"America's oldest living doper"
Cold Open: Stoned
4 Stars
Tonight's 80 year old host got a visit from Belushi and his Maui Waui
Don Pardo tells us we will not be seeing How The Grinch Raped And Strangled Christmas and will instead be watching SNL. Buck Henry is concerned about Miskel. She's in her dressing room, lying on her back staring at a fruit bowl with the radio on full blast. Apparently Belushi gave her a joint to mellow her out and it worked too well. This helps having seen the 80 year old Miskel in the previous episode and imaging her baked out of her mind. It would have been nice to get a visual of what they were talking about. Still, this had a great line from Buck, "John, your joints overwhelm even an experienced drug user like myself". John's plans to be dead by the age of 30 were a little grim in retrospect.
Miskel Spillman Monologue
Don Pardo tells us we will not be seeing How The Grinch Raped And Strangled Christmas and will instead be watching SNL. Buck Henry is concerned about Miskel. She's in her dressing room, lying on her back staring at a fruit bowl with the radio on full blast. Apparently Belushi gave her a joint to mellow her out and it worked too well. This helps having seen the 80 year old Miskel in the previous episode and imaging her baked out of her mind. It would have been nice to get a visual of what they were talking about. Still, this had a great line from Buck, "John, your joints overwhelm even an experienced drug user like myself". John's plans to be dead by the age of 30 were a little grim in retrospect.
Miskel Spillman Monologue
4 Stars
Miskel is still feeling the effects of John's joint
Buck helps Miskel to the stage, who is still holding the fruit basket she is fascinated by and refuses to let go of it. In a continuation of the cold open, Miskel is still stoned and talks about all the colors she's seeing.
Meat Wagon Action Track Set
Buck helps Miskel to the stage, who is still holding the fruit basket she is fascinated by and refuses to let go of it. In a continuation of the cold open, Miskel is still stoned and talks about all the colors she's seeing.
Meat Wagon Action Track Set
3 Stars
A new Meat Wagon truck to pick up all the motorists who are dead or injured from collisions on your Hot Wheels track. Short and sweet but looks like a real commercial for a toy I would want to have as a kid.
American Date The Self-Conscious Association
4 Stars
A PSA asking you to date the socially awkward
Bill and Gilda are both nervous on a date. The two have a really good chemistry that foreshadows their Nerd characters. Laraine speaks for the self-conscious as she used to be self-conscious which comes back when she realizes she's on television and people are watching. John comes out as a member of the Society of Extremely Obnoxious who dates the self-conscious because they don't realize how obnoxious he is. Finally, Dan comes out as the spokesperson for the Really Stupid People's Amalgamation who can't afford their own ad. A little too much going on here but all the performances were very fun.
Christmas Story
Bill and Gilda are both nervous on a date. The two have a really good chemistry that foreshadows their Nerd characters. Laraine speaks for the self-conscious as she used to be self-conscious which comes back when she realizes she's on television and people are watching. John comes out as a member of the Society of Extremely Obnoxious who dates the self-conscious because they don't realize how obnoxious he is. Finally, Dan comes out as the spokesperson for the Really Stupid People's Amalgamation who can't afford their own ad. A little too much going on here but all the performances were very fun.
Christmas Story
5 Stars
A twist on The Gift Of The Magi
Gilda is in the hospital and needs a kidney. John offers his kidney and sells his family watch to pay for the operation. When she wakes up she reveals that she sold her hairbrush to pay for a chain for his watch. Their melodramatic acting style made this work and enhanced the reveal of John getting upset.
"Is that all you think I'm worth, you cheap slut?! I sell my watch that's been in my family for a hundred years, I give you my kidney, and you sell a stupid hair brush to buy me some junk jewelry?"
I also liked Jane and Miskel agreeing with the moral of it's not the thought that counts, it's the gift.
Elvis Costello
Gilda is in the hospital and needs a kidney. John offers his kidney and sells his family watch to pay for the operation. When she wakes up she reveals that she sold her hairbrush to pay for a chain for his watch. Their melodramatic acting style made this work and enhanced the reveal of John getting upset.
"Is that all you think I'm worth, you cheap slut?! I sell my watch that's been in my family for a hundred years, I give you my kidney, and you sell a stupid hair brush to buy me some junk jewelry?"
I also liked Jane and Miskel agreeing with the moral of it's not the thought that counts, it's the gift.
Elvis Costello
"Watching The Detectives"
I'm probably reading into Elvis's mood as I know what's coming up later in the show but he doesn't seem to happy to be performing. This is like a pop song played by a punk band.
Weekend Update
Jane calls President Carter, who asks about Dan and wants tickets to the show. We pan out and see that it was Dan on the other end of the phone the whole time. Hilarious, let's move on.
Garrett Morris gives us a sports report. With all the advances for African Americans in their strides for equality, a black man can still be accused of striking a white man simply because of the color of his skin. He shows a clip of a basketball game where a black player clearly cold cocks a white player. Realizing he is in the wrong, he backtracks.
"What are you gonna do, oppress me for another 400 years for a mistake? Jive crackers."
Bill Murray gives us yet another movie review, this time Miracle On 34th Street. He is upset that the film doesn't take a firm stand on the existence of Santa Claus with its ambiguous ending. He pulls out a movie book that Santa brought him for Christmas last year and talks about all the times he barely missed jolly old St. Nick. Bill's childlike wonder made this my favorite of the season.
The Dancing N comes out and it is revealed to be Emily Litella, who has made a whopping 22 appearances in the first two seasons. This time she's upset about the SST landing in New York which stands for the Super Sonic Transport but she thinks it's pronounced "sst" like a secret. Jane gets upset at this moronic report, yells at her and says she's not invited back. Emily calls her a bitch.
Sartesky & Hutch
1 Star
The Dancing N comes out and it is revealed to be Emily Litella, who has made a whopping 22 appearances in the first two seasons. This time she's upset about the SST landing in New York which stands for the Super Sonic Transport but she thinks it's pronounced "sst" like a secret. Jane gets upset at this moronic report, yells at her and says she's not invited back. Emily calls her a bitch.
Sartesky & Hutch
1 Star
A police procedural with a cop and a philosopher
What should have been a 60 second sketch with the punchline being the reveal of the title goes on for a very long 7 minutes with 3 set pieces. Instead of Starsky And Hutch, it's Sartesky And Hutch where Dan is playing Jean-Paul Sartesky. Their fake freeze-frame at the end is the best and only joke.
The Franken And Davis Show
What should have been a 60 second sketch with the punchline being the reveal of the title goes on for a very long 7 minutes with 3 set pieces. Instead of Starsky And Hutch, it's Sartesky And Hutch where Dan is playing Jean-Paul Sartesky. Their fake freeze-frame at the end is the best and only joke.
The Franken And Davis Show
4 Stars
Al thanks his parents for all their support
Al brings his parents out to sing a song to them, thanking them for all their support both emotionally and financially. When mom lets it slip that he wet his pants once when he was younger, Al flips out. he screams at them and kicks them off the stage. The real life Joe and Phoebe Franken make pretty good comedic foils.
E. Buzz Miller's Art Classics
Al brings his parents out to sing a song to them, thanking them for all their support both emotionally and financially. When mom lets it slip that he wet his pants once when he was younger, Al flips out. he screams at them and kicks them off the stage. The real life Joe and Phoebe Franken make pretty good comedic foils.
E. Buzz Miller's Art Classics
4 Stars
E. Buzz Miller and friend look at erotic paintings
E. Buzz Miller, a very sleazy character, and his bimbo friend look at famous paintings and giggle at the nudity. I appreciated this bit of sophomoric humor, especially Dan's titters when pointing out a side boob.
Girlfriend
E. Buzz Miller, a very sleazy character, and his bimbo friend look at famous paintings and giggle at the nudity. I appreciated this bit of sophomoric humor, especially Dan's titters when pointing out a side boob.
Girlfriend
2 Stars
A college student brings his new girlfriend home to meet his parents
Jane and Dan are awaiting their son's return home from college. When he comes home he has brought with him his new girlfriend, an old lady played by Miskel. This is the first time we've seen Miskel play an actual character in a sketch and she holds her own pretty well. I just wish the sketch would have gone further. They never specifically make the joke that she is an old lady. After all the elderly jokes they made about her in the Buck Henry episode, it seems like they weren't afraid to call her an old lady to her face. The scene plays out as it would had she been age appropriate for John. John and Dan go off to have the sex talk and Jane bonds with her prospective new daughter-in-law. The only real joke of the sketch is when the two go off to John's bedroom, presumably to bone.
Wino Santa
Jane and Dan are awaiting their son's return home from college. When he comes home he has brought with him his new girlfriend, an old lady played by Miskel. This is the first time we've seen Miskel play an actual character in a sketch and she holds her own pretty well. I just wish the sketch would have gone further. They never specifically make the joke that she is an old lady. After all the elderly jokes they made about her in the Buck Henry episode, it seems like they weren't afraid to call her an old lady to her face. The scene plays out as it would had she been age appropriate for John. John and Dan go off to have the sex talk and Jane bonds with her prospective new daughter-in-law. The only real joke of the sketch is when the two go off to John's bedroom, presumably to bone.
Wino Santa
4 Stars
A drunk Santa plays practical jokes on a little girl
A young Gilda sits on Santa's lap and it's obvious that Santa has been drinking and wants to have a little fun with the girl. He repeatedly tells her she can't have the toys she asks for and plops her on the ground through "Santa's trap door". A pretty weak ending with Gilda bopping him on the nose but you can't deny that Bill's energy in this was fantastic. Gilda and Bill continue to grow into a pair that I continually want to see together on the show.
Mr. Mike's Coral Waters Cafe
A young Gilda sits on Santa's lap and it's obvious that Santa has been drinking and wants to have a little fun with the girl. He repeatedly tells her she can't have the toys she asks for and plops her on the ground through "Santa's trap door". A pretty weak ending with Gilda bopping him on the nose but you can't deny that Bill's energy in this was fantastic. Gilda and Bill continue to grow into a pair that I continually want to see together on the show.
Mr. Mike's Coral Waters Cafe
2 Stars
Mr. Mike makes Laraine a drink while she sings
This was my first ever introduction to Michael O'Donoghue as this was the sketch they played on the show to memorialize him after he died. I didn't get it then and I don't get it now. I mentioned in a previous episode that I don't really get Mr. Mike. He seems to go for weird and off-putting more than laugh out loud comedy. Laraine comes into Mr. Mike's bar and asks for a least-loved bedtime tale. He tells her she'll have to sing an aria from Madame Butterfly to get it and as she does he makes her a Soiled Kimono, a drink of his own concoction. As she sings, the recipe and the history of the drink scrolls across the screen. It's definitely weird, don't know if I can call it funny though.
Elvis Costello
This was my first ever introduction to Michael O'Donoghue as this was the sketch they played on the show to memorialize him after he died. I didn't get it then and I don't get it now. I mentioned in a previous episode that I don't really get Mr. Mike. He seems to go for weird and off-putting more than laugh out loud comedy. Laraine comes into Mr. Mike's bar and asks for a least-loved bedtime tale. He tells her she'll have to sing an aria from Madame Butterfly to get it and as she does he makes her a Soiled Kimono, a drink of his own concoction. As she sings, the recipe and the history of the drink scrolls across the screen. It's definitely weird, don't know if I can call it funny though.
Elvis Costello
"Radio Radio"
Elvis starts playing Less Than Zero but stops his band to switch songs and launches into Radio Radio, which is a better song anyway. Apparently his record label wanted him to play the former song but Elvis changed his mind last minute. This stunt got him banned from the show for a decade.
FINAL ANALYSIS
Elvis starts playing Less Than Zero but stops his band to switch songs and launches into Radio Radio, which is a better song anyway. Apparently his record label wanted him to play the former song but Elvis changed his mind last minute. This stunt got him banned from the show for a decade.
FINAL ANALYSIS
"Santa's really getting off on this"
Average
3.4 Stars
MVP
John Belushi
Stoned, American Date The Self-Conscious Association, Christmas Story, Sartesky & Hutch, Girlfriend
Stoned, American Date The Self-Conscious Association, Christmas Story, Sartesky & Hutch, Girlfriend
Best Sketch
Christmas Story
Worst Sketch
Sartesky & Hutch
How I Would Have Lorne Michaels-ed It
The sketch lineup was fine but I wanted more Miskel Spillman. She proved that she had a decent comedic timing in the Buck Henry episode and handled herself well enough in her few sketch appearances. It seems like a shame to win a contest and then barely appear in the episode. It's possible that it was her own choice, maybe she was tired, but they could have given her an Update piece or given her a part in the self-conscious PSA. It would have been fun to have her sitting on the couch next to E. Buzz Miller.
Host Analysis
She had more to do in the Buck Henry episode than this one. She handled everything they gave her just fine but it was a bit of a letdown that she was barely in this episode.
Final Thoughts
What could be written off as a weird ratings gimmick went pretty well. I wouldn't want to see something like this every season but I have had the thought that once a year the show should go hostless just so the cast could do whatever they wanted to without having to cater to the whims of whoever was delivering the monologue that week. Having a completely random nobody host the show every once in a while would be a nice change of pace from the flash in the pan celebrities the show sometimes gets. With reality TV being what it is now, we make stars every year out of people with no discernable talent. Why not use SNL as a springboard for an aspiring actor of comedian, or a complete unknown?
Up Next
Steve Martin hosts for the second time this season as he helms the first show of 1978 with musical guest Randy Newman and The Dirt Band.
Up Next
Steve Martin hosts for the second time this season as he helms the first show of 1978 with musical guest Randy Newman and The Dirt Band.
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