "Only '12' shall have its own word because we are free men, and we will be free to spell some words two different ways." Which ones? "Doughnut, and the name 'Jeff'," he explains, noting that there’s "the short way with the J and the stupid way with the G."

Washington also plans to differentiate some living animals from those on our plates. "We will also have two names for animals: One when they're alive and a different one when they become food," Washington explains. "So cows will be 'beef.' Pigs will be 'pork.'"

"And chickens, sir?" Yang asks. "That one stays. Chickens are 'chicken'," says Washington. "And we will create our own foods, and name them what we want. Like the hamburger."

"Made of ham, sir?" Day asks. "If it only were that simple," Washington adds. "A hamburger is made of beef, just as a 'buffalo wing' is made of chicken." However, he assures his troops that a hot dog is not made from man’s best friend. "A real American would never want to know what's in a hot dog, just as they will never know why."


Just like the original “Washington’s Dream,” the sketch was co-written by cast member Mikey Day and Streeter Seidell, with Mike DiCenzo.

The bit was initially conceived by SNL writer Seidell, who was surprised by how well the counterintuitive casting worked. “I forget who we originally wrote it for, but it was very much a dramatic actor who would play more of a serious Washington,” he told Indiewire. “You can see that version of it, but in hindsight Nate was the perfect person to do it because it had this charm that I don’t know that it would have with a real powerful George Washington. An Academy Award-winning actor might have taken it too seriously.”

Here is the original "Washington's Dream" sketch:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

SNL will return on Saturday, October 12, featuring host Ariana Grande and a musical performance by Stevie Nicks.

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