| Saturday Night Live | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | NBC's Saturday Night (1975–1977) Saturday Night Live '80 (1980) |
| Format | Sketch comedy Comedy Variety Stand-up comedy |
| Created by | Lorne Michaels |
| Directed by | Dave Wilson (1975–1986, 1989–1995) Paul Miller (1986–1989) Beth McCarthy-Miller (1995–2006) Don Roy King (2006–present) |
| Starring | See Saturday Night Live cast members |
| Narrated by | Don Pardo (1975–1981, 1982–present) Bill Hanrahan (1981) Mel Brandt (1981–1982) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 37 |
| No. of episodes | 712 (List of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Lorne Michaels (1975–1980, 1985–present) Jean Doumanian (1980–1981) Dick Ebersol (1981–1985) |
| Running time | 90 minutes (including commercials) |
| Production company(s) | Broadway Video (1981–present) NBC (1975–1982) Dolphin Productions (1975–1982) NBC Productions (1982–1996) NBC Studios (1996–1999) SNL Studios (1999–present) |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV) 1080i (HDTV) |
| Original run | October 11, 1975 – present |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | TV Funhouse Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Saturday Night Live (abbreviated as SNL) is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol.[1] The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night. The show revolves around a series of sketches parodying American culture and politics, [2] performed by a large and varying cast of repertory and newer cast members.[2][3] Among these sketches is the Weekend Update, news show featuring satirical views of current news stories, which has been performed on every episode of the show. Each episode is hosted by a celebrity who delivers an opening monologue and often takes part in sketches with the cast, and features a musical guest who also performs. SNL normally begins with a cold open sketch that ends with someone breaking character and proclaiming, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!", beginning the show proper.[4]
Lorne left the series in 1980 to explore other opportunities, and he was replaced by Jean Doumanian who led the show to disastrous reviews and was replaced by Ebersol after one season. Ebersol continued to run the show until 1985, when Michaels returned and where he has remained since. Many of SNL's cast found national stardom while appearing on the show and achieved success in film and television, both in front of and behind the camera. In particular, SNL has helped launch the careers of Tina Fey, Chevy Chase, Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Jon Lovitz, Jimmy Fallon, Bill Murray, Will Ferrell, and Amy Poehler. Additionally others associated with the show such as writers have gone on to successful careers, including: Conan O'Brien, Al Franken, Sarah Silverman, Max Brooks, and Stephen Colbert.
Broadcast from Studio 8H at NBC's headquarters in the GE Building, SNL has aired 711 episodes since its debut and entered its thirty-seventh season on September 24, 2011, making it one of the longest-running network television programs in the United States as of 2012. The show format has been developed and recreated in several countries including Spain, Italy, Japan, and South Korea, each meeting with different levels of success. Successful sketches have seen life outside of the show as feature films although only two met with critical and financial success: The Blues Brothers (1980) and Wayne's World (1992). The show has been marketed in other ways including home media releases of seasons, books, and documentaries about the behind-the-scenes activities of running and developing the show.
Throughout its three decades on air, Saturday Night Live has received a number of awards, including 21 Primetime Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award, and three Writers Guild of America Awards. In 2000, it was inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame. It was ranked tenth on TV Guide's "50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time" list, and in 2007 it was listed as one of Time magazine's "100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME." In 2009, it received 13 Emmy nominations bringing the show to a total of 126, giving it the most Emmy nominations in television history. The live aspect of the show has resulted in several controversies and acts of censorship, with mistakes and intentional acts of sabotage by performers and guests alike.
Contents |
| History of Saturday Night Live series: |
|
1975–1980 |
From 1965 until September 1975, NBC ran The Best of Carson reruns of The Tonight Show, airing them on either Saturday or Sunday night, at local affiliates' discretion, (originally known as The Saturday/Sunday Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson). In 1974, Johnny Carson announced that he wanted the weekend shows pulled and saved so that they could be aired during weekdays, allowing him to take time off.[5]
NBC president Herbert Schlosser approached his vice president of late night programming Dick Ebersol in 1974 and asked him to create a show to fill the Saturday night timeslot. Schlosser and Ebersol then approached Lorne Michaels, wanting to create a variety show that would push the boundaries with its edgy style of humor. Ebersol knew Michaels was capable of creating a show since he had worked on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. The show was set, and Michaels searched for people to join the staff. He hired Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Chevy Chase, George Coe, Jane Curtin, Garrett Morris, Laraine Newman, Michael O'Donoghue, and Gilda Radner to the cast. Originally, the show was called NBC's Saturday Night, as Saturday Night Live was in use by Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell on the rival network ABC.[6] NBC purchased the rights to the name in 1976 and officially adopted the new title on March 26, 1977.[7]
The show was an instant hit following its debut, and as a result, the cast members became suddenly famous. Chase left the show during the second season and was replaced by a new and upcoming comic named Bill Murray (who, incidentally, had starred on the ABC show the previous season). Aykroyd and Belushi left the show after season four. The following season, Michaels chose to leave the show and explore other avenues. Michaels' departure led most of the cast and writing staff to leave the show as well.
Although SNL was still popular, Michaels thought NBC would cancel the show upon his departure. Still, Michaels recommended SNL writer Al Franken to NBC as Michaels's replacement, but a scathing editorial Franken presented on SNL against NBC president Fred Silverman led to a falling out between Franken and NBC; Franken left the show along with Michaels.[8] NBC had already planned to replace him with Jean Doumanian, an associate producer during the first five seasons. NBC wanted to build up a new cast and continue on with the show, leaving Doumanian with full creative control. After disastrous reviews and behind-the-scenes turmoil, Doumanian was fired after one season.[9] She was replaced by Dick Ebersol, who had originally hired Michaels to create the show.[10]
Ebersol fired most of the people Doumanian hired except for a few people including unknown comics Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopo. Ebersol remained with the show until 1985. In the fall of 1984, Ebersol departed from tradition by adding several cast members with established comedic careers, including Billy Crystal, Martin Short, and Harry Shearer. After that season, Ebersol wanted a more significant revamp, including departing from the show's established "live" format. After Ebersol's departure, Michaels returned at the helm.
| "He [Lorne Michaels] put me on TV, and no one else would have done that. Lorne created a show that's impacted culture for over 35 years. No one has ever really successfully been able to replicate it." |
| -- Tina Fey on how Michaels' has been influential in comedy.[11] |
Michaels returned to the show for the 1985–86 season. The entire cast from the previous season did not return, causing Michaels to rebuild the show. He hired then unknowns Joan Cusack, Robert Downey, Jr. and many others. The season was disastrous, and the show was almost cancelled. However, Michaels was given one more chance to save the show. He fired most of the staff and brought in a new set of people he hoped would save the show including Dana Carvey, Nora Dunn, Phil Hartman, Jan Hooks, Victoria Jackson, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller and Kevin Nealon. Dunn, Lovitz and Miller were the only three cast members retained from the disastrous 85–86 season.
After a slow start, the show was saved as a result of high ratings and improved critical reception. Michaels' return restored an association with NBC that has lasted nearly 30 years. As head of Broadway Video and SNL Studios, Michaels has profited from the talent he's helped introduce, producing the TV series Late Night (during the eras of Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Fallon - both SNL alumni), 30 Rock (a comedy created by former SNL head writer Tina Fey, and loosely based on her experiences in that role), and Up All Night, starring fomer SNL cast member Maya Rudolph. Michaels also produced the TV film All You Need Is Cash, and a lengthy list of feature films based on SNL sketches; the most commercially and critically successful of these was Wayne's World.[12]
The original 1975 cast of SNL, officially known on-air as "The Not Ready For Prime-Time Players", included Laraine Newman, John Belushi, Jane Curtin, Gilda Radner, Dan Aykroyd, Garrett Morris and Chevy Chase. As of 2012, SNL has featured more than 118 cast members including Murphy, Murray, Dana Carvey, Tina Fey, Rachel Dratch, Jimmy Fallon, Will Ferrell, Phil Hartman, Jon Lovitz, Mike Myers, Amy Poehler, Chris Rock, and David Spade. Darrell Hammond is the longest serving cast member, having been a part of the cast for fourteen years between 1995 and 2009.[13] Those selected to join the cast of SNL are normally already accomplished performers, recruited from improvisational comedy groups such as The Groundlings (Ferrell, Hartman, Lovitz, and Kristen Wiig) and The Second City (Aykroyd, Farley, Fey, and Tim Meadows), or established stand-up comedians (Carvey, Sandler, Rock, and Norm MacDonald).[14]
As of the 2011-2012 season, the cast is divided into two tiers: the more established group of repertory players; and newer, unproven cast members known as featured players, who may eventually be promoted to the repertory stable. The show's current cast is listed below:[15]
| Current Repertory players | Current Featured players | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Don Pardo served as the announcer for the series when it first began,[16] and has continued in the role for all but season 7 between 1981-1982, when Michaels had left and Mel Brandt and Bill Hanrahan filled the announcing role. In 2004, Pardo announced that he would step down from his position, but then continued in the role before again announcing his retirement in 2009, but then continue into the 2009-2010 season.[16] In 2010, then 92-year old Pardo was reported to be again considering his retirement, but as of the 2011-2012 season he remains as the announcer. Apart from a brief period in 2006 in which Pardo pre-recorded his announcements at his home in Arizona, he has flown to New York City to perform his announcing duties live.[16]
The Saturday Night Live Band (also known as "The Live Band") is the house band for SNL. Academy Award-winning composer Howard Shore served as the first musical director, from 1975 to 1980, appearing in many musical sketches, including Howard Shore and His All-Nurse Band and (backing a U. S. Coast Guard chorus) Howard Shore and the Shore Patrol. Over the years, the band has featured several New York studio musicians including Paul Shaffer (1975–1980), Lou Marini (1975–1983), David Sanborn (1975), Michael Brecker (early 1980s), Ray Chew (1980–1983), Alan Rubin (1975–1983), Georg Wadenius (1979–1985), Steve Ferrone (1985), David Johansen (performing as Buster Poindexter), Tom Malone (who took over as musical director from 1981 to 1985), and G. E. Smith (musical director from 1985 to 1995). The band is currently under the leadership of Tower of Power alumnus Lenny Pickett and keyboardists Leon Pendarvis and Katreese Barnes. The number of musicians has varied over the years, but the basic instrumentation has been three saxophones, one trombone, one trumpet, and a rhythm section featuring two keyboards, a guitar, bass, drums, and an extra percussionist, not a permanent part of the band until Valerie Naranjo's arrival in 1995. The 1983–1984 and 1984–1985 seasons featured the smallest band, a six-piece combo. The band plays instrumentals leading in and out of station breaks; affiliates who run no advertising during these interludes hear the band play complete songs behind a Saturday Night Live bumper graphic until the program resumes.[17]
A typical episode of SNL will feature a single host, who delivers the opening monologue and performs in sketches with the cast, and a single musical guest, who will perform two or occasionally three musical numbers. In some cases, the musical guest will also be the host and fill both duties. It has become custom that the host of the show ends the opening monologue by introducing the musical guest for the night. George Carlin was first to host the show; Candice Bergen was the first female to host the show a few weeks later and again hosted only six weeks after that. Guests that have hosted five or more times are sometimes referred to as belonging to the Five-Timers Club, a term that originated on a sketch performed on Tom Hanks' fifth episode. Alec Baldwin holds the record for most times as an SNL host at 16.
Since the show's inception, SNL has aired from Studio 8H, located on floors 8 and 9 of the GE Building (30 Rockefeller Plaza, or "30 Rock"). Due to the studio originally being a radio soundstage for Arturo Toscanini and his NBC Symphony Orchestra, the layout of the studio floor and the audience positioning causes some audience members to have an obstructed view of many of the sketches. According to NBC, the 8H studio has almost perfect acoustics. The offices of SNL writers, producers, and other staff can be found on the 17th floor of "30 Rock."
During the summer 2005 shooting hiatus, crews began renovations on Studio 8H. With its thirty-first season premiere in October 2005, the show began broadcasting in high-definition television, appearing letterboxed on conventional television screens.
Three of the first four shows of the 1976–77 season were shot at the former NBC Studios in Brooklyn, due to NBC News using Studio 8H for Presidential election coverage.[18]
Mary Ellen Matthews—the photographer responsible for the celebrity portraits used as commercial bumpers on the show—usually takes photographs of the SNL guest host in the studio while the musical guest practices their set.[19]
With onsite facilities housed on floors 8 and 17 of Rockefeller Plaza, post-production duties on live broadcasts of Saturday Night Live include the mixing of audio and video elements by the Senior Audio Mixer, coupled with additional audio feeds consisting of music, sound effects, music scoring and pre-recorded voiceovers. All sources are stored digitally, with shows captured and segregated into individual elements to reorganise for future repeats and syndication. The production tracking system was migrated from primarily analogue to digital in 1998, with live shows typically requiring 1.5 Terabytes of storage, consisting of audio elements and 5 cameras worth of visual elements.[20] Elements of Saturday Night Live that are pre-recorded, such as certain commercial parodies, SNL Digital Shorts, and show graphics are processed off-site in the post-production facilities of Broadway Video.[21][22]
Studio 8H production facilities are maintained by NBC Production Services. Video camera equipment includes four Sony BVP-700 CCD cameras, and two Sony BVP-750 CCD handheld cameras, both using Vinten pedestals. A GVG 4000-3 digital component production switcher, and GVG 7000 digital component routing switcher are used to route visual feeds to the control room, with multiple digital and analogue video recorders used to store footage. Graphics are provided by a Chyron Infinit! character generator and a Quantel PictureBox. Audio facilities consist of a Calrec T Series digitally controlled analogue mixing console, and a Yamaha digital mixing console used for tape playback support and utility audio work.[23]
As of the 35th season, the opening title sequence and opening montage of Saturday Night Live is shot using Canon EOS 5D Mark II and Canon EOS 7D digital SLR cameras. Typical elements are recorded at 30 fps, with slow-motion sequences shot at 60 fps, both in full 1080p high definition.[24]
The following is a summary of the process used to produce the show. It is based in part on interviews with Tina Fey in 2000 and 2004.[25][26]
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:
The status of the show during the week is maintained on a bulletin board. Sketches and other segments are given labels which are put on index cards and put on the board in order of their performances. The order is based on content as well as production limitations such as camera placement and performer availability. Segments which have been cut are kept to the side of the board. As the broadcast approaches, often the writer or producer discovers the fate of his or her segment only by consulting the bulletin board.
A 60 Minutes report taped in October 2004 depicted the intense writing frenzy that goes on during the week leading up to a show, with crowded meetings and long hours. The report particularly noted the involvement of the guest host(s) in developing and selecting the sketches in which they will appear. Similarly, there has been an A&E episode of Biography which covered the production process, as well as an episode of TV Tales in 2002 on E!.
The show usually begins at 11:29:30 p.m. Eastern Time (10:29:30 p.m. Central Time)[2], unless a delay occurs. The show broadcasts for one and a half hours, ending at 1 a.m. For the Mountain (except for KSNG and KSNK because even though they are counties in Kansas in the Mountain time zone, they are in the Wichita Market, they air at 9:29:30 p.m. Mountain Time) and Pacific time zones, NBC airs the prerecorded live show usually unedited, mistakes notwithstanding. After the intro skit, the show always starts with the words: "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!"
NBC and Broadway Video both hold the underlying rights to the show, while the copyright to every episode lies solely with NBC. From 1990 until 2004, Comedy Central and its predecessor Ha! re-aired reruns of the series, after which E! Entertainment Television signed a deal to reruns.[27] Abbreviated thirty and sixty minute versions of the first five seasons aired as The Best of Saturday Night Live in syndication beginning in the 1980s and later on Nick at Nite in 1988. In September 2010, reruns of most episodes post-1998 began to air on VH1.[28]
Because SNL has been a huge success in America, other countries have created their own versions of the show, including Spain, Italy and Japan.[29] Spain's version of show was short lived, only lasting a few episodes which aired on Thursdays and not Saturdays as the title suggested. This version copied heavily from the American version, in that they did their own versions of sketches that were already done on the original series.[29] Unlike Spain's version, Italy's was a success. Saturday Night Live From Milan, as it is called, is currently airing its fourth season. SNLFM follows the original format, but uses new material not done already on the American version.[29][30] In June 2011, Japan's version debuted. Saturday Night Live: Japan was created in part with Lorne Michaels' production company, Broadway Video and broadcast on Fuji TV networks. The show follows the same format with a few minor differences. SNLJ is only 45 minutes long and (for now) is hosted by a permanent host. The cast is made up of seasoned comedians who take center stage and newcomers who play the background roles.[29][30][31][32] On December 3, 2011, South Korea's Saturday Night Live KOREA debuted on TVN.[33][34] SNL Korea's season will last eight weeks. [35] SNLK follows the format of the original but it has new sketches. It has its own versions of SNL Digital Shorts and Weekend Update. The show features musical guests who appear once at the beginning and once near the end of each episode. SNL is aired in The Middle East and North Africa on OSNComedy every Saturday night, one week after it airs in the U.S.[36]
Encore showings are not always identical to the original broadcast.
Successful sketches aired later in the show during the original broadcast may be reedited to appear earlier. In the earlier years of the show's history, reruns occasionally replaced weaker sketches with segments from other episodes, usually from episodes that did not have an encore showing at all.
Occasionally, sketches originally performed in the dress rehearsal (which is recorded as a backup) have replaced the live version in reruns because of errors (either technical or by the actors) in the live broadcast. Examples include:
In 2002, the show was ranked tenth on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time,[41] while in 2007 it was honored with inclusion on Time magazine's list of "100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME."[2][42]
Saturday Night Live has won numerous awards since its debut, including 21 Primetime Emmy Awards,[43] 2 Peabody Awards,[44] and 3 Writers Guild of America Awards.[45] In 2009, it received a total of 13 Emmy nominations for a lifetime total of 126, breaking the record for the most award nominated show in television history, previously set with 124 by hospital drama ER.[46][47] As of January 2012, it has received a total of 142 Emmy nominations.[2]
SNL has also had an effect on elections. Voters had reported that political sketches that were shown on the show, had influenced them in the voting booth. The media dubbed this as the The SNL Effect. The so-called SNL Effect was observed during the 2008 presidential campaign according to Mike Dabadie. Two-thirds of voters who responded to a poll said they had seen a broadcast of politically charged content on SNL, with ten percent saying that it had made a difference in their decision. Barack Obama was the beneficiary of the political content, with 59 percent saying they did in fact cast a vote for the then-Democratic nominee.[48]
However in the Democratic presidential primary campaign, Hillary Clinton received more favorable treatment than Barack Obama. During the campaign Fey famously quipped about the then-Senator that "bitches get stuff done" and that "bitch is the new black." [49]
Currently, Universal Studios Home Entertainment and Lions Gate Entertainment hold video rights to the series. Universal has issued complete season DVD sets to the first few seasons, while Lionsgate's share of the rights are a result of prior contracts with NBC struck before the NBC Universal merger. A majority of Lionsgate's SNL DVDs are "Best Of..." compilations.
Other notable books about SNL include: Saturday Night: A Backstage History of Saturday Night Live (ISBN 0-688-05099-9) a behind-the-scenes book about the first ten seasons, Gasping for Airtime: Two Years In the Trenches of Saturday Night Live (ISBN 1-401-30801-5) which detailed Jay Mohr's struggles during his two seasons on the show
The early days of SNL spawned several films, including the successful The Blues Brothers (1980). However, it was the success of Wayne's World (1992) that encouraged Lorne Michaels to produce more film spin-offs, based on several popular sketch characters. Michaels revived 1970s characters for Coneheads (1993), followed by It's Pat (1994); Stuart Saves His Family (1995, with the Stuart Smalley character); A Night at the Roxbury (1998, with the Butabi Brothers characters); Superstar (1999, with the Mary Katherine Gallagher character); and The Ladies Man (2000). Some did moderately well, though others did not—notably, It's Pat, which did so badly at the box office that the studio which made the film, Touchstone Pictures (owned by The Walt Disney Company, which also owns NBC's rival ABC), pulled it only one week after releasing it,[54] and Stuart Saves His Family, with the latter losing US$15 million. Many of these films were produced by Paramount Pictures. The films based on The Blues Brothers were produced by Universal Studios, which merged with NBC in 2004 to form NBC Universal (Universal also has a joint venture with Paramount for international distribution of the two studios' films).
| Film | Release date (United States) |
Budget (estimated) |
Box office revenue | Distributor | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Elsewhere | Worldwide | ||||
| The Blues Brothers | June 20, 1980 | $27 million | $57,229,890 | $58,000,000 | $115,229,890 | Universal |
| Wayne's World | February 14, 1992 | $20 million | $121,697,323 | $61,400,000 | $183,097,323 | Paramount |
| Wayne's World 2 | December 10, 1993 | $40 million | $48,197,805 | N/A | $48,197,805 | Paramount |
| Coneheads | July 23, 1993 | N/A | $21,274,717 | N/A | $21,274,717 | Paramount |
| It's Pat | August 26, 1994 | N/A | $60,822 | N/A | $60,822 | Touchstone |
| Stuart Saves His Family | April 14, 1995 | $15 million | $912,082 | $912,082 | Paramount | |
| A Night at the Roxbury | October 2, 1998 | $17 million | $30,331,165 | N/A | $30,331,165 | Paramount |
| Blues Brothers 2000 | February 6, 1998 | $28 million | $14,051,384 | N/A | $14,051,384 | Universal |
| Superstar | October 8, 1999 | $14 million | $30,636,478 | N/A | $30,636,478 | Paramount |
| The Ladies Man | October 13, 2000 | $24 million | $13,743,212 | $126,602 | $13,616,610 | Paramount |
| MacGruber | May 21, 2010 | $10 million | $8,525,600 | $797,295 | $9,259,314 | Universal |
In addition, Office Space (1999) originated from a series of Mike Judge animated short films that aired on SNL after appearing on several other programs.[55]
The character Bob Roberts from the Tim Robbins film of the same name, first appeared on SNL in a short film about the conservative folk singer.
The group The Folksmen first appeared on SNL, performing the song "Old Joe's Place" before later appearing in the film A Mighty Wind. The three members of the Folksmen were the same three comedians: Harry Shearer, Michael McKean, and Christopher Guest, who also appeared on the same episode as the rock group Spinal Tap. At the time of the appearance (the 1984–85 season), Shearer and Guest were cast members.
Actor James Franco made a documentary entitled Saturday Night, detailing the intensive day-to-day process of creating an episode.
In 2005, the comedy troupe The Lonely Island, consisting of SNL members Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone, gained national exposure after joining the show and debuting their skit music video "Lazy Sunday", written with fellow cast member Chris Parnell. The song became a surprise hit,[56] and convinced Michaels to encourage the troupe to develop more comedy songs. Further successes with songs including "Like A Boss, "Jizz in My Pants," "I'm on a Boat," "We Like Sportz," "Boombox," and "Dick in a Box"—which won an Emmy for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics in 2007[57]—saw The Lonely Island go on to release two albums, Incredibad (2009)[58] and Turtleneck & Chain (2011), containing SNL-developed songs and original works. The albums were released by Universal Republic Records who were provided with a license to the SNL songs by NBC and Broadway Video.
In some cases, a sketch was censored in repeat broadcasts.
Sinéad O'Connor was scheduled to be the musical guest on the May 12, 1990 show. Andrew Dice Clay was the host, and O'Connor boycotted the show in protest of his misogynistic humor, forcing the producers to find musical replacements. Nora Dunn also boycotted that week's show, and was not included in the next year's cast.[64][65] Reportedly, Andrew Dice Clay was heckled during the opening monologue, and the dress rehearsal monologue is shown in reruns.[66]
On October 3, 1992, Sinéad O'Connor appeared on SNL as the musical guest. She was singing an a cappella version of Bob Marley's "War", which she intended as a protest over the sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church, by changing the lyric "fight racial injustice" to "fight child abuse".[67] She then presented a photo of Pope John Paul II to the camera while singing the word "evil", after which she tore the photo into pieces, said "Fight the real enemy," and threw the pieces towards the camera.[68][69][70]
Saturday Night Live had no foreknowledge of O'Connor's plan. As of 2011, NBC still declines to rebroadcast the sequence with the exception of an interview with O'Connor on MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show, which aired on 24 April 2010 when MSNBC aired the full clip during the interview. NBC replaced the incident with footage from the dress rehearsal where O'Connor holds a photo of a Balkan child before bowing and leaving the stage. The dress rehearsal version is also used for 60-minute syndicated rebroadcasts (seen on Comedy Central and E! Entertainment Television). However, the original episode is available on volume four of the SNL DVD special Saturday Night Live - 25 Years of Music, with an introduction by show creator/executive producer Lorne Michaels about the incident. Though on February 20, 2011, the clip was reaired on the SNL special "Backstage" showing footage of the dress rehearsal and live performance side by side. In the two performances, two different photos are held up; one where O'Connor is holding the picture of a starving child and the other of her holding a picture of the Pope — but with a cut to interviewees during the moment the photo was ripped.
On April 13, 1996, musical guests Rage Against the Machine were scheduled to perform two songs. The show was hosted that night by ex-Republican presidential candidate and billionaire Steve Forbes. According to RATM guitarist Tom Morello, "RATM wanted to stand in sharp juxtaposition to a billionaire telling jokes and promoting his flat tax by making our own statement."[71] To this end, the band hung two upside-down American flags from their amplifiers. Seconds before they took the stage to perform "Bulls on Parade", SNL and NBC sent stagehands in to pull the flags down.[72] Following the removal of the flags during the first performance, the band was approached by SNL and NBC officials and ordered to immediately leave the building. Upon hearing this, bassist Tim Commerford reportedly stormed Forbes' dressing room, throwing shreds from one of the torn down flags. Morello noted that members of the Saturday Night Live cast and crew, whom he declined to name, "expressed solidarity with our actions, and a sense of shame that their show had censored the performance."[71]
Ashlee Simpson, appeared as a musical guest on October 23, 2004, to perform two songs. Her first song, "Pieces of Me," was performed without problems. However, when she began her second song, "Autobiography," the vocals for the song "Pieces of Me" were heard again—before she had even raised the microphone to her mouth. Simpson began to do an impromptu jig when she realized the embarrassing error, but then left the stage.[73] During the closing of the show Simpson appeared with the guest host Jude Law and said, "I'm so sorry. My band started playing the wrong song, and I didn't know what to do, so I thought I'd do a hoedown."[74][75]
On October 25, Simpson called in to the music video show Total Request Live and explained that due to complications arising from severe acid reflux disease, which had previously been seen bothering her in The Ashlee Simpson Show, she had completely lost her voice and her doctor had advised her not to sing. She said that because of the acid reflux, her father wanted her to use a vocal guide track for the performance. Simpson stated of the incident, "I made a complete fool of myself." According to Simpson, the drummer hit the wrong button, which caused the wrong track to be played.[76]
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