50 seasons ofSaturday Night Lives impact, as told by 65 of its writers and cast members.
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This on top of the regular stream of commentary the show inspires.
Its a level of 24/7 analysis typically reserved forprofessional sports.
Thats why we decided the best way to honorSNLs historic 50-year run is to cede the floor to them.
Getting my photo taken for the opening credits.
Mind-blowing moment beyond the dream come true.
Rachel Dratch
When Don Pardo said my name.
Amy Poehler
The first week I was there, I contributed one single joke toone single sketch.
Tracy Morgan and Samuel L. Jackson were on theTitanicand wondering when they would be allowed to board the lifeboats.
Will Ferrell was running around calling out evacuees: All first-class passengers to the lifeboats!
All second- and third-class passengers to the lifeboats.
My joke was All empty lifeboats should now be placed into other lifeboats.
I went to the floor to watch it on air, and Will said the line and people laughed.
Then after the show, in the credits, my name was spelled wrong.
So the completeSNLego roller coaster in my very first week.
David Mandel
Benedict Cumberbatch hosted the show the week the Cubs won the World Series.
And Im from Chicago, so the week was already huge.
I think it was early November, 2016, so it was maybe my fourth show.
Four of the Cubs did a bit with Bill Murray on Update, and Dana Carvey did Church Lady.
It was all very surreal.
I was in the middle of a dream.
I tried to stifle it, but it was pretty obvious.
She rubbed my shoulders and went, Awwww, this pretty big for you, ay bud?
I went to the Monday meeting, and bam!
Michael Jordan was sitting in the host chair.
You have entered theSNLvortex.
Ellen Cleghorne
Read the full collection of responseshere.
For others, its longevity the people who have stuck around so long theyre now synonymous with the show.
For a third group, its the ability to captureSNLs unique cocktail of chaos, joy, and whimsy.
He was the best cast member to capture the giggle breathlessly with your best friends from high schoolenergy.
Hes always got a twinkle in his eye during sketches and makes everyone around him have more fun.
Cecily Strong
Phil Hartman.
Absolute Swiss Army knife.
Could be a straight man, a lunatic, a pitch man.
He worked with everybody and brought every line up a level.
Alan Zweibel
Will Ferrell comes to mind right away.
He was just always trying new things and thinking outside the box.
He would put something up that was really out there and wasnt afraid to take risks.
you’re free to see the joy in his work.
Whenever he appears onSNLanniversaries, he never comes off like its enough that he showed up.
He commits, he takes chances, hes willing to be a complete fool.
Robert Smigel
Dan Aykroyd.
Dan is the embodiment of everything that isSNL: heart, soul, preparedness, and execution.
Michaela Watkins
John Belushi.
Because of his passion, energy, pure comedy, and chaos.
David Koechner
Maya Rudolph.
She can do everything.
Her stuff is very silly and ridiculous.
Shes in tune with the room.
Shes a great singer, and a great comedy singer, which are very different things.
Im really, really lucky I got some time with her during the election.
Im still pissed there wasnt a second debate.
James Austin Johnson
.Stray observations:
.
On at least one occasion, we danced.
Simon Rich
I once wrote a piece for Seth for Update, and it was absolutely dying during dress.
I was under the bleachers with Lorne, who watched the whole thing unsmiling and wordlessly.
I think I said, No, I got it.
I was convinced Id get fired.
Cecily Strong
I forgot a line that I was staring at on a cue card.
Noel Wells
WhatIstheFunniestSNLSketchofAllTime?
We can thank Jorma Taccone, Chris Kelly, and Michael Schur for their advocacy.
WhatWasYourSalaryDuringYourFirstSeasonontheShow,andYourLastSeasonontheShow?
Its time for some cold, hard numbers.
I did a lot of writing on the show and never received compensation for it, she wrote.
If this can help me recuperate the money owed to me, I would be grateful.
.19751980
$750 per show, and after five years, $4,000.
We had Jane Curtin negotiate for all of us, being the only grown-up in the room.
My last season (7980), I was making $1,250 a show.
We got $750 a week.
I became a cast member for season six, and the AFTRA union paid $650 a week.
Denny Dillon(cast)
Maybe $600 a week.
Matthew Laurance(cast)
$5,000 per week.
Christine Ebersole(cast)
It was not a lot!
I think about $1,500 a week.
Patrick Weathers(cast)
I think it was $17,000 combined acting and writing.
Jim Belushi(cast)
Three grand a week, and 25 grand a week.
Joe Piscopo(cast)
$2,850 per episode, which was low.
(I believe the top of the show for a writer back then was $6,500.)
When I got renewed for the next year, they only bumped me up a few hundred bucks.
It wasnt top of the show, but it was a nice pay raise.
Im quite sure its the last time I ever made the same salary as Larry David.
Kevin Kelton(writer)
.19851990
First season was $3,500 a week.
Last season I think was $7,000.
Nora Dunn(cast)
$6,000 per show; over $30,000 per show.
Michael Schur(writer)
.20002005
I want to say it was $10,000 a week.
I believe Im not speaking out of turn: Everybody got paid the same thing.
Writers and cast members all start out with the same salary.
And I believe that the way they did raises was just by time.
Theres none of that.
But I would imagine that Kenan is probably making pretty good money!
Jerry Minor(cast)
$5,000 a week.
Rob Riggle(cast)
.20052010
First season like 1,300 bucks after taxes.
70s cocaine that they found under a seat in the studio.
Anna Drezen(writer)
$5,000 an episode for my only year.
Jon Rudnitsky(cast)
WhoIstheBestSNLHostofAllTime?
Its why, according to her and two other respondents, the shows best hosts are former cast members.
They are, as Robert Smigel puts it, the ones whove done it the most.
Only two votes for Justin Timberlake feels low.
(Should he really be only narrowly ahead of Mitchell Kriegmans joke pick, Herbert Hoover?!)
Former writers Alex Baze and Jorma Taccone were the only contributors to single him out.
(Presumably, Emma Stone took his slot.)
My girlfriend loved Sinead OConnor, so she came to see her on the live show.
We watched from about ten feet away.
WhenSinead tore the picture of the pope, it was the quietest Id ever heard the studio.
And so I did!
When Don Pardo announced, Ladies and gentleman … Adam Sandler, the live studio audience lost it.
You could actually feel the electricity in the air, and it was overwhelming.
That was the birth of the Beyhive that night in Studio 8H.
Dean Edwards
Pearl Jam, before they broke huge.
I watched Thursdays rehearsal and couldnt believe my ears (Alive?!).
I talked to Eddie Vedder after, gushing like a crazy man about his vocals.
Thenhestarted gushing: I was just a mad scientist skateboarding San Diego streets.
Now here I am at the mightySNL!
Dude, whats it like to get to behere?
Fred Wolf
After I was off the show, I came back for the season-finale after-party one year.
I think Mick Jagger had been the host that night, and Dave Grohl had been the musical guest.
Imagine someone just walking through midtown at that moment and looking down and seeing that?!
James Austin Johnson
WhatIstheMostQuotableSNLSketchofAllTime?
Of course, catchphrases can also be extremely personal and specific.
The inclusion of defining sketches from Will Ferrell and Mike Myers is no surprise.
More interesting: Dan Aykroyd hasthreeleading sketches when you factor in The Olympia Restaurant (Cheeseburger, cheeseburger!)
and Wild and Crazy Guys, a subtle reminder about his long-term impact on the show.
.Its not funny.
Its valid because thats the nature of the whole project.
Its not going to be funny all the time.
Its a new show every week; it cant always be great.
Thats a valid criticism, and everybody knows that.
Jerry Minor
If there are so many paid writers, why is the show not better written?
Hugh Fink
That its lost its edge.
Thats not true very subjective and extreme generalization.
Jay Pharoah
.The cast is too big.
The cast is too large at times, you cant get to know them.
Also, I personally wish the prime political figures were played by cast members instead of celebrities.
Michael Schur
.Its tougher for women and people of color.
That its a boys club.
Denny Dillon
That the comedy was geared toward men for so many years.
Nora Dunn
Once that it was male-dominated, but that seems to have changed.
And Im glad for it.
Gary Kroeger
The show faced criticism over the years for lacking diversity, which I think is fair.
I love the current voice of the show.
John Milhiser
.Its tougher for … straight men now?
When I got hired, someone commented, SNLjust hired a bunch of fruits and women.
Which was true; we were that!
Anna Drezen
.The working environment is untenable.
That its an extremely cutthroat environment.
Rob Riggle
That there probably is a less stressful way to make that show.
Brooks Wheelan
That it causes panic attacks for people who work there.
Michaela Watkins
.It doesnt need to be live.
Live is a good way to do poor television comedy.
Harry Shearer
They dont take advantage of being on the air in real time.
Theres a lot of comedy that could take advantage of live, but they dont.
Mitchell Kriegman
.Theres too much breaking.
I counted 24 breaks of the fourth wall in one episode.
Jim Belushi
.Its too political.
Too political follows a narrative that becomes not funny.
Christine Ebersole
Its become too politically biased and lost its original goal of being funny.
Victoria Jackson
The cold opens are pretty long.
Jon Rudnitsky
.Its not political enough.
Yes, I said it: too conservative.
Not hard enough on corporate behavior and insane politics.
Yes, I said it!
Mitchell Kriegman
.The sketches dont have endings.
that they havent watched the show in 30 years, because that used to be the cliche critique.
Rachel Dratch
.Its inconsistent.
That its been uneven.
For example, there were years when recurring characters were overused.
That meant that the cast was stronger than the writers.
Some years, the reverse has been true.
Al Franken
Theres less big hits and many more misses because a 90-minute show makes consistency literally impossible.
Fred Wolf
How hit-or-miss it is that its far from perfect most of the time.
Julio Torres
The show is always uneven thats part of the fun!
Akiva Schaffer
WhoIstheMostUnderratedCastMemberofAllTime?
These selections fall into three distinct cast-member archetypes.
Laraine Newmans taste remains unmatched.
The typicalSNLsketch is, by definition, a self-contained piece.
I think almost everySNLsketch and character is better at four minutes than two hours, argued Alex Baze.
We could finally meet Alexis.
Like a pickleball match or the pommel-horse event at the Olympics.
They eventually earn the respect of the cheerleading community and win the National Cheerleading Championship.
They discover the perfect cheer was them all along.
(It also would have co-starred Will Ferrell!)
Voters were also similarly not swayed by the Team Coco podcast series on thelost Hans and Franz movie.
It received no votes.
Marilyn Suzanne Miller offered a more unexpected choice: Rhonda Weiss, who I wrote for Gilda.
Jewish women were and are not represented in the history of American film.
It would have been very interesting to see what would have happened to her.
It wasnt done and still hasnt been, really.
Julia Sweeney called out Aidy BryantsCarrie Krum, an inspired selection.
And then to top it all off, I got cancer!
That all happened in the first six months after I left.
But it all seemed to work out in the end, I must say.
Julia Sweeney
Tuesday nights (writing night) were weird for a while.
John Lutz
I continued playing the piano.
Paul Shaffer
New baby, new show.
Amy Poehler
Feels weird that the show goes on without you.
Feels like they shouldve stopped when you left.
Akiva Schaffer
WhichCastMemberorWriterDidYouNotWorkWith,ButWishYouCouldHave?
So often, theseSNLmissed connections are a matter of when as much as who.
Everything she did on the show was my pop in of humor, he wrote.
Those women would have been so fun to write for while they were on the show.
Jerry Minor even took the opportunity to venture to manifest his dream: Eddie Murphy, in any capacity.
Eddie, you out there?!
Dearly departed luminaries Phil Hartman and Gilda Radner are the only names trailing behind Eddie Murphy in his prime.
More obscure figures also got representation, including early-season writers whose reputation and work transcends their deaths.
Bobby Moynihan
A cue card from the first time I got to say, Live from New York!
on-air in the cold open.
Nasim Pedrad
My first show ticket from 2003 with Jack Black hosting.
Finesse Mitchell
My script book.
Walter Williams
My nameplate from my first office.
Noel Wells
A pile of yellow-pad pages and ATM deposit envelopes with panicked lists of sketch ideas.
Hugh Fink
I only kept one thing.
It had our names embroidered in the front and a beautiful embroidered Saturday Night on the back.
This was before we could call ourselvesSaturday Night Live, because of the Howard CosellSaturday Night Live.
When I left, I asked if I could have it, and everyone said yes.
Julia Sweeney
I still have my red script binder with my name embossed.
So that jacket with his name is among my most precious possessions now.
I wear it more often than my own.
Kevin Kelton
A piece of early merchandise: a clock with the original Not Ready for Prime Time Players.
Paul Shaffer
Stuart Smalleys wig.
Al Franken
My Frank Sinatra wig.
Joe Piscopo
A mold of half my face.
We blew up a replica of my head in the dress rehearsal.
I loved it, but it was so stupid!
And I guess Lorne agreed, because he cut it before the live show.
!Get off me!!
Rachel Dratch
I have two Champagne glasses Swarovski sent to Vanessa and me after our firstPorn Starssketch.
I still have it.
Do we need this … ?
and I say, Of course we need it!
Its the Wishin Boot, how dare you?!
Chris Kelly
The comb-over wig, sideburns, and pants for theT-Bone executioner sketchwith Christopher Walken and Tim Meadows.
David Koechner
The urn fromLeave Me Alurn.Its beautiful.
Anna Drezen
The can ofSpud Beer, a commercial parody that I starred in.
Alan Zweibel
The swaying cats from theDont Make Me Singsketch.
Victoria Jackson
A book calledSandwichesI Have Liked and Tried,by Chuck Schumer.
David Mandel
Michael Jordan signed NBA basketballs for people when he hosted.
I cherish it so much I keep it hidden in a closet.
Just to be clear, the autograph is Robert De Niros and not the cats.
John Lutz
When Kristen Stewart hosted,she dropped the F-bombduring the monologue.
They were untouched in my closet for years, and I just started wearing them out with my wardrobe.
Sasheer Zamata
Ringos autograph.
He came into my office to hear my ideas.
Gary Kroeger
WhatstheBestLessonYouLearnedFromWorkingatSNLThatHasHelpedYouinYourLifeand/orCareer?
.Stay levelheaded.
Tim Herlihy
In a high-pressure work environment, have a go at remember not to scream or cry.
Leo Allen
Anyone who has been onSNLhas hours and hours of practice of not letting last-minute changes throw them.
Rachel Dratch
When youre annoyed, maybe take a breath and consider the most effective way to express it.
That one only took about five years to learn.
Robert Smigel
.Kill your ego.
Taran Killam and Alex Moffat
Nothing you write is so precious that it cant be improved.
Alan Zweibel
How to move on from career or artistic disappointments quickly.
It doesnt have to be perfect; it just has to make it to air.
Sasheer Zamata
If it doesnt work, beat it or junk it.
People who work there become great creative partners because they dont have any ego.
The show beats it out of you.
Michael Schur
Pick your battles.
Amy Poehler
.Foster healthy relationships.
(Even if no one else does.)
If youre an assache, it doesnt matter how good you are.
Lots of people are goodandpleasant.
Alex Baze
have a go at work with or for non-sociopaths.
Sarah Silverman
Competitionand fear do not make for my best work.
I got a lot better at writing once I was out of there.
Lew Morton
.Youre a student with many majors.
Its showrunner training school, even though I didnt know that at the time.
The writers are the mini-producer/directors of their own pieces, and that was invaluable.
You dont realize it at the time, but you gain a better understanding of all aspects of production.
Dean Edwards
Never write dogs into a script unless its absolutely necessary, and no goats under any circumstances.
Simon Rich
.Just go for it.
You cant control that much a little, but not a lot.
So you have to just do your art and let fate take its course.
Know that the sun comes up even after the worst of days.
Gary Kroeger
Without sounding crass, it taught me to be balls-out.
You dont have time to think about it; you just go and dive headfirst.
Christine Ebersole
Trust your gut, because theres no time.
So if you think somethings funny and feels right to you, go with it and see.
Chris Kelly
Dont be afraid to have things fail.
And dont be afraid to pitch ideas.
John Lutz
Anything is possible if you are a white person.
I always ask myself when confronted with a dilemma, What would a white person do?
Then I do that.
from Columbia University, and she is a dog owner.
Ellen Cleghorne
.Take it all in.
It should always be fun!
Abby Elliott
Have fun out there.
James Austin Johnson
Just enjoy nice moments when theyre happening.
Which it actually was.
Brooks Wheelan
IfLorneMichaelsEverDecidestoRetire,WhoWouldYouLiketoSeeTakeOvertheShow?
Nora Dunn put it in stark terms: I dont think anyone can take over.
Then theres Cecily Strong: I dont know that the show would still be the show without Lorne.
Harry Shearer was the most morbid: Lornes undertaker.
Hes the context we all worked within.
Another popular name bandied about was Seth Meyers.
He has a great understanding of the show, and people love him.
Walter Williams and Hugh Fink nominated Conan OBrien.
God save the king.
.All the people working behind the scenes.
James Austin Johnson
Everything you see sets, costumes, props, wigs, even puppets!
has been created that week.
They are amazing at what they do.
(Shout-out to Louie Zakarian, the special-effects makeup guy.
Best in the biz!)
They thread each hair on every wig.
John Milhiser
.Yes, its really live.
Im always shocked when people ask what day its taped.
What you see is what you get, and then its on to the next.
Michael Schur
Sketches get cut while the live show is happening.
John Lutz
.Its extremely competitive …
No one writes for you specifically.
Its everyone out for themself.
Noel Wells
You have to audition for your job every episode.
Youre truly only as good as your last work.
Jay Pharoah
…. and extremely grueling.
Many times, people have said, Well, you only work one day a week.
Even if your sketches dont make air, you work seven days.
Thats seven days, and you tape two shows on Saturday.
Michaela Watkins
For the rest of your life, youll have stress dreams about it.
The same is true for waitressing.
Christine Nangle
.Chris Fleming was wrong.
Nobody does cocaine anymore.
Jon Rudnitsky
50Seasonsin,HowWouldYouDescribeSNLsLegacy?
SNLs legacy is the keen ability to honor, critique, or analyze cultural events in thought-provoking ways.
People use the word institution a lot, but its accurate.
Its an institution like … the Super Bowl or one of the branches of government.
It revolutionized TV sketch comedy, and that revolutionized the medium.
Showbiz would turn gray if you pulled out everybody who learned fromSNL.
Its something that goes out internationally and yet still kind of runs like a high-school play very DIY.
Its bottled chaos, pure joy, current, brave, inspirational, frustrating, and panic-attack-inducing.
Its still pretty fucking cool.
Its an American staple.
Theres no other show like it.
Its changed the face of comedy.
It gave and continues to give comedic performers a visible, tangible dream to achieve.
It always pushed the needle forward in American comedy.
Its the greatest and most important late-night show in the history of entertainment.
Its the greatest television show of all time afterThe Leftovers.
