Saturday Night Lives!: Part 4
Part 4 of my 4-part series on the revival of "Saturday Night Live." Next up: 1989-1990!
Introduction
Hello Retro Junkies, and welcome to part 4 in my four-part series of articles detailing the revival of “Saturday Night Live” in the late 1980’s. In part 1, you met the new cast and saw them start out on a show whose future was riddled with much uncertainty, in part 2, you watched them begin to come into their own and pave a new future for “Saturday Night Live,” and in part 3 you experienced their “best season yet.” And now, without further delay, I bring you part 4 of “Saturday Night Lives!”
Next stop: 1989-1990!
Happy Birthday!
The fifteenth season launched itself in a BIG way, namely in a celebration of the show’s first fifteen years. There were some high points (1975-1980 and 1986-1989) and low points (the rest of the time in between – does anyone want to remember 1980-1981?), but needless to say, with a celebration this big, “Saturday Night Live” was declaring its staying power in a big way.
A star-studded line-up of “Not Ready for Prime Time Players” past and present (the “original eight of 1986,” as I call them, was the current cast of the time) and hosts were on hand to celebrate the big milestone. And, to think, just a few years earlier, “Saturday Night Live” was in a collision course with cancellation. And, in four years, its fate was reversed.
Tom Hanks, a favorite who would go on to host several more times during the nineties (including a hosting gig during the fifteenth season), opened the show, and introduced the first five years of retrospective clips. You know these clip shows – they show random short snippets of memories. Imagine, if you will, that you were the person responsible for editing this program. Could you do it? Actually, if it were me, the next five years would be eliminated, with the exception of the 1984-1985 season. I would even eliminate 1985-1986.
I will not bore you will the details of this 2-hour special (I’m saving it for another article), but I will tell you it aired on September 24, 1989 as a prime time special (much like the twenty-fifth anniversary, where you can see these stars age another fifteen years). Bask in the scariness that is Chevy Chase aging, the receding hairlines that most of the men have, marvel at how much weight Jon Lovitz put on – that was 1999. But, in 1989, it was a little different.
And, now, on to the season!
Part 4: Season Fifteen – 1989-1990
Anniversaries, Additions, and the End of “The Original Eight”
The Cast
Dana Carvey
Nora Dunn
Phil Hartman
Jan Hooks
Victoria Jackson
Jon Lovitz
Dennis Miller
Mike Myers (featured player, promoted to full status in 1990)
Kevin Nealon
“Saturday Night Live” officially kicked off its fifteenth season the Saturday after the anniversary special, on September 30, 1989. If you’ve happened upon enough season premieres (I’m guilty – I haven’t missed one since 1995), you know the trend - the season always starts during the final weekend of September or first weekend of October. Bruce Willis hosted the season premiere that night, and yes, he still had hair. Fresh off the cancellation of “Moonlighting” in 1989, the success of “Die Hard” in 1988, and the upcoming release of “Look Who’s Talking” on October 13, 1989 (I did my homework on Internet Movie Database), Willis hosted just about a year after his wife, Demi Moore, did the honors. And, I must say (in my best Ed Grimley) that this is one of those episodes that I have on tape (and as a rarity, in a full ninety-minute format – I taped over Tom Hanks, but I have Bruce Willis – who says you can’t do well?).
Returning for the 1989-1990 season was the “Original Eight” – Carvey, Dunn, Hartman, Hooks, Jackson, Lovitz, Miller, and Nealon. Returning as a featured player was Mike Myers, who was promoted to full player in 1990. Myers proved that he could come into his own in a cast that already had four successful years together, and become one of the group. He also became the youngest player in the cast – he was twenty-six in 1989. The rest of the cast, still young, were now moving into their fourth (Dana Carvey, Phil Hartman, Jan Hooks, Victoria Jackson, and Kevin Nealon) and fifth seasons (Nora Dunn, Jon Lovitz, and Dennis Miller).
This was also a season of firsts – Christopher Walken, Alec Baldwin, and John Goodman all hosted for the first time this season (unfortunately, I’ve seen more of John Goodman over the years than I’d like to acknowledge). But, one host I can never get enough of is Christopher Walken – his monologues are worth watching, and his style of comedy is unmatched. Alec Baldwin is another one of my personal favorites – I particularly love his turn as the amorous Mr. Cherrywood in “Greenhilly,” in which anyone who got close enough to Mr. Cherrywood would engage in a make-out session with him, complete with the dramatic score. As for John Goodman, well…I’m sorry if anyone else likes him, but I’m just not a fan. Never have been. Although I do make exceptions – I was fond of his portrayal of Linda Tripp during the Clinton Sex Scandal. And even that became overtired.
"Greenhilly" - Mr. Cherrywood (Alec Baldwin) is a young man who has a amorous affect on the residents of Greenhilly - everyone from the young woman (Jan Hooks) to the servant (Victoria Jackson) to the mistress (Nora Dunn) to the master (Phil Hartman)...and right down to the dog.
So, here’s a look at the season premiere:
Season Premiere - September 30, 1989
Host: Bruce Willis
Musical Guest: Neil Young
Cold Opening – Bush’s White House Report
Dana Carvey – George Bush
Monologue
Bruce Willis
Commercial – thirtysomething
Nora Dunn – wife
Phil Hartman – announcer (v/o)
Jan Hooks – friend
Jon Lovitz – friend
Kevin Nealon – husband
Show – Wayne’s World
Mike Myers – Wayne Campbell
Dana Carvey – Garth Algar
Nora Dunn – Mrs. Campbell
Phil Hartman – Cable 10 Announcer (v/o)
Bruce Willis – Rick
Jan Hooks – Nancy Simmons
Commercial – Donahue
Phil Hartman – Phil Donahue
Musical Performance – Rockin’ in the Free World
Neil Young
Show – Home Improvement (The Anal Retentive Handyman)
Phil Hartman – Eugene
Jim Downey – Announcer (v/o)
Weekend Update With Dennis Miller
Dennis Miller – himself/anchor
Nora Dunn – Imelda Marcos
A. Whitney Brown – Himself/The Big Picture
Sketch – Johnny’s Replacement**
Bruce Willis – Marty Murphy
Phil Hartman – Johnny O’Connor
Jon Lovitz – Harry Meyer
Kevin Nealon – waiter
**I don't have any pictures of this sketch - I taped this episode in the full 90-minute version, and this sketch never aired on that version. I actually have a different sketch in which Bruce Willis makes people laugh, and Phil Hartman, playing a terrorist on a plane, kills anyone that laughs at his jokes. I have images of this in the "Images of the Season" section.
Show – Sprockets
Mike Myers – Dieter
Dana Carvey – Jimmy Stewart
Phil Hartman – announcer (v/o)
Musical Performance – “Needle & The Damage Done,” “No More”
Neil Young
Commercial – Donahue
Phil Hartman – Phil Donahue
Commercial – Bruce Willis: The Man and His Music
Bruce Willis
The episode was a lot of fun, especially for “Sprockets.” Dana Carvey continually getting Dieter’s name wrong (he called him “Dooter” and “Doter”). He goes to “touch his [Dieter’s] monkey,” but gets bit by the monkey, proclaiming, “Your damn monkey bit me!” Yeah, now that’s comedy! I also couldn’t help but emphasize the boldfaced style of “thirtysomething,” which I showed you in part 3, during Dennis Miller’s nitpicking of the title sequence. Yeah.
Neil Young’s performance of “Rockin’ in the Free World” was excellent – I think it was a great song, and one of the best musical performances of the season, coming in behind “The Piano Man” himself, Billy Joel! And, if you’ve ever seen his performance of “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” on here, you’d understand why – it is the best live performance of a song that I’ve seen in a long time. And, I could honestly kick myself for taping over the 1-hour condensed episode this was on.
Hosts and Musical Guests: 1989-1990
September 30, 1989 (Season Premiere) – Bruce Willis/Neil Young
October 7, 1989 – Rick Moranis/Rickie Lee Jones
October 21, 1989 – Kathleen Turner/Billy Joel
October 28, 1989 – James Woods/Don Henley
November 11, 1989 – Chris Evert/Eurythmics
November 18, 1989 – Woody Harrelson/David Byrne
December 2, 1989 – John Goodman/KD Lang and The Reclines
December 9, 1989 – Robert Wagner/Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville
December 16, 1989 – Andie MacDowell/Tracy Chapman
January 13, 1990 – Ed O’Neill/Harry Connick Jr.
January 20, 1990 – Christopher Walken/Bonnie Raitt
February 10, 1990 – Quincy Jones/Tevin Campbell, Andrae Crouch, Sandra Crouch, Kool Moe Dee, Big Daddy Kane
February 17, 1990 – Tom Hanks/Aerosmith
February 24, 1990 – Fred Savage/Technotronic
March 17, 1990 – Rob Lowe/The Pogues
March 24, 1990 – Debra Winger/Eric Clapton
April 14, 1990 – Corbin Bernsen/The Smithereens
April 21, 1990 – Alec Baldwin/B-52’s
May 12, 1990 – Andrew Dice Clay/Julee Cruise, Spanic Boys
May 19, 1990 – Candice Bergen/Cowboy Junkies
Did You Know?
Facts of the 1989-1990 season
Christopher Walken (January 20, 1990) and Alec Baldwin (April 21, 1990) make their hosting debuts this season. They will both go on to host several more times over the next sixteen years (Walken currently stands at six times at of this year, and Baldwin stands at twelve times, second only to Steve Martin’s fourteen). Both actors have an open-ended agreement that when they would like to come back and host again, they will be invited to do so. The reason? Both are ratings-grabbers, and are popular with the fans (especially Walken). And it seems no matter what Alec Baldwin says or does to cause controversy, he is a beloved host.
(General Trivia) Christopher Walken now hosts on the condition that he will be able to do a song-and-dance routine for his monologue – he has done one every time he has hosted. The song this season was “Throwin’ a Ball Tonight.” And, because I love you, I included the lyrics and pictures later in the article. Just picture Christopher Walken singing this song, and you’ll laugh too.
Christopher Walken has his own recurring character – The Continential. Our womanizer friend makes his debut on January 20, 1990.
This is the season that Andrew Dice Clay hosted (5/12/1990 – yeah, Happy Mother’s Day – hope you like Andrew Dice Clay). As if you already didn’t know, this was the infamous boycotting stunt that got Nora Dunn dismissed from “Saturday Night Live.” It was also rumored that after five years, Dunn’s contract was not being renewed, and this was a “publicity stunt.”
In the same episode, Sinead O’Connor boycotted “Saturday Night Live,” and refused to sing due to Clay’s derogatory comments about women in his act. We all know what O’Connor did in 1992.
9/30/1989 – the name of the critic on “Sprockets,” Gaus Grek, is the name of Woody Harrelson’s character on the 5/16/1992 episode.
11/11/1989 – The music played during the newspaper montages was used as the theme for “Saturday Night News” from 1982 – 1984.
11/11/1989 – Jan Hooks makes all of the fast-forward sound effects during the sketch “Bette Davis’ Videotape Will.”
12/2/1989 – A pre-taped segment of John Goodman’s wife sitting alone during the monologue fails to start, and after several seconds of silence, the monologue ends awkwardly, during the goodnights, Goodman dangles a timepiece to hypnotize the audience, saying, “there was no technical screw-up!” Both the monologue and goodnights are replaced with the dress rehearsal versions in reruns. (I didn’t even know that!)
2/10/1990 – the music used for “Jazz Perspectifs” was also used for “Jazz Riffs,” which aired on 10/8/2003.
2/17/1990 – During Steven Tyler’s performance of “Monkey on My Back,” Steven Tyler exclaims “get this f*****g monkey off my back!” This is removed in reruns.
3/17/1990 – During “Sprockets,” the song “Mummy’s in Heaven with the Angels,” is an obvious precursor to the “Simon” sketches.
3/24/1990 – Future cast member Tim Meadows’ name was used as the name of a classmate in “Wayne’s World.”
4/21/1990 – During “Nude Talk Show,” the fictional show titles “Dukakis After Dark” and “The Insane Idiot” are both sketches from previous episodes.
Remember the article I did on the “Annoying Man” character made famous for annoying poor Dennis Miller (but, don’t cry for him) any chance he gets? This annoyance debuted on November 11, 1989, and continued right through five more annoying appearances this season, and one more appearance next season, which was after Jon Lovitz left.
Nora Dunn exited from the show in 1990. Rumor has it that her contract was not renewed, but it probably didn’t help that she boycotting Andrew Dice Clay’s May 12, 1990 hosting gig.
Nora Dunn, as a result of her boycott against Andrew Dice Clay, did not perform in any sketches during the May 12, 1990 episode. Dunn made her debut on November 9, 1985, and was one of three cast members who survived the tumultuous 1985-1986 season.
Jon Lovitz ends his 5-year “Saturday Night Live” run on May 19, 1990. Lovitz made his debut on November 9, 1985, and, aside from Nora Dunn, was one of the three cast members who survived the 1985-1986 season.
Dennis Miller sets a record for his tenure behind the “Weekend Update” desk – five seasons. Miller debuted on November 9, 1985, and came into his own over that first tough year. He’ll continue his hair-flipping, effeminate-giggle antics until next year, setting the record at six seasons.
Mike Myers gets promoted to full cast member in the later half of the season.
This is the beginning of the end of the “Original Eight” members of the 1986-1987 cast. The remaining members (Carvey, Hartman, Hooks, Jackson, Miller, and Nealon, along with 1988-1989 addition Mike Myers) are the starring company the following season.
Accidental Happenings
Bloopers and Outtakes 1989-1990
11/11/1989 – During “Bette Davis’ Videotape Will,” Jan Hooks can be seen making the fast forward sound effect a second after “playback” has resumed. Refer to “Did you Know?” for more information on this.
10/21/1989 – Jon Lovitz’s prosthetic stomach comes loose after he begins dancing, and the padding underneath is visible.
Newsworthy “Weekend Update” Moments
1989-1990
The embattled East German Communist Party is debating a name change. They've whittled it down to two choices, either the "Social Democratic Workers Party" or the "Wolverines" and ... in either case, though, the mascot will be a wolverine.
[Photo of several rows of tough-looking uniformed men] A convention of dictators was held this week in Las Vegas, Nevada. ... Shooting broke out when the scheduled performer, Gallagher, was replaced by Howie Mandel...
The White House says that President Bush plans to attend a drug summit in Colombia in February. Hey, ya know, that's a press junket I thought I might pass on, huh? [heavy sarcasm] "Oh! An exclusive?! Riding in the president's car through downtown Bogotá?! Oh, yeah! Yeah! Gee, sorry! I got a "Back to the Future III" thing at the Waldorf that day."
Olympic star Nadia Comaneci announced that she plans to live with her married lover, Constantine Panait, the man who helped her escape from Romania last week. Nadia, who won all those gold medals in the '76 Olympics is still in great shape, as you can see here. [photo of Nadia doing a spectacular mid-air backbend] Her boyfriend, Constantine, is now in a south Florida hospital having all the bones in his body removed... Except THAT one! [cheers and applause] But that's not really a bone, is it?...[photo of Nadia sticking her tongue out] Just an amazingly intricate set of capillaries ... Boy, science blows me away! You know--[cheers] Asked if she didn't - asked if she didn't think it was unfair to ask a married man to leave his wife and four children for her, Comaneci said, "So what? It doesn't matter." [Dennis shakes his head and adopts a singsong tone] Nad-i-a! [holds up a sign reading "4.0" and shakes his head sadly]…[cheers and applause]
And now, it's time for "Dennis Miller's Christmas Craft Corner"! ... This week, I'll be showing you how to make that special Christmas wreath project [dumps a bag's worth of Wonder Bread wrappers on the desk in front of him] out of all those old, used Wonder Bread wrappers. ... [Bobbing his head enthusiastically as if hosting a craft show] Now, what you do is, you take eight or ten Wonder Bread wrappers, like I have here-- [Using his arm, Dennis suddenly sweeps the wrappers off the desk and on to the floor - bluntly] And you get rid of 'em. Ya get a credit card, you go to a store, you buy a wreath. All right? Thank you. ... [cheers and applause]
Starting in January, Gumbel fans will have their choice of morning show Gumbels. Bryant on NBC or big brother Greg on CBS. Actually Bryant doesn't have a brother but a recent ego overflow was enough to make another Gumbel...
Hello Retro Junkies, and welcome to part 4 in my four-part series of articles detailing the revival of “Saturday Night Live” in the late 1980’s. In part 1, you met the new cast and saw them start out on a show whose future was riddled with much uncertainty, in part 2, you watched them begin to come into their own and pave a new future for “Saturday Night Live,” and in part 3 you experienced their “best season yet.” And now, without further delay, I bring you part 4 of “Saturday Night Lives!”
Next stop: 1989-1990!
Happy Birthday!
The fifteenth season launched itself in a BIG way, namely in a celebration of the show’s first fifteen years. There were some high points (1975-1980 and 1986-1989) and low points (the rest of the time in between – does anyone want to remember 1980-1981?), but needless to say, with a celebration this big, “Saturday Night Live” was declaring its staying power in a big way.
A star-studded line-up of “Not Ready for Prime Time Players” past and present (the “original eight of 1986,” as I call them, was the current cast of the time) and hosts were on hand to celebrate the big milestone. And, to think, just a few years earlier, “Saturday Night Live” was in a collision course with cancellation. And, in four years, its fate was reversed.
Tom Hanks, a favorite who would go on to host several more times during the nineties (including a hosting gig during the fifteenth season), opened the show, and introduced the first five years of retrospective clips. You know these clip shows – they show random short snippets of memories. Imagine, if you will, that you were the person responsible for editing this program. Could you do it? Actually, if it were me, the next five years would be eliminated, with the exception of the 1984-1985 season. I would even eliminate 1985-1986.
I will not bore you will the details of this 2-hour special (I’m saving it for another article), but I will tell you it aired on September 24, 1989 as a prime time special (much like the twenty-fifth anniversary, where you can see these stars age another fifteen years). Bask in the scariness that is Chevy Chase aging, the receding hairlines that most of the men have, marvel at how much weight Jon Lovitz put on – that was 1999. But, in 1989, it was a little different.
And, now, on to the season!
Part 4: Season Fifteen – 1989-1990
Anniversaries, Additions, and the End of “The Original Eight”
The Cast
Dana Carvey
Nora Dunn
Phil Hartman
Jan Hooks
Victoria Jackson
Jon Lovitz
Dennis Miller
Mike Myers (featured player, promoted to full status in 1990)
Kevin Nealon
“Saturday Night Live” officially kicked off its fifteenth season the Saturday after the anniversary special, on September 30, 1989. If you’ve happened upon enough season premieres (I’m guilty – I haven’t missed one since 1995), you know the trend - the season always starts during the final weekend of September or first weekend of October. Bruce Willis hosted the season premiere that night, and yes, he still had hair. Fresh off the cancellation of “Moonlighting” in 1989, the success of “Die Hard” in 1988, and the upcoming release of “Look Who’s Talking” on October 13, 1989 (I did my homework on Internet Movie Database), Willis hosted just about a year after his wife, Demi Moore, did the honors. And, I must say (in my best Ed Grimley) that this is one of those episodes that I have on tape (and as a rarity, in a full ninety-minute format – I taped over Tom Hanks, but I have Bruce Willis – who says you can’t do well?).
Returning for the 1989-1990 season was the “Original Eight” – Carvey, Dunn, Hartman, Hooks, Jackson, Lovitz, Miller, and Nealon. Returning as a featured player was Mike Myers, who was promoted to full player in 1990. Myers proved that he could come into his own in a cast that already had four successful years together, and become one of the group. He also became the youngest player in the cast – he was twenty-six in 1989. The rest of the cast, still young, were now moving into their fourth (Dana Carvey, Phil Hartman, Jan Hooks, Victoria Jackson, and Kevin Nealon) and fifth seasons (Nora Dunn, Jon Lovitz, and Dennis Miller).
This was also a season of firsts – Christopher Walken, Alec Baldwin, and John Goodman all hosted for the first time this season (unfortunately, I’ve seen more of John Goodman over the years than I’d like to acknowledge). But, one host I can never get enough of is Christopher Walken – his monologues are worth watching, and his style of comedy is unmatched. Alec Baldwin is another one of my personal favorites – I particularly love his turn as the amorous Mr. Cherrywood in “Greenhilly,” in which anyone who got close enough to Mr. Cherrywood would engage in a make-out session with him, complete with the dramatic score. As for John Goodman, well…I’m sorry if anyone else likes him, but I’m just not a fan. Never have been. Although I do make exceptions – I was fond of his portrayal of Linda Tripp during the Clinton Sex Scandal. And even that became overtired.
"Greenhilly" - Mr. Cherrywood (Alec Baldwin) is a young man who has a amorous affect on the residents of Greenhilly - everyone from the young woman (Jan Hooks) to the servant (Victoria Jackson) to the mistress (Nora Dunn) to the master (Phil Hartman)...and right down to the dog.
So, here’s a look at the season premiere:
Season Premiere - September 30, 1989
Host: Bruce Willis
Musical Guest: Neil Young
Cold Opening – Bush’s White House Report
Dana Carvey – George Bush
Monologue
Bruce Willis
Commercial – thirtysomething
Nora Dunn – wife
Phil Hartman – announcer (v/o)
Jan Hooks – friend
Jon Lovitz – friend
Kevin Nealon – husband
Show – Wayne’s World
Mike Myers – Wayne Campbell
Dana Carvey – Garth Algar
Nora Dunn – Mrs. Campbell
Phil Hartman – Cable 10 Announcer (v/o)
Bruce Willis – Rick
Jan Hooks – Nancy Simmons
Commercial – Donahue
Phil Hartman – Phil Donahue
Musical Performance – Rockin’ in the Free World
Neil Young
Show – Home Improvement (The Anal Retentive Handyman)
Phil Hartman – Eugene
Jim Downey – Announcer (v/o)
Weekend Update With Dennis Miller
Dennis Miller – himself/anchor
Nora Dunn – Imelda Marcos
A. Whitney Brown – Himself/The Big Picture
Sketch – Johnny’s Replacement**
Bruce Willis – Marty Murphy
Phil Hartman – Johnny O’Connor
Jon Lovitz – Harry Meyer
Kevin Nealon – waiter
**I don't have any pictures of this sketch - I taped this episode in the full 90-minute version, and this sketch never aired on that version. I actually have a different sketch in which Bruce Willis makes people laugh, and Phil Hartman, playing a terrorist on a plane, kills anyone that laughs at his jokes. I have images of this in the "Images of the Season" section.
Show – Sprockets
Mike Myers – Dieter
Dana Carvey – Jimmy Stewart
Phil Hartman – announcer (v/o)
Musical Performance – “Needle & The Damage Done,” “No More”
Neil Young
Commercial – Donahue
Phil Hartman – Phil Donahue
Commercial – Bruce Willis: The Man and His Music
Bruce Willis
The episode was a lot of fun, especially for “Sprockets.” Dana Carvey continually getting Dieter’s name wrong (he called him “Dooter” and “Doter”). He goes to “touch his [Dieter’s] monkey,” but gets bit by the monkey, proclaiming, “Your damn monkey bit me!” Yeah, now that’s comedy! I also couldn’t help but emphasize the boldfaced style of “thirtysomething,” which I showed you in part 3, during Dennis Miller’s nitpicking of the title sequence. Yeah.
Neil Young’s performance of “Rockin’ in the Free World” was excellent – I think it was a great song, and one of the best musical performances of the season, coming in behind “The Piano Man” himself, Billy Joel! And, if you’ve ever seen his performance of “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” on here, you’d understand why – it is the best live performance of a song that I’ve seen in a long time. And, I could honestly kick myself for taping over the 1-hour condensed episode this was on.
Hosts and Musical Guests: 1989-1990
September 30, 1989 (Season Premiere) – Bruce Willis/Neil Young
October 7, 1989 – Rick Moranis/Rickie Lee Jones
October 21, 1989 – Kathleen Turner/Billy Joel
October 28, 1989 – James Woods/Don Henley
November 11, 1989 – Chris Evert/Eurythmics
November 18, 1989 – Woody Harrelson/David Byrne
December 2, 1989 – John Goodman/KD Lang and The Reclines
December 9, 1989 – Robert Wagner/Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville
December 16, 1989 – Andie MacDowell/Tracy Chapman
January 13, 1990 – Ed O’Neill/Harry Connick Jr.
January 20, 1990 – Christopher Walken/Bonnie Raitt
February 10, 1990 – Quincy Jones/Tevin Campbell, Andrae Crouch, Sandra Crouch, Kool Moe Dee, Big Daddy Kane
February 17, 1990 – Tom Hanks/Aerosmith
February 24, 1990 – Fred Savage/Technotronic
March 17, 1990 – Rob Lowe/The Pogues
March 24, 1990 – Debra Winger/Eric Clapton
April 14, 1990 – Corbin Bernsen/The Smithereens
April 21, 1990 – Alec Baldwin/B-52’s
May 12, 1990 – Andrew Dice Clay/Julee Cruise, Spanic Boys
May 19, 1990 – Candice Bergen/Cowboy Junkies
Did You Know?
Facts of the 1989-1990 season
Christopher Walken (January 20, 1990) and Alec Baldwin (April 21, 1990) make their hosting debuts this season. They will both go on to host several more times over the next sixteen years (Walken currently stands at six times at of this year, and Baldwin stands at twelve times, second only to Steve Martin’s fourteen). Both actors have an open-ended agreement that when they would like to come back and host again, they will be invited to do so. The reason? Both are ratings-grabbers, and are popular with the fans (especially Walken). And it seems no matter what Alec Baldwin says or does to cause controversy, he is a beloved host.
(General Trivia) Christopher Walken now hosts on the condition that he will be able to do a song-and-dance routine for his monologue – he has done one every time he has hosted. The song this season was “Throwin’ a Ball Tonight.” And, because I love you, I included the lyrics and pictures later in the article. Just picture Christopher Walken singing this song, and you’ll laugh too.
Christopher Walken has his own recurring character – The Continential. Our womanizer friend makes his debut on January 20, 1990.
This is the season that Andrew Dice Clay hosted (5/12/1990 – yeah, Happy Mother’s Day – hope you like Andrew Dice Clay). As if you already didn’t know, this was the infamous boycotting stunt that got Nora Dunn dismissed from “Saturday Night Live.” It was also rumored that after five years, Dunn’s contract was not being renewed, and this was a “publicity stunt.”
In the same episode, Sinead O’Connor boycotted “Saturday Night Live,” and refused to sing due to Clay’s derogatory comments about women in his act. We all know what O’Connor did in 1992.
9/30/1989 – the name of the critic on “Sprockets,” Gaus Grek, is the name of Woody Harrelson’s character on the 5/16/1992 episode.
11/11/1989 – The music played during the newspaper montages was used as the theme for “Saturday Night News” from 1982 – 1984.
11/11/1989 – Jan Hooks makes all of the fast-forward sound effects during the sketch “Bette Davis’ Videotape Will.”
12/2/1989 – A pre-taped segment of John Goodman’s wife sitting alone during the monologue fails to start, and after several seconds of silence, the monologue ends awkwardly, during the goodnights, Goodman dangles a timepiece to hypnotize the audience, saying, “there was no technical screw-up!” Both the monologue and goodnights are replaced with the dress rehearsal versions in reruns. (I didn’t even know that!)
2/10/1990 – the music used for “Jazz Perspectifs” was also used for “Jazz Riffs,” which aired on 10/8/2003.
2/17/1990 – During Steven Tyler’s performance of “Monkey on My Back,” Steven Tyler exclaims “get this f*****g monkey off my back!” This is removed in reruns.
3/17/1990 – During “Sprockets,” the song “Mummy’s in Heaven with the Angels,” is an obvious precursor to the “Simon” sketches.
3/24/1990 – Future cast member Tim Meadows’ name was used as the name of a classmate in “Wayne’s World.”
4/21/1990 – During “Nude Talk Show,” the fictional show titles “Dukakis After Dark” and “The Insane Idiot” are both sketches from previous episodes.
Remember the article I did on the “Annoying Man” character made famous for annoying poor Dennis Miller (but, don’t cry for him) any chance he gets? This annoyance debuted on November 11, 1989, and continued right through five more annoying appearances this season, and one more appearance next season, which was after Jon Lovitz left.
Nora Dunn exited from the show in 1990. Rumor has it that her contract was not renewed, but it probably didn’t help that she boycotting Andrew Dice Clay’s May 12, 1990 hosting gig.
Nora Dunn, as a result of her boycott against Andrew Dice Clay, did not perform in any sketches during the May 12, 1990 episode. Dunn made her debut on November 9, 1985, and was one of three cast members who survived the tumultuous 1985-1986 season.
Jon Lovitz ends his 5-year “Saturday Night Live” run on May 19, 1990. Lovitz made his debut on November 9, 1985, and, aside from Nora Dunn, was one of the three cast members who survived the 1985-1986 season.
Dennis Miller sets a record for his tenure behind the “Weekend Update” desk – five seasons. Miller debuted on November 9, 1985, and came into his own over that first tough year. He’ll continue his hair-flipping, effeminate-giggle antics until next year, setting the record at six seasons.
Mike Myers gets promoted to full cast member in the later half of the season.
This is the beginning of the end of the “Original Eight” members of the 1986-1987 cast. The remaining members (Carvey, Hartman, Hooks, Jackson, Miller, and Nealon, along with 1988-1989 addition Mike Myers) are the starring company the following season.
Accidental Happenings
Bloopers and Outtakes 1989-1990
11/11/1989 – During “Bette Davis’ Videotape Will,” Jan Hooks can be seen making the fast forward sound effect a second after “playback” has resumed. Refer to “Did you Know?” for more information on this.
10/21/1989 – Jon Lovitz’s prosthetic stomach comes loose after he begins dancing, and the padding underneath is visible.
Newsworthy “Weekend Update” Moments
1989-1990
The embattled East German Communist Party is debating a name change. They've whittled it down to two choices, either the "Social Democratic Workers Party" or the "Wolverines" and ... in either case, though, the mascot will be a wolverine.
[Photo of several rows of tough-looking uniformed men] A convention of dictators was held this week in Las Vegas, Nevada. ... Shooting broke out when the scheduled performer, Gallagher, was replaced by Howie Mandel...
The White House says that President Bush plans to attend a drug summit in Colombia in February. Hey, ya know, that's a press junket I thought I might pass on, huh? [heavy sarcasm] "Oh! An exclusive?! Riding in the president's car through downtown Bogotá?! Oh, yeah! Yeah! Gee, sorry! I got a "Back to the Future III" thing at the Waldorf that day."
Olympic star Nadia Comaneci announced that she plans to live with her married lover, Constantine Panait, the man who helped her escape from Romania last week. Nadia, who won all those gold medals in the '76 Olympics is still in great shape, as you can see here. [photo of Nadia doing a spectacular mid-air backbend] Her boyfriend, Constantine, is now in a south Florida hospital having all the bones in his body removed... Except THAT one! [cheers and applause] But that's not really a bone, is it?...[photo of Nadia sticking her tongue out] Just an amazingly intricate set of capillaries ... Boy, science blows me away! You know--[cheers] Asked if she didn't - asked if she didn't think it was unfair to ask a married man to leave his wife and four children for her, Comaneci said, "So what? It doesn't matter." [Dennis shakes his head and adopts a singsong tone] Nad-i-a! [holds up a sign reading "4.0" and shakes his head sadly]…[cheers and applause]
And now, it's time for "Dennis Miller's Christmas Craft Corner"! ... This week, I'll be showing you how to make that special Christmas wreath project [dumps a bag's worth of Wonder Bread wrappers on the desk in front of him] out of all those old, used Wonder Bread wrappers. ... [Bobbing his head enthusiastically as if hosting a craft show] Now, what you do is, you take eight or ten Wonder Bread wrappers, like I have here-- [Using his arm, Dennis suddenly sweeps the wrappers off the desk and on to the floor - bluntly] And you get rid of 'em. Ya get a credit card, you go to a store, you buy a wreath. All right? Thank you. ... [cheers and applause]
Starting in January, Gumbel fans will have their choice of morning show Gumbels. Bryant on NBC or big brother Greg on CBS. Actually Bryant doesn't have a brother but a recent ego overflow was enough to make another Gumbel...
And Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife Maria Shriver became parents this week for the first time. They had a beautiful baby daughter who was born in a Los Angeles hospital. The attending physician said there's no mistaking it's Arnold's kid. The baby immediately began doing pull-ups on the umbilical cord.
[Doctored photo of boxing promoter Don King with tinsel and Christmas ornaments in his towering head of hair] And Don King had his annual hair trimming party yesterday.
[Image of Tom Cruise in “Born on the 4th of July”]Born on the Fourth of July…[transition to picture of Tom Cruise with first wife Mimi Rogers]…Divorced on the seventeenth of January.
And, you just know that Miller would be having a field day now with all the controversies and insert-foot-in-mouth moments Cruise has had over the last year.
You know, I just wanted to tell you, because Quincy's [Jones] here this week, and I did a little research. I looked in to see what my rap name is, and…uh…oddly enough, my rap name is also Dennis Miller.
And a warrant is out today for Eddie Antar, the founder of the Crazy Eddie chain, for illegally taking $52 million of the company's money Naturally, Eddie's lawyers say they'll plead insanity.
Yesterday - yesterday was Friday the thirteenth. Since our Gregorian calendar began in 1582, there have been nine hundred and thirty-five "Friday the thirteenths." Which is only fourteen less than the number of Friday the 13th movie sequels.
[Photo of real estate mogul Donald Trump posing next to an oversized genie's lamp] Donald Trump posed this week for publicity photos as he opened his Trump Taj Mahal hotel and casino in Atlantic City. On his love life front, it was reported that he's no longer seeing Marla Maples. He is now dating someone named "Jeannie."
And it was revealed this week that Ivana Trump plans to market a line of her own underwear for women. A spokesman, asked if Mrs. Trump was qualified, said, "If she's not, she will be -- because she's gonna be seeing a lot of briefs in the upcoming months." [mild reaction from crowd] Well. That brought Update to a screeching halt. [Sound effects of squealing tires and car crash. From beneath the Update desk, an airbag deploys and inflates to protect a startled Dennis who is pushed back to the wall behind him. [Laughter, cheers and applause. Dennis recovers, straightens his papers.] Gotta see somebody about that bladder. [to the prop man under the desk] You wanna leave? Wanna leave? Go 'head. [the prop man emerges from beneath the Update desk and exits - Dennis calls after him] Now, you blew that up all by yourself, didn't ya? [pause, then quickly] You might want to leave a phone number. You know, uh...[applause]
And Zsa Zsa Gabor is bragging about her once-upon-a-time dates with John Kennedy. According to Gabor, "I went out with Mr. Kennedy, the President of the United States, and I was his favorite date but he never once asked me to sleep with him." You know, my respect for Jack Kennedy grows more and more every day.
And the new movie Ernest Goes to Jail grossed fifteen million dollars in its first two weeks. Fifteen million dollars. [An old song by the Doors plays with Jim Morrison singing: "This is the end, beautiful friend..." as the lighting turns dark red and Dennis grows grim and peers into the camera shaking his head sadly:] The horror ... the horror ... ["This is the end..." Song ends, lights come up and Dennis returns to normal]
[Photo of broadcast journalist Diane Sawyer and Donald Trump's mistress Marla Maples - the two blonde women are near look-alikes so Dennis sings a parody of "The Patty Duke Show" theme song:]
Where Diane adores the minuet
The Ballet Russe and crêpes suzette
Hey, Marla loves the rock and roll
Billionaire makes her lose control
What a crazy pair
You know, after witnessing him singing--I mean, butchering Cat Stevens, you think that he wouldn't be allowed to sing anymore...
You know, you might think the Ninja Turtles would be the hottest toy item on the market right now but not so! It's gotta be this new one -- the New Kids on the Chopping Block doll set. [Dennis pulls out a New Kids on the Block doll with its head in a guillotine - cheers and applause] Let's see how it works. I'm not sure which one this is. I - I think it's Michelangelo. But here's how it works. [guillotine blade refuses to fall] Okay...[Dennis puts the doll away and laughs] Replacement heads are sold separately.
You know, the French government has declared war on tobacco, approving a law banning all cigarette advertising and announcing a fifteen percent increase in the price of tobacco products beginning next year in France. You know, I was in Paris last year and the nicest thing anybody did to me was blow smoke in my face.
Images of the Season
Donald and Ivana Trump duke it out prior to their divorce - who gets what? Phil Hartman's Donald Trump is very close to Darrell Hammond's Donald Trump. Jan Hooks is his Ivana, and in another picture further down, his Marla Maples.
Tom Hanks doing his monologue in 1990 - he "dies" from incredible knee pain. The guy in the salmon shirt is Conan O'Brien.
Ludmilla (Jan Hooks) who works for McDonalds in Red Square (Russia). You can get these great prizes in a Happy Meal!
"Wayne's World" - this is the famous Aerosmith visit. It was ranked #1 on the countdown of the "101 Most Unforgettable Saturday Night Live Moments." I really don't get it - some of this countdown was bizarre, but for me, "I need more cowbell" is the one more people will remember. But, this is a classic, and Wayne's World was getting better each time.
"Tales of Ribaldry" - this is the story of "the travelling bootblack." Sir Eevelyn Quince introduces this tale - and interrupts it to interject a few giggles. "Oh, what you must think of me!" Of course, like the Woodsman tale from last season, it ends with a resolution - sex. Tales of Ribaldry is about sexual tension - the characters aren't supposed to engage in activities. Sir Eevelyn Quince is dissapointed. "No! I don't like that!"
These screencaps are from the February 17, 1990 "Weekend Update." Dennis is displaying his singing abilities (rather questionable at best) while hollering "Dude Looks Like a Lady." Look, Denny, there is a reason you do the "news thing." You can't sing, you're acting is, well...rather interesting, and quite frankly, your facial expressions are laughable. Stick to the wisecracks - you're good at it.
The Girl Watchers take a romantic sea cruise aboard a ship full of single, elderly women. I particularly like the one that picks up her walker and scurries away. I like her spunk. "Welcome aboard...and bon voyage!"
"Urban Cowboy" - actually its a "Toonces the Cat Who Could Drive a Car" sketch - called "Urban Toonces." The host is Debra Winger.
Frank Zappa
Grumpy Old Man. "That's the way it was, and we LIKED IT!! WE LOVED IT! Hallelujah!" I gotta do an article on this - this guy has all his infinite wisdom. You ever hear some of his stuff?
He gasped in horror at this skull.
"Depp! Greico! Greico! Depp! Depp and Greico! Greico and Depp!"
"You know, I'm the furthest thing from gay, but those guys are HOT!!!"
"The Nude house of Wacky People." Mike Myers plays a Japanese producer who develops a new television show about wacky American families - it involves Dana Carvey fighting a bear, many hamburgers, and a family fighting a bear.
The hand of the Continential's obsession. This is actually a man's hand.
The Continential - one of Christopher Walken's finest moments. Champan-ya, chloro-form - anything Christopher Walken said could sound funny.
Hey, isn't that the face he made when he said "Gerald Ford died today..."
Robert Wagner plays Jan Hooks' date, but his table manners leave something to be desired...
Alec Baldwin tries to win the audience over with his many greetings.
"Hi." "How are you?" "So we meet again." "Howdy." "Guess who?"
Marla Maples, better known as Jan Hooks.
President Bush addresses the nation from the fall of the Berlin Wall.
[Singing]
"I feel like a million dollars
I feel simply out of sight.
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight
Fill up the ol' paprika
Load it with dynamite
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight.
A certain person just brought the news
Wow, it was great!
I'm rehearsing in my dancing shoes
'Cause now I can celebrate!
I feel like a million dollars
I feel simply out of sight.
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight.
I invited Michael Jackson
I invited Princess Di
I asked the Queen to make a scene
With Cher, Trump, Bush, Prince, Sting, Liz, Madonna.
I Invited Joanie Collins
And, of course, I asked Jackie O
But, to my surprise, everyone of those guys
RSVP'd no.
I feel like a million dollars
I feel simply out of sight.
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight."
[Dance sequence with cast members in tuxedos]
"I feel like a million dollars
I feel simply out of sight.
Come on down, come on down
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight."
"Plug Away With Harvey Firestein." I love this sketch - I think Jon Lovitz does a slightly over-the-top impression of Harvey Firestein, in a way well-suited to Jon Lovitz. His guests are Kathleen Turner (that evening's guest host), John Travolta (Dana Carvey), and Lee Iacocca (Phil Hartman). "I just wanna be loved, is that so wrong?!"
Yes, that's Conan O'Brien naked in the enter (w/arrow above head).
Irish Drinking Songs (Conan has his back turned here).
Alec Baldwin plays a drifter who comes into a truck stop.
"The Night Hanukkah Harry Saved Christmas"
Colon Blow
Christopher Walken plays that crazy guy you see at all the sporting events. You know who he is. He's up there with the "Dancing Rangers Fan" from the New York Rangers games (assuming you've been to a Rangers game).
This is the mystery sketch that aired when Bruce Willis hosted the season premiere - for the life of me, I can't begin to figure out why this aired, yet I don't recall seeing the Johnny O'Connor sketch. It honestly never aired. This was funny though. Bruce Willis plays an airline passenger whose plane is taken over by terrorists - every time he makes a passenger laugh, they are asassinated.
Author’s Essential
“Saturday Night Live: the Best of 1989”
Approximate Running Time: 60 minutes
Copyright 1992
Starmaker Entertainment
Conclusion
Well, gang, there comes a time when all good things must come to an end. On that note, that brings us to the end of the four-part series on the revival of “Saturday Night Live” between 1986 and 1990. During this time, we’ve seen a new cast evolve and bring new life to a show that should have been cancelled many moons earlier. “Saturday Night Live” has proven to have more lives than a cat’s nine.
As we bring this crazy train to an end, we can be reminded that there will be many years to come on “Saturday Night Live” (obviously, because it is still on). There will be plenty of high points (1996-1997 was a great season), and some low points (1994-1995, anyone). But, there will only be one cast that will be credited with saving “Saturday Night Live” in the 1980s, and these guys were it.
So, thank you, Dana Carvey, Nora Dunn, Phil Hartman, Jan Hooks, Victoria Jackson, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Kevin Nealon, and, eventually Mike Myers – you are the reason it became cool again to stay home on Saturday night! At least, you were in the 1980s.
I’d like to thank everyone for their positive reviews of the first three parts of this article, and the large amounts of patience you had as I put this sereis of articles up over the last month. This has been an interesting group of articles. I don’t foresee another of these massive articles coming anytime soon, but I promise that what is to come is definitely going to be interesting.
And, I just wanted to mention that for the life of me, I couldn't decide what pictures to use. I took close to 200 pictures, which amounts to a beast of an article that is of finale proportions. I hope you liked them - it was a hard decision to choose pictures.
I’d also like to thank you, the retrojunk.com readers, for your continued support of my articles – you put much happiness in my heart, and inspire me to keep the articles coming! Without you, I don’t think I would have kept these articles coming as long as I have, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your appreciation. Thank you![/color]
~Allison Venezio aka “Allison_SNLKid,” your “Saturday Night Live” guru, with non-guru brother Brian in August 1990.
[Doctored photo of boxing promoter Don King with tinsel and Christmas ornaments in his towering head of hair] And Don King had his annual hair trimming party yesterday.
[Image of Tom Cruise in “Born on the 4th of July”]Born on the Fourth of July…[transition to picture of Tom Cruise with first wife Mimi Rogers]…Divorced on the seventeenth of January.
And, you just know that Miller would be having a field day now with all the controversies and insert-foot-in-mouth moments Cruise has had over the last year.
You know, I just wanted to tell you, because Quincy's [Jones] here this week, and I did a little research. I looked in to see what my rap name is, and…uh…oddly enough, my rap name is also Dennis Miller.
And a warrant is out today for Eddie Antar, the founder of the Crazy Eddie chain, for illegally taking $52 million of the company's money Naturally, Eddie's lawyers say they'll plead insanity.
Yesterday - yesterday was Friday the thirteenth. Since our Gregorian calendar began in 1582, there have been nine hundred and thirty-five "Friday the thirteenths." Which is only fourteen less than the number of Friday the 13th movie sequels.
[Photo of real estate mogul Donald Trump posing next to an oversized genie's lamp] Donald Trump posed this week for publicity photos as he opened his Trump Taj Mahal hotel and casino in Atlantic City. On his love life front, it was reported that he's no longer seeing Marla Maples. He is now dating someone named "Jeannie."
And it was revealed this week that Ivana Trump plans to market a line of her own underwear for women. A spokesman, asked if Mrs. Trump was qualified, said, "If she's not, she will be -- because she's gonna be seeing a lot of briefs in the upcoming months." [mild reaction from crowd] Well. That brought Update to a screeching halt. [Sound effects of squealing tires and car crash. From beneath the Update desk, an airbag deploys and inflates to protect a startled Dennis who is pushed back to the wall behind him. [Laughter, cheers and applause. Dennis recovers, straightens his papers.] Gotta see somebody about that bladder. [to the prop man under the desk] You wanna leave? Wanna leave? Go 'head. [the prop man emerges from beneath the Update desk and exits - Dennis calls after him] Now, you blew that up all by yourself, didn't ya? [pause, then quickly] You might want to leave a phone number. You know, uh...[applause]
And Zsa Zsa Gabor is bragging about her once-upon-a-time dates with John Kennedy. According to Gabor, "I went out with Mr. Kennedy, the President of the United States, and I was his favorite date but he never once asked me to sleep with him." You know, my respect for Jack Kennedy grows more and more every day.
And the new movie Ernest Goes to Jail grossed fifteen million dollars in its first two weeks. Fifteen million dollars. [An old song by the Doors plays with Jim Morrison singing: "This is the end, beautiful friend..." as the lighting turns dark red and Dennis grows grim and peers into the camera shaking his head sadly:] The horror ... the horror ... ["This is the end..." Song ends, lights come up and Dennis returns to normal]
[Photo of broadcast journalist Diane Sawyer and Donald Trump's mistress Marla Maples - the two blonde women are near look-alikes so Dennis sings a parody of "The Patty Duke Show" theme song:]
Where Diane adores the minuet
The Ballet Russe and crêpes suzette
Hey, Marla loves the rock and roll
Billionaire makes her lose control
What a crazy pair
You know, after witnessing him singing--I mean, butchering Cat Stevens, you think that he wouldn't be allowed to sing anymore...
You know, you might think the Ninja Turtles would be the hottest toy item on the market right now but not so! It's gotta be this new one -- the New Kids on the Chopping Block doll set. [Dennis pulls out a New Kids on the Block doll with its head in a guillotine - cheers and applause] Let's see how it works. I'm not sure which one this is. I - I think it's Michelangelo. But here's how it works. [guillotine blade refuses to fall] Okay...[Dennis puts the doll away and laughs] Replacement heads are sold separately.
You know, the French government has declared war on tobacco, approving a law banning all cigarette advertising and announcing a fifteen percent increase in the price of tobacco products beginning next year in France. You know, I was in Paris last year and the nicest thing anybody did to me was blow smoke in my face.
Images of the Season
Donald and Ivana Trump duke it out prior to their divorce - who gets what? Phil Hartman's Donald Trump is very close to Darrell Hammond's Donald Trump. Jan Hooks is his Ivana, and in another picture further down, his Marla Maples.
Tom Hanks doing his monologue in 1990 - he "dies" from incredible knee pain. The guy in the salmon shirt is Conan O'Brien.
Ludmilla (Jan Hooks) who works for McDonalds in Red Square (Russia). You can get these great prizes in a Happy Meal!
"Wayne's World" - this is the famous Aerosmith visit. It was ranked #1 on the countdown of the "101 Most Unforgettable Saturday Night Live Moments." I really don't get it - some of this countdown was bizarre, but for me, "I need more cowbell" is the one more people will remember. But, this is a classic, and Wayne's World was getting better each time.
"Tales of Ribaldry" - this is the story of "the travelling bootblack." Sir Eevelyn Quince introduces this tale - and interrupts it to interject a few giggles. "Oh, what you must think of me!" Of course, like the Woodsman tale from last season, it ends with a resolution - sex. Tales of Ribaldry is about sexual tension - the characters aren't supposed to engage in activities. Sir Eevelyn Quince is dissapointed. "No! I don't like that!"
These screencaps are from the February 17, 1990 "Weekend Update." Dennis is displaying his singing abilities (rather questionable at best) while hollering "Dude Looks Like a Lady." Look, Denny, there is a reason you do the "news thing." You can't sing, you're acting is, well...rather interesting, and quite frankly, your facial expressions are laughable. Stick to the wisecracks - you're good at it.
The Girl Watchers take a romantic sea cruise aboard a ship full of single, elderly women. I particularly like the one that picks up her walker and scurries away. I like her spunk. "Welcome aboard...and bon voyage!"
"Urban Cowboy" - actually its a "Toonces the Cat Who Could Drive a Car" sketch - called "Urban Toonces." The host is Debra Winger.
Frank Zappa
Grumpy Old Man. "That's the way it was, and we LIKED IT!! WE LOVED IT! Hallelujah!" I gotta do an article on this - this guy has all his infinite wisdom. You ever hear some of his stuff?
He gasped in horror at this skull.
"Depp! Greico! Greico! Depp! Depp and Greico! Greico and Depp!"
"You know, I'm the furthest thing from gay, but those guys are HOT!!!"
"The Nude house of Wacky People." Mike Myers plays a Japanese producer who develops a new television show about wacky American families - it involves Dana Carvey fighting a bear, many hamburgers, and a family fighting a bear.
The hand of the Continential's obsession. This is actually a man's hand.
The Continential - one of Christopher Walken's finest moments. Champan-ya, chloro-form - anything Christopher Walken said could sound funny.
Hey, isn't that the face he made when he said "Gerald Ford died today..."
Robert Wagner plays Jan Hooks' date, but his table manners leave something to be desired...
Alec Baldwin tries to win the audience over with his many greetings.
"Hi." "How are you?" "So we meet again." "Howdy." "Guess who?"
Marla Maples, better known as Jan Hooks.
President Bush addresses the nation from the fall of the Berlin Wall.
[Singing]
"I feel like a million dollars
I feel simply out of sight.
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight
Fill up the ol' paprika
Load it with dynamite
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight.
A certain person just brought the news
Wow, it was great!
I'm rehearsing in my dancing shoes
'Cause now I can celebrate!
I feel like a million dollars
I feel simply out of sight.
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight.
I invited Michael Jackson
I invited Princess Di
I asked the Queen to make a scene
With Cher, Trump, Bush, Prince, Sting, Liz, Madonna.
I Invited Joanie Collins
And, of course, I asked Jackie O
But, to my surprise, everyone of those guys
RSVP'd no.
I feel like a million dollars
I feel simply out of sight.
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight."
[Dance sequence with cast members in tuxedos]
"I feel like a million dollars
I feel simply out of sight.
Come on down, come on down
Come on down, come on down
I'm throwing a ball tonight."
"Plug Away With Harvey Firestein." I love this sketch - I think Jon Lovitz does a slightly over-the-top impression of Harvey Firestein, in a way well-suited to Jon Lovitz. His guests are Kathleen Turner (that evening's guest host), John Travolta (Dana Carvey), and Lee Iacocca (Phil Hartman). "I just wanna be loved, is that so wrong?!"
Yes, that's Conan O'Brien naked in the enter (w/arrow above head).
Irish Drinking Songs (Conan has his back turned here).
Alec Baldwin plays a drifter who comes into a truck stop.
"The Night Hanukkah Harry Saved Christmas"
Colon Blow
Christopher Walken plays that crazy guy you see at all the sporting events. You know who he is. He's up there with the "Dancing Rangers Fan" from the New York Rangers games (assuming you've been to a Rangers game).
This is the mystery sketch that aired when Bruce Willis hosted the season premiere - for the life of me, I can't begin to figure out why this aired, yet I don't recall seeing the Johnny O'Connor sketch. It honestly never aired. This was funny though. Bruce Willis plays an airline passenger whose plane is taken over by terrorists - every time he makes a passenger laugh, they are asassinated.
Author’s Essential
“Saturday Night Live: the Best of 1989”
Approximate Running Time: 60 minutes
Copyright 1992
Starmaker Entertainment
Conclusion
Well, gang, there comes a time when all good things must come to an end. On that note, that brings us to the end of the four-part series on the revival of “Saturday Night Live” between 1986 and 1990. During this time, we’ve seen a new cast evolve and bring new life to a show that should have been cancelled many moons earlier. “Saturday Night Live” has proven to have more lives than a cat’s nine.
As we bring this crazy train to an end, we can be reminded that there will be many years to come on “Saturday Night Live” (obviously, because it is still on). There will be plenty of high points (1996-1997 was a great season), and some low points (1994-1995, anyone). But, there will only be one cast that will be credited with saving “Saturday Night Live” in the 1980s, and these guys were it.
So, thank you, Dana Carvey, Nora Dunn, Phil Hartman, Jan Hooks, Victoria Jackson, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Kevin Nealon, and, eventually Mike Myers – you are the reason it became cool again to stay home on Saturday night! At least, you were in the 1980s.
I’d like to thank everyone for their positive reviews of the first three parts of this article, and the large amounts of patience you had as I put this sereis of articles up over the last month. This has been an interesting group of articles. I don’t foresee another of these massive articles coming anytime soon, but I promise that what is to come is definitely going to be interesting.
And, I just wanted to mention that for the life of me, I couldn't decide what pictures to use. I took close to 200 pictures, which amounts to a beast of an article that is of finale proportions. I hope you liked them - it was a hard decision to choose pictures.
I’d also like to thank you, the retrojunk.com readers, for your continued support of my articles – you put much happiness in my heart, and inspire me to keep the articles coming! Without you, I don’t think I would have kept these articles coming as long as I have, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your appreciation. Thank you![/color]
~Allison Venezio aka “Allison_SNLKid,” your “Saturday Night Live” guru, with non-guru brother Brian in August 1990.
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