Live from New York, It’s Still Funny after 35 Years!

This is an article I wrote for my journalism class. Enjoy!

Betty White and Jay-Z during the most recent episode of SNL.

This Saturday night, Alec Baldwin will be hosting Saturday Night Live with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers performing as the musical guest. In its 35^th season, SNL is still staying fresh and relevant while setting new records for itself.

This season has been one of many milestones on SNL. Celebrating 35 years on the air, the show has changed a lot since the days of Chevy Chase, John Belushi, and Dan Aykroyd, and Al Franken has successfully made the transition from political satirist to U.S. Senator, but the current cast has kept up the tradition of edginess, political satire, absurd characters in zanier situations, and lack of readiness for primetime.

In recent years, the internet has become a medium that he people at SNL have really used to their advantage. Digital shorts like “I’m on a Boat” and “Lazy Sunday” became instant viral hits on the web, and Hulu.com has become a way for fans of the show to still catch up even if they go out on Saturday night or get tired and fall asleep. After a humorous Snicker commercial during the Super Bowl, a campaign on Facebook began to try and get former Golden Girls star Betty White to host the show. Knowing their fan base and understanding how to boost ratings, SNL listened to the internet and booked White to host.

In October, Drew Barrymore set the record for most hosting appearances by a woman with 6 (she still holds the record for youngest host for when she hosted at the age of 7 to promote E.T.). In January, Charles Barkley became the first NBA player to host more than once. The week after that, Sigourney Weaver set the record for the longest gap between hosting appearances when she hosted for the first time since 1986. Just last week, in her first-ever hosting appearance, Betty White became the oldest host in the history of the show at the age of 88. White, paired up with musical guest Jay-Z, hosted a very entertaining, very complete show that featured former SNL cast members Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Rachel Dratch, Ana Gasteyer, and Molly Shannon appearing in nearly every sketch to make it feel like it was 2001 again. They reprised several sketches from earlier in the decade, and the writers wrote so many good ones that several more sketches that were cut after the dress rehearsal were still posted on Hulu the next day, including Rachel Dratch’s famous “Debbie Downer” character.

With Alec Baldwin this week, the show is reaching yet another milestone this season. Baldwin will have hosted 15 times, tying Steve Martin for most hosting appearances by anyone in the history of the show. The 30 Rock star is just as much associated with the show as any famous cast member especially since 30 Rock is loosely based on Tina Fey’s experience as head writer for the show and he plays her NBC executive boss.

In the past, when Baldwin has come close to Martin’s hosting record, they have incorporated sketches involving Martin and Baldwin plotting against each other so one cannot surpass the other. More of the same should be expected. Just because they shared Oscar hosting duties in March, does not mean they will be as willing to share the same page in the SNL history books.

The impact of Saturday Night Live on America is profound. From Chevy Chase’s Gerald Ford impersonations in the 70s to Tina Fey’s Sarah Palin impression, the show has always been at the forefront of political humor. Numerous cast members have gone on to successful gigs in movies or their own TV shows. In the past decade alone, SNL created a bona fide movie star in Will Ferrell, a late night talk show host in Jimmy Fallon, an internet video superstar in Andy Samberg, and Tina Fey, Tracy Morgan, Amy Poehler, and Molly Shannon all went on to star in primetime sitcoms on NBC after leaving the show. Every couple years, when important cast members leave the show, people wonder how it can possibly go on, but executive producer Lorne Michaels and Co. always manage to keep it going.

Saturday Night Live airs at 11:30 PM ET on NBC.

Fallon Hits His Stride

This is a TV review I wrote for my journalism class. Enjoy!

In the midst of the biggest controversy in the world of late night television in nearly two decades, many jokes were made and many fingers were pointed. As Jay Leno left The Tonght Show, the Conan O’Brien took over, then Leno’s new prime time show bombed, then O’Brien was asked to delay the start of The Tonight Show until after midnight, then O’Brien quit, then Leno returned to his original time slot, then O’Brien left NBC and the network suffered bad public relations, talk show hosts from every other channel were providing some commentary of their own. Throughout all this changing of the networks and personalities of late night, one new guy has quietly gained confidence and respect within the community. And now, he is being rewarded for his recent success by getting the opportunity to host the biggest annual event in celebration of television.

Jimmy Fallon’s talk show career began last year when Conan O’Brien left his Late Night show to head west and take the reins at Tonight. Since then, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon has become a very entertaining hour of TV. The charming, humorous former Saturday Night Live cast member has a great ability to connect with the guests he interviews and the audience members that participate in his games and sketches. Late Night’s new in-house band, The Roots, are an exciting and energetic hip-hop act that is refreshing and completely different from any other late night TV band out there. Fallon keeps the show loose by playing games with contestants like “Battle of the Instant Bands”, where two teams of musicians who have never met have ten minutes back stage to create a band name, an album cover and then perform their new hit song. He also keeps things loose with his celebrity guests by playing games with them. On several occasions, he has challenged guests to a game of beer pong and he has played against people like Kelly Ripa, Sigourney Weaver, and Betty White.

Another quality of Fallon’s that is valuable as an entertainer is his extensive knowledge of TV shows, movies, and music. Whether he is imitating Kate Gosselin’s “Paparazzi” dance from Dancing with the Stars or filming a parody of Glee with rival glee clubs formed by the casts of the different shows at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, or giving a fascinating interview with iconic Pink Floyd singer, bass player, and songwriter Roger Waters, his perceptive view of pop-culture and the entertainment makes the show as interesting as it is hilarious.

After Conan O’Brien left Tonight, Fallon made it very clear that he understands his place in the late night hierarchy. He did not want to take sides in the Jay-Conan controversy or the Jay-Dave (Letterman) rivalry because all of them are comedians that he looks up to. He also said that O’Brien and Letterman, the two previous Late Night hosts, made him realize that hosting that show “is a one-way ticket to not hosting The Tonight Show.” Even if he never gets the 11:30 time slot, he is developing quite a legacy for himself as it is. He is already recognized as one of the great performers to come out of SNL in recent years and it was recently announced that he will be hosting the Primetime Emmy Awards this fall. In 2010, the biggest celebration of TV will be hosted by America’s newest talk show star.

Wake up in the Morning Feelin' Like Neil Armstrong?

For several weeks now I have had this very catchy song entitled "Tik Tok" by an artist named Ke$ha stuck in my head. I always thought that the song was rhythmically interesting and the lyrics were clever, but I had apparently missed the deeper meaning. When Ke$ha performed on Saturday Night Live the other night, I realized that this song was more than your ordinary dance song about partying. The song is clearly about space or aliens or astronauts or America or ...something...I am not entirely sure, but I will try to make some speculations and We The Internet and try and solve this one.

Was Ke$ha trying to take a stand to keep the astronaut program? This has been an issue recently. The future plans for NASA have people everywhere wondering if people will ever get to go back to space. In this number, her dancers and her band are clearly dressed like some sort of astronaut, although I do not think those suits would do too well on the moon (but they might have more success on "Dancing with the Stars"). Her microphone stand had an American flag on it, as if she was claiming the famous studio 8H stage the way Neil Armstrong did the moon. People from all walks of life have expressed their disappointment in the future of space exploration. Astronauts are the rock stars of the scientific community. They are the reason kids want to become scientists. Perhaps Ke$ha is expanding on this metaphor by being a rocker astronaut (but she'll kick 'em to the curb unless they look like Buzz Aldrin).

Did anyone ever stop to think maybe we are the aliens? In the middle of the song she asked this question during her SNL performance. Is this supposed to be a symbolic commentary on the way immigrants are viewed in America? Other political commentators and musicians alike (most notably The White Stripes out of the music I listen to) have made the point that American was founded by immigrants and we were the aliens who kicked the Native American tribes off their land. And now we are doing the same thing in space? Maybe we are the aliens. Maybe we are the ones who do not belong. But what does all this have to do with having a night on the town like the song's lyrics suggest?

Quite frankly, I have no idea. I just thought this song was really catchy on the radio and I did not thik too deeply into it until I saw the SNL performance. Maybe I am just an idiot who is trying to find meaning and symbolism in what an artist just thought was a cool costume theme for a concert (English majors have an annoying habit of doing that). Maybe there is a deeper message, but I am still way off. Please comment on this post either to tell me I am an idiot or to provide your own insight into this. Together, as one giant collective blogoshpere, We The Internet will figure this one out (by the way, I really like the sound of "We The Internet". That would make a great start to the preamble of the Internet code of law if America ever goes totalitarian and starts censoring people's rights online while still trying to appear to uphold the principle of liberty, but that is another story for another day). Yes we can!