That Week In SNL (A Vintage Saturday Night Live Podcast)

Off Week 74: The New Show Episode 4

(Originally posted on Patreon on February 26, 2024) Oh boy. It's been awhile since we've gone to the New Show well. And hey look! It's just as dry as it usually is! That's why we've brought in Eddie Ham and Mattalamode to help us wrangle something, anything, out of this one. And wrangle we did. Join us as we slowly get more and more unmoored from reality, defending pieces that don't deserve defending and just generally losing our minds. 

Off Week 73: The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (Sept. 29, 1968)

(Originally published on Patreon on January 29th, 2024) Get your new mustaches on because this week we're digging into one of the most infamous outings of the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, the season three premiere! The brothers have got Cass Elliot and Harry Belafonte on board and after a full summer off, they've got a lot to say about the chaos boiling over in the US. As per usual, this led to a lot of battling with CBS, including a whole Belafonte song being left on the cutting room floor. We look at the full, un-edited (kinda) version of the episode to see just what went down. 

Episode 162: Will Ferrell/Green Day (May 16, 2009)

We're wrapping up the ninth season of That Week with what is seen by some as a legendary episode: the S34 finale with Will Ferrell. Not only does this one close the curtains on one of the more popular and critically acclaimed seasons of the show but includes one of the more divisive sketches in the show's history, Goodnight Saigon. Our ol' pal Jon Schneider is back on board for this one as we hash out the many ways one can approach the show and sketch comedy and what one might demand from it. 

Episode 161: Stevie Wonder (May 7, 1983)

Now here's a guy you might've heard of before. Stevie Wonder. What can you say? It's Stevie. He's a legend and now he's here doing double duty on SNL. What transpires is a charmingly loose and chaotic show as Stevie not only hits us with two yet-to-be-released tunes from 1985's In Square Circle but also reconfigures a bunch of his classics to fit into the sketches. Also, we've got a Hitler sketch and Michael Davis, back for his last guest spot on the show! Can you funk? Stevie can funk.

Episode 160: Richard Benjamin & Paula Prentiss/The Grateful Dead (April 5, 1980)

We return to the end of the original era for the first show hosted by a married couple! Having already crushed his first episode, Richard takes a bit of a backseat on this one to hand it over to the ladies, who respond with a number of uniquely fascinating sketches. It's not all sunshine and rainbows, though. There's still some crud to wade through and that sadly includes The Grateful Dead, who are here promoting what is, to my understanding, a little bit of a low-ebb in their discography. Also, this recording includes a Timmy who watched the episode under some amount of time restraint and duress so can Andrew convince him of the finer details of the episode or will crankiness win out? Tune in to find out!