Matt Foley
Matt Foley is a fictional character from the sketch comedy program Saturday Night Live performed by Chris Farley. Foley is a motivational speaker who exhibits characteristics atypical of someone in that position: whereas motivational speakers are usually successful and charismatic, Foley is abrasive, clumsy, and down on his luck. The character was popular in its original run and went on to become one of Farley's best-known characters.
For the politician, see Matt Foley (politician).Matt Foley
May 8, 1993
October 25, 1997 (Farley)
February 11, 2015 (McCarthy)
Chris Farley (1993–1997)
Melissa McCarthy (SNL 40th Anniversary Special)
• Motivational speaker
• Prison inmate at Joliet Correctional Center (former)
• Mall Santa (former)
Three ex-wives (first one named Linda, other two unnamed)[1]
Personality and appearance[edit]
Foley is disheveled, sweaty, obese, clumsy and unstylish. He exhibits poor social skills, frequently loses his temper, often disparages and insults his audience, and wallows in cynicism and self-pity about his own poor life choices, to which he often makes reference. Foley's trademark line is warning his audience that they could end up like himself: "35 years old, eating a steady diet of government cheese, thrice divorced, and living in a van down by the river!" In most sketches, whenever a member of his audience mentions a personal accomplishment, Foley responds with mockery: "Well, la-dee-frickin-da!", "Whoop-dee-frickin-doo!", or a similarly dismissive remark. The usual outfit of choice for Foley is a too-small blue-and-white plaid sport coat, a too-big white dress shirt, a solid green necktie, black horn-rimmed glasses, ill-fitting khakis which he is continually pulling up, a wristwatch, penny loafers, and slicked-down blond hair. In a prison sketch, he dons blue jeans and a denim shirt with the inmate number "3307" while retaining his watch, glasses and a crucifix necklace (he also mentions a "homemade tattoo of a van down by the river"). While working as a mall Santa in another sketch, he wears a stereotypical Santa outfit, complete with black snow boots.
He overindulges in coffee and caffeine-based products and exhibits extreme hyperactivity as a result. In almost every appearance, Foley mentions drinking espresso or coffee, or taking NoDoz and even brings a duffel bag with a pot of coffee to the gym to teach a spinning class. His clients will often mention him either drinking coffee or eating coffee beans before calling him in to begin his presentation.