saturday night live

[MacGuffin]

Tina Fey to Host 'SNL' Premiere; Miley Cyrus Set for Oct. 5
Bruce Willis also lined up to host
Source: Variety

"Saturday Night Live" will return to NBC on Sept. 28 with alum Tina Fey serving as host of the season 39 premiere.
 
Seg will mark Fey's fourth time hosting the latenight Peacock series since her departure as a cast member in 2006. She will be joined by musical guest Arcade Fire.

Waiting in the wings while Fey opens up the new season of "SNL" as host are Miley Cyrus and Bruce Willis. Cyrus will host and be musical guest on the show's Oct. 5 broadcast, while Willis will host for the second time on Oct. 12 with musical guest Katy Perry.

Host and musical guest announcements arrive as the cast for season 39 of "SNL" remains up in the air, after vets Fred Armisen, Jason Sudekis and Bill Hader all ankled the latenight sketch comedy show after season 38. Seth Meyers will remain aboard the series until December 2013, when he will then transition to hosting the Peacock's "Late Night."

"Saturday Night Live" is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

[ono]

5 new cast members have been hired.  This was rumored at least a week or so ago.  It's been confirmed now.

The new cast members are: Beck Bennett, John Milhiser, Kyle Mooney, Noel Wells, and Mike O'Brien.

Re: Noel... hellooooooo, nurse!  (Er, I mean, I'm sure she's funny!)

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/saturday-night-live-new-cast-625424?

Also, Bruce Willis will host with Katy Perry, and Miley Cyrus will pull double duty.

[Bethie]

I didn't read anything posted recently or watched any new snl recently, but I wanted to tell you guys that a good pal of mine told me he wanted to have an snl themed party. You have to dress as an snl character/person. I told him that I always wanted to be Jane Curtain. (This may be my only chance) or land shark and I'd get to knock on every door in his house.


And if I'm Jane, I'll just read excerpts from my snl book.

[MacGuffin]

New Course for 'Weekend Update,' and All of 'SNL'
By BILL CARTER; NY Times

With his cast depleted of some of its most talented and most loved performers of recent vintage, Lorne Michaels had an exceptionally busy summer vacation from "Saturday Night Live," the show he created and still produces.

Mr. Michaels — after the departure of Fred Armisen, Bill Hader and Jason Sudeikis — is overseeing one of the biggest "SNL" overhauls in its almost four-decade history. That refitting includes not only the addition of six cast members but also a revamp of the show's enduring, signature segment, "Weekend Update."

The popular incumbent anchor, Seth Meyers, is making his own exit in February to spend four nights a week hosting the "Late Night" show on NBC (for which Mr. Michaels is also the executive producer). So a question looming over the new season has been: Who will replace Mr. Meyers and inherit the chair that has provided an almost guaranteed ride to the next level of stardom? (Other recent occupants: Amy Poehler, Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon.)

In an interview in his longtime office at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, Mr. Michaels revealed his plan for the segment's future: Starting with the "SNL" season premiere on Sept. 28, Mr. Meyers will be joined at the "Update" desk by Cecily Strong, who emerged as a rising star last year, her first season on the show.

"Cecily, from the first show, was right there," Mr. Michaels said. "She exploded." One of her regular characters was a visitor to the "Update" desk — the Girl You Wished You Hadn't Started a Conversation With at a Party.

Mr. Michaels said his general plan was to have Ms. Strong share the "Update" desk with Mr. Meyers for the season's initial shows and then segue into a solo role later, maybe in the first season — but maybe not. If possible, Mr. Michaels would like to see Mr. Meyers stay on "Weekend Update" even after he moves to "Late Night," starting on Feb. 24.

"Seth is a unique case," Mr. Michaels said, noting that the new late-night show would not have a Friday edition, letting Mr. Meyers potentially drop in and work that day and Saturday on "Update."

Having Mr. Meyers around, at least initially, would bring more stability in a changeover season. That was also the motivation behind inviting Ms. Fey to be the guest host for the season premiere, Mr. Michaels said. "Also, her writing won't hurt." (Mr. Meyers has also been the head writer; for the new season, Colin Jost and Rob Klein will share that duty.)

Mr. Michaels settled on the final addition to the cast last week: Brooks Wheelan, a young stand-up comedian who has been working in Los Angeles. The names of the other new cast members have been circulating for several weeks, and NBC will make them official on Monday. Probably the most recognizable of the group is Beck Bennett, who is seen in the ubiquitous AT&T commercials with gaggles of kids. A performing partner of his, Kyle Mooney, is also an addition. The others are John Milhiser and the only new woman in the cast, Noël Wells.

In another change, Tim Robinson, who had been a new cast member last season, will move to the writing staff. At the same time, Mike O'Brien, a writer for the show since 2009, will join the cast.

Mr. Michaels, whose record for elevating talent is among the most impressive in show business history, selected the new group following his usual process of auditions in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. He acknowledged a bit of dread at the daunting size of the task this year. "Everyone said to me, 'Oh, you've done this before,' which was cold comfort."

The level of talent departing was so high, he said, that he knew the inevitable process of unfair comparison — people declaring the show to be in decline, not up to its usual standards, nothing like the great casts they remember from their youth — might be especially acute this season.

"People attach to the cast they see in high school," Mr. Michaels said. "In those years they generally can't drive. They don't have any money. Staying up late is exciting. Being with friends up late is really exciting. So they're very connected to the cast they see then."

That's one reason Mr. Michaels pays no attention to what prospective cast members have done in a commercial or in an online sketch, on YouTube or Funny or Die.

"You can't be famous before you're famous," he said. "It's one thing to be on a stage in Chicago or L.A.; it's another thing to be standing in 8H," he said of the show's studio. "It's like standing in Yankee Stadium. They can all play baseball, but this is something different. And the weight of all that was just more palpable to me this summer, more than ever before." (Mr. Michaels is also supervising the ascension of Mr. Fallon to "The Tonight Show" this season, another job as executive producer.)

Mr. Michaels said that he does "absolutely think about who I am replacing," but, he added, "One thing you can't do is look for another Kristen Wiig." Even so, last season was a success in terms of new female talent, with Ms. Strong joined by another breakout performer, Kate McKinnon.

The talent selection process, like the show, has been in place for 39 years. Somehow "SNL" remains a weekly event, racking up bigger ratings on Saturday nights than anything else anywhere on television — at any hour.

"I think there's something about what it's trying to be," Mr. Michaels said. "It will never get there. Never get to be as good as I am hoping it will be or people imagine it used to be. But every week, even in the worst weeks, there's always something I'm proud of."

[ono]

Mr. Michaels said that he does "absolutely think about who I am replacing," but, he added, "One thing you can't do is look for another Kristen Wiig."

[polkablues]

Can't wait to see what all these new white dudes bring to the table.

[ono]

Oh, teeny tiny Tina.  So classy in light of your wardrobe malfunction.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/25/tina-fey-snl-promos_n_3987730.html

Can't wait to see what this season holds.

[MacGuffin]

Kerry Washington To Host 'SNL' On Nov. 2 As New-Cast Kerfuffle Continues
BY LISA DE MORAES, TV Columnist

Kerry Washington found herself in the middle of Saturday Night Live's new-cast kerfuffle this morning when the NBC late-night show announced it had booked her to make her hosting debut on November 2. SNL may have first approached ABC's Scandal star last season, and booked her weeks ago, but the timing of SNL's announcement raised eyebrows this morning, putting her at the epicenter of the latest media storm over SNL's performers. In case you were off the grid yesterday, SNL cast member Kenan Thompson made some news when he told TV Guide that, yes, it's the show's sixth consecutive year without a black female cast member because, turns out, there are just no black female comics out there who are qualified for the gig. "It's just a tough part of the business," Thompson said. "Like in auditions, they just never find ones that are ready." When asked how the show plans to handle any spoofs of black female celebrities (a FLOTUS gag, maybe?) Thompson responded, "I don't know. We just haven't done them. That's what I'm saying. Maybe [Jay Pharoah] will do it or something, but even he doesn't really want to do it."

Maybe they can do a FLOTUS sketch on November 2!

Thompson's interview managed the impossible, driving from the media's mind all thought of Miley Cyrus' turn as Twerking Michele Bachmann on SNL's second episode this season, as their attention returned to the casting  controversy that made headlines when the show's newbies were unveiled. While there is some diversity among the newcomers (Noel Wells, for instance is half-Tunisian/Hispanic), critics complain they're too white — and especially lacking in black comediennes, which, the press in numbers pointed out yesterday, continues SNL's dismal track record on that score. Washington, who plays a hot-shot Washington, D.C. "fixer" having an affair with POTUS on ABC's Shonda Rhimes hit Scandal, is known to be pretty outspoken and may wind up weighing in on the subject. Or not. If she doesn't,  there's always Eminem, who's returning for his sixth appearance as SNL's musical guest that night.

If SNL thought announcing Washington was going to douse the flames, it guessed wrong. Instead, a new chapter is being written in the SNL breaking-news story today, in which the media note the show also has a pretty lousy track record when it comes to booking black women as guests hosts. Of the 90 SNL episodes that have aired since Season 35, only two black women, and four women of color in total, have hosted: Gabourey Sidibe (April 2010) and Maya Rudolph (February 2012), along with Latina A-listers Jennifer Lopez and Sofia Vergara, noted TVLine.

(Completely lost in this morning's anouncement: SNL made it official Edward Norton would make his first appearance as host October 26, and Janelle Monáe will make her musical guest debut. They have our sympathy.)

[ono]

The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders lampooned everything Wes Anderson!

[ono]

Yeah, so SNL's got jungle fever now. http://www.deadline.com/2014/01/saturday-night-live-adds-sasheer-zamata-black-cast-member/

It's back on the 18th with Drake pulling double duty, then Jonah Hill/Bastille on the 25th.

[ono]

So over the summer a few people got canned: Noel Wells, John Milhiser, and Brooks Wheelan.  They've hired 5 new writers; no new cast members yet, though.

The exciting news is the rumored opening lineup:

Bill Murray / Ariana Grande
Sarah Silverman / Maroon 5
Chris Pratt / Hozier

Also, February 15th will be a 3 hour 40th anniversary prime time special.

Last season really sucked.  Here's to hoping these changes will shake things up.

[polkablues]

Kyle Mooney and Beck Bennett are the future of SNL. If they get a stronger hold of the reins next season, the show will be better for it.

[picolas]

i cannot fucking believe how terrible weekend update is right now. it was frustrating having seth myers arbitrarily host it alone for so many years 'just cuz no one's done it alone for a while'. then colin jost swooped in with his utter neutrality. but at least we had cecily.

but michael che is HORRENDOUS. his tact with all the guests is vaguely antagonistic/embarrassed. his delivery isn't just unfunny, it's UNCLEAR. i actually have to strain a little to understand the basic content of what he's saying. his default face is mild confusion. WHY was this unknown guy immediately promoted to the desk??? because it worked so great with colin??? can we see if people are actually funny ON SNL for A SINGLE EPISODE before we let them HOST WEEKEND UPDATE? please?

[tpfkabi]

I'm with you on Weekend Update. After a while I just picked up my phone and zoned out until the next skit came on.

[Reel]

I'm glad to hear Michael Che is stinking it up. Everybody has been all over his jock and I don't see what the big deal is. Watched his half hour special, he's got a cool delivery style and seems likable enough, I'm just not onboard with him being god's gift to comedy.