SNL Season 1 on 12/5/06 (and season sets in general) (1 Viewer)

[Jake Yenor]

Well they better finish the first 5 seasons first. I think everyone can agree to that. Season 1-5 feels like its own complete run. I would buy nearly every season they release but if they finish through season 5 at least it can feel complete.

 

[ScottR]

I was born on November 3, 1975...just as the first season had gotten into full swing.

 

[AnthonyC]

I sort of agree; I think most people agree that those first five (well, first four at least, but the fifth is good too) are the best. But at the same time, I don't want to wait too long before we get the Dana Carvey/Phil Hartman and Will Ferrell era stuff. I can't imagine they would release more than two of these annually.

 

[Jeff_CusBlues]

Anybody got any info on the John Belushi/King Bee question I asked earlier?

 

[MarkHastings]

While shows SHOULD be released by season, do you really think sales will be strong enough to make it through 20+ seasons?

 

[AnthonyC]

Probably not...which is why if we want the Hartman and Ferrell years, they'd have to be released before 80-81 and 85-86.

 

[David Rain]

The bottom line is that fans will have to buy a LOT of these sets if they want to see more in the future. Be sure to get one for yourself as soon as it's released (or soon after that) and with Christmas coming consider getting more sets for anyone you know who likes the show. If this set is heavily promoted and sells enough copies then we might at least see a season 2.

I also think the Eddie Murphy & Dana Carvey years might sell very well if we get that far.

BUY THIS SET, FOLKS !

 

[Jon Martin]

This is indeed amazing news. As a huge SNL geek, who has read just about every book written about the show, this is one of the DVDs of the year.

But, I also want to mention, do not expect every episode to be brilliant, fall on the floor comedy. As well remembered as the cast was, not every episode or sketch was a masterpiece. There were plenty of duds, just like in later years. And, the first couple episodes are very different, as far as format goes.

That shouldn't keep anyone from buying it. It is just that sometimes the episodes get built up so much that there is nothing to do but be disappointed in them.

 

[RyanAn]

I just heard about this 30 seconds ago on TVShowsOnDVD.com - This is probably the best TVonDVD news I have ever heard of in my life.

I can't describe how happy I am and for the life of me, I can't think of a better way to spend $69.98 and over 24 hours on.

This is going to be AMAZING and I hope this set sells well and we can see more and more! I don't want this to be like single set MadTV.

I'll respond to some comments in the morning, have a great night everybody!!!!!!

ry

 

[Jeff#]

This show is in its 32nd season now, and I seriously doubt it will get even 1/3 of the way.

 

[Jeff#]

And all 3 of those guys became regulars on SNL. Bill Murray from January 1977 to May 1980, His brother Brian Doyle-Murray from around 1979 to 1982, and Christopher Guest (1984-1985). And all of them became Weekend Update anchors too, with Brian holding the co-anchor post from 1981-82 (when it was renamed SNL Newsbreak)! Chris Guest was one of the worst ever (last season as Saturday Night News), in spite of his being on the show during one of its strongest seasons.

As for Darrell Hammond, although I agree that his Schwarzenegger impression isn't convincing, I thought he was hilarious as Sean Connery! His Jesse Jackson (which he did in black makeup) was also entertaining. It's kind of a shame that someone as talented as Hammond has been underused on SNL in recent years, with too much attention being given to the younger cast members. Amy Poehler is quite good though.

 

[Ethan Riley]

My informed guess? This will be one of the top-selling tv boxed sets of all time. Please show the folks at Broadway this thread, which is full of overwhelming positivity over just the announcement of the dvd, not the actual release itself. If the show is indeed uncut, it'll be automatic knowledge on the web and people will be tumbling over one another to buy it.

Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow!

 

[Cheetah]

Quote:BTW, does anyone know when the official name for SNL switched from "NBC's Saturday Night" to "Saturday Night Live"? Did that occur mid-way through Season 1? Or was it Season 2? And if it was Season 2, I guess the title of the Universal S.1 DVD set ought to be re-titled "NBC's Saturday Night". But that's kind of a minor matter. It'd be better to just make all the seasons "SNL" (assuming additional seasons will be forthcoming).


From the First 20 Years book...

"The Program was known as NBC's Saturday Night, then just as Saturday Night, before the March 26, 1977 show."

Therefore the first show with the title "Saturday Night Live" and with the bumpers having the the text "Saturday Night Live" was March 26, 1977 Jack Burns / Santana



Quote:What season contained the controversial episode that was hosted by Chevy Chase after he came back to host? Supposedly he couldn't stand Bill Murray and they got into a fist fight backstage before the show. As I recall, either Murray or Chase had bruises on his face during that episode.


Season 3. February 18, 1978 Chevy Chase / Billy Joel


Quoteoes John Belushi perform King Bee in the first season. I always liked that sketch/performance but I always heard that Belushi hated performing in the bee suit.


Yes he does (along with Dan Aykroyd)
January 17, 1976 Buck Henry / Bill Withers, Toni Basil, The Blues Brothers


The news of this is unbelievable. Lets hope there will be many more complete seasons to follow. I will buy every complete season that will become available. Growing up with the show I have a particular fondness for everything from 1975-85. Hopefully if/when there is a season two it will come with the Mardi Gras special and with 84-85 the SNL Film Festival. I pray that if we get past season five that the Doumanian and Ebersol years are not skipped over. The worst season in my opinion was 04-05 with nothing else coming close.

 

[Jay_B!]

actually, I believe 80-81 would be a very successful season, it's so notorious that I think a lot of people will pick it up.

Just let them release the show in order

 

[Jeff#]

People will enjoy Weekend Update, The Rocket Reports, Joe Piscopo, Eddie Murphy, and some quality musical guests from that troubled 6th season. It would also include the 13th episode, which got great reviews (the first Dick Ebersol produced and Chevy Chase did). And being a shorter season because of the strike, it will sell.

By the way, I liked Gail Matthius too. She co-anchored WU with Charles Rocket (which Rocket did solo at first). Eddie Murphy even did a very serious one minute "SNL Newsbreak" later in Jean's season, which was some kind of joke about the Polish invading another country. Then Weekend Update with Rocket & Matthius followed.

 

[docdoowop]

DDD now has it listed at $48.39:

http://www.deepdiscountdvd.com/dvd.c...65&promotion=y

 

[Joe Karlosi]

What I'll be doing is playing one episode every Saturday Night at 11:30 (naturally) and going back down Memory Lane! What a joy it will be to forget the new and lousy SNL of "now" with its questionable "musical acts" and fill up today's Saturday Night's with the good old days. Best of all, back in the day I never saw every show because, being a young stud , I was often out until the wee hours of the morning. Now that I'm a middle-aged couch potato, many of these shows will be fresh to me as well.

 

[Jeff#]

I have to admit that I like rock music the best, and some of SNL's best musical guests in the early years fill that void much more than today. A lot of the musicians who appeared on SNL during the first season were lame, unless you're a fan of Paul Simon (Lorne Michaels is a lifelong friend of Paul's had him on a lot over the years). Paul's last solo performances on this show was early in 2006. But singing with his partner, Simon and Garfunkel were obviously better in their 1960s heyday, and they come off as a little too mellow by the time they did the second episode of SNL in 1975, but they get in a few good tunes -- some of their hits. No more than any other episode before SNL found its indentiy a few episodes later, you'll find very little comedy or The Night Ready for Primetime Players in that October show. It's almost completely Paul & Art singing for most of the 66 minutes. And unfortunately, too many performers on SNL in the 1970s were mellow: Billy Joel, Leo Sayer, Leon Redbone, Rick Nelson, etc. In February of the first season, Desi Arnaz turned up as both host & musical guest. His parodies of I Love Lucy (with Gilda Radner as Lucy) and "The Untouchables" are pretty funny, and "Babaloo" was more middle-of-the-road than cutting edge.

There were exceptions though...

Some of my musical favorites from back then included Elvis Costello, who really rocked the house in 1977 with his "Radio Radio". At one point Elvis almost sings a tune mentioning Nazis, but motions to stop the band because he felt it was inappropriate! He then quickly changes to another song.

In the earliest shows, Billy Preston and ABBA sang nothing but their best songs.

The Rollings Stones were the biggest act to appear on SNL back then, for the 4th season premiere in October 1978. Mick's choice of songs aren't the band's best, but they're always worth watching. In sketches, Jagger seems to be upstaged by Dan Aykroyd in the Tom Snyder sketch, and Keith just seems out of it (not surprisingly). In The Nerds sketch, Aykroyd plays a refrigerator repairman who doesn't wear underpants. Lisa Loopner and her boyfriend Todd crack up at Danny's buttcrack, and if I recall correctly Todd comes close to sticking a pencil in the man's ass....until Danny turns around before he gets the chance. Of course, that was all scripted.

Eddie Murphy cracking up after someone threw a pie in his face during a restaurant sketch in a 1982 show was not scripted.

Mick came back to SNL several times over the decades, most notably again playing himself when his now ex-wife model Jerry Hall hosted the show in 1985.

What other music guests do I like from the 70s? Well, Paul McCartney appeared on film from London during the 1979-1980 season. I think that was before he was arrested for drug possession in Toyko in 1980. But it was Paul's more mellow work, and those songs just aren't memorable... If you want to see Paul at his best on SNL, watch his appearance from 1992 -- in which he sings a few of his biggest hits including a wonderful rendition of The Beatles' "Hey, Jude", which of course Paul wrote himself in 1968. Maybe Lorne Michaels couldn't reunite The Beatles, but George Harrison turned up in November 1976 (in the Thanksgiving show hosted by Paul Simon) and the two men did a duet. One of the last major performers booked by Executive Producer Dick Ebersol in 1984-85 was Ringo Starr (who was also the host). Billy Crystal put on the black makeup to play Sammy Davis, Jr. and "Sammy" and Ringo sang each other's tunes during Ringo's monolog!

I can't think of too many so early in the morning before I leave for work...except maybe the B-52s and Devo. The sounds of punk in the late 70s / early 80s crossed over between two eras of SNL. This is also evident with a recurring character that Gilda played called Candy Slice, a punk rocker who was always passing out on stage from constantly being in a drugged stupor...resulting in her managers (Bill Murray, John Belushi) having to revive her so she can keep singing and finish making that record!

 

[PaulP]

I think the low-point MSRP is an indication that they plan to put these out faster than two a year (maybe quarterly?), and they expect them to sell well and to, eventually, release every season.

 

[James_Garner]

I hate to burst everyone's bubble, but I suspect that this may be the ONLY unedited season available on DVD. In the 80's, RCA released two volumes of SNL on CED Videodisc. The first volume featured Steve Martin. A disclaimer stating "The musical guest declined to allow his performance to be used on this videodisc" was on the back cover. It would be interesting to see if Kinky Friedman has mellowed his stance over the years.