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37 Sketchy Facts About the Sketch Comedy Giant — ‘Saturday Night Live’

Turns out, getting rejected by ‘SNL’ is a surefire way of becoming a famous comedian

37 Sketchy Facts About the Sketch Comedy Giant — ‘Saturday Night Live’

November 18, 2023

People like to say that Saturday Night Live has been terrible since X year, and that X is equal to whatever season people watched when they were in their teens or early twenties (probably). But to paraphrase someone who should have hosted and it’s a crime that they haven’t yet, “When almost 50 seasons you reach, look as good you will not.” There’s lots of interesting facts about the show and its cast members, current and former, from over the decades. For instance, did you know SNL rejected Jim Carrey and Zach Galifianakis before they became comedy giants?

More on that and other facts you probably didn’t know about SNL below…

37

STEPHEN COLBERT BROKE UP A NORM MACDONALD FIGHT 1997 CRACKED.co ATE-NIGHT SOCCER GAMES WOULD BREAK OUT IN THE SNL HALLS. GUEST WRITER COLBERT WOULD JUMP IN, INCLUDING A GAME WHERE MACDONALD GOT INTO A HUGE FIGHT WITH INTERN WYATT CENAC. COLIN QUINN HELPED COLBERT PULL THE TWO COMICS APART. — CinemaBlend

36

ZACH GALIFIANAKIS CRACKED.COM Galifianakis thought he'd landed a spot in the cast but I got to New York and I realized quickly that I was writing. That less-than-dream job lasted only two weeks. — AV Club

35

DEBBIE DOWNER RACHEL DRATCH CRACKED.COM I was on vacation in Costa Rica, and when I told someone that I was from New York, they asked, 'Were you there for 9/11?' The conversation froze. The name Debbie Downer is now listed in the dictionary as a name for someone who constantly makes others feel bad. — Dictionary.com

34

JAY PHAROAH CRACKED.COM SNL producers put people into boxes, and whatever they want you to do, they expect you to do. — Yahoo

33

STEPHEN SEAGAL APRIL 20, 1991 CRACKED.COM Arrogance + humorlessness = universal acclaim as worst host of all time. The cast nearly revolted and threatened to do a no-host show. — Yahoo

32

Arianna Grande

ARIANNA GRANDE MARCH 12, 2016 CRACKED.COM Grande flubbed a line during her monologue and punctuated the goof with an unscripted Oh sh--! Or was that when she realized she was dating Pete Davidson? — Variety

31

Mindy Kaling

MINDY KALING CRACKED.COM I had these fantasies of going to SNL and falling in love with some writer on SNL, of getting married and living in New York. Kaling wasn't cast but her Office job was a good consolation prize. — AV Club

30

SYSTEM OF A DOWN MAY 7, 2005 CRACKED.COM Is dropping an F-bomb still a thing? NBC received no complaints after the band slipped one past censors but still feared FCC reprisal. — Entertainment Weekly

29

Julia Louis-Dreyfus

JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS SITCOM ROYALTY CRACKED.COM STUCK WITH STRAIGHT-WOMAN ROLES ON 'SEXIST' SNL, LOUIS-DREYFUS BECAME ONE OF THE MOST SUCESSFUL SITCOM STARS OF ALL TIME, NABBING A MINDBLOWING: 27 EMMY NOMS FOR WORK ON SEINFELD, OLD CHRISTINE, AND VEEP. — USA Today

28

SNL

THE BEES BELUSHI ET AL CRACKED.COM One of the show's first notes from meddling network execs: Cut the bees. Lorne Michaels responded by inserting the Bees into nearly every episode of Season One, making them the show's first recurring characters. — Live from New York: The Complete, Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live as Told by Its Stars, Writers, and Guests

27

PAULTHOMAS ANDERSON DIRECTED BEN AFFLECK 2000 CRACKED.COM ST-BOOGIE NIGHTS, SNL FAN PAUL THOMAS ANDERSON WROTE A FEW SKETCHES FOR THE SHOW. HE ALSO DIRECTED 'FANATIC,' WITH AFFLECK STARRING AS ANNA NICOLE SMITH'S BIGGEST, BRACES-WEARING FAN. RUMOR HAS IT HE MET WIFE MAYA RUDOLPH DURING HIS SNL TENURE. — IndieWire

26

JIM BREUER HATED GOATS BUT BECAME GOAT BOY JIM BREUER CRACKED.COM THE WHOLE GOAT BOY CHARACTER STARTED OUT BECAUSE I PRETENDED I HAD TOURETTES, BREUER CONFESSES. WE'D GO INTO A BAR AND I'D ASK FOR A <BLEET>WEISER. CUE MORE GOAT NOISES. THE BARTENDER WOULD PAY FOR BEERS IF BREVER AND HIS BRAYING FRIENDS WOULD DRINK OUT OF SIGHT IN THE CORNER. — 303 Magazine

25

ANTHONY MICHAEL HALL CRACKED.co COM They were idiots. ....... They had no idea how to write for me. They had no affection for my abilities. I feel like I'm a talented kid. — Baltimore Sun

24

DONALD TRUMP NOV 7, 2015 CRACKED.COM SNL caught a lot of flack for featuring Trump in this run-up to the 2016 election. It was rough, says Taran Killam. It was not enjoyable at the time and something that only grows more embarrassing and shameful as time goes on. — Deadline

23

David Cross

DAVID CROSS CRACKED.COM His sketch group Cross Comedy did a showcase for SNL producers, which bombed big-time. He and SNL writer Bob Odenkirk went on to create the iconic Mr. Show. — The Comic's Comic

22

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE ATURDAYNIGHTLIVE APRIL 13, 1996 CRACKED.COM Profanity, an upside down flag, then flinging shreds of said flag into the dressing room of host and Presidential candidate Steve Forbes. Is that rage-y enough for you? — Life and Times

21

LAURIE METCALF TWO-TIME TONY WINNER CRACKED.COM METCALF DESCRIBES HER SNL TENURE AS A WHIRLWIND FIVE DAYS. SHE NEVER MADE IT TO AIR AND DESPITE HER SUCCESS ON STAGE, 'ROSEANNE, AND `LADYBIRD, SHE'S NEVER HOSTED. I WOULD HAVE NIGHTMARES ABOUT IT BEFORE AND AFTER. — Vulture

20

Mike Myers

SPROCKETS MIKE MYERS CRACKED.COM Myers based Deiter, the avant- garde talk show host, on a Toronto waiter who provided questionable service. He would be taking your order, and then it would be like, your order has become tiresome. And he would bolt and leave, and never come back. — CNN

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19

Dave Attell on SNL

DAVE ATTELL PUT IN A FEW DAYS OF HARD WORK 1993 CRACKED.COM I WOULD SAY I WAS ON FOR A YEAR AND I WROTE FOR MAYBE TWO WEEKS, ATTELL TOLD HOWARD STERN. I WAS ALWAYS LEAVING EARLY. WHEN YOU'RE A COMIC AND YOU HAVE TO GIVE YOUR GOOD JOKES TO THE WEEKEND UPDATE GUY, IT'S LIKE UGH! — Howard Stern via Soundcloud

18

HEY GIRL, IT'S FROM THE HEART - IT'S A D *CK IN A BOX SAMBERG/TIMBERLAKE CRACKED.COM WE GREW UP WITH THAT '90S R&B SOUND so WE HAD THIS IDEA ABOUT GUYS WHO WERE STILL STUCK IN THAT ERA, SAYS TIMBERLAKE. THEN IT WAS 'HOW DO YOU GET AWAY WITH THEM BEING IDIOTS?' THE BEST WAY WAS FOR THEM TO BE AS GENUINE AS POSSIBLE ABOUT THE GIFT THEY WERE GIVING BUT NOT TOTALLY AT FULL WIT. — Live from New York: The Complete, Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live as Told by Its Stars, Writers, and Guests

17

Chevy Chase

CHEVY CHASE CRACKED.COM It just drives me nuts. A whole generation of sh-heads laughs at the worst f-ing humor in the world. Pete Davidson's response: F- Chevy Chase. — Washington Post

16

Frank Zappa

FRANK ZAPPA OCTOBER 21, 1978 Live CRACKED.COM He deliberately delivered his monologue in a stilted, hey everybody, I'm reading cue cards! style, enraging both the cast and Lorne Michaels. — Mental Floss

15

Nirvana

NIRVANA JANUARY 11, 1992 we CRACKED.COM During good-nights, the members of Nirvana started making out to piss off the rednecks and homophobes. The French kissing isn't shown on the reruns. — Far Out

14

ROBERT DOWNEY JR. MOVIE MARVEL CRACKED.COM SNL CHARACTERS LIKE 'SUITCASE BOY' DIDN'T EXACTLY TAKE OFF. BUT AFTER FAMOUS BOUTS WITH DRUG AND ALCOHOL ADDICTION, DOWNEY GOT HIS ACT TOGETHER TO BECOME ONE OF THE BIGGEST MOVIE STARS OF THE CENTURY. — Rolling Stone

13

CHURCH LADY DANA CARVEY CRACKED.COM Carvey developed the Church Lady as a way to deal with demonic hecklers during his 1980s stand-up comic days. He'd shut them down wiith a combination of condescension and patronizing. Patronizing is funny. — Rare

12

JOHN MULANEY ROCKED 'LOBSTER 2010 CRACKED.COM SNL HOST MULANEY PERFORMED IN A DINER LOBSTER MUSICAL, A REJECTED SKETCH HE'D WRITTEN WITH COLIN JOST YEARS EARLIER. WHAT'S HIS WRITING SECRET? WE WROTE IT BY LISTENING TO THE LES MIS SOUNDTRACK AND WE CHANGED THE WORDS OF THE SONGS AND MADE IT ABOUT BEING A LOBSTER. — Late Night with Seth Myers YouTube

11

ANEX A DOG AN ORLANDO: STRIPPER: MANGO CHRIS KATTAN CRACKED.COM ONE INSPIRATION WAS AN ANGRY RUSSIAN GIRLFRIEND WHO WOULD SHOUT KATTAN, I KILL YOU! A SECOND WAS KATTAN'S DALMATION, WHO PERFECTED A COY, OVER-THE- SHOULDER GLANCE. THE MONIKER 'MANGO' CAME FROM A STRIPPER KATTAN OGLED IN ORLANDO-- HE JUST LIKED THE DANG NAME. — Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon YouTube

10

January Jones

JANUARY JONES NOVEMBER 14, 2009 CRACKED.COM In the awkward first sketch, on live television, Jones looked around and asked Which camera? The night didn't get much better from there. — Mediaite

9

NIGHT AT THE ROXBURY WAS FULL OF BACKSTAGE INTRIGUE CRACKED.co WILL FERRELL ENDED HIS FRIENDSHIP WITH CHRIS KATTAN AFTER HIS ALLEGED ON-SET AFFAIR WITH DIRECTOR AMY HECKERLING. KATTAN CLAIMS LORNE FORCED HIM TO SLEEP WITH HECKERLING, WHICH SHE DENIES. IF ONLY THE MOVIE WAS HALF THIS INTERESTING. — IndieWire

8

John Mulaney

JOHN MULANEY ALL STAR CRACKED.COM After his audition, Mulaney got a call from Seth Meyers with a writing job offer. I want to be clear, said Meyers, this is not the cast. Mulaney responded, I want to be clear. I would never think I would be in the cast. — Paste Magazine

7

SINEAD O'CONNOR SEPTEMBER 29, 1990 CRACKED.COM O'Connor rehearsed a protest song with a photo of an orphan, then swapped it for Pope John Paul II. Fight the real enemy, she spat as she ripped the picture in half. The Catholic Church was not pleased. — Diffuser

6

SARAH SILVERMAN TRENDSETTER/BEDWETTER CRACKED.COM NUMBER OF SILVERMAN SKETCHES THAT MADE IT TO AIR DURING HER YEAR AS AN SNL WRITER/ACTOR? ZERO. NUMBER OF TIMES SHE WAS FIRED VIA FAX? ONE. NUMBER OF SUBSEQUENT WINS SHE'S HAD AS A COMIC/AUTHOR/PLAYWRIGHT/ ACTOR/PODCASTER? A HELLA LOT. — Uproxx

5

THE LADIES MAN TIM MEADOWS CRACKED.COM Meadows worked in a liquor store during high school. Would-be womanizers swaggered in, hoping to boost their romantic prospects with a bottle of Courvoisier. The ladies men inspired Meadows to create Leon Phelps. — RushTix

4

A THEME SONG OBSSESSION LED TO WHAT'S UP WITH THAT? KENAN THOMPSON CRACKED.COM HE JUST CAN'T STOP SINGING IT. THOMPSON SAYS ABOUT HIS IDEA FOR DIONDRE COLE. I FEEL LIKE IF WE MADE THE MOVIE VERSION, IT WOULD HAUNT HIM WHILE HE WAS SLEEPING AND SH*T.' THAT CHARACTER HOOK, PAIRED WITH A PREACHER'S SUIT AND JHERI CURL, LED TO ONE OF SNL'S LONGEST RUNNING CHARACTERS. — Rolling Stone

3

JUSTIN BIEBER FEBRUARY 9, 2013 CRACKED.COM Bill Hader had no trouble naming SNL's worst-behaved host. It was Bieber. He was in a bad place. Maybe he's in a better place. But back then... it was rough. — Huffington Post

2

Blues Brothers

BLUES BROTHERS 2000 WRECKED 104 CARS CRACKED.COM THAT WAS ONE MORE THAN THE 103 TOTALED IN THE ORIGINAL. BOTH JOHN LANDIS AND DAN ACKROYD HATED THE SCRIPT, WHICH MAKES YOU WONDER HOW THIS CAR WRECK GOT MADE IN THE FIRST PLACE. BB 2000 LANDED AT #8 ON ONE LIST OF THE WORST SEQUELS OF ALL TIME. — Entertainment Weekly

1

Jim Carrey

JIM CARREY CRACKED.COM Carrey was only 18 years old when he auditioned for SNL. Didn't get the gig but he was quickly hired at — Entertainment Weekly

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