Tina Fey hosted the season finale of “Saturday Night Live” over the weekend, which means many months until the next opportunity to see their take on the news. If that seems like a very long time to wait, you can visit the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago to see the SNL Experience, a wildly entertaining interactive exhibit that takes visitors through a week of creating an episode and the 41-year history of the show as well.
The exhibit, which covers two floors of the museum, includes iconic props and sets from the show’s history, taped interviews, and clips. It is a lot of fun to see items that bring back memories of classic SNL moments but it is fascinating to peek behind the scenes (literally) and see interviews with the writers, costume designers, and set designers who start with a blank page every week and somehow put together 90 minutes of material. Highly recommended!
It was great to hear that Tracy Morgan, who has been recovering from a serious automobile accident in June of 2014, will host the first “Saturday Night Live” episode of the 2015-2016 season. It will be a homecoming for the comic actor, who appeared on “Saturday Night Live” from 1996-2003. Other hosts for the upcoming fall episodes include Amy Schumer and Miley Cyrus.
“Saturday Night Live,” once the brash upstart whose cast billed themselves as the “Not Ready for Prime Time Players” is now an established institution. Performers like John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Gilda Radner, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Al Franken, Eddie Murphy, Martin Short, Billy Crystal, Dana Carvey, Phil Hartman, Chris Farley, Mike Myers, Adam Sandler, Conan O’Brien, Chris Rock, Will Ferrell, Tracy Morgan, Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Kristin Wiig, Seth Meyers, Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Andy Samberg, and many more all had breakthrough performances as writers or members of the cast. Dozens of memes, characters, and catchphrases originating on the show have become a part of our culture. Copyright NBC
SNL is celebrating its 40th anniversary with a book and a prime time TV special hosted by Eddie Murphy February 15, 2015, with many of the cast members and special guests including Sarah Palin, Kanye West, and Justin Timberlake.
Saturday Night Live: The Book includes over 2,300 images from SNL’s archives, many previously unpublished, an illustrated breakdown of the 6-day week at SNL through the years, with an expanded section for the live show, a seasons reference guide with complete cast, host, and musical guest lists, and an exclusive interview with founder and executive producer Lorne Michaels.
On October 11, 1975 at 11:30 p.m., NBC viewers who tuned in to the network’s new late night show saw a sketch featuring John Belushi repeating, in a thick foreign accent, nonsensical phrases about wolverines being read to him by head writer Michael O’Donohue. Abruptly, O’Donohue clutched his heart and collapsed onto the floor. Belushi paused, raised his eyebrow, and then did the same. Posing as the stage manager, Chevy Chase entered the set and feigned confusion before breaking character and announcing to the camera: “Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!”
Copyright NBC
In that instant, television, which had long been out of touch with the young and hip, experienced the first seismic tremors of a major paradigm shift. TV comedy as we know it today owes it all to Saturday Night Live, the show that dared to take risks (not least the fact that it’s broadcast live), challenge the censors, and celebrate the work of offbeat writer-performers. Hundreds of gifted and dedicated people have contributed to Saturday Night Live over the years, and this book pays homage to their groundbreaking work. The list of esteemed alumni, most of whom were complete unknowns when they debuted on SNL, reads like a Who’s Who of the past 4 decades in comedy: John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Gilda Radner, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Al Franken, Eddie Murphy, Martin Short, Billy Crystal, Dana Carvey, Phil Hartman, Chris Farley, Mike Myers, Adam Sandler, Conan O’Brien, Chris Rock, Will Ferrell, Tracy Morgan, Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Kristin Wiig, Seth Meyers, Fred Armisen, and Bill Hader—to name just a few.
Now, as SNL celebrates its 40th anniversary, Tashcen brings you the ultimate tribute to the show. To research this book, editor and author Alison Castle was given not only full access to SNL’s archives, but also the rare opportunity to watch the cast and crew at work. She spent the better part of season 39 in the trenches, learning how everything comes together in just six days for the live performance. Part encyclopedia and part behind-the-scenes tour, Saturday Night Live: The Book covers both the making of the show and its remarkable history.
Premier On 5th, at 417 5th Avenue between 37th & 38th Streets has announced the first in a series of blockbuster exhibitions, in partnership with Broadway Video Enterprises.
“Saturday Night Live: The Exhibition,” celebrates the NBC program’s 40-year history. In the Exhibition, SNL fans will be able to experience the excitement of the live show, which was the brainchild of writer/producer Lorne Michaels and became a cultural phenomenon within weeks of its debut on October 11, 1975.
“In addition to connecting visitors with the backstory of the show and affording an opportunity to relive the show’s most laughable moments and sketches, “Saturday Night Live: The Exhibition” goes even further to give people a sense of what it’s like to be part of the creative team, and the frenetic schedule and pace that is involved with each weekly episode,” said Mark Lach, Creative Director of Premier Exhibitions. “It can look so effortless on TV, but this exhibition illustrates that a lot of hard work and preparation undoubtedly goes into each and every laugh.”
Beginning with the scripts that start to take shape on Mondays and culminating with the live broadcast on Saturday, the exhibition illustrates a week in the life of SNL. Original scripts, set pieces, props, costumes, masks and interactive elements reconnect visitors with iconic moments from their favorite sketches as performed by some of the finest comedic artists of their generation. Etched in our psyches, “Cheeburger, Cheeburger,” “This place has EVERYTHING!” “Living in a VAN down by the river,” “I’m Gumby, Dammit!” and more have become touchstones of American culture. Order tickets now as it is sure to be packed.
includes over 2,300 images from SNL’s archives, many previously unpublished, an illustrated breakdown of the 6-day week at SNL through the years, with an expanded section for the live show, a seasons reference guide with complete cast, host, and musical guest lists, and an exclusive interview with founder and executive producer Lorne Michaels.
by Tom Shales and James Andrew Miller.