WTF With SNL 50th?

[j44ke]

That show has been dead for what, 45 years? It was funny when everyone was on drugs but after that it was hours and hours of things that were nearly funny. This 50th anniversary crap seems like well total crap. I watched a couple skits from the show this weekend figuring they would have done something that was actually funny, but it was the fcking same sht. Is everything written during the advertisements?

[robin3mj]

That show has been dead for what, 45 years? It was funny when everyone was on drugs but after that it was hours and hours of things that were nearly funny. This 50th anniversary crap seems like well total crap. I watched a couple skits from the show this weekend figuring they would have done something that was actually funny, but it was the fcking same sht. Is everything written during the advertisements?

I watched the music special and while it was overly long it was pretty good.
The supercut/mashup of the first 5-10 minutes was great.

[gregl]

I thought Meryl Streep and Kate McKinnon were hilarious.

Greg

[72gmc]

Haven’t watched any 50th stuff yet but I know Kate McKinnon skits are worth the time. Whiskers Are We, the “wet egg” business hotel ad with Billie Eilish, alien abductions, Fox News cold opens.

[gregl]

Haven’t watched any 50th stuff yet but I know Kate McKinnon skits are worth the time. Whiskers Are We, the “wet egg” business hotel ad with Billie Eilish, alien abductions, Fox News cold opens.

[thollandpe]

I thought Meryl Streep and Kate McKinnon were hilarious.

Greg

Kate breaking Meryl was hilarious, she is an absolute brute. I need a thesaurus for all the “carpet and tar pit” euphemisms.

Black Jeopardy with Eddie Murphy doing Tracy Morgan absolutely slayed it.

On the music front, Eddie Vedder covering Tom Petty was amazing, and his homage to Elvis Costello’s “we don’t have to do this song here” moment was spot-on. Jack White covering Neil Young. David Byrne with St. Vincent and Arcade Fire? David Byrne with Robyn? Holy cow. DEVO fucking blew it out, not quite like they blew my mind when I first saw them, me slack-jawed, do “Satisfaction” on SNL back in the day. Not bad for a bunch of old farts.

And it was worth the price of admission to see John Hamm and other middle-aged men get the vapors watching Cher.

[rccardr]

The humor runs within a pretty specific vein. Always has.
Either it tickles yer funny bone or it misses completely. Always has.

[gregl]

And it was worth the price of admission to see John Hamm and other middle-aged men get the vapors watching Cher.

I resemble that remark! I’ve had a crush on Cher since I was in the third grade. I think I have to plan myself a Cher movie marathon. She is utterly timeless.

Greg

[Saab2000]

I am a listener of the Al Franken Podcast and he’s an original writer and early cast member there. His podcast is almost always about politics (he also served as a US Senator) but this week he discusses the early days of SNL. Good stuff.

[j44ke]

If the music is the best thing on a comedy show then I rest my case.

[thollandpe]

If the music is the best thing on a comedy show then I rest my case.

While I have never been a fan of Pete, the comedic foil was perfectly played. Y’all seriously don’t see this?

[thollandpe]

If the music is the best thing on a comedy show then I rest my case.

Did you watch a different show?



Inside baseball, but it’s a fekkin 50th anniversary show.

[j44ke]

I watched several skits from the 50th on YouTube, but my critique is whether it is worth celebrating. I don't doubt there is talent, particularly Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. But celebrating longevity is a flattened measure of success. A lot of its history is unwatchable and most of its popularity is built on the early years. The rest was just filler and not really all that funny. Straining for laughs.

Humor is really important. I think there is very little of it now. And screwing around with almost funny jokes in not quite but nearly funny skits is almost a disservice. Lorne Michaels has made bank on nearly funny not funny for years. Reminds me of a joke:

Two old Jewish guys are sitting in a delicatessen eating their lunch. One guy suddenly stops and says, "Oy the food here is horrible." And the other guy says, "Yeah and such small portions."

[rec head]

SNL was always funnier than it is. There is no period that I loved but there has always been good stuff in there.

Eddie Murphy as Tracy Morgan was hilarious.

[alexstar]

I loved it, personally.

[Bob Ross]

If the music is the best thing on a comedy show then I rest my case.

Well, nearly every musical act I've seen on SNL in the past ~20 years has been laughable, so... :::shrugs:::

[bironi]

I'll throw this out there.
Did you watch the broadcast of the first SNL episode on Saturday night?
It struck me much more than the 50 years hoopla version.
There were moments in the hoopla version as well.
I love Billy Preston, but he had better performances, but Janis Ian killed it.
I'm looking forward to the film bio of her life coming out at the end of March.
She is an interesting person.
By

[thollandpe]

but Janis Ian killed it.

Her performance was arresting. I’d heard the song a bunch on top 40 radio but had never really listened to it. Stopped me in my tracks, like a stun gun.

Here’s the original episode:


I’m so grateful that they remained true to the formula over the years, sketch comedy, not only that but live sketch comedy (wonder how hard that is, just look at Meryl Fucking Streep screw up), and incredible and currently important live music.

It seems that criticism of the formula, like when sketches don’t land or they’re too rough around the edges, misses the point. Like complaining that you can see the strings at a marionette show. Or that Grateful Dead jams weren't tight enough, or that King Crimson wasn’t danceable.

PS There’s some really distracting post-processing going on in that video, particularly visible in Billy Preston’s two numbers. Like the objects that get pulled into focus are just wrong. Anybody else see it? And is it in the rest of the video? And while I’m asking questions, who is Billy’s backup singer in the 2nd number? Damn.

[bironi]

Well damn, now I have to give it another look and listen to answer your Billy ?s.
I just found the reference George Carlin made to airline safety.
Not much has changed in 50 years.
Spot on.

[bironi]

Well damn, now I have to give it another look and listen to answer your Billy ?s.
I just found the reference George Carlin made to airline safety.
Not much has changed in 50 years.
Spot on.

And this:


https://theyearinmusic.wordpress.com...billy-preston/

Give a listen tween 1:55 and 2:40.
Sweet.

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=billy+pres...%3DXQ3XNtdzSFA