SNL 40th Anniversary Special
 

Anyone watched (or is watching)?

Wasn't it last night?

*researches*

Saturday Night Live's 40th anniversary....on a Sunday? Wow....I guess Valentine's is stronger.

If it was, then I'm watching a rerun.

Nah, I just assumed that SATURDAY Night Live would air on a Saturday....and I was wrong.

Curse you NBC!!!

What happened was, Last night they played the very first episode of SNL.

I turned it on just to see. It's somewhere in the middle.

I've never been a huge fan. I watched more during the Will Ferrell era. I thought it was pretty good then. Still I feel MADtv was much better.

I've been tuning in through out the week on VH1s SNL marathons to see what the really old ones were like and during the 90s since I never watched it back then.

They were ok I guess. Thought they would be better.

SNL was never as good as it's best sketches, if that makes sense. It's like sifting through poop for the corn.

Haha, I'm pretty sure it's only 'cause they needed the dates to match up to be precisely 40 years.

That's how it almost always is, but I was (mistakenly) expecting this one to be different - since, you know, it was a 3-hour-long special episode and everything. Only bits I really enjoyed were the Jeopardy game, Murray singing about Jaws, and McCarthy's impression of Chris Farley. Aside from that...meh.

Loved the Blues Brothers bit, most of the Update segment, Californians and Celebrity Jeopardy. A couple of the montages as well as the opening lead by Martin. Paul McCartney and Paul Simon added a nice touch.

I would have preferred Cyrus have been left out of the opening. She just does not fit with all the others. I turned it off when the West guy showed up to sing. He did not belong among the others either.

Mr.Bill!
Mr. Freakin Bill!

A lot of it felt awkward to me, like DeNiro.

I will like to see this again skipping the parts I could care less about and rewatching what I enjoyed. Will it have an encore presentation or a DVD release? The DVR went out yesterday morning and apparently did not keep my set recording.

Had to work so I missed it, plan to watch it tonight with my wife. I've seen the Jeopardy bit because it's "trending" on FB and I watch the In Memorium where they said Lovitz was dead. I hope it's at least OK.

As for the date...the 1st episode of SNL debuted in October of 75...*shrugs* I'm still betting on not wanting to spoil Valentine's Day

Yes! When I was a teenager(90's) SNL dominated my life! I may have squealed a little when I saw Turd Ferguson, Norm Macdonald is my favorite comic/cast member ever, so needless to say was on the edge of my seat laughing like a fool during this.

Quick question: Did they honor the late Don Pardo?

No,unfortuantely it got left out.:(

Let me know if its a DVD release for this.

Where the Hell was David Spade? There was only on screen for half a minute in one sketch and they didn't show really any of his old clips.

The Simpsons and two CSI episodes aired when this was airing. I watched those live, but I had the SNL special DVR'ed and watched it today. So I skipped the Miley Cyrus and Kanye West performances.

I DVR'ed it, and I thought about recording it on a tape. I'd probably get it on DVD (or better yet, Blu-ray) if they put it out, though they most likely won't.

Anyway, it airs again this Friday at 8pm.


I don't know how, but I started watching the show in the 21st season, and I was a junior in high school.

I hate to say this, but although the Jeopardy! sketches can be a little funny, I'm not sure what the basis of them is.

They did honor Don Pardo. They showed him among all the other SNL alumni and crew members who've passed away.

Thought it was pretty good. Liked the Break song, the Wayne's World, and Jeopardy. Seemed to skew to "new" SNL. Not much from the 80's and 90's a little from the 70's but mostly the Otts and 10's. Pardo, Gilda, Farley, Hartman, Belushi, and Hooks probably deserved more than a place in a photo montage.

My coworkers were talking about this, today. I wished that Eddie Murphy revisited an old sketch, like Gumby.

Lucky you, I turned to the Weather Channel during Miley's performance and turned it off when West showed up. I missed the Wayne's World bit because o it though.

Thanks. I want to rewatch certain parts of it.

As for Pardo I meant no montage only a mention saying "hey, he is passed on". It felt like he deserved more than a quick mention.

Just watched it

- Eddie Murphy apparently has access to a fountain of youth.
- Kristen Wiig is hot.
- Kate McKinnon's Justin Bieber impression is hilarious.
- Footage of young/handsome Chevy Chase & then seeing the almost senile old man he's become is depressing.
- Good to see Jack Nicholson out from whatever rock he's been under (do another movie dude).
- Sandler & Samberg really do seem related & need to do a second buddy film together (a better one).
- That 'Californians' sketch was painful.
- I wish Kanye West would f*ck off forever. Miley Cyrus can join him.
- Bill Murray sing/screaming about Jaws. Awesome.
- I wish Melissa McCarthy would stop thinking shes the female Chris Farley (you have to be lovable first).
- Wanted to see more audition tapes.

Gonna go watch Wayne's World now...

Am I crazy for thinking Eddie Murphy got way too much love? I mean there are other great performers who gave a lot to Saturday Night Live and they didn't get a specific mention but Murphy gets this long Chris Rock monologue about how great he is. I mean he was great and all but so is Farley and Belushi and Phil Hartman and many others.

Also Don Pardo was the voice of Saturday Night Live for 39 of the 40 years he deserve more than just a little snippet in the in memoriam segment.

Nah, I was thinking the same thing. I was surprised he didn't even try to crack a joke or anything...he sorta just showed up, gave a brief speech (seemed a little forced), then was like "oh...thought you guys were gonna transition to the next part...ok let's try that again..." I like Eddie Murphy and all, but that made my head turn and had me a little disappointed.

They could've easily gotten someone who was more passionate about it than him.

Re:Eddie Murphy. That might have been the only way to get Eddie Murphy to return after 30 years for all 73 seconds after Chris Rock gives such a build up. It would have been cooler if Chris Rock introduced a segment of Mr. Robinson's neighborhood then Eddie came out on the main stage. That is just me.

A few cast members of the past were in the audience but did not even get a mention. At the end of the q & a segment Goodman could have asked all past cast members to stand and let the camera show them. Perfect time for that.

The whole show (divided into segments) is up here:
https://screen.yahoo.com/snl/

Oh yeah. I get that spotlighting celebrities is a key part of the SNL formula and always has been. But, as an example, Chris Kattan and Cheri O'Teri were in the clip montages and were apparently in the audience, but did we see him in person at all? Don't they deserve a moment (or several) on the stage more than Melissa McCarthy or Miley Cyrus do?

I like the song that Kanye West performed though. I just didn't care for the way he was doing the performance.