Only 40 currently-running shows have been around for half a century. This season, sketch-comedy show “Saturday Night Live” joined these glamorous ranks. In honor of being the longest-running American variety show, they recently aired a fiftith season anniversary special, celebrating cast members and characters from then and now. So, how did a show with little faith from its producers become such a cultural landmark?
In the 1970s, comedy about stereotypical family dynamics was dying, with satire about race, politics, sexuality, and pop culture becoming increasingly popular among young adults living in a tumultuous time. Dick Ebersol, vice president of late-night programming on NBC, was asked to come up with a show to fill their Saturday night, 11:30 p.m. timeslot. He approached Lorne Michaels, a television writer famous for “The Hart and Lorne Terrific Hour” in Canada. Together, they came up with a variety show that featured grandiose comedy sketches and live music performances.
After being given Studio 8H at 30 Rockefeller Center, Michaels assembled the “Not Ready for Prime-Time Players,” Chevy Chase, John Belushi, Jane Curtin, Garrett Morris, Laraine Newman, Dan Aykroyd, Gilda Radner, and George Coe. The first episode of NBC’s “Saturday Night” — It wasn’t changed to “Saturday Night Live” until 1977 due to the name already being used on ABC — aired on Oct. 11, 1975, and the show quickly gained a cult following.
The show has faced many struggles and controversies over its lifetime. Cocaine use plagued the show’s staff during its first few years, and when Jean Doumanian replaced Michaels in 1980, the show was nearly cancelled after one of his cast members used profanity on air. Dick Ebersol quickly revamped most of the cast and strayed away from political humor, avoiding jokes about Ronald Reagan during his presidency. Michaels returned in 1985. The show faced heavy criticism in 1992 after Sinead O’Connor’s performance of “War” by Bob Marley, where she tore apart a picture of Pope John Paul II and said, “Fight the real enemy,” in protest of the child sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church. It also faced competition from Fox’s “Mad TV.”
“Saturday Night Live,” due to airing from New York City, was heavily affected by the 9/11 attacks, and political humor was reduced. The Writers Guild of America strike cut season 33 short in 2007, and the show began to rely on pre-recorded sketches known as SNL Digital Shorts, popularized by comedy trio The Lonely Island. During the COVID-19 Pandemic, the show aired three remote episodes titled “Saturday Night Live at Home” before returning to in-person filming in Oct. 2020.
The 2024-2025 cast has 17 members: repertory players Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Chloe Fineman, Heidi Gardner, Marcello Hernández, James Austin Johnson, Michael Longfellow, Ego Nwodim, Sarah Sherman, Kenan Thompson, Devon Walker, and Bowen Yang; Weekend Update anchors Michael Che and Colin Jost; and featured players Ashley Padilla, Emil Wakim, and Jane Wickline. Season 50 began on Sept. 28, 2024, and has included star-studded hosts and musical guests, including Ariana Grande and Stevie Nicks, John Mulaney and Chappell Roan, Timothée Chalamet, Charli XCX, and Lady Gaga, all hosting and performing. The show has also featured special guests, such as former vice president Kamala Harris for her presidential campaign.
Along with the “Saturday Night Live” 50th Anniversary Special, the license aired a documentary about the musical performances and controversies of the show, directed by Questlove, and a homecoming concert featuring current and past performances from artists like the Backstreet Boys, Bad Bunny, Lauryn Hill, and Nirvana. Preceding the premiere of the special was a live red carpet hosted by Amelia Dimoldenberg on YouTube and a pre-show hosted by Willie Geist, Leslie Jones, and Matt Rogers on NBC.
The 209-minute special aired to nearly fifteen million viewers. The various sketches included Maharelle sister Dooneese (Kristen Wiig) harassing Lawrence Welk, Kelsey (Chloe Fineman) and Matthew’s (Andrew Dismukes) bridesmaids and groomsmen singing about the two’s affairs to various pop songs, Bowen Yang and Andy Samberg singing about the anxiety that comes with working at SNL, Debbie Downer (Rachel Dratch) killing the vibes at a bar, and many other recurring and new sketches.
Despite the rocky road Saturday Night Live has traveled, its ability to balance political satire with pop culture references and absurd humor has made it a United States legend. Influential people like Jimmy Fallon, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Kate McKinnon, Maya Rudolph, Andy Samberg, Adam Sandler, and Kenan Thompson have, rightfully, had incredible success granted by their time on the show. I have no doubt that SNL and its legacy will carry on for many more decades.
The “Saturday Night Live” license is streaming on Peacock.
