Not long after college, Spade was encouraged by friends to follow a career in comedy. His stepfather's suicide, followed closely by his best friend's death in a motorcycle crash, propelled him into comedy full time.

With the help of friend and fellow comedian Dennis Miller, he joined Saturday Night Live in 1990 as a regular cast member and writer. Here he made popular his well-known sarcastic, smart aleck character in a number of sketches, some of which include: a flight attendant who bids an unpleasant "Buh-Bye" to each passenger as they disembark; a receptionist for Dick Clark who, as a matter of policy, asks even the most recognizable face "And you are?"; and, most famously, the bitingly sarcastic Hollywood Minute reporter who assaults celebrities with a series of one-liners. Other characters include Christy Henderson from the Gap Girls, and Karl from the Karl's Video sketches. He has also done impressions of famous celebrities, such as Brad Pitt and Michael J. Fox. Accordi