The Not Ready for Prime Time Project: An SNL Retrospective

The Scream Queen herself Jamie Lee Curtis hosts this week's episode of Saturday Night Live—and she brings it!

This very entertaining episode of SNL features standout performances from the cast including Gail Matthius with a great Brooke Shields impression. And... Eddie Murphy has been promoted to featured player role on the show.

Plus we get a memorable and legendary musical performance from the Godfather of Soul James Brown!

All of this and more on Not Ready for Season 6!

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Not Ready for Season 6 is back and we're looking at how the cast and writers of SNL bounce back after last week's infamous outing.

This episode of Saturday Night Live was hosted by Ellen Burstyn from the legendary film The Exorcist with The Queen of Soul herself Aretha Franklin bringing the house down as musical guest. And... we get Eddie Murphy in his first speaking role on the show!

Who is starting to emerge from the cast? What do they still need to fix?

All of this on another...

The second episode of SNL Season 6 is one of the most infamous in the show's history, considered by many as one of the worst Saturday Night Live episodes of all time! Deremy and Thomas go over all the sketches to find out if all the criticism is legit or not as bad as people say!

Malcolm McDowell is the host for this episode with musical guest Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band—who give an infamous performance as well!

Sit back for the wild ride that is this episode!

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A new era has arrived for Saturday Night Live! A brand new cast, new writers, and Jean Doumanian is the new Executive Producer. 

For the Season 6 premiere, they have an all-time host coming back—Mr. Elliott Gould! Find out how this new era truly began and if they deserve the knocks they have been getting over the years! 

Join Thomas Sena and Deremy Dove as they go over this season premiere and give their thoughts!

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To help kick off our look back at Season 6 of Saturday Night Live, we talk to one of the cast members from that season—Denny Dillon. In addition to being the very first "new" cast member to say "Live from New York," Denny is also one of the few performers to work with all three Executive Producers of the show—Lorne Michaels, Jean Doumanian, and Dick Ebersol.

But Denny's connection to SNL goes back well before that infamous 1980-81 season. She talks about meeting Gilda Radner before the show even premiered and shares her experiences as a...

Well, the time has arrived!! The Not Ready for Prime Time Project is tackling the infamous Season 6 of Saturday Night Live! For such a big task, the guys have asked Thomas Sena and Deremy Dove from Pop Culture Five Podcast to host this season. 

So many changes happen for Season 6, starting with Jean Doumanian replacing Lorne Michaels as the new executive producer. We also have a whole new cast and writing staff as well! This season is one of the most controversial—yet important—in Saturday Night Live history. Thomas and Deremy give their expectations and what they...

One last VINTAGE episode before we leave "The Early Years of SNL" and move into the Jean Doumanian season.

Late in Season 1, Madeline Kahn hosted for the very first time. Delayed by a technician's strike, the show seemed to utilize the extra time as this is considered (by us at least) the best episode of Saturday Night Live's first season—even if Carly Simon had to pre-tape her musical performance.

This episode includes some of our favorite sketches of the season including an iconic Baba Wawa, an amazing Bride of Frankenstein mu...

Today we remember original SNL writer, Anne Beatts. Coming to Saturday Night Live by way of The National Lampoon, she was both a vital voice and powerful force in the early formative years of the show.

Not only did Anne create the iconic "Nerds," she also contributed to such memorable characters and sketches as Irwin Mainway, Uncle Roy, and "Hard Hats." Her voice was also showcased on commercial parodies like "Jewess Jeans," "Angora Bouquet," and "Chanel."

Fellow original SNL writer Rosie Shuster returns to the podcast to help us look back to remember...

Awhile back, during our Season Five look back, we wanted to do a "Deep Thoughts" episode on the Andy Kaufman special, Andy's Funhouse, which aired in the summer of 1979 (though it was filmed back in 1977). We were very excited to get into it with such an iconic performer and one of his biggest showcases. We even had a guest lined up—a proclaimed "expert" on Andy Kaufman. Sadly, the day of recording, our guest ghosted us.

We had two choices—postpone the recording and try to reschedule with our unprofessional guest or just push...

This week, we wanted to showcase a different podcast. From our editor, Will, comes his own podcast - Reviewing Who.

Brothers Will, Pat, and Tom journey across time and space as they deep-dive into each episode of Doctor Who, beginning in 1963.

Reviewing Who is available wherever you get your podcasts.

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In the spring of 1980, Saturday Night Live finally met its first competitor. Desperate to steal a piece of the late night comedy pie, ABC premiered its own late night sketch comedy show as SNL was nearing the end of its fifth season. That show was Fridays.

Fridays would repackage almost all of SNL's key components—it would air live, it would have sketch comedy from an unknown troupe, there would be a fake news segment, and there would be musical guests. But to be different, the show would be shot on the west co...

Five years ago today, we lost one of the original writers of SNL—the amazing Anne Beatts. One of only two female writers on the staff when the show began, Anne's contributions were vital, formative, and iconic. She was nominated for an Emmy all five years she wrote for Saturday Night Live, winning for her work in Season One. She also won a Writer's Guild of America Award for her work on the SNL 25th Anniversary Special.

We highlight Anne's work in this VINTAGE episode of "The Early Years of SNL," which features one of th...

Our look back at Saturday Night Live’s original era has come to an end. We wrap up our final episode of The Early Years of SNL, looking back at all five seasons of the original era. We revisit the journey the show took from a trying-it-out-in-real-time “variety” show (S1) to being a truly experimental and edgy platform (S2), exploding into a cultural juggernaut (S3&4), and eventual fall from grace (S5).

Looking back, we remember some of our favorite hosts, musical guests, special guests, and pre-tapes. Of course, we also call out what we didn’t like. We discu...

We made it! Our look back on the original era of Saturday Night Live comes to a close. We’ve revisited every episode, talked about every sketch, discussed every host and musical guest, and explored the behind-the-scenes stories that brought this iconic show to life.

In this first part of our retrospective of “The Early Years of SNL,” we look back on why we set out on this journey in the first place and look to answer if we succeeded in our goals. We discuss what we enjoyed the most about the process, what we learned, and what s...

A companion to our discussion about the end of the original era of SNL, we talk with biographer Susan Morrison about Lorne Michaels’ side of things. Susan joins us to discuss Lorne’s mindset going into Season Five, how much he (like everyone else) was looking towards life beyond Saturday Night Live, and where NBC’s decision - made behind his back - to move on without him left him.

Susan helps explain the thinking behind Lorne’s need to put the show on an extended break, his (naïve) belief that the show was actually...

Why did Lorne Michaels leave SNL? How hard did NBC try to keep him? Did a future US senator really sabotage everything?

Saturday Night Live historians and authors Doug Hill & Jeff Weingrad join us once again to answer these questions (and more) as we look back on the end of SNL’s original era. Beginning with Season Four (which they would argue was the beginning of the end), we connect the dots as to what brought about the eventual end of Lorne Michaels’ original run of the show. 

Doug and Jeff take...

As we bring our look back on the first five years of SNL to a close, we rounded up some of our favorite and most knowledgeable guests for a very special Tournament Talk. Together, they help us discuss and debate the “Best Bits” of Saturday Night Live’s original era.

Five years, over one hundred episodes, and a countless number of sketches, performances, and moments get sifted through as we look to pick out the very best. From iconic impressions and classic characters to memorable Weekend Update pieces and legendary pre-tapes, our panel takes on the near-impossible job of...

Well, we made it! Season Five of Saturday Night Live has come to an end.

Brad and Gary look back and discuss what they liked (and didn’t), what they learned, and what surprised them from the final season of SNL’s original era. They pick their favorite hosts and musical guests, rank the best (and worst) episodes, and – of course – pick their Best Bits of the season. 

In addition, they highlight forgotten and underrated moments from the season as well as try to agree on who it was that picked up the mantle in the absen...

It’s the end of an era. Saturday Night Live brings the original era to a close as Buck Henry (naturally) hosts the season finale of Season Five.  Andrew Gold (it’s okay, you can ask “Who?”) and Andrae Crouch with The Voice of Unity are the musical guests.

The show leans into the “will they or won’t they be back” elephant in the room often throughout the episode – from the monologue right up to the goodnights. In between, Buck gives another solid performance as host, we get to say goodbye to...

Marc Shaiman has won a Tony award, two Grammy awards, two Emmy awards, and has been nominated for seven Oscars. Unsurprisingly, after a career spanning over 50 years rubbing shoulders with the "who's who" of entertainment he is not at a loss for stories to share.

In honor of his hilarious new memoir, Never Mind the Happy: Showbiz Stories From a Sore Winner, we talked with Marc about a brief, but pivotal, section early in his career – Saturday Night Live. Beginning as a freelance performer during the Dick Ebersol years, he began backing up ca...

Steve Martin returns to host SNL for his 8th time. He won’t return to the show (aside from a memorable cameo) for over 6 years. Perhaps it was because of the deer outfit they had him wear?

Steve hosting Saturday Night Live gets overshadowed by one of the very few people who could pull off such a feat at the time – Paul McCartney. Hiding out in London after his public drug bust, the ex-Beatle was supposed to open the show. But, due to the time change, a mix-up ensued and the runner about gett...

With Saturday Night Live off for a few weeks due to the Olympics, we thought it would be fun to get some friends together to debate our “Favorite SNL Olympic Moments.” That’s right, Tournament Talk is BACK. Sadly, Bill Swerski is not.

From John Belushi up to the recent SNL51 Olympic pre-tape, our panel of SNL superfans discuss, dissect, and debate the best Olympic sketches, pre-tapes, and bits from the show’s 51-year history.

Will your favorite Olympic moment from SNL history make the list? Tune in and see what made the cut, what didn’t...

SNL finally gets comedy legend Bob Newhart to host the show, and we finally get back together for a “live” episode. In honor of being in the same room, we try something a little different and record immediately after watching each bit.

This episode of Saturday Night Live is famous for not having a lot of material, with only four live sketches (in addition to the cold open). The show doesn’t stray far from the host’s strong suit, but is that a good thing? We’re not sure. But one thing that is certain –...

Just when you thought Season 5 of SNL might have thrown in the towel, it delivers one of THE BEST episodes of the season! Host Strother Martin knocks it out of the park – whether carrying a sketch or simply in a supporting role – and the veteran character actor delivers in all night long. 

The writing is smart, the performances are on point, and the laughs are plentiful. You don’t even have to be familiar with what the show is satirizing to get the jokes (as one of us shamefully is called out about). To top it all...

While the average SNL fan might not know Andy Aaron by name, they almost certainly know his work—his short films have been showcased on the show several times. His most well-known, "Push Button to Cross Street," was featured in Season 7 and shows an unknowing Tom Davis accidentally push the wrong button and cause a building to collapse.

But Andy's connection with Saturday Night Live goes way back. His friendship with Chevy Chase predates the show and his first short film was one of the best pieces included in Mr. Mike's Mondo Video. He also ha...

Not all episodes of SNL are created equal. Some of them…well, they just miss the mark. That is a polite way of describing Burt Reynolds’ hosting of Saturday Night Live’s late Season Five entry.

This episode is well-known for the difficulties it had finding material for the host and it shows. Much of what was delivered manages to offend early and often. And, Burt pretty much plays Burt this episode regardless of what the name of his character is and doesn’t seem to be having too much fun doing so. But, he sure lik...