The Not Ready for Prime Time Project: An SNL Retrospective

Season 1 of NBC's Saturday Night hits the halfway mark with host Dick Cavett (former host of television hits such as The Dick Cavett Show, The Dick Cavett Show, and other iterations of The Dick Cavett Show).  While we do get A LOT of one person-to-camera bits we also get 3 FABULOUS performances by Jimmy Cliff that really stand out (not just in this episode, but the season so far). Is Jimmy Cl...

NBC's Saturday Night welcomes their first co-hosts to the show with British comedy team Cook & Moore! We also welcome a co-host of our own as we are joined by Thomas Sena of the SNL Hall of Fame Podcast.  Thomas helps us to understand some British humour (they spell it with a u) and brings an appreciation of Neil Sedaka to the show that surprises everyone, including himself. There's...

Episode 10 marks the first of 10(!)  times the incomparable Buck Henry hosts NBC's Saturday Night.  It also marks the first time on the podcast that we welcome a guest!  Jon Schneider, Host & Creator of The Saturday Night Network, joins us to talk about this very fun & historic episode! We get an all-time classic sketch with the Samurai and Buck (the first in their run together) to ki...

 Welcome to 1976! In their first show of the new year, NBC's Saturday Night welcomes a man who was on top of the world in the mid 70's -  Elliott Gould! Gould pulls out all the stops for his first time hosting, proving not only his comedic chops, but also his skills as a song-and-dance man! This episode wins an Emmy for writing and in watching this episode it is apparent why! There is an...

Candice Bergen returns to host the  first-ever Christmas episode! All is merry and bright in SNL's first Christmas episode which aired just 5 days before the big day! Our stockings are stuffed with sketches that and bits to last all 12 days, including a classic rendition of "Winter Wonderland" sung by Garrett with backing vocals from the rest of the cast. We also are gifted with 3 M...

Season 1, Episode 7 of NBC’s Saturday Night is a watershed moment in television history. Host Richard Pryor takes control of the show both on screen and off. There are historic sketches that prove to be seminal moments in SNL history and are just as poignant and important today as they were in 1975.  This episode of SNL is a must-watch for any fan, making this episode of the podcast a must-listen....

Episode 6 of NBC's Saturday Night becomes a vehicle for the host.  Lily Tomlin brings a bunch of her well-known characters from her previous work on Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In and her comedy records this week to take lead in the show.  But don't fret- we are still treated to an all-timer with Beethoven, another funny Landshark sketch, and the smartest sketch to date (written by Ann...

Episode 5 of NBC's Saturday Night had A LOT of off-screen drama to get through just to get the show on air.  Dick Ebersol booked a musical guest no one wanted, said group then proceeds to lip sync their songs, and oh...this is the week that LORNE QUIT THE SHOW?!?!!??!?  We get into the whys and hows of this situation and dive into a show that is very uneven (at best) but does manage to includ...

NBC's Saturday Night puts together its most fun show yet! Hosted by Candice Bergen, with musical guest Esther Phillips, episode 4 is often credited as being where the show really starts to find itself. There are a lot of sketches in this one; ranging from classic (Jaws II) to "I never have to see that again."  Andy Kaufman returns (yeah!), as do The Muppets (ugh) and yet another fil...

Hosted by one of the stars of TV's #1 show at the time, Rob Reiner (All in the Family)  episode 3 of NBC's Saturday Night may not go down as one of the funniest episodes in SNL history, but it certainly is monumental! We see more of the cast than we did in episode 2 (although that's not difficult) which provide some seminal bits that help the show find its footing. There are fabulou...

Live from New York, it's The Paul Simon Show!!    Ep. 2 of NBC's Saturday Night is basically a Paul Simon Special, highlighted by a reunion with old pal/partner, Art Garfunkel.  The cast shows up for about 4 minutes of total screen time.  Randy Newman and Phoebe Snow are the Musical Guests & special guests/cameos include The Jesse Dixon Singers, Jerry Rubin, Connie Hawkins, and Bill...

Here we go!  We start things off the same way NBC’s Saturday Night did w/ Host: George Carlin & Musical Guests: Billy Preston and Janis Ian.  Special Guests include Andy Kaufman, Valeri Bromfield, Jim Henson’s Muppets, and a film by Albert Brooks.  If that sounds like a lot…it is!  FOUR host monologues, TWO additional stand-up performances, FOUR musical numbers, FIVE live sketches, ONE Weekend...

Season 1 premieres 3/28!  Join us as we preview the upcoming season.  We highlight the sketches, hosts, and musical acts we are excited to watch and discuss from Season 1 of Saturday Night Live (then called, simply, Saturday Night), which is conveniently aligned with Season 1 of The Not Ready for Prime Time Podcast! --------------------------------- Subscribe & Follow today! And follow us on s...

Live from New York (*), it’s The Not Ready for Prime Time Podcast !   Join our hosts, Gary & Brad, this March as they celebrate the golden era of Saturday Night Live and take a chronological deep dive into one of the most historic and influential shows in television history. Each week they break down a different episode from SNL 's first five seasons.  They cover it all - the cast, hosts,...

Welcome to the The Not Ready for Prime Time Podcast !  Join our hosts, Gary & Brad, as they celebrate the golden era of Saturday Night Live and take a chronological deep dive into one of the most historic and influential shows in television history. Each week they break down a different episode from SNL's first five seasons.  They cover it all - the cast, hosts, musical guests, cameos &am...