S40.E00: The 40th Anniversary Special

[VCRTracking]

 

Did no one else miss Rob Schneider? He was t on the show or mentioned in this thread. I'm not crazy about the him but copier guy bit is one that sticks out in my memory along with chopping broccoli.

 

The Schneider characters I remember most were "Sensitive Naked Man" and "Orgasm Guy".

 

 

We didn't see much of it, but Andy Samberg's jogger from 80's during his audition sounded awful. Yeesh. He's very lucky those digital shorts worked out for him in the end.

 

 

That actually made it on the show way back in 2006!

 

https://screen.yahoo.com/breath-jogger-1982-000000985.html

 

There wasn't anything else to it then that. I remember when it first aired thinking "That's it?"

Edited February 17, 2015 by VCRTracking

[BravaBravo]

Anyone see either one of the Elliot's last night?

[AuntTora]

I kind of watched it last night and this morning while I was doing stuff, but tonight I sat down and actually watched a few things more closely.

1. I love The Californians, but that was...not great, and way too long.

2. Al Franken! You can just see him behind Bob Odenkirk during the Seinfeld bit.

3. People. You maybe be on camera at any moment, you don't know when. DON'T BE CHEWING GUM. So many people looked like, in my mom's expression, a cow chewing their cud.

 

The one bit I would have liked to have seen -- in the sports segment? Greg is not an alien. That, along with The Californians, is my favorite from the last half dozen years.

[pythonite]

It was a big wobbly show and impossible to take in in one viewing but I loved it. It's a rating smash so that's great for the show. I'd rather watch this than the Oscars.

 

Favorite moments were all the live sketches and the Marty/Maya led musical numbers. Sarah Palin was rather funny. Who knew? The only thing I had to cut out of my recording was the commercials and kanye. 

 

I love The Californians! Lorraine Newman was the original "valley girl" so I'm glad she was included. Everyone was doing crazy accents. I can forgive the rustiness of the older cast members.

 

It was so tee'd up for Eddie Murphy to have THE huge moment. But what? He's still too made at Spade? He could have done a few seconds of any of his old characters and -- show over.  SNL may have been canceled without him but he never would have become a movie star without SNL either. And if SNL was canceled it would have been brought back anyway by Lorne. He's never had anything else he feels this passionate about.

[Kromm]

Apparently the also cut Jeopardy from the Hulu ep, though its available as a clip.

Why would anyone cut the single best skit of the night?

 

Yeash.  Cut the asinine Californians piece of crap if you have to cut SOMETHING.

3. People. You maybe be on camera at any moment, you don't know when. DON'T BE CHEWING GUM. So many people looked like, in my mom's expression, a cow chewing their cud.

To be fair, that's kind of Norm MacDonald's thing (he was the most noticeable one--doing it right behind Lorne's head in the goodbye sequence). He's ALWAYS done it, going all the way back, and always full well knowing he's on camera when he does it (in this case we saw him wave to the camera at the SAME time he was chaw-chaw-chawing away).  It's my one big issue with him, but its kind of a package deal and he brings too much else to the table to toss him out just for that.

[nowandlater]

2. Al Franken! You can just see him behind Bob Odenkirk during the Seinfeld bit.

 

Wow! Al Franken! Was there any Al Franken on the show (other than the Tom Davis thing? Man, he was so significant.

 

Did no one else miss Rob Schneider? He was t on the show or mentioned in this thread. I'm not crazy about the him but copier guy bit is one that sticks out in my memory along with chopping broccoli.

 

Schneider tweeted a bunch of pics from the show....https://twitter.com/robschneider

 

He also did that copy machine thing for State Farm, before it was pulled because of his anti-vaccine views.

http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2014/09/24/state-farm-hires-then-drops-antivaccine-comedian-rob-schneider/

 

Since Schneider and Hans and Franz were already in commercials in recent months, it didn't make sense to bring them back on the show.

 

 

 

Re: Andy Samberg' audition. Bill Hader has said several times that when he went to audition and bumped into Samberg in the elevator, Samberg had tons of props, which made Hader feel woefully inadequate. So maybe there's a lot more to the audition. Samberg didn't just get hired, but his 2 Lonely Island pals got hired, too, thus changing the show for the good.

 

Edited February 17, 2015 by nowandlater

[Kromm]

re: The Californians

 

For a while I was entertaining the idea that maybe it went SO radically long because it was meant to be a meta-joke.  Few would debate that one of the most consistent criticisms of the show has always been about skits running too long--pounding jokes into the ground then still going, going, going... The practical explanation for that was often something as simple as them being time fillers (especially later in the episode), for canceled skits, or just because they needed to fill time when earlier skits ran too fast (which happens as much as the reverse).  

 

But... the problem with that idea is that this was a packed show, with no room for that.  Also there was nothing IN the sketch to telegraph an attempt to make fun of the "SNL skits are too long" thing.  If it was meta, it was too subtle for me, at least.

 

I suppose it was what it was.  A blunt, stupid way to shove as many guest stars on stage without the SNL writers having to think too hard.  Meh.

[Kel Varnsen]

1. I love The Californians, but that was...not great, and way too long.

 

I like the Californians too. I wouldn't say I love it, but Bill Hader's ridiculous facial expression during that skit always makes me laugh.

 

I think my favourite little thing though, was when Maya Rudolph's  Beyonce was on stage her hair was always blowing in the wind.

 

Good to know that it will be replaying on Friday. I missed the last half hour I guess, which is annoying, because once I realized it was life I set my PVR to record the show that came on after it. My recording cut off at the end of the Sandler/Sandberg song, then when I went to watch whatever the next show it started with the credits rolling. I really have no idea how the hell that happened.

[Carey]

It was so tee'd up for Eddie Murphy to have THE huge moment. But what? He's still too made at Spade? He could have done a few seconds of any of his old characters and -- show over.  SNL may have been canceled without him but he never would have become a movie star without SNL either. And if SNL was canceled it would have been brought back anyway by Lorne. He's never had anything else he feels this passionate about.

 

 

I haven't really heard anything from the cast/people in attendance defend him, since he actually had more to say while they were going to commercial.  But I guess, as mentioned, he's moved on from those characters.  Which is just an excuse since several others that have moved on from their material brought it back.  Some of the stuff he did on the show was also done in his stand-ups (including the big ones from 1983 & 1987).

 

That being said, his feud with Spade is over.  That was 15-20 years ago (IMO, both sides were at fault there).  Glad that David & Eddie moved on from such a meaningless thing (helped that Chris Rock is pretty close to both of them).  Total agreement about SNL making Eddie a big deal as much as he saved it, BTW.

 

Rob was definitely there, but like Al Franken and several others, nothing done from either person.  IMO, it wasn't a big deal; in the 25th anniversary show, a lot of former castmembers (many whom couldn't make it this year) just attended and weren't "heard from" at all.  I guess throughout the rest of the week I'll learn that this start and that star attended (that I thought was absent).

[mizkat]

Turd Ferguson showing up gave me life. 

 

Overall I enjoyed it. I wish they'd stop trying to make Taylor Swift happen. Betty White's got her cradle robbing-oversexed-nonagenarian thing going on and I don't see what's wrong with that. Love how game Bradley Cooper was, along with so many other people. I thought Emma Stone's impression was great, but nothing can replace Gilda. Ed Norton's Stephon was less successful, but again, I give points for being game. Unlike Chevy Chase--I think there's something wrong there, and Eddie Murphy--whatever that was about. 

 

As much I dislike Miley Cyrus--and this goes back to her Hannah Montana days, when my youngest was HUGE fan--I prefer her over Taylor Swift and Can-ye any day. 

 

As for Fifty Shades of Misogyny- I think NBC's parent company produced the movie, which is why Dakota has the hosting gig. Same with Fallon (who I like) getting to open the show--NBC will protect its current feeble interests before anything else. 

 

The audience--either drunk or subdued? I don't know--seems like this season all the audiences have been meh about the show, like they can barely be bothered to laugh.

 

I can never get enough of Jeopardy or ESPN Classics. Apparently my inner twelve year old is alive and well.             

[AriAu]

If you missed anything from the show, here is Fallon's recap-might be funnier than the show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0XleMIKKNg

By the way, is anyone living a cooler life than Fallon right now....maybe Timerlake, but at least Justin has talent.

[Irlandesa]

Don't know what they'll cut; but they cut Fallon and Timberlake from what they made available On Demand on Comcast.  I find that weird because they didn't cut McCartney and I expect they would have if it was a music problem which is usually the situation.  I just got past the Californians and really have no desire to re-watch anymore to see.

I'm sure Fallon/Timberlake will be in the rebroadcast since they likely purchased musical rights for the broadcast/reruns (although probably not syndication) but not for online use.  McCartney likely wouldn't be cut because doesn't McCartney own his own songs? 

[morgankobi]

I'm not sure a room full of celebrities and their +1s is the best audience to provide much laughter. I'm sure most of them are worried about how they look, who they can schmooze with next break, if the camera may be on them, how they will do in their upcoming skit, etc.

[Miss Scarlet]

My people! Er, person. Either way, it's been getting positively awful reviews, and the small interview excerpts I've seen make it seem like everyone involved with the film already wants to distance themselves from it, especially the two leads. I haven't seen the movie or read the book (like I'm gonna spend my hard-earned money on literal Twilight fanfiction) but enough excerpts have been floated around to my corner of the internet where I'm just astonished that anyone could see the story as anything other than abusive trash.

 

I'm sure last night in the live thread it seemed like I had some kind of personal issue with Dakota, which I don't, really, besides the fact that she knowingly decided to be a part of this shit. But I, too, am tired of this movie being promoted as some sort of love story when, from everything I've seen, it's a textbook case of domestic violence.

Yeah, I feel the same way. I have no idea who Dakota Johnson is, but anyone who decided to be part of this movie and cannot see it for what it truly is concerns me. People use the excuse "well, if it wasn't her it would still get made, just with a different actress", but that's not the point. The point is why is she endorsing this misogynist piece of crap?

Anyone see either one of the Elliot's last night?

I was wondering about them too and thinking about how Abby was really underused on the show. I actually liked her and thought she had a lot of potential. I don't know why she or the writers weren't able to come up with a few characters for her. I was thought it was so there was no Cheri Oteri, other than the Spartans clip.

 

By the way, is anyone living a cooler life than Fallon right now....maybe Timerlake, but at least Justin has talent.

A lot of what he gets to do seems like fun, but honestly, I think interviewing celebrities would be a really awful job. Maybe it's just because I don't follow any celebrities and don't care about any of them, but I think it would boring and, at times, like teeth-pulling. So is Jimmy the cast member that Lorne is personally closest to? I know Lorne loves Kristen Wiig and has worked with Tina a lot in the past, but he seems to talk very glowingly about Jimmy as well.

 

Even though they couldn't fit everyone in, I really liked that the airtime was distributed as evenly as possible. No one person overwhelmed the show. I haven't seen the 25th anniversary show, so when they announced this one I really thought it would be like a regular SNL episode where a couple favorites basically take over the whole show. I was glad that didn't happen.

Edited February 17, 2015 by wudpixie

[absnow54]

Watching the credits again, I spotted Siobhan Fallon (her and Jimmy actually hug, which is a cute "family renunion") Rob Riggle, and surprisingly Jeff Richards (who left over creative differences.)

[Princess Sparkle]

Re: Andy Samberg' audition. Bill Hader has said several times that when he went to audition and bumped into Samberg in the elevator, Samberg had tons of props, which made Hader feel woefully inadequate.

 

 

Well, and what's funny about that is that when Andy Samberg was asked about it, he said he saw Hader go up without any props and thought  "OMG, this guy must be hilarious; he doesn't need any props to be funny!"  

 

I know he was in the digital short but I was surprised that Samberg was there and not on stage.

 

I'm not surprised he only showed up in the Digital Short, because for as long as he was on the show, he never really had any sort of recurring character, or even really a recurring character in a group sketch - the closest thing is probably being one of the kids in those Scared Straight sketches.  For what it's worth, I do think for what he did for the show, Andy probably was one of the people who helped revolutionize it the most - the Digital Shorts really brought SNL into being a HUGE presence on the internet, and got people talking about the show at a time when it was sort of in a down swing.  I don't think he gets nearly enough credit for that. 

[peeayebee]

If you missed anything from the show, here is Fallon's recap-might be funnier than the show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0XleMIKKNg

By the way, is anyone living a cooler life than Fallon right now....maybe Timerlake, but at least Justin has talent.

Man, thank you for sharing that, except now I am so jealous of Fallon. What an amazing night.

[theatremouse]

I thought the handling of dead people was really awkward, in a number of places. It made me feel weird at the very beginning when JF+JT were doing their song because they touched on SO MANY things and in the moment I thought "oh so that's what we're getting of that?" because if they'd already done a bit in the medley, I figured they wouldn't touch on it again later, in the form of clip or new sketch or whathaveyou. So, that was my first moment of being wrong. But then still, every time they sort of did a bit that was someone else's bit, and the person was there, made me feel a little weird, and when the person was deceased made me feel weirder.

I did not like that they had anyone doing other people's characters; it felt really off. I'm not sure I can explain why. When they started during WU I got a sense of dread and because the first few were instances of characters where the originator was dead, it felt like a weird ploy to still have that character appear, not in clip form, despite the person being dead. I know it was meant as flattery, framed as the person doing their favourite character, but it still rubbed me the wrong way. And then they had Norton doing Stefon which was only saved by Hader showing up and showing him how he was doing it wrong. I think it just struck a very odd tone.

And it made me feel like they couldn't decide whether they wanted to do some maudlin in memoriam thing, or if they wanted to just not go there and go for funny and kind of...ignore the fact that the people were dead? They seemed to not really be able to decide, so then I was super surprised when there was an actual in memoriam segment.

Not just in regard to the handling of the above, but in general, it seemed like they had a hard time balancing how they produced the show: for the reunion of people in the room or for the people watching it all on television. It seemed to swing back and forth a bit. It felt like there were moments clearly for the benefit of those in the know, but maybe not as clear or funny or just...not as likely to land with the home audience, vs things that I imagine were 100% pandering to the home audience. It was weird and uneven in a different way than SNL usually is.

Edited February 17, 2015 by theatremouse

[Kel Varnsen]

A lot of what he gets to do seems like fun, but honestly, I think interviewing celebrities would be a really awful job. Maybe it's just because I don't follow any celebrities and don't care about any of them, but I think it would boring and, at times, like teeth-pulling. So is Jimmy the cast member that Lorne is personally closest to? I know Lorne loves Kristen Wiig and has worked with Tina a lot in the past, but he seems to talk very glowingly about Jimmy as well.

 

 

I think the really hard part would be to pretend to people you don't really care about. I mean I am sure Jimmy has no problem being enthusiastic when one of his friends like Tina or someone shows up. But what about when a person shows up you don't care for, or someone is pushing a project you have no interest in. You still have to be nice and pretend to be into it, especially when it is something from NBC/Universal. Only Letterman has the kind of clout where if he gets stuck with guests he doesn't like he can show it.

[AriAu]

it seemed like they had a hard time balancing how they produced the show: for the reunion of people in the room or for the people watching it all on television. It seemed to swing back and forth a bit. It felt like there were moments clearly for the benefit of those in the know, but maybe not as clear or funny or just...not as likely to land with the home audience, vs things that I imagine were 100% pandering to the home audience. It was weird and uneven in a different way than SNL usually is.

 

I agree, but I think it was great that they kept honoring the crew and cue card people etc.... Would have been pretty shallow and self-absorbed NOT to honor them in some meaningful way. I thought it was great that in memoriam was not limited to on air talent, but included crew. I was discussing the show with a younger person and he felt the whole thing was not really funny and more of a tribute and I think, while there were funny moments, he was generally right. Paul Simon is great, but the main reason to have him on was that he is an SNL institution....and a member of the 5 timers club. None of this is a bad thing, and as someone who actually watched the first episode live as it happened, I have no problem with having it be a tribute to Dan Ackroyd (no matter how chubby he has gotten) and Bill Murray, no matter how he has aged etc....

[vb68]

I think Jimmy is awesome.  He brings enthusiasm to everything he does.  I think he knows he is the luckiest guy around.  I like that even though he's hosting The Tonight Show he never forgets about SNL.   I also think his impressions alone that he is incredibly talented. 

Edited February 17, 2015 by vb68

[Spartan Girl]

I loved the special.  Celebrity Jeopardy was the best, as was having Tina, Amy, and Jane do Weekend Update!  And with the exception of Garth and Kat, I loved the musical montage.  Operaman!  The Blues Brothers (not the same without John, but I appreciate the enthusiasm)!  Piscapo's Sinatra!  The two musical teachers!  And of course Nick the lounge singer.  JAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWS!  God bless Bill Murray.

 

I also loved the In Memoriam.  Right when I was about to cry, they throw in Jon Lovitz.  Not to mention Generalissimo Francisco Franco.  Hee.

 

Having Wayne's World was worth it just to hear them tell Kanye to sit down and shut up.  About time someone said that.

My two main gripes was all the hype about Eddie Murphy coming to nothing -- I really thought he would at least do Stevie Wonder along with Piscapo's Sinatra -- and that they passed up the opportunity to do one last Point/Counterpoint with Dan and Jane.

[Deanie87]

I haven't really heard anything from the cast/people in attendance defend him, since he actually had more to say while they were going to commercial.  But I guess, as mentioned, he's moved on from those characters.  Which is just an excuse since several others that have moved on from their material brought it back.  Some of the stuff he did on the show was also done in his stand-ups (including the big ones from 1983 & 1987).

I go back and forth with this. During the show, I was annoyed. First that he got what seemed like a 5-minute tongue bath from Chris Rock that no other cast member or even Lorne got, and secondly, that he just came out, accepted his standing O, gave a brief and awkward thanks and then left with no other participation at all (I didn't see him onstage at the end, but he could have been.). My best friend and I were texting back and forth in disbelief at how weird all of this was, and we are both 46, so Eddie was a huge part of our SNL experience and of our adolescence.

But now, after reading a couple of things, I am not quite as annoyed. As someone mentioned up thread, he was 19 when he did the show and is now 53, it was a lifetime ago, and he has had a checkered career and personal life since then. And while that is true for much of the cast that participated, Eddie has never revisited his SNL self, while Murry and Curtain, etc. have. I don't remember if he ever hosted after he left, but if he did it wasn't anytime recently, and he has never attended any of the reunions. He hasn't participated in the retrospectives or the oral history (I don't think, I read it awhile ago). I don't think that he is close with any of the cast and for as much as he reinvigorated SNL, I have never considered him an insider or "one of the SNL guys" like I have so many others, for some reason.

He also seems quite different then he was back then, moreso than the other cast. Shyness and insecurity that may seem like arrogance, or a real dick-ishness, I'm not sure. But maybe he just didn't feel like he had it in him to do an old character or maybe he didnt want to embarrass himself, but felt that the time was right to attend one of these things and agreed as long as he didn't have to perform. Or maybe he demanded that he get his own intro in order to appear. Neither would surprise me. So, while I am disappointed in the way things were on the show (really, he couldn't appear as James Brown on Jeopardy for 30 seconds?!?), I'm not really angry anymore.

[Katmai]

 

Having Wayne's World was worth it just to hear them tell Kanye to sit down and shut up.  About time someone said that.

I have another point of view regarding all the Kanye mentions...they only fed his ego with more attention and I really got tired of W&G calling him out and the camera panning to him with "security" standing on top of him. His song was the longest, boringest POS that totally didn't fit the show and I believe they only had him perform in the hopes of him stirring up some kind of controversy with his inane crap. I wish everyone would just ignore and avoid him, as I do.

[VCRTracking]

I don't care what people say I love Martin Short, glad that he's still got that energy and the bit with Beyonce's wind machine was great.

 

I loved hearing Jimmy talk about the 40th anniversary and the after party last night. Say you want about Jimmy but he always loves to have fun. It also shows the difference with Conan O'Brien(who I still love)who said about the 25th anniversary party that he felt like the only nerd in the high school cafeteria surrounded by the popular kids! Although I identify with that more.

 

Yeah, I feel the same way. I have no idea who Dakota Johnson is, but anyone who decided to be part of this movie and cannot see it for what it truly is concerns me. People use the excuse "well, if it wasn't her it would still get made, just with a different actress", but that's not the point. The point is why is she endorsing this misogynist piece of crap?

 

Millions of women endorsed that piece of crap, don't ask me why. It's not like men are behind this.

Edited February 17, 2015 by VCRTracking

[marie]

I really felt bad for him in his red carpet moment. He sounded so defensive about leaving the show after a year, and so full of self-recriminations. Chevy, you have nothing to apologize for, and nothing to regret! You left SNL to make some movies that remain comedy classics! It's OK!

I don't know. I think he has a lot to feel sorry for and maybe he's starting to realize it. Probably not though.

[JTMacc99]

I've been in and out as a regular viewer for the 30 years I've been old enough to watch the show live.  Some cast members I will always love like Eddie Murphy, Phill Hartman (and pretty much everybody from that era holds a warm spot in my heart), Will Ferrell, Bill Hader, Kate McKinnon and so many more.  And then there are a couple who I like so much more these days than I did during their SNL days.

 

Having watched Brooklyn Nine-Nine from the start, I have come to really like Andy Samberg.  What that show did was to make me see him as an actor who doesn't always have to be goofy. And not only that, but because he is so deeply involved with the creative part of that show, I've got a pretty good feeling that the person Andy Samberg actually shares quite a bit of the good heart we see from Jake on the show.  And when I saw him in this show doing his digital short, I didn't see old Andy from SNL doing it, but instead I saw the guy I know from B99. And I'll be damned if I didn't like him a thousand times more in this one than I used to back in his time on SNL.

 

And the other one who is completely different for me now is Wiig.  Bridesmaids completely and permanently changed how I see her.  Without going too far into my two-cent psychoanalysis, I see her as much more than just the over-the-top characters who seemed to pop up in every skit.  And what I loved, loved about her in this episode is that she smiled a couple times in her time on camera that were real smiles. They were the kind of smiles that go all the way up the eyes where you can tell somebody was really happy to be a part of something, surrounded by friends and in a place where he or she was happy to be. 

 

There were a few of those moments in this show. Jane Curtain's joy to be there was plain as day. Bill Murray conveyed both happiness and sadness that felt real.  Meyers and Carvey couldn't have been having more fun at the end there. 

 

And I think that's why I thought this special was nice.  Obviously they couldn't cover everything, or even the things I loved the most, but I did really enjoy seeing the cast members having fun and being proud of being a part of it all.

[VCRTracking]

The thing I love about the show beyond the comedy are the real life friendships that manage to develop in a famously competitive environment.  From Aykroyd and Belushi to Lovitz and Hartman, to Spade and Farley to Jimmy and Horatio, Tina and Amy. The cast members of the mid-late 2000s seem to be exceptionally tight:  Seth, Kristen, Bill, Fred, Jason, and Andy.  Aidy and Kate are the newest BFFs.

Edited February 17, 2015 by VCRTracking

[Miss Scarlet]

I thought the Eddie Murphy moment was really awkward, but I also understand that he's sort of damned if he does, damned if he doesn't. If he hadn't come at all people would be criticizing him for being too arrogant and ungracious, which is what people are saying now about his appearance because he didn't do any characters. If he had done some characters or impressions people would have probably said "he's so old now, he sucks!". On the other hand, Adam Sandler hadn't been back to SNL since he was fired and did a good job in this special. So I don't know what the right balance to strike is. 

 

It's also really annoying to see a lot of ageist comments on the internet in regard to the special. Thankfully no one on Previously TV is rude or insensitive about it, but I have seen the "this just shows getting old sucks" and "these people aren't funny because they're old now" comments. Yes, some of them aren't funny anymore, but that's not specifically because they're old, nor does it mean that no older people can be funny.

 

I get what Conan is saying about the awkward high school reunion feel. I was thinking about how the power hierarchies/differentials must be awkward. I mean yes, they existed when these people were on SNL in the first place, but for some people like Murphy or Sandler or Myers, SNL was a launching pad into huge movie careers. For other people SNL was pretty much their only job in the entertainment industry. It has to be a little bit weird to be around all of that.

 

Also, why is it that male stars from SNL go on to movie careers and late-night talk show and female stars primarily go on to sitcoms? Is the movie industry that much more misogynistic than the television industry? 

Edited February 17, 2015 by wudpixie

[Kel Varnsen]

The thing I love about the show beyond the comedy are the real life friendships that manage to develop in a famously competitive environment.  From Aykroyd and Belushi to Lovitz and Hartman, to Spade and Farley to Jimmy and Horatio, Tina and Amy. The cast members of the mid-late 2000s seem to be exceptionally tight:  Seth, Kristen, Bill, Fred, Jason, and Andy.  Aidy and Kate are the newest BFFs.

Not sure about the rest, but Lovitz/Hartman and Tina and Amy were friends before they were ever on SNL. But certainly being on the show together solidified those friendships.

Edited February 17, 2015 by Kel Varnsen

[VCRTracking]

Yeah, I probably should have said Dana and Jon, and Maya and Amy. I also loved Jim Bruer and Tracy Morgan. There were a lot of prior friendships but the ones that happen on the show are great like Aidy and Kate. Bill talks about meeting Andy when they were both auditioning and being intimidated by the other:

 

Edited February 17, 2015 by VCRTracking

[Miss Scarlet]

Not sure about the rest, but Lovitz/Hartman and I am pretty sure Tina and Amy were friends before they were ever on SNL. But certainly being on the show together solidified those friendships.

Yeah, Amy and Tina met Second City years before they were on SNL together. I think Tina is pretty much the one who got Amy the audition and job at SNL (given that Amy was totally qualified for the job, of course).  

 

Do Horatio and Jimmy still hang out? I wasn't sure if they were actually friends or just sketch breaking buddies.

 

I just read about how Norm refused to do Update with Laura Knightlinger because he didn't want to do it with "a f****** lady". Stay classy Norm.

[Kel Varnsen]

Yeah, I probably should have said Dana and Jon, and Maya and Amy. I also loved Jim Bruer and Tracy Morgan. There were a lot of prior friendships but the ones that happen on the show are great like Aidy and Kate. Bill talks about meeting Andy when they were both auditioning and being intimidated by the other:

 

Yea I recently read the Phil Hartman Biography and it talks about how he and Lovitz knew each other before the show because they worked at the Groundlings together, and how when Lovitz got SNL, he couldn't believe that he was picked over Phil. If I remember he pushed them to hire Phil after he got the job.

[vb68]

 

I just read about how Norm refused to do Update with Laura Knightlinger because he didn't want to do it with "a f****** lady". Stay classy Norm.

 

 

Norm has always been an admitted misogynist.  I remember him saying so back when he anchored Update.  That's why I never really could embrace him. He doesn't consider women funny.  I think he might have made an exception for Roseanne because he was a writer on her show, but other than that he doesn't think they should even try comedy.  I tended to tune him out after that.  I  noticed that he had to get a pointed line in "that some of the anchors were men." at the  Anniversary..    

 

Sudeikis and Forte are also BFFs.

Edited February 17, 2015 by vb68

[Traveller519]

It amazed me how easily Myers and Carvey slipped into their Wayne and Garth characters. They bantered just like they've been doing non-stop since 93. I would have loved if Tom Hanks came back as Garth's cousin but c'est la vie.

 

I did enjoy the show, but it would have been cool to have more skits to compliment the clips rather than just having folks walk up to introduce them, most of which were good but...De Niro. If they could have gotten all the guys famous for impersonating the presidents together for a quick sketch, oh man, that would have been fantastic.

[AriAu]

Not to mention Generalissimo Francisco Franco.  Hee.

 

When they said something about breaking news from Spain, my wife got concerned but I called it right away-great throwback to the old days. They should have had Garrett announce it. How many times did they do that stunt-seemed like every week while Chevy was at the anchor desk. It is hard to explain to my kids, who only know about 24-7 news and get constant updates on their devices, why that was so funny at the time.

[Miss Scarlet]

So here is the actual quote from Norm Macdonald about Update from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/18/norm-macdonald-on-wtf-weekend-update_n_1018246.html

 

Well I remember this one time he wanted me -- this was actually about Weekend Update -- they wanted me to do Weekend Update with a lady. Like the two of us. And I thought I don’t want to do that, that sounds like shit. I was like if there’s a lady and a dude, what are we making fun of local news or something? What the fuck is that? And he was like, no, no....he had some crazy idea. And I think he liked me because I didn’t understand what he was talking half the time. He goes “You’ll be Fred Astaire, she’ll be Ginger. You’ll give her the comedy and she’ll give you the sex.” And I was like, the dancers? And I had no idea what the fuck he was talking about. So anyway I said, I don’t want to do it with a fucking lady; let [Al] Franken do it. ... I didn’t care that much about it, because I could just do standup.

 

Gross. It's also great to know that's what Lorne thinks about women on Update. Although Norm is paraphrasing Lorne, so who knows what was actually said or if Lorne has changed his mind since then. 

 

Oh and Steven Martin supported Norm by explaining how a woman co-presenter ruined a bit of his or something at a show, which wtf? What is wrong with Steve?

Norm has always been an admitted misogynist.  I remember him saying so back when he anchored Update.  That's why I never really could embrace him. He doesn't consider women funny.  I think he might have made an exception for Roseanne because he was a writer on her show, but other than that he doesn't think they should even try comedy.  I tended to tune him out after that.  I  noticed that he had to get a pointed line in "that some of the anchors were men." at the  Anniversary..    

 

Sudeikis and Forte are also BFFs.

Yeah apparently he makes an exception for Roseanne and applauds her for being a "real" feminist, which I don't even understand because he hates women, so not sure why he would care about feminism at all. 

Edited February 17, 2015 by wudpixie

[Kel Varnsen]

Wow that makes Norm sound pretty bad. Although to be fair "You’ll be Fred Astaire, she’ll be Ginger. You’ll give her the comedy and she’ll give you the sex.”, sounds terrible.

[nowandlater]

It amazed me how easily Myers and Carvey slipped into their Wayne and Garth characters. They bantered just like they've been doing non-stop since 93. I would have loved if Tom Hanks came back as Garth's cousin but c'est la vie.

 

Maybe you know this, maybe you don't, but they did Wayne's World as recently as February 2011, when Dana Carvey hosted, discussing how hot Jennifer Lawrence is.

 

https://screen.yahoo.com/waynes-world-cold-opening-oscar-000000956.html?query=wayne%27s%20world

 

And just 2 years ago, the film academy had a panel reunion of the Wayne's World cast.

 

[Traveller519]

Dang. I didn't know that. Thanks for the info, that was enjoyable.

[Growsonwalls]

 

I thought the Eddie Murphy moment was really awkward, but I also understand that he's sort of damned if he does, damned if he doesn't. If he hadn't come at all people would be criticizing him for being too arrogant and ungracious, which is what people are saying now about his appearance because he didn't do any characters. If he had done some characters or impressions people would have probably said "he's so old now, he sucks!". On the other hand, Adam Sandler hadn't been back to SNL since he was fired and did a good job in this special. So I don't know what the right balance to strike is.

 

I think what might be unsaid in all this Eddie returning stuff is that Eddie Murphy has had a ROUGH life since his fame after SNL. Multiple marriages, divorces, scandals, movie flops ... He really might not be in a good place right now to do a Mr. Robinson sketch.

 

Adam Sandler's very different. He's known as one of the most down to earth people in the biz, and he doesn't seem like the type to hold a grudge. Not surprised that he participated with enthusiasm. 

 

 

It amazed me how easily Myers and Carvey slipped into their Wayne and Garth characters. They bantered just like they've been doing non-stop since 93. I would have loved if Tom Hanks came back as Garth's cousin but c'est la vie.

 

Actually I noticed that many of the old people who used to do sketches together still had that chemistry. Mike Myers and Dana Carvey were an obvious example, but Celebrity Jeopardy with Will Ferrell and the rest of the usual guests was really funny too. I have no idea how much Will Ferrell, Darrell Hammond, Alec Baldwin, Norm MacDonald, et al. hang out on a day to day basis but it was cool to see that you put them in a room together, they're still funny, and they looked like they were having lots of fun too.

 

It's a real contrast to something I saw immediately after the last Friends episode had aired. They had the six Friends together for an interview and I was amazed at how distant they seemed from each other. Lisa Kudrow and Matthew Perry seemed warm towards each other but that effortless, warm chemistry that was a part of the show for so long was absent.

[nowandlater]

For those wondering about Jim Breuer, he was there. SNL's official Instagram account spotted him with "Taran Killam."

 

[absnow54]

On the other hand, Adam Sandler hadn't been back to SNL since he was fired and did a good job in this special. So I don't know what the right balance to strike is.

Adam Sandler has been on SNL since he was fired (he hasn't hosted though) I remember him opening the show with the Hanukkah song one year and he was in the 25th Anniversary Special.

[Miss Scarlet]

Will Ferrell's Alex Trebek sounds nothing like him, but is hilarious of course.

 

As other posters have noticed, John Goodman was sooo drunk during the audience Q&A. It was pretty funny.

[nowandlater]

Adam Sandler has been on SNL since he was fired (he hasn't hosted though) I remember him opening the show with the Hanukkah song one year and he was in the 25th Anniversary Special.

 

From 2002: https://screen.yahoo.com/cold-opening-chanukah-song-000000919.html

[Kel Varnsen]

I think what might be unsaid in all this Eddie returning stuff is that Eddie Murphy has had a ROUGH life since his fame after SNL. Multiple marriages, divorces, scandals, movie flops ... He really might not be in a good place right now to do a Mr robinson.

Plus don't forget that time Rick James destroyed his couch.

[VCRTracking]

Glad that Jim Bruer was there. Always love hearing his stories about his SNL days.

 

Will Ferrell's Alex Trebek sounds nothing like him, but is hilarious of course.

He also hasn't worn a mustache in years. Darrell Hammond has admitted that his Connery isn't really that accurate. He tried going for a more closer impression with the deeper voice but it was just funnier the way they've been doing it.

Edited February 17, 2015 by VCRTracking

[Kel Varnsen]

Didn't trebek recently bring back the moustache?

[Growsonwalls]

Speaking of Will Ferrell, I wish he could done Inside the Actor's Studio again. Those sketches were always hilarious.

[howmanywords]

A lot of what he gets to do seems like fun, but honestly, I think interviewing celebrities would be a really awful job. Maybe it's just because I don't follow any celebrities and don't care about any of them, but I think it would boring and, at times, like teeth-pulling. So is Jimmy the cast member that Lorne is personally closest to? I know Lorne loves Kristen Wiig and has worked with Tina a lot in the past, but he seems to talk very glowingly about Jimmy as well.

I dont know of Jimmy is the one who Lorne is closest to, but they are really, really tight.  They have traveled to other countries together, attend basketball games together, and if you ever saw Jimmy's Vanity Fair cover story its obvious Lorne is like a father to him. He even consulted him when he use to date during his SNL days and told him what kind of car to buy.