Five things to know about Al Franken

October 19, 2008 at 1:02AM

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT AL FRANKEN

1 Franken scored a perfect 800 on the math section of his SAT boards at Blake School in Hopkins. He attributes his math aptitude to long hours spent playing canasta with his mother, Phoebe.

2 In 2007, the first year of his run for the Senate, Franken earned $17,500 in salary from Alan Franken Inc., his personal corporation. His earnings the previous year: more than $1 million.

3 In junior high, Franken got good grades and an occasional reprimand from teachers who failed to appreciate caustic truth-telling in a 13-year-old. He masterminded a parody of what he now calls an "insipid" production of "I'm a Little Teapot" by some classmates.

4 Fat cats were always a target for Franken's broadsides, even when they were his employers. While at Saturday Night Live, Franken took aim at NBC President Fred Silverman's door-to-door limousine service at a time when viewership was tumbling. The bit was called "Limo for the Lamo."

5 Franken doesn't drink or smoke.

about the writer

about the writer

More from No Section

See More
FILE -- A rent deposit slot at an apartment complex in Tucker, Ga., on July 21, 2020. As an eviction crisis has seemed increasingly likely this summer, everyone in the housing market has made the same plea to Washington: Send money — lots of it — that would keep renters in their homes and landlords afloat. (Melissa Golden/The New York Times) ORG XMIT: XNYT58
Melissa Golden/The New York Times

It’s too soon to tell how much the immigration crackdown is to blame.