The Definitive Guide to Comedy
We’re getting our first wave of winners from the new scholarship program that Saturday Night Live has introduced in partnership with four of the biggest improv/sketch programs across America. The Second City last week announced its first four scholars, having had to pick from upward of 1,300 applicants. They are …
For more than 30 years, we’ve seen Wally Feresten emerge from time to time, from just off-camera to on camera, as the longtime cue card guy for Saturday Night Live (as well as NBC’s Late Night franchise). When TV went into quarantine in March, and resumed broadcasting from home, that …
When I sat down with Fred Willard in February 2020 inside his home in Southern California, he was noticeably weak — I held his microphone for him throughout our conversation — but his mind and his sense of humor was quite intact, and he was still working. In fact, Fred …
What’s Saturday Night Live if it’s not broadcasting from inside 30 Rock, and not even live TV? We found out this Saturday of Passover/Easter weekend. The resulting product of having SNL’s cast and crew working remotely revealed that stars are just like us when left to their own electronic devices. …
Hal Willner, the longtime musical guru behind Saturday Night Live who also brought musicians together for cross-genre tributes and movie soundtracks, and who won a Grammy for his efforts, died on April 7. Although he was never formally diagnosed with COVID-19, a spokesperson confirmed that Willner died at home suffering …
He’s back! After far too long, Eddie Murphy finally returned to deliver some fresh comedy (and some old favorites) to Saturday Night Live. Here’s his monologue, with a little help from his friends Tracy Morgan, Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle. “What a moment we’re having!” Speaking of some old favorites… …
Rick Ludwin, a late-night executive at NBC for three decades who famously saved both Seinfeld and Conan O’Brien from early cancellations during his tenure at the Peacock Network, died Sunday at the age of 71. Ludwin’s TV career began in college at Miami University of Ohio as host of a …
Stand-up comedian Shane Gillis became the shortest-ever tenured member of Saturday Night Live‘s cast on Monday, as the NBC series announced it had cut ties with Gillis, mere days after announcing his hiring. From an SNL spokesperson on behalf of Lorne Michaels: “After talking with Shane Gillis, we have decided …
Julio Torres described himself as a Space Prince before casting himself as a Chocolate Prince in the surreal bilingual TV series, Los Espookys, which he co-created, co-wrote and co-stars in for HBO. Originally from El Salvador, Torres first moved to New York City to study at The New School. After …
It’s easy to forget that for its entire history, Saturday Night Live, from 1975-2019, has included films that were not, in fact, live. This great piece from SNL showcases the film unit, and what it takes to make funny short films in only a few days. Colon Blow! Happy Fun …
