|
Show
Guide: TV Tales
Synopsis:
Saturday
Night Live is more than just one of the longest-running shows
on television. It's also one of our longtime favorites. To get
you up to speed, or just to refresh your memory on the classic
comedy series--profiled on E!'s TV Tales--we've compiled a list
of SNL info, trivia and notable facts.
*Saturday
Night Live debuted October 11, 1975, and was hosted by George
Carlin, with musical guests Janis Ian and Billy Preston.
*The first
sketch featured John Belushi as a foreign student and Michael
O'Donoghue as a professor who teaches useful phrases such as "I
would like to feed your fingertips to the wolverines."
* Billy Crystal
was supposed to appear on that first show but got bumped. He'd
later join the cast in 1984.
*The show's
oddly phrased opening, "Live from New York, it's Saturday night,"
came out of the fact that ABC already had a variety show called
Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell. Cosell's short-lived show
featured a group of performers--including a fella named Bill Murray--called
"The Ready for Prime-Time Players."
 |
*Murray
took the Cosell job after Lorne Michaels passed him over in
favor of Dan Aykroyd. |
*Chevy Chase,
SNL's first breakout star, was also the first to depart, which
he did after the first season, to appear in terrific movies like
Foul Play, National Lampoon's Vacation and Fletch, as well as
his unfortunate late-night show in '95.
*Toonces the
Cat and Mr. Bill may be better remembered by SNL fans, but Jim
Henson's Muppets also made regular appearances on the early shows.
*Despite the
fact that he did 17 sketches in his "Bees" outfit, John Belushi
hated doing it. According to Lorraine Newman, at least part of
the problem was that the costume made it difficult to go to the
bathroom.
*Steve Martin
and Blondie have the honor of appearing on the highest-rated SNL,
which aired in 1979. The lowest rated? That would be the fourth
episode, with host Candice Bergen. Not that it mattered; Bergen
was tapped to host again just a few episodes later.
 |
*Steve
Martin has hosted the show 13 times, more than anyone else.
John Goodman has hosted the show 12 times and Buck Henry 10
times. |
*Appearing
from 1991 to 2000, Tim Meadows logged the most time on the show,
but Al Franken--never an official castmember--has spent more than
11 seasons with the show--on and off--since 1977.
*When she
was just seven years old, Drew Barrymore hosted the show, the
youngest ever to do it. The oldest celebrity host was 80-year-old
Harold and Maude star Ruth Gordon in 1977. Although, later that
year an 80-year-old grandmother won a contest and got to host
the show. The youngest cast member on the show was 17-year-old
Anthony Michael Hall, who was part of the 1985-86 cast, with Robert
Downey Jr., Randy Quaid and Joan Cusack. The oldest cast member
to join SNL was Michael McKean at age 46 in 1994-95.
*Though spoofs
of presidents Ford and Bush have been fan favorites over the years,
President Bill Clinton holds the title for the most impersonators,
having been goofed on by Dana Carvey, Chris Elliot, Chris Farley,
Darrell Hammond, Phil Hartman, Michael McKean, Tim Meadows, Adam
Sandler and David Spade.
*The show
has only been taped outside of New York once--in 1977, when the
cast and crew were live from New Orleans.
 |
*Although
Eddie Murphy was the biggest star to emerge from the casts
of the early '80s, he was originally hired only as a featured
performer. His appearances as Gumby, Buckwheat and Mr. Rogers
changed all that. |
*Charles Rocket,
a 1980-81 castmember, got fired for using the F-word on air. Other
performers, from Paul Schaeffer to Tony Danza, have uttered the
word as well.
*Jim Carrey
was rejected as a castmember.
*Roseanne's
Laurie Metcalf lasted as a featured member on only one show, the
final of the 1980-81 season.
*Who says
nepotism isn't funny? There have been three sets of brothers--Dan
(1975-79) and Peter Aykroyd (1980), John (1975-1979) and Jim Belushi
(1983-85) and Bill Murray (1977-80) and Brian Doyle-Murray (1981-82)--who've
appeared in the cast.
*In what has
to be some kind of a record, Jimmy Fallon has appeared on the
show as five different SNL castmembers: Gilbert Gottfried, Michael
McKean, Dennis Miller, Chris Rock and Adam Sandler.
 |
*Mike
Myers' fabulous Linda Richman character was based on his real-life
mother-in-law. Apparently, she was flattered. |
*Although
acts from Paul Simon and the Rolling Stones to the Backstreet
Boys and Puff Daddy have appeared on the show, the most memorable
musical moment was probably when Sinéad O'Connor tore up a picture
of the Pope in 1992.
*Though Wayne's
World became a huge fan favorite, it was initially so lowly regarded
that it appeared late in the program.
Production
Info:
Airdates:
Premiere: March 31st, 2002, 8 p.m.
Encore: March 31st, 10 p.m.; April 5th, 9 p.m.; April 6th, 2 p.m.
|
The Archives
Related Links
