`NORM' STAR ALMOST BECAME A BUDWEISER FROG

`NORM' STAR ALMOST BECAME A BUDWEISER FROG

LOS ANGELES (Wireless Flash) -- Comic Artie Lange may be best- known for his work on the Fox network's "MAD-TV" -- but he could have gone down in the history books as one of the famous Budweiser frogs. Lange auditioned to be one of the talking frogs for the very first ad which debuted on the 1995 Super Bowl, but he wound up being picked to play a portly Greek god in another Bud commercial. The comic's spot aired during the same Super Bowl, which he thought would be great exposure. Unfortunately, Lange's ad was totally upstaged by the talking frogs. Now he jokingly refers to the famous frogs as "those SOBs," but he holds no grudge against them and admits the ads are some of the best TV commercials ever made. By the way, Lange has come a long way from playing second fiddle to a frog -- this fall, he'll be joining the cast of Norm McDonald's ABC sitcom and will also co-star in the Chris O'Donnell movie "The Bachelor."