I never really saw Saturday NIght Live in its first, oh I don't know, 20 seasons or so. All the talk through the most recent seasons, whether they were good or bad ones, is that nothing could compare to the glory years of the show. Generally that is understood to mean 1975 - 1980, the first five seasons.
Well, I had my chance finally this past weekend when NBC re-aired the very first episode of SNL from October 11, 1975. They did it as a tribute to the debut host that night, the late George Carlin, another recent victim of the Summer Of Death.
Guess what? I think the people were right.
I was really surprised how fully-formed the format of the show was from that very first episode. Monologue, sketches, commercial parodies, Weekend Update, musical guests, it was all there. Carlin did not appear in any sketches but did deliver some of his most famous routines from his best-selling comedy albums of the early 70s, like Baseball Vs. Football, What Do Dogs Do On Their Days Off? and Why Isn't There Any Blue Food?.
That night was the debut of the Not Ready For Primetime Players, including John Belushi (impossible to take your eyes off of), Dan Akyroyd (very funny back then, not so much now), Gilda Radner, Jane Curtin, Larraine Newman, and Garrett Morris (the original, "Hey, you're the black guy from Saturday Night Live").
I was also struck by how ambitious that first show was. Two musical guests, performing two songs each. Billy Preston's Nothing From Nothing was terrific and his disco suit even more so; Janis Ian looked terrified singing her then-current hit, At Seventeen.
Comedy genius Albert Brooks offered a short film that included one scene where the age of consent was changed to nine or something. I was more shocked that it aired on network TV here in 2008 then back in 1975.
How's this for a highlight? The show also featured comedy weirdo Andy Kaufman doing his signature Mighty Mouse theme song lip synching bit. I don't know if he had performed it on television before that night but I don't doubt that there were just as many people watching who were more confused than entertained by his...uh.... "alternative" approach to comedy. I loved it.
Not everything worked. There was a Muppets sketch too. Yep, Jim Henson's real Muppets. I didn't get it. At all. Also a comedienne named Valari Bloomfield who was terrible. And, surprising to me, I thought Chevy Chase was the weak link of the cast. Not a good actor, not a good cue-card reader, not a skilled comedian. Perhaps he got better?
One more quick thing. How did they cram four songs, tons of sketches, three Carlin bits. another comedian, a Muppet piece, Chevy's Weekend Update, the Kaufman routine, and at least three fake commercials all into one 90 minute show?
Fewer commercial minutes might have been part of it. But the Number One reason I give the nod to Episode One over any Saturday Night Live show I have seen this decade is that back then the sketches ran out before the comedy did.
The current show makes every bit at least 25 percent longer than it needs to be, often more. If the new guys had come up with Belushi's 1975 Wolverine bit, instead of it being remembered as a comedy classic, we'd know it as that sketch we feel asleep to ten minutes in.
If you saw the show this weekend I'd love to hear your thoughts. I am now going to Amazon.com to look into a Season One DVD...
I remember that show was like an event. People would plan their "Saturday Nights" around that show.
Posted by: Geo | July 02, 2008 at 04:36 AM
I do not watch the show but have a dvd of the best of the first few seasons.
SNL back then was 1000 times better than todays output.
Belushi, Akroyd were on top of their game. Murphy as Gumby and Buckwheat were amazing and had me laughing even after I watched it.
Posted by: Raul | July 02, 2008 at 05:16 AM
I was a freshman in college in 1975 and remember watching the very first Saturday Night Live...live. It's difficult to put into perspective now how cutting edge comedy this was in 1975. I remember while I was watching the show thinking over and over again..."They can't say that on TV, they can't do that on TV". But they were. Saturday Night Live really was a giant influence on TV, entertainment and comedy.
Posted by: Steve | July 02, 2008 at 07:07 AM
I'm not sure what season it was, but I remember seeing David Bowie for the first time on SNL. It was one of the coolest TV moments ever, in my book.
Posted by: Casey | July 02, 2008 at 07:50 AM
Where were you when Buckwheat was shot?
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Because you could die tomorrow, just like John David Stuts.
Posted by: Vic Rattler | July 02, 2008 at 08:50 AM
Coneheads rule. I remember seeing a documentary or reading somewhere that Jane Curtin was the only one who went home at night (had a family or something). They worked ridiculously long hours to put together those shows, fueled sometimes with a little extra substances. Perhaps the SNL crew isn't willing to work so hard these days. Or maybe it was just the chemistry of those individuals.
Posted by: Rochelle | July 02, 2008 at 09:47 AM
Buckwheat, smuckwheat, that was the Dick Ebersol era and it sucked (out loud). SNL was in its prime three seasons in when Chase was out and Murray was in. I saw the first show when it originally aired and was immediately addicted – PBJ’s and SNL became a weekly ritual at my house while in high school. This was the same time that Loren Michaels offered the Beatles $3000.00 to regroup and perform on the show (Michael’s recommended they divide the money three ways and give Ringo what they thought he was worth) - legend has it that McCartney and Lennon were hanging out at the Dakota watching the show contemplating showing up to collect their share of the money which George Harrison eventually did! …Murphy licks windows on the short bus…
btw – What’s up the Mr. Bill commercials being run lately?
Posted by: Ken | July 02, 2008 at 10:07 AM
Bean, I grew up on SNL, its what we did on saturday sleep overs... there have been different snl eras that I have enjoyed as much or more than the early years, loved the eddie murphy years, the carvey/meyers era, oteri/ferrel era...
but i agree completely - the current skits are TOO LONG... my favorite sketch show is kids in the hall - whats brilliant about that show is similar to the andy kauffman bit - weird and short...
I was actually suprised to see how the show is almost identical as it was the first show, the opening credits, the intro, monolouge, weekend update, heck even the announcer is the same!
as much as i love the muppets... that bit was not very good...
heather - long beach
ps - ken, i too am LOVING seeing mr. bill again... out of nowhere....splat!
Posted by: heather | July 02, 2008 at 11:48 AM
I have been talking about this show all week! I taped it on my VCR ... remember those?!! I, too, loved the short, FUNNY, bits! So great to see them again!!
Have a great day!
xoxo,
Marge
Posted by: Marge | July 02, 2008 at 12:10 PM
Well, I still have it on my DVR cuz I haven't had a chance to watch it yet. I'm really excited to watch it though!
It's a shame that SNL isn't the way it used to be, even just, what, 6-8 years ago with "Mango", the Cheerleaders and other great skits....
Oh and really, the way I knew about Mr. Bill is that my dad would impersonate him whenever my sister and I would whine about something.... Also, a skit that I loved from back in the day (late 80's/early 90's)-Toonces the driving cat! The best episode was "The Tooncinator"!
<3,
me! =)
Posted by: me! | July 02, 2008 at 02:24 PM
Toonces rocks, I wish they'd bring him back.
Posted by: toni | July 02, 2008 at 04:26 PM
Warning: This is one of my pet subjects. Easily-bored readers may wish to skip to the next comment.
Okay. I've been doing sketch comedy for a long time. I don't think I've ever put a show together in less than five weeks. It normally takes a long time to write and hone a sketch.
SNL is trying to perform a five-week process in five days. They do this by getting a whole lot of people together to throw sketch ideas against a wall, trying to write sketches about those, and selecting the best however-many to air. Not all of those make it out of the read-through, and many of them get cut after dress rehearsal.
A good sketch has a beginning, middle and end. It may take a minute before you get any big laughs. That's fine for live comedy, but on TV, they want to start with a good-sized laugh right off the bat. It's a lot easier to get on the air by taking a character that the audience immediately recognizes, putting them in a situation that will allow them to recite their catch phrase(s), and getting them the hell out of there.
Some of the sketches that make it to air are really good on paper. But they're harder to remember because they don't grab our attention in the same way.
Posted by: Rose | July 02, 2008 at 05:33 PM
I wasn't allowed to stay up that late when SNL was in its first season, so I didn't see my first one until Chevy Chase was out and Bill Murray was in. In my school, it was pretty much required viewing, because if you hadn't seen that weeks episode, you just might as well not show up on Monday, because you wouldn't have any idea what any of the other kids were talking about.
I stopped watching when they changed the cast in 1980. I've seen several episodes since then, but not that many, most of them during the times of Mike Myers and Adam Sandler. I've seen maybe two since those guys left the show (I loved Operaman and Linda Richman!), and I don't plan to ever tune in again. The show sucks now.
Posted by: Stacey | July 03, 2008 at 05:27 AM
I was only 5 when SNL started, but I remember my aunt and uncle baby-sitting me on Saturday nights and letting my stay up to watch it. Land Shark and Samurai Deli were my absolute favorites! John Belushi could make you laugh with just one raised eyebrow.
Posted by: Sunny Days | July 03, 2008 at 08:21 PM