Saturday Night Live: The First Twenty Years

by Michael Cader

Book Overview

Saturday Night Live - the official book of the show's twentieth anniversary, to be celebrated in September 1995 in an hour-long prime-time Sunday special - is a jam-packed, heavily illustrated look at... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0395752841
• ISBN13: 9780395752845
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 1.99 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 9.7" x 9.8"

Customer Reviews

A grand history of late night television

I'm sorry to say that this book was published a year too early. It went to press after the 1993-94 season which was SNL's 19th. Were the authors and publishers so anxious to get it out? I guess they were. Anyway,this book tells about the amazing history of Saturday Night Live. Every overall cast member,director,writer,producer and everyone else involved. We'll never forget October 11,1975,the day of its premiere. The premiere episode began with the late John Belushi and the late writer Michael O'Donoughue in a sketch called "The Wolverines". O'Donoughue played a psychiatrist and Belushi was the patient. At the end of that sketch and before the pre-taped opening montage played,Chevy Chase came out yelling "LIVE FROM NEW YORK,IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT!",which is said at the beginning of every show,even to this day. Chase didn't stay very long on the show. Before the end of 1976,Chase,the first Weekend Update anchorman,went to Hollywood. Jane Curtin,another original cast member succeeded Chase on Weekend Update. Shortly after Chase's departure,in came Bill Murray from Chicago. After 1978-79,Belushi and Dan Aykroyd left SNL to go Hollywood and concentrate on their Blues Brothers act,initiated on SNL. They filmed THE BLUES BROTHERS in '79,a year after Belushi's first starring film ANIMAL HOUSE. In 1979-80,Harry Shearer joined remaining original members Curtin,Garrett Morris,Laraine Newman and Gilda Radner. After that season,all five were gone. The 1980-81 season began unusually late due to the actors' strike and Presidential debate between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan(the SNL studio was used for the debate). That season brought an entirely new cast,one of them being Joe Piscopo who stayed thru 1983-84. Eddie Murphy,then age 19,joined the show and departed with Piscopo. Another member was Gilbert Gottfried who was then not-so-famous. Jean Doumanian succeeded original producer Lorne Michaels,who had left with the remainder of the original cast. Gottfried was let go after 1980-81. In 1981-82,Piscopo and Murphy had new castmates,some of them Canadians. Robin Duke and Tim Kazurinsky are Canadian like original member Dan Aykroyd. Later(1984-85) came Billy Crystal who almost became an original member,and James Belushi,John's brother. Also joining in 1984-85 was Martin Short,who'd go Hollywood himself later. The following season,things finally settled down in studio 8H. Lorne Michaels returned,triumphantly(Doumanian was fired after 1980-81 and succeeded by Dick Ebersol) to serve as producer like he did for SNL's first 5 seasons. The new cast members were Nora Dunn,Dana Carvey,Kevin Nealon,Victoria Jackson and Dennis Miller who'd become the next Weekend Update anchorman. Mike Myers joined in 1989. Myers and Carvey became Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar,two hard-rocking and babe-loving buddies on the sketch Wayne's World,later inspiring two films. Chris Farley and David Spade later came and also went Hollywood. Another big SNL star is Adam Sandler,another film star.

Be "SNL smart" with this book.

This book is an awesome book! you can learn about every castmember in the show up until 94'. You can learn about all the hosts, all the years, all the musical guests, all the backstage info, all the famous songs(including Adam Sandler's Songs), and much much more. Not only will it let you know your facts, but you will enjoy it! Trust me, buy it!!!!!!

A Great Book

A great book, really good if you only started watching SNL in the last few yaers and would like to know about the earlier years.

This book is a great guide to everything Saturday Night Live

I originally checked this book out from the library in my town. I read through it over and over, and when I would watch reruns of SNL, I would look and see if skits from the episode were in the book. This book even lists every guest host, musical guest, and the songs they played on the show from the beginning up to 1994. After having to turn the book back in, I decided I had to find one to buy. This book is my favorite non- novel!

I LOVE THIS BOOK AND I LOVE THE SHOW

THIS BOOK IS GREAT. I CHECKED IT OUT FROM MY LIBRARY EVERYTIME I CAN. IT IS MYFAVORITE BOOK EVER.