MM: Walk On By

Since the dawn of time—or at least ever since the creation of wireless electronic media–There is nothing more diabolical, yet more genius in the entertainment world than Stunt Casting. This is when a random famous person makes a (seemingly) random appearance in either a movie or a TV show, and they try to make this appearance as seamless as possible. SNL didn’t write the book on these kinds of appearances, but they did write several chapters on the subject…

 

 

…and as much as the intent of some of these cameos were noble ones, here’s how we’re going to separate the good from the bad. There’s really only one rule; if the cameo counts as a “Genuine” surprise to me, it’ll count. If the cameo in question was announced on the show ahead of time, thus ruining any chance to surprise the audience, it will not count. Whether the appearance was funny or not will be the Wild Card in the final judgement. So, let’s begin…

 

 

https://vimeo.com/61509220

10. THOSE WHO APPEARED IN “FIVE TIMERS CLUB VERSION 2.0” (3/15/2013) – This is honestly a tough sketch to write about considering how deep my fandom runs. I’ve seen the Original 5-Timers club long before this; the Original is perfect, while this version was a fine line between re-hash and insider baseball. Not that it wasn’t a surprise to see a bunch of stars appear in the first place—especially Candice Bergen’s appearance, she was one I would Never have expected in a million years–but a lot of it still felt pretty forced…though that’s just the sketch on its own. Since I’m judging the cameo’s impact by itself, however, I can see why people would go nuts for this—even though this exact same thing was done before 23 years earlier. That being said, this would probably be an even bigger surprise for those who became SNL fans in “recent” years. This is also a case where Quantity wins over quality, you can’t argue with strength in numbers.

 

MOJO: 1
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

9. SARAH PALIN (10/24/2008) – And here, we have our first example of “Ruining the Reveal”. When this first happened, the press caught wind that it would happen days before it did, thus ruining any chance of this being much of a surprise to the rest of the audience—hell, the appearance by Marky Mark on the hunt for Andy Samberg was a bigger surprise than this (P.S. Say “hi” to your mother for me). I wish I could say the cameo stopped Tina from doing her version any further, but history shows us otherwise.

 

MOJO: 1
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 0

 

 

8. PAUL McCARTNEY (11/11/2006) – Having Steve Martin show up in the “Platinum Lounge” sketch was a treat in itself, having Martin Short then show up was an even bigger bonus; but to have Sir Paul show up seemingly out of nowhere by the end (and questionably either drunk or tired, no less.) was beyond any of our expectations and caught those who were watching in the audience and at home (and even Baldwin himself) by surprise. Also, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that this wouldn’t be the last time McCartney got the drop on Baldwin.

 

MOJO: 2
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 0

 

 

7. LARRY DAVID’S FIRST BERNIE (10/18/2015) – Before this sketch even happened, the idea that Larry was Bernie Sanders’ doppelganger was about as plausible as an internet meme or two and the occasional message board comment that “DO IIITTT!!!”—but that was as far as things went with the idea. Even the diehard fans thought this would be something that—while cool to see—would probably never happen in a million years due to Larry’s awkward history with the show previously…of course, that happened under Ebersol’s watch; at least with Lorne, Larry could benefit from a clean-ish slate. So when he came on to play Bernie for the first time, not only was it a genuine surprise, but a welcome one as well. Of course, Larry would go on to play Bernie several more times since then, but it’s the first appearance that matters more here.

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 0

 

 

 

6. ALEX TREBEK (5/18/2002) – (Grrrr….Getty!) This was a “Kinda/Sorta” spoiler to me when this first aired. Long ago at the much-missed SNL fansite, there actually used to be an up-to-the-minute “Live Update” during weeks when there was a show. This was done largely to discuss what was happening at that show’s dress rehearsal or to break news that was happening from said rehearsal. Sure enough, it was announced that the real Trebek (among other famous people) would actually appear. Mystery unraveled…but that’s just me, I’m sure there were far more people who found the moment genuine, so that’s why I’m going to give this one a Push. I also would’ve appreciated Trebek’s appearance a little more if this was the actual final Jeopardy sketch; but considering there would be at least three more when Ferrell came back to host, I’ll take the high road and call those “Curtain Call” performances.

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 1

 

 

5. ALEC BALDWIN’S AS TRUMP (2016 – Present) – (*SIGH*) Why waste breath? Two reasons why this is a Hard No; (1) He’s practically on every week, and (2) even when he did it for the first time, they still RAN TV PROMOS ANNOUNCING IT—hardly a surprise, moving on…

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 1

 

 

4. MADONNA (10/4/2009) – ……………….Seriously? That’s the Madge cameo you’re going with? No mention at all about her “Horrible, Horrible Dream” affirmation or her much Better surprise appearance in a “Coffee Talk” sketch capped off by Babs? This is the one you’re going with, Mojo…………….OK, if you insist. I begrudgingly agree that her appearance in a “Deep House Dish” sketch did surprise me a little—though tell that to the studio audience who probably saw this and thought (to minimal applause, no less) it was Lady Gaga’s mother. I’m not saying her appearance was actually “Funny” by any means, but the fact that she would even make an appearance for the first time since 1993 is surprise enough..even if it seems a hair bit too forced.

 

MOJO: 4
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 1

 

 

3. [THEN SENATOR] BARACK OBAMA (11/3/2007) – On the one hand, it was a pretty good cameo that arguably equated to his own “Sock it To Me” moment of career revitalization…On the other hand, considering Kenan Thompson was the ONLY Black cast member the show had before publicly complaining about it years later, who the hell else would play the future president? JB Smoove (who was the show’s warm-up guy at the time)? And it’s because of the show’s lack of diversity at the time that I have to give this one a Push; it surprised me; but it didn’t at the same time (if that makes sense)—just be glad Fred Armisen didn’t start playing him at that moment, he’d probably take a look at the Obama mask that was covering him up and realize “Oh, Crap, What am I getting myself into…”

 

MOJO: 4
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 2

 

 

 

 

2. JOE PESCI & ROBERT DeNIRO (4/12/1997) – If it were me making this list, I would actually have this moment front and center—this aired just as my SNL fandom was in its infancy, and it was well before I realized that this kind of stunt casting was more common than I thought; so when I first saw this Live, it absolutely blew my mind. I can’t discuss this one without first discussing an excerpt from Jim Brewer’s memoirs……yes, I’m just as surprised as you are that Brewer even HAS memoirs, but I digress. At this point, Brewer’s Pesci was one of his two signature characters, so it only seemed like a good idea for the real deal to show up sooner or later……but not without busting Brewer’s balls a little. At first, the cameo was supposed to be Just Pesci; DeNiro expressed no interest in doing it until the very last minute. But even before Bobby got involved, Pesci gave Brewer almost the exact same spiel that he gives here in the sketch—pretending to be offended that his so-called “Impression” was nothing but a faulty caricature, only to pull a “Goodfellas” on him and tell Brewer that he was just kidding and would love to do the cameo. Contrary to popular belief, the applause they got did not last a whole minute—it just seemed that long (32 seconds, for the record). I’d be remiss, however, if I didn’t mention that DeNiro probably put in more effort in this appearance than he ever did in the Three times he hosted the show……and I eagerly await the horse head in my bed tomorrow.

 

MOJO: 5
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 2

 

 

 

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

JOHN GOODMAN AS LINDA TRIPP (1998-1999) – The only reason why this gets a pass from me and Baldwin/Trump doesn’t is because I first saw these sketches before I ever owned a computer and/or internet access. Sure, the appearances were repetitive by the time it ran its course, but they still surprised me whenever Goodman came on thanks to being oblivious from spoilers. Point for Mojo.

 

ROBERT DUVALL (1998) – That’s a Flat No, Mojo. Duvall was an Announced, CREDITED Special Guest when he appeared alongside Garth Brooks in ’98—Hell, he’s even appearing in the Bumpers With Brooks. He was as much a surprise as realizing that Water is wet.

 

BRYAN CRANSTON (2016) – This appearance almost makes up for the sub-par material the writers had to put him through in 2010…almost…But still positive enough for Mojo to gain the point.

 

MOJO: 7
BLOG: 3
PUSH: 2

 

 

 

1.BARBRA STREISAND & MADONNA (2/15/1992) – Ha! I knew they couldn’t resist! Unlike her 2009 effort, Madge’s appearance here was not only more welcome, but it was actually amusing/a long overdue make-up call/apology for her appearance in ’85 (“HHD” in ’86 notwithstanding). But let’s face it, this moment isn’t just about the Material Girl; but rather the Funny Girl, the Prince(ss) of Tides, the “Way We Were-er”, the lady who once drew the ire of an American Hero in the single most bizarre way you could think of. I mentioned this trend a few times in the past, but it’s worth repeating the concept of “Wayning”—based on Aerosmith’s appearance in a “Wayne’s World” sketch, the moment pretty much lit the fuse for people to cameo in sketches based on if certain characters had certain celebrity obsessions; Wayne/Aerosmith, Jarret’s Room/Phish, Sully & Denise/Nomar, even the aforementioned Pesci sketch. Steven Tyler started the trend, but Barbra Joan Streisand made it into an SNL tradition thanks to her blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo in a “Coffee Talk” sketch—which I could imagine came as a total surprise to both home & studio audiences when they saw this for the first time. So much of a surprise that both of these appearances were, that it almost makes me forget that human Hindenburg Roseanne was even in this sketch.

 

 

FINAL SCORE:

MOJO: 8
BLOG: 3
PUSH : 2

 

 

Mojo wins the round; and On that note, I want to add a coda not just to the appearances on the list, but all the other ones before/since. I honestly don’t mind the surprise cameos the show has in this day and age; though there’s a BIG difference between things that are genuine surprises and flat-out Overkill (The monologue when Tina Fey hosted the past May’s finale actually does a good job of pointing out both). The problem with a cameo like Streisand’s is the age old notion that if something worked well one time, chances are that they are going to hammer the same gimmick into the ground several different ways just to see what the reaction will be—or so it seems. As you can see, there are times when the surprise works; and there are others that weren’t mentioned that failed miserably—the less said about Joey Buttafuoco’s awkward shoehorning in ’94, the better. Whether you like them or not, whether they seem forced or not, cameos are here to stay.

 

Something else that’s here to stay—that one segment of the show that airs after the first musical performance…and yes, I am running out of ways to be subtle. Don’t worry, we’ve got 3 more weeks of this.

MM: The Bonus Round

Let’s move on to a lighter subject, as well as one of my favorite non-SNL subjects…Game Shows.

 

 

And since this is another one of those lists where I need to compare notes on a previous list, we change the rules a little here. If any of Mojo’s picks wound up on My List, it’s immune from the “Blog” point since I would technically be agreeing with them, but the other two (Mojo or Push) are up for grabs. I also have a sneaky suspicion that there will be at least One “recurring” sketch in here, so we’ll deal with that as it comes. Now then, time for the lightning round…

 

 

 

10. WWTBAM WITH STEVE HARVEY (4/24/2010) – Sort of a gray area on this one; after all, Kenan Thompson’s impression has been used a number of times since this aired, so you could argue that it’s recurring…But those performances are largely for the “Family Feud” sketches (which we’ll get to in a moment). In this case, he’s doing the impression for a show that–while it’s still on the air–reached peak popularity around 2002. Therefore, it’s OK to judge this on its own merits…and considering that this was very much based on the Real Harvey’s actual hosting skills during the time he filled in for then-host Meredith Viera c2010, I have to award them the point on accuracy alone. Incidentally, they Could’ve picked some other “Millionaire” parodies in its place; But it looks like forced malapropos wins out in this round.

 

MOJO: 1
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

9. REEL QUOTES (1/9/2010) – Before we go any further, you’re going to notice a LOT of Bill Hader in this list—most likely because Hader was probably the most durable “Game Show Host Character” the show has ever had (or at least since Phil Hartman). And why not? He could take any game situation, no matter how ridiculous, and guide us through it without question even if Hader himself is questioning it; and we thank him greatly for that. As for this sketch, as big a fan as I am for classic movies, I Wanted to be insulted by this, but that would be wasting my time because this is practically “SNL rule #1” number 309; contestants are (almost) always dumb…sometimes on purpose. However, that rule can be negated if the contestants involved have practically Zero knowledge of movies. Not only does (host) Charles Barkley surprise us in his stupidity by working at a “Block Buster” but NOT a “Blockbuster”, but Wiig actually turns in a subtle performance for once by giving some insane ramblings that feel like a distilled version of her “Penelope” character minus the One-upsmanship. Good, clean, stupid fun, but I wouldn’t dare show this sketch to Ben Mankiewitz or the ghost of Robert Osborne (sp?).

 

MOJO: 2
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

8. DYLAN McDERMOTT OR DERMOTT MULRONEY (12/8/2012) – Regardless of what Mojo thinks, This is probably one of my favorite “Recent” game show sketches, and one I foolishly forgot to add to my own list. This sketch works partly because of its “So Simple, it’s Stupid!” (and vice versa) premise, but also because of the “Admit it, you’re thinking it too” aspect of it all; Who hasn’t confused the two (three if you count Rupert Everett………four if “Derbel McDillet”……..and I could’ve sworn Jay Pharoah’s scribbles said “Demitri Martin”)? Hader’s interchangeable emcee gets bonus points for the equal confusion of Ashley Judd & Diane Lane; and the addition of the Real Dermott Mulroney at the end was icing on the cake. Sidebar; Years later, when it was announced that Dylan McDermott would be getting a new show on FOX and Dermott Mulroney would frequently guest star on it, the circle of life was completed, and life would successfully imitate art (R.I.P “LA to Vegas”). Now, if only we can figure out the difference between Amy Adams & Kristen Wiig…

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

7. WHAT’S WRONG WITH TANYA? (2011) – For the record, I consider the Lifetime network an unsung hero when it comes to Game Shows, Especially in the 90s when they had such classics (to me anyway) like Rodeo Drive, Shop Til You Drop, Debt; and of course, the LONG overdue for a comeback Supermarket Sweep (before it moved to PAX/Ion in the early 2000s). So the fact that they announce in the sketch that it was the network’s “First Original Game Show” was either a massive oversight on SNL’s end, or they simply don’t watch that much TV…But I digress. Here, they did a sketch where the game in question was more based on Lifetime’s predicable line of TV Movies was as much on the nose as it was kind of unfair. I mean, yeah, the network is practically built on “Women in Peril” fare, but they’ve been trying to ween themselves off of that for a while now (R.I.P. “unREAL”). Old habits are hard to break though, as they hit all the necessary targets; Troubled children, Abusive Husbands (nice touch, Hader) Overacting housewives, the fact they all have a Mary, Jo and/or Beth in their names, Raking leaves while watching from afar, and other staples that would probably make Meredith Baxter wonder “Is THAT what I did with my life all those years?” Not just a solid game show parody, but a solid “Television” parody in general. Sidebar; Mojo made a passing mention of the Lifetime Parody movie “A Deadly Adoption” with Wiig & Will Ferrell–I’ll just put that in the “To Do” pile, thanks.

 

MOJO: 4
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

6. GAME OF GAME OF THRONES (5/4/2013)– You don’t have to be a GoT fan to appreciate this one…though truth be told, I have yet to watch a single episode or read any of the books—I’ve seen clips, though, that’s gotta count for something, right? Anyway; what starts out as a simple trivia show about the land of Westeros becomes a nightmare for host Zach Galifinakis, looking the best kind of ridiculous in a “Child’s Extra Large” dragon costume and trying to answer questions about the show when the subjects suddenly take sharp left turns……an Idea that I would’ve been on board with if Greg Kinnear didn’t do something similar to Ross Geller first 10 years earlier—and I’m sure there have been other examples of this kind of mis-direct elsewhere even before that. Does it make the piece any less funny? Of course not, sometimes it’s fun to watch a little mental cruelty; even if it involves the real Jamie Lannister toying with diehard fans. Bonus points to that opening tag savaging the E! network (“You must be home with the Flu!”), and the throwaway joke about Hader being named “O.J. Sampson”.

 

MOJO: 5
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

 

5. MEET YOUR SECOND WIFE (12/18/2015) – I’ve mentioned this one several times, and it’s also an Honorable mention on my list…But after about three years of letting it simmer a little, it’s time to do a little reconsidering…I’m probably in the minority when I say this; but the more I keep watching this sketch, the more I feel this might’ve been a better TALK SHOW sketch rather than a game show. If you look at the sketch Very carefully, you might notice something missing—namely the element of COMPETITION. The “contestants” are not competing to see who will have the Best 2^nd Wife, nor are there questions being asked or any other tests of skill or knowledge involved. Nor is this a “relationship” show like Love Connection or The Dating/Newlywed Game—at least Those shows offer prizes (yes, I know, the “Kayak” punchline at the end, but that’s beside the point). This really seems more like the point of the Springer show where the feuding couple meets the 3^rd member of the triangle—only minus the fights, chair throwing and/or toothlessness. That detail aside; the sketch is still funny on its own merits, but without any actual “gameplay” the whole thing feels awkward now.

 

MOJO: 5
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 1

 

 

 

4. SECRET WORD (2009 – 2016) – NO! Hell, No! It’s bad enough that this was one of the few sketches in recent years that were recurring, it’s even worse when Wiig reaches hamminess that’s reserved for the Jimmy Dean Sausage company, but the worst thing about these sketches is that it’s the Exact. Same. Joke. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME!!!!!!! And to make sure I don’t sound like a hypocrite later on in the list, there’s a BIG difference between repeating the same thing over and over; and doing that, but finding different ways to mix it up without destroying its integrity. Secret Word made no effort whatsoever in mixing things up (not counting a different celebrity guest each time). It was Kristen Wiig’s character imploring us to “LOOK AT ME”, followed by her & the guest deliberately reading the secret word off of their screen, and that’s it. I would say that having an episode where they actually play by the rules would’ve been a welcome twist—“welcome” in the sense that once that joke is told, you can’t tell it again, and the sketches would cease to be…and yet, people always wanted more for some reason, Nine times people thought “Oh yeah, This I Like!”………….NINE TIMES.

 

MOJO: 5
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 1

 

 

 

3. FAMILY FEUD (2013 – Present) – Now These sketches (as well as selection #1) are a perfect example of being able to mix it up without ruining the integrity. They could’ve run these into the ground by having them be an ongoing impression showcase—and for a little while, it seemed to be heading in that direction. But as the years have gone by, they have actually become creative in how to alter the formula from time to time. Including having an actual “Civilian” edition between Steve Harvey’s family and a family with a BIG secret; not to mention the “Time Travel” edition where they use dueling Fallon-Travoltas to tip their hat to the Original Richard Dawson-era Feud. And of course, there was also that time where Chris Redd as Jordan Peele went a little Too meta with Mr. Thompson (also, I’d be remiss if I didn’t say his impression of Harvey has greatly improved over time). Point is, these sketches are probably a metaphor for the actual Feud (and maybe even SNL) itself; it’s been around for 40+ years, yet it always manages to find a way to adapt to the next generation of audiences; and there doesn’t seem to be any signs of it ending anytime soon…I’m just glad SNL only airs once a week instead of 92 hours a day on the Game Show Network.

 

MOJO: 6
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 1

 

 

2. THE JAPANESE GAME SHOW (12/10/1994) – Yet another one mentioned previously, but this one is more of a make-up call of sorts. This sketch is on Two lists; the one for Game Shows (an “Honorable”…pardon the Japanese pun), and the one for Season 20 Silver Linings (#6). And while it certainly deserves its place as a S20 savior, it IS Game Shows that matter here. And as much as I enjoy the sight of Farley getting shocked in the junk, this sketch does have a couple of flaws. (1) A little too much Farley yelling, (2) Asian Whitewashing from 90% of those involved, (3) even though the action is implied visually throughout the sketch, English subtitles might’ve been nice; and (4) to my knowledge, I’ve never seen an actual Japanese game show resort to self-mutilation…highly inflicted pain, yes, but Never cutting off a finger—at least to my knowledge, anyway. Still though, it’s amusing for what it is, and as long as it gives people a reason to talk about Season 20 in a positive light, more power to them.

 

MOJO: 6
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 2

 

 

 

 

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

 

NEW CAST MEMBER OR ARCADE FIRE?:  Another one I mentioned previously, but this one made my main list vs. Mojo shuffling it to the kiddie table. While I originally ranked this at #8, the re-run value does sort of diminish considering some of the people who appear in the sketch were only on for a year…Then again, Lorne asking “Is it the Black one” right in from of Kenan pretty much nails it shut. Sorry mojo, but this sketch was better than you thought. Point, Us.

 

WHAT IS BURN NOTICE?:  As much as Hader was the dominant emcee, I always thought Jason Sudeikis was a little more charismatic in roles like these; That aside, here’s a cheat sheet in case they ever make this game for real. This too is a little dated even though “Burn Notice” is enjoying a life of obscurity in syndication; though I can almost guarantee you that there will someday be  a similar sketch involving an even lesser known TV show (“Private Eyes”, I’m looking in YOUR direction). Neutral point.

 

BEAT THE BOOKWORM: I might’ve agreed with this one if Aziz Ansari toned the whininess down a little, but otherwise, it was one of those rare sketches that didn’t belabor the point too long—little over 3 minutes, that’s almost unheard of these days…The whining does hurt that a little, though—Neutral.

 

MOJO: 6
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 4

 

 

 

1.C’MON, DO I REALLY NEED TO SAY IT? (1996-2015) – Entries like this make my job just a hair bit difficult; after all, what else about the J! sketches could there possibly be left to say? We know the origin story behind them about how Steve Higgins & Norm MacDonald asked Eugene Levy for permission to adapt the old “High-Q/Half Wits” sketches from SCTV. We know that the true dynamic of these sketches are the rivalry between Ferrell’s Trebek and Hammond’s Connery, and that the other celebrity appearances are just icing on the cake. And we even know that the sketches have become so entrenched in society that it managed to cross over onto the actual J! itself from time to time. So the question remains, what else could I possibly add to this that I haven’t before? How about this Vulture article I found that chronicles the history of the sketch; and along with it, something that I don’t think anybody has noticed before—namely, the fact that even though there were a total of 15 of these sketches, they somehow managed to pull off having the restraint of doing them a lot less frequently than people realized. Think about it, this is a show that was Built on having characters appear every couple of weeks (sometimes back to back, Mango!), In the case of the J! sketches, they would actually pop up after several MONTHS at a time (Years if you count Ferrell’s hosting gigs). On closer inspection, I feel that THAT is the secret to these sketches’ success—they show up, it pleases the crowd, it doesn’t overstay its welcome, they don’t come back for months at a time, and it leaves the audience wanting more because of it. And let’s also not forget, were it not for the CJ! Sketches back then, there would not be a Black Jeopardy today; so leaving a legacy for the next generation is always a plus. That said, this is not only the perfect game show sketch, but (quite possibly) the perfect sketch; Period…I’m not willing to fight to the death for it, but it’s still up there somewhere.

 

 

FINAL SCORE:

MOJO: 7
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 4

 

 

 

An easy win for Mojo this week, as Game Shows (and game show sketches) continue to be one of the few things in the world that we can agree on—That and talk show sketches, those two seem to be the single easiest things to write over there (Even easier if the person hosting either one of those shows is Bill Hader). Not all of them are winners, but they can still receive consolation prizes in the eyes of public opinion—and I will kick myself in the head for a lousy metaphor later.

 

And Speaking of later, the subject of our next list could best be described using the name of the group that sings This Song…see ‘ya next time!

MM: Notorious S.N.L – The “F” Word

The F-Word.

 

Oh, sure, I can say “Fuck” in typed form because this is (1) not exactly one of the more popular destinations on the internet, or (2) this isn’t a mass-read publication like certain “Failing” newspapers/magazines which do have higher standards—But that’s print. Television has its own set of rules when it comes to both this, and (apparently) 6 other words you can’t say unless you’re one of the premium cable channels—though they have at least allowed “Shit” on basic cable in recent years. But that’s over there; on Network television, however, they’re still stuck in the stone age. To this day, the word “Fuck” all but grinds everything to a halt, especially on Live TV—except in some cases where you’re allowed to because you happen to have the TV-MA symbol on your show. SNL since day one (or at least since they introduced TV ratings) may be for Mature audiences, but also commercially sponsored ones. If people get too carried away, kiss the sponsors and the ratings good bye…supposedly……as you can see below, not only has the F-Word been uttered a number of times on the show, but the show itself has managed to soldier on in spite of it…

 

 

Now then, this list is gonna be judged slightly differently than the others. Mojo ranks the list based on how “Impactful” the F-Bomb occurrence was, which is fair; but based on some of the entries, the question becomes whether the impact is as big as they say it is. At the same time, there’s going to be a couple of times where enunciation is going to come into play (I.e. Did they ACTUALLY say the F-Word, or just enough of it so that people would THINK the person said it?). So with that, beware of Gray areas…also, apologies in advance for using the “Censored” versions of some of these sketches—they were all I could find…

 

 

10. SAMUEL L. JACKSON IN “WUWT” (12/15/2012) – He is perhaps the all-time king of the F-Bombs, but he also hosted the show once in 1998; so when I first saw this, I thought he would at least be able to restrain himself…But this is Sam Jackson we’re talking about, it probably would’ve been more controversial if he DIDN’T drop the bomb……………………………OR DID HE?! Apparently, Jackson didn’t quite say the FULL “Fuck”, but rather (to some, anyway) he let out a “FUH”. I have searched high and low for a high quality and uncensored version of this moment; the closest I could find was This one, and even there it sounded like “FUH” to me, so it’s going to be debatable for some time to come. Jackson DID say “Bullshit” shortly afterward, however, but as Cable has shown us over the years, we’re pretty much desensitized to that word’s use. Further, I was about to award the point in our favor because it wasn’t really an “Impactful” moment like the other ones you will see; but since Mojo & I are equally on the fence about it (not to mention Kenan’s classic “That costs Money” ad lib), chalk one for the neutrals…

 

MOJO: 0
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 1

 

 

9. AEROSMITH – MONKEY ON MY BACK (2/17/1990) – This was a hard clip to find—as you can see (if you click on it), the host of the page hails from the soon-to-be-next location of the White House. To make matters tougher, this comes from a Comedy Central rerun of the show back when Comedy Central used to run the show; and sure enough, the (supposed) F-Bomb was muted. I say “Supposed” because there are some who believe to this day that Steven Tyler was actually saying “Funky” instead of “Fuckin’” because what other words can rhyme with “Monkey”? Tough call, but unless somebody out there has crystal clear broadcast quality audio of the performance and can therefore Prove that Tyler did indeed drop the bomb, I’ll be more than happy to change my mind. But until then…

 

MOJO: 0
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 2

 

 

8. MORRIS DAY & THE TIME (10/20/1990) – As a rule, I often (if not most of the time) fast forward past the Musical Guests unless it’s somebody I want to watch. So I hope you can forgive me when I say……….Who??? Nevermind the fact that I was only 5 years old when this show aired; even when I caught the episode in reruns years later, I still had no idea who Morris Day was. I’ve heard of Mikey Day, Otis Day, Willie Day, Arbor Day, etc. Never Morris Day and/or The Time; so this might be a little lost on me. But still, we press on. This entry is probably one of the more fleeting expletives; and all because Mr. Day wanted Ribs instead of Chicken; or as he puts it “Where the Fuck did this Chicken come from? I thought I ordered Ribs!” (a line which, BTW appears Nowhere in the album version of “Chocolate”, this might’ve been just for the show) While I couldn’t find an uncensored version of the clip, there’s no doubt that he said it on the Mojo clip (I can still read lips); but as to it being “Impactful”, that’s where Mojo misses the mark. Sure, Day never came back, but I think it just might’ve been because his career ran out of gas, the F-Bomb would have nothing to do with it.

 

MOJO: 0
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 2

 

 

 

https://vimeo.com/215908538

7. PRINCE………I THINK? (2/21/1981) – Speaking of things that are Morris Day related, Another highly debatable one; in fact, after watching this one with ears wide open, I have a feeling his Royal Badness might’ve pulled a Sam Jackson, nevermind that this happened a good 30 years before that happened. Just my luck, this was a censored version we’re looking at, because the alleged infraction happened just as the song ended cold. Even with the power of Lip Reading, it’s hard to tell through grainy 80s era video whether he actually swore or not—I know he says “Frickin’” earlier in the song, but that’s about as far as it goes. As is the case with Aerosmith, if any of my fellow SNL superfans out there can clarify, I’m more than willing to change the score. As for whether the moment had any “Impact”, (1) He’s Fuckin’ Prince, he could practically get away with anything—intentional or otherwise, and (2) His [supposed] F-Bomb paled SHARPLY in comparison to another one that happened the same night……….

 

MOJO: 0
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 3

 

 

6. CHARLES ROCKET (2/21/1981) – Now this one pisses me off…Rocket only came in 6^th…………Sixth…………SIXTH?!?!?!? Say it with me, Audience (*CLICK*). I’m not going to waste too much time on this because lord knows I haven’t already done so years ago; but this entry position is totally offensive to me as an SNL fan. As I’ve said before, if it weren’t for Charlie’s F-Bomb, there would NEVER have been a need for sweeping changes, Dick Ebersol wouldn’t’ve come in to save the day, the show would’ve died a forgettable death, Eddie Murphy would never have a (decent) career, and “Fridays” would then become so popular by default that Larry David would never create “Seinfeld”—among other “Butterfly effect” theories. Charles Rocket is as much a sacrificial lamb as he is an unsung hero to the show regardless of how “Bad” the action was; and it probably goes beyond the realm of hyperbole (and perhaps good taste) to say that he Literally and Figuratively Died for the Show’s sins! Sixth Place??? Give me a God Damned Break, Mojo!

 

MOJO: 0
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 3

 

 

5. SAM ROCKWELL (1/13/2018) – This is not only a fairly recent one, but it’s also one of the few I actually saw Live. You would think that with the moment being so recent, it’s “Impactful” nature would be minimal considering how loose TV Networks are with language today…But what Mojo forgot to mention was that this was the same episode where “Update” made more than a fair share of comments about the Sunkist Tumor’s “Black Nations are Shitholes” remarks, complete with actual use of the word “Shit” on the air. So, perhaps Lorne was feeling generous in writing several checks to Ajit Pai that week; thus leading to an otherwise freewheeling show—one that didn’t hurt Rockwell’s Oscar chances whatsoever. So, I guess you could say the “Impact” here was that everybody in 8H loosened up a little once Rockwell let loose; which ultimately led to a far more enjoyable show than most hoped. Funny postscript to this article, though; Some of my readers might know that I run a Twitter page devoted to Television; and during the last season, I started doing Live Tweets of the show. When Rockwell’s gaffe happened, a lot of people felt the urge to chime in—myself included. So much so, that the following Tweet remains the one with the most “Impact” in my feed’s short history, clocking in at over 40,000 online impressions (and counting)……

   ……just thought you’d like to know.

 

MOJO: 1
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 3

 

 

4. NORM’S “FAREWELL PERFORMANCE” (4/12/1997) – This is gonna sound embarrassing to admit as an SNL fan, but I was about halfway through my 3^rd year of watching the show regularly, and (no pun intended) I SWORE I Never heard this happening Live—Don’t get me wrong, I HAVE heard the uncut version since then, but chalk it up to being Too “Young & Innocent” to have even noticed anything in the first place. Nobody watching the show seemed to notice—or at least, Care—when the moment happened, and Norm was never penalized for doing so. In fact, he did what only a small number of the people on this list did; he made lemons out of Lemonade and made fun of himself in the process. Not just calling it his Farewell Performance, but also using one of his “Note To Self” gags to further dig the hole; topped off with “Maybe We’ll see you Next Week”. I’d also be remiss if I didn’t paraphrase one of his jokes; To recap; Swearing on TV = Legal. Making fun of a suspected murderer/network executive’s buddy = Illegal. I was going to award the point to us because it didn’t really have an “Impact”; but considering Norm owned up to it, it cancels things out.

 

MOJO: 1
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 4

 

 

3. JENNY SLATE – BIKER CHICK CHAT (9/25/2009) – I mentioned her and her incident many moons ago; and while it remains a rare feat to drop the bomb on your Very First episode; it’s an even rarer one when one’s career actually manages to make an upswing after said incident happens. Granted, Slate is not quite a “Star” just yet, but the fact that she hasn’t completely gone away since is an encouraging sign. So you know what, I’m gonna say that her accidental “Fuck” empowered her…even if the most high profile thing she’s doing these days is voicing on “Big Mouth”.

 

MOJO: 2
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 4

 

 

2. PAUL SHAFFER’S FLOGGING (3/15/1980) – Mentioned this one a long time ago too; and for what it’s worth, this particular F-Bomb (the show’s first) should’ve had a bigger impact than advertised. But because this was still the Original Cast—or what was left of it—the show developed a certain level of clout that all but allowed them to pretty much get away with it; which could also be said for why Norm’s slip was forgiven, but Rocket & Slate’s were not. Shaffer’s F-Bomb didn’t make any headlines, and was (at best) a blurb in his recent autobiography, but the world didn’t come crashing down because of it.

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 4

 

 

 

1. KRISTEN STEWART (2/12/2017) – (*SIGH*) Look Mojo, I know you want to appeal to the “Hip” crowd and all—as internet videos tend to do—but when you say at the top of your video that you are scoring these moments based on the “Impact” they had on both the show and the audience watching, you might need to re-study some history books. With THIS Logic, you might as well say George Washington Crossing the Delaware is less significant than (for instance) Barry Bonds hitting his record breaking home run while juiced. Just because something happens that’s “recent” doesn’t mean it will be memorable right away. You need to give the audience time to absorb it before making a judgement call like this. I’m not denying that Stewart casually letting the F slip was a surprising moment, or even a shocking moment—I’ll even give her extra credit for the improved quip that she’ll never come back. But You, Mojo, are taking it upon yourselves to say that this was more significant that Rocket, Shaffer or (to an extent) even Slate’s gaffes COMBINED. To which I can only say, Seriously? The Chick from Twilight? Screw You, Mojo (either that or you accidentally got your #6 Pick reversed, at least that would’ve been a forgivable mistake).

 

FINAL SCORE (pending any changes):

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 3
PUSH: 4

 

 

 

Not gonna lie, a Rough list to go through. Even if controversy is in the eye of the beholder, there are still times when you have to get it right, #1 & 6, especially. Thankfully, though, this is the last of the “Controversial” lists we’ll be looking at for a while; and the next list we’ll look at will be more of a “Compare & Contrast” involving one of my own Previous lists.

 

 

That said, get ready to get your hands back on those buzzers…

MM: Notorious S.N.L. – The ‘Red Flag’ Moments

It’s time once again for the C-Word………Not that one, though that would actually be an interesting first for the show—and I think the last possible Taboo they could break on network television. Anyway, It’s time now for moments on the show where lines were crossed and envelopes were pushed (in a “Bad” way)…

 

 

Now, like I said a couple of weeks ago when covering infamous Monologues, Controversy is all in the eye of the beholder. Not everybody is going to react the same way to the same things, and what could be offensive to some might be water off a duck’s back to others—to say nothing of the fact that enough time may have passed so that what was once controversial is now considered tame by today’s standards (depending on how recent some of these entries are). That being said, I’m going to consider these entries based on the controversy they stirred When they Aired, and ONLY when they aired. Of course, if I actually found the moment more “funny” than “controversial”, we’ve got grounds for neutrality. Also, they say “Whether the joke is funny is irrelevant”; while I will TRY to keep that in mind, but I’m not 100% guaranteeing it on ALL of the entries.

 

 

10. THE POISONED CARROT’S TWITTER DUMPS (12/3/2016) – And we begin with a “Too Easy”, especially considering that he’s still actively President whether we like it or not. Naturally, with someone of a high profile still in the news, of course there’s gonna be controversy surrounding said party……………to a point. After a while, fatigue sets in, and the constant 280 character ranting becomes as common as going to the bathroom each morning; so eventually, we become desensitized over it. If/when he finally does leave office, however, these tweets will probably be seen less as “Controversial”, and more as fodder for the Daily Show’s next book or Exhibit A in one man’s competency/treason trial—God Willing.

 

MOJO: 1
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

9. ADRIEN BRODY’S JAMAICAN “SALUTE” (5/10/2003) – Quick Program note before we go any further; among the SNL lists Mojo has done, they did one that points out People who have been “Banned” from the show for whatever reason. You may recall last Christmas that thanks to an avid reader, I clearly did not know the difference between a “Ban” or “Not being asked to return” or “Waiting a long time to come back”, and that being “Banned” from the show is about as loose a term as you can get. I mention this because (1) I am purposely NOT going to cover that list because I don’t want to screw myself up again, and (2) because of the subject of this entry, Mr. Brody—who on the “Banned” list clocks in at #6–also, yes, I know, the screencap above is ENTIRELY misleading…not my fault, blame the Youtuber (though check out the rest of his channel while you can, he’s got a LOT of SNL Musical performances I forgot ever happened). When I first saw Brody embrace his inner-Rasta while introducing MG Sean Paul, I thought it was more “Odd” than “Offensive”—then again, I wasn’t quite an adult yet when I saw this, so I had no idea how poorly executed Brody’s performance would be among others—and the consensus on the video comments seem to agree that his heart was in the right place, just executed poorly. It doesn’t escape the fact that the—shall we say—“Homage” still rubbed people the wrong way; but surprisingly, not the ones you think. TV Rule number 1; Always let people know what you’re going to do before you do it; according to Mojo, apparently Brody forgot to tell TPTB that he was going to do this, thus leading to a lot of confusion backstage. I’ve worked at enough places in my lifetime to know that you can disagree with your boss, but you must NEVER go over their heads……And THAT is why the most high profile thing Brody has done in recent years is a Biopic on Harry Houdini—on Basic Cable……on the Friggin HISTORY CHANNEL for God’s sake!

 

MOJO: 2
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

8. REMINISCING ABOUT DOWN SYNDROME (2/24/2007) – Yeah…I can see why certain groups didn’t like this joke; whether it was a throwaway line or otherwise. NBC has scrubbed this one from their pages, and the SNL Transcripts pages seems to not exist anymore (except through saved scraps via the internet archive, which is why we’re Lucky [?] to at least have evidence that the sketch happened). But that’s the thing, it was just ONE unfortunate joke in an otherwise funny sketch; in fact, they did several “Reminiscing” sketches for the next few years after this, so I can’t imagine the damage done being that great to begin with…Still though, people with disabilities are still people, and they deserve as much respect as the rest of us—no matter what certain human dumpster fires do in front of crowds in order to induce approval from drooling masses. Tough call, but as long as this draws the ire of someone—particularly a DS advocacy group—it’s pretty hard to defend it no matter if it’s a throwaway joke or an entire Plot point……isn’t that right, Mr. MacFarlane?

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

7. MARTIN LAWRENCE’S MONOLOGUE (2/19/1994) – Well, well………You, again. I’m not going to belabor the point; anything worth saying about him, I already mentioned a few weeks ago. To recap; At the time, Yes, this WAS offensive to a lot of people (Women in particular), and Lawrence hasn’t returned since…But like I said before, it’s been nearly 25 years—I think it’s time for Lawrence to make a comeback; (most) people change, and with Lawrence pushing 50 now, I doubt that he’s the same guy now than he was back then.

 

MOJO: 4
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

6. TIGER WOODS (12/5/2009) – Unlike Rainn Wilson & the Down Syndrome mis-fire, this sketch happens to still exist on NBC’s website—then again, so does an Update piece with Kenan as Cosby from the same episode, but let’s put out one fire at a time. As Mojo says, it would’ve been bad if the show DIDN’T make fun of Woods’ sex scandal a few years ago; but it was the Way they did it that seems to raise the flags. To which I say……….Really? I mean, it WAS a major news story at the time. And all the different ways Tiger’s Ex (host Blake Lively) are probably no more offensive than old Looney Tunes cartoons where a wife would probably clock a husband with a Rolling Pin. Yes, I know, there are a number of Double Standards buried here (Man hitting Woman = Bad, Woman hitting Man = Funny?), and I’m not one to condone Domestic Violence; but it’s not like the real Woods was exactly a saint during this time. Either that, or Maybe it was because the audience felt the show was kicking a man while he was down that the reaction to the sketch was the way it turned out to be…But then again (especially as the next entry shows), when has kicking someone while they’re down stopped them before?

 

MOJO: 4
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 0

 

5. “LOOK KIDS, A FALLING STAR, MAKE A WISH!” (12/10/1995) – I mentioned this moment already during “Update Week” last year, so hopefully you know the drill…………HOWEVER, even though they specifically mention this one incident; people often forget that this wasn’t the ONLY time they made fun of Murphy’s career on the downswing—as a matter of fact, they made fun of his career while he was in the middle of a comeback. In a sketch long-since scrubbed by NBC, Tim Meadows played Murphy in a piece called “Good Samaritan” (CLIP NOT AVAILABLE); which poked fun at a mis-guided hooker pick-up in 1997 (A throwaway joke on the same subject took place in 1998’s “George Clooney/Speed Racer” Smigeltoon–ALSO NOT AVAILABLE). A year or so later when Spade came back to host, he did one more “Hollywood Minute” where he (and a hand puppet of himself) proceeded as normal until the subject of Murphy was brought up again. Spade sort of glosses over the incident, and feels somewhat remorseful that it happened…only for the Puppet Spade to reply “But Did you see ‘Holy Man’, Holy Crap!” Mojo gets the point Because it’s one thing to offend; it’s a totally different thing altogether to offend Family. Yeah, there’ve been a few jokes made at the expense of former Cast Members/Hosts before and since; but at least they (presumably) realized “OK, I get it, very funny” and move on. Murphy was just flat-out O-FEN-DED! It takes a lot more than a couple of apologies to make things right; and I’m still holding out hope that Murphy makes a non-Anniversary appearance before Network television is rendered obsolete.

 

MOJO: 5
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 0

 

4. DJESUS UNCROSSED (2/15/2013) – This sketch I think you can file under “C’mon, Lighten Up!” I mean, if Monty Python can make light of Crucifixion, why can’t SNL? Unfortunately, just as sure as God makes Little Green Apples, it also makes Religious advocacy groups (Both Christian AND Muslim) that cry foul whenever their beliefs are being mocked. I honestly don’t find this offensive whatsoever; for what it is, I think it’s a very sharp parody of Tarantino movies in General regardless of its context; and if you’re actually offended by this……….then I would like to welcome our brand new Christian & Muslim viewers who are reading this…and please don’t Crucify/Fatwa me.

 

MOJO: 5
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 0

 

 

3. FRED ARMISEN AS DAVID PATTERSON (2008-2010) – Not really much to say about this one; Fred Armisen made fun of blind people (and in particular, an Elected official); and there’s only so much of that an audience could take—that, and it simply wasn’t funny after the first time; and even the First time was a Stretch. The thing that gives this a “Push”, however, is The fact that the Real Gov. Patterson eventually came on to call out Fred & the show about the whole thing, and pretty much diffuses/negates any controversy there was in the first place…One point in Fred’s favor, though, he’s certainly on the nose about…………NEW JERSEY!

 

MOJO: 5
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 1

 

 

2. NORM VS. OJ & OHLMEYER (1994-1997) – Another one I mentioned already, and one incident in particular that has been told and re-told ad infinitum by others since 1998……….But I’ll mention it again. Depending on which side you’re on, this actually pissed people off…however, Mojo doesn’t quite go into detail on just how many people they pissed off outside of Don Ohlmeyer. The controversy wasn’t so much Norm making hit after hit against OJ (though granted, it didn’t help), The REAL controversy—to me, anyway–lied in the resulting backlash after TPTB did what they did. There were letter writing campaigns to keep Norm on, but that fell on deaf ears (or should that be Blind Eyes?). To this day, a lot of the SNL faithful feel that Norm got screwed—which I guess is something of a Tradition among certain NBC talent—But at the same time, Television is still a business. If something isn’t working the way people expect it to, you either make changes or be prepared to go down with the ship. In spite of it being a no-win situation for everybody involved; the show went on, and eventually the wound would heal………Sort of.

 

MOJO: 6
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 1

 

 

 

(DIS)HONORABLE MENTIONS:

 

CANTEEN BOY (1994) – Considering this sketch aired at/around the time Michael Jackson was first accused of Literally, Figuratively and Allegedly getting In Touch with his Outer Inner Child; this sketch understandably got people’s attention in a bad way. In fact, in the old Coffee Table book marking the show’s 20 years, they actually had a photo showing a list of how many viewers complained about the episode in question; though I don’t remember the Exact number, Canteen Boy’s ranged in the Thousands—Going by “Family Guy” logic, if one complaint equals 1 million viewers, that means the entire population of earth at the time AND people yet to be born saw Alec Baldwin making the moves on Sandler. Unlike Fred as David Patterson, though, this moment more than warranted more formal apologies; and they did so not only in reruns by adding a disclaimer at the top of the sketch, but also later in December ’94 when Baldwin put out the fire in his monologue.

 

 

KELLYANNE CONWAY’S FATAL ATTRACTION (2017) – Audience, say it with me now (*CLICK HERE*)…The fact that the real “daughter of Skeletor” was actually sort of “Forgainst” the sketch and Kate McKinnon’s performance in her own roundabout way shows that even the most soulless of beings can laugh at themselves once in a while.

 

 

ISIS FATHER/DAUGHTER AD (2015) – I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but I think people were way, Way, WAY too quick to pounce on this one…that’s right, I’m defending an ISIS Sketch (So much for my future political career). To its credit; unlike that OTHER “Sketch that shall not be named” when Chris Rock hosted earlier that season, at least this one not only uses “Gotcha!” humor correctly; but because it’s a commercial parody, it doesn’t belabor the point for too long—just get the joke in, and get out (relatively) unscathed, nothing wrong with that. Sure, It doesn’t change the fact that ISIS is Still a Major hot button even to this day, but at least a little more thought was put in here than it was with Rock. Say what you will about this one, I actually thought it was funny for the purpose it served.

 

 

MOJO: 7
BLOG: 4
PUSH: 1

 

 

 

 

1.UNCLE FESTER VS. THE POPE (10/3/1992) – Although my SNL fandom begins around 1994, my awareness of the show’s existence occurred in 1992; thanks in part to the “Wayne’s World” Starmaker tape, being able to stay up late to watch half of that year’s Christmas show with Glenn Close; and of course, This moment which made the rounds on newscasts for about a week or so, and my constant asking of my parents “I don’t get it, what does this mean?” at the age of 7 years old. I cannot speak for the Catholic religion considering I’m far from it; but yes, absolutely, without a doubt, this remains one of those moments you never forget; and for all the WRONG reasons…………or at least, that was the case when it first aired (and yes, I know, I’m about to break one of my own rules here). In 1992, it was a Genuinely shocking moment; one that sucked the energy out of the room and provoked a lot of debate since. But for those who are old enough to remember who Sinead O’Connor is outside of “Nothing Compares 2 U”, you have to realize that she was never in it for the fame or even the infamy; she just wanted to get a couple points across—if you don’t believe me, I want you to Really listen carefully to the words she’s singing in “War”, you’d be passionate about Child Abuse too—ESPECIALLY when it involves a branch of religion. Before her singing career, O’Connor was heavily involved with the Catholic Church as a former Nun; and even back then, there was a lot of things happening behind closed doors that nobody was bringing to light. Some have argued that O’Connor’s actions that night was Heresy in its highest form; but as the years progressed, and more evidence mounted as to what exactly the Church was doing that offended many, the result was the Church gaining a stigma that—to this day—it is trying to distance itself from. That being said, there are certain ways one can make a protest; O’Connor chose to do so in a way that grabbed a lot of attention long before “Going Viral” was even a gleam in Silicon Valley’s eye. Chances are, if she pulled a stunt like that in this day and age, she would probably be labeled as a folk hero; and I guess in some circles, she sort of still is today in spite of becoming all but a blip on the popularity map.

 

Further; looking at a few passages in Shales/Miller, the show somehow managed to take the incident in stride despite just how much of a lightning rod for Controversy it was. While I’m not going to go through every one of them, I feel that the whole incident—and even the other ones on this list–can best be described with a quote from former NBC President Warren Littlefield:

“Even when it was ‘Oh My God, [she] tore a picture of the Pope’, I said to Lorne ‘When we go Too long without controversy, something’s wrong. This show is Supposed to Rock, it’s supposed to be the adolescent that’s not obedient to authority. And if we lose that, then we don’t have the show.’”

 
Can’t argue with that.

 

 

FINAL SCORE:

MOJO: 8
BLOG: 4
PUSH: 1

 

 

There were some legitimately and rightfully controversial moments mentioned; but once again, it wouldn’t be a WatchMojo list if they left out a couple more moments that probably would’ve made it on the list were it not for the fact that there were only 10 spots to fill. There was no love for moments from the 70s or the 80s (It’s almost as though Canada had never even HEARD of “Dice”; or they’re too polite to mention him anyway); but I guess that’s a blessing in disguise—after all, if things were Too controversial, the show would’ve been axed a long time ago. That, and there’s also a fine line between Controversy, Pissing People Off, and “Unfortunate Mistakes”…The biggest one you could possibly make on Live Broadcast Television (short of public death) is our focus next time.

MM: Strange Bedfellows

In the Words of Mel Brooks in “History of the World Part 1”; POLITICS! POLITICS! POLITICS! POLITICS! POLITICS!

 

 

A while back, I did a couple of lists tied in to SNL’s history of Political skewering; one about debate sketches, the other was a super–sized list containing political sketches in general. This list is about Neither of those things, as this seems to be more of a “Character” Focused list—though you wouldn’t know that by looking at the title of the video. Seriously, why not say “Top 10 Political Characters” instead of “Political Parodies”? It would just make things less confusing for the viewer. So in order to avoid making this a list of Pushes, if they say it’s a list of “Portrayals”, I am going to judge it as such.

 

 

10. DARRELL HAMMOND AS DICK CHENEY (2000-2008) – Hammond will always go down in SNL history as an impressionist extraordinaire; but while his impressions during his first 5 years on the show were largely walk-off home runs, his portrayal of evil Richard Dreyfus impersonator Dick Cheney took a little time to get used to. Hammond debuted the impression during 2000’s “Presidential Bash” special, and truth be told, it was incredibly stiff; hardly generating any laughs except for maybe a pity one over how awkward it was…But that Was just the first time. As time progressed, Hammond’s impression became one that we grew to tolerate, but it was still more “Accurate” than it was “Funny”; nothing that ever really set the world on fire…which gives this positioning a fair justification. That, and the impression came in handy whenever the show needed to figure out who’s gonna play Dubya next; can’t deny reliability.

 

MOJO: 1
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

9. NORM MacDONALD AS BOB DOLE (1995-1996) – Although Norm was a fearless Update anchor, his sketch work was spotty at best—even Norm himself said that he never liked being in sketches; and especially playing Bob Dole. Unfortunately for him, Dole was the leading candidate in the 1996 suicide mission to dethrone Clinton; and after doing it a handful of times at the beginning of Season 21, my guess is that Norm was suddenly obligated to go all the way with it. Not that it was a bad impression or anything…then again, Aykroyd can run circles around him any day. The peak of this impression came when in March 1996, a classic spoof of MTV’s “Real World” (Which I have foolishly left behind on my TV Parodies list) where Dole is trying—almost desperately—to appeal to Younger voters by trying to fit in with Gen-X houseguests. This was also one of the rare times when a Character got a Formal “Ending”, when just after the Election, the real deal showed up to let Norm down easy about the impression. The fact that the real Dole was a good sport about everything made it all the more worth it for Norm. In a way, though, I’m kinda glad Dole lost that year; Norm would probably be as sick of doing this impression over 4 years as a certain someone is tired of doing another famous politico…but we’ll save that for later.

 

MOJO: 2
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

8. JAY PHAROAH AS BARACK OBAMA (2012-2016) – Let’s be Frank; he should’ve done it 2 years earlier instead of having Fred Armisen flirt with controversy by donning a quasi-blackface look to play him. Pharoah’s is clearly a marked improvement; and I agree with Mojo in that he captured pretty much all of his mannerisms…at least, for a while. By the time Pharoah Left/got fired from/had his contract bought out by the show (or whatever version you want to believe), the impression became riddled with Senioritis; the mannerisms and the demeanor was still there, but it didn’t seem to carry the same energy as it did at the beginning–that, and by that point in time, Jordan Peele had a better impression of him going on anyway. One thing I have to point out against Mojo; Why would you use a clip of somebody who’s clearly NOT Jay Pharoah when talking about the guy? Since I don’t watch Fallon, I have no idea who the guy playing opposite Jimmy’s Trump is, but I know it ain’t Jay—not that the other guy isn’t talented or anything, but that just sticks out like a sore thumb inadvertently poking Pharoah in the eye. Nevertheless, at least Jay’s impression was still a solid one, and it helped correct an Armisen-sized wrong at the right time.

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 0

 

 

7. DANA CARVEY AS GEORGE BUSH SR. (1987-2000) – Among the names on the list, this is actually my favorite Political impression of the bunch…Partly because his was one of the first ones that really stuck in my mind–Having him do it in the monologue on that fateful first time he hosted in ‘94 also helps (and so does having the Real Deal’s stamp of approval). But more than that, I’d like to think that Carvey’s impression of Bush Sr. (and to an extent, Ross Perot later in the 90s) was one of the major reasons why people my age started to pay more attention to politics in general; probably because we had to understand what was happening in the news that week in order to understand what was happening in the sketches we’d see at the end of the week. Otherwise, to the less informed who would’ve watched back then, they might’ve thought it was Carvey doing just another silly voice; and if Carvey stuck to the “Original” impression he did of him when he debuted the performance in ’87, it probably would’ve stayed silly, and not a subversive kind of silly like it would become. The only reason I would give this one a Push is because—as I said—this is my favorite Political impression; but despite including it on the list, Mojo feels it’s a little less than that to only warrant a #7. It’s an honor just to be nominated, I guess.

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 0
PUSH: 1

 

 

6. MELISSA McCARTHY AS SEAN SPICER (2017) – Not gonna lie, when this first aired, it rightfully earned a place as Watercooler/Coffee Machine/Snack Vending television. It was funny as Hell, Everybody everywhere was talking about it, and the performance earned McCarthy a much deserved Emmy for her efforts………Unfortunately, for the fact that the Real Spicer is currently (at best) a Footnote in American History, give or take a couple appearances on Kimmel, McCarthy’s impression will probably never be able to stand the test of time unlike the other people on the list—Possibly because the rest of the people being portrayed on the list are far more prolific than an otherwise “humble” Press Secretary could be. I know I use the term “Strike while the Iron’s Hot” a lot, but McCarthy’s “Spicy” seems like something that could only happen at that moment, never to be heard from again (Unlike former Presidents who can pop back into the news at any time). I don’t disagree 100% with the selection; but I guarantee you, unless the Real Spicer is a part of whoever’s administration is next, or even if he runs for office himself, time won’t be friendly to these sketches later on…it’s barely friendly to them now.

 

MOJO: 3
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 1

 

 

5. ALEC BALDWIN AS “YOU KNOW WHO” (2016-Present) – As I said a few years ago during our “Countdown to the Trumpocalypse”, Baldwin’s Trump impression has long since beaten the likes of Hartman’s, Hammond’s and Killam’s impressions of him since he donned the bronzer………That was 2016. In 2018, there seems to be some fatigue setting in not just with viewers, but quite possibly with Baldwin himself—and who could blame him? Of course, Baldwin started portraying KGB Agent Orangeski at a time when the Western World thought there was no way in hell the real deal could possibly win; and at best, Baldwin thought this was gonna be a temporary gig until after the election—how wrong we were; but Baldwin, being a professional, carried on anyway. Sure, the amount of times Baldwin played him has reduced significantly in the past year, but he’s still here, and Baldwin still does it…much to some fans dismay. Sidebar: If Baldwin is Really as sick of playing him as he says he is, the show should just do what KFC has been doing for a while now with their Col. Sanders; have a rotating stable of guest actors come on and do Their version of Trump. Hell, Fallon already has a decent one, and he can do it a number of times as a Penance cure for making the real one look human. Fatigue aside, it’s probably the most thankless job Baldwin has ever done aside from “30 Rock”; a steadfast soldier has to do what they have to do—and I’m certainly not going to argue about the significant impact it’s had on the show.

 

MOJO: 4
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 1

 

 

4. KATE McKINNON AS HILARY CLINTON (2014-2016) – Y’know what, I’m going to use one of my rare Deferrals on this one. Because as much as I love Kate’s portrayal of HRC, singling hers out kind of does a disservice to those who portrayed her in years past—not just on SNL, but elsewhere. So with that (and if you have about 17 minutes to kill), take a look noted film scholar Lindsey Ellis’ take on the people that lampooned Mrs. Clinton and how all the parts add up to a bigger whole. Otherwise, no complaints about Mojo’s position here; Kate is indeed the Alpha Vs. Hooks, Gasteyer and Poehler, There, I said it (and I Refuse to count Vanessa Bayer’s version—FAR Too cheerful)!

 

MOJO: 5
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 1

 

 

3. PHIL HARTMAN AS BILL CLINTON (1992-1994) – When talking about his Hidden Gems, I mentioned that the Early 90s were probably Phil at his Zenith thanks in part to taking more chances and a lot more leading roles in sketches. Well, you can’t ask for a bigger leading role than playing the leader of the free world; a role that he not only hit the ground running with in March 1992, but he did so with a genuine sense of “Happy Shock” from the audience—I mean it too, pretend you’ve had your memory erased up to ’92, and you have no prior knowledge of who Bill Clinton is aside from whatever it is you see in the news at the time, and THEN watch that particular sketch; almost instantaneously, you BELIEVE that Hartman is Bill Clinton. And while his impression remains one of the all-time greats; I can’t help but feel a number of “What Ifs”; What if Darrell Hammond was never hired, and they brought Hartman on as a “Special Guest” to do Clinton a la Jan Hooks’ appearances in the early 90s? What if Hartman had lived past 1998, and his Clinton had to go through all the Lewinsky stuff? What if he had the chance to act opposite any of the aforementioned women who played Hillary? Sadly, we’ll never know, but something tells me that he could’ve done all of the above and both he and the audience would Never get tired of it, Alec!

 

MOJO: 6
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 1

 

 

2. WILL FERRELL AS DUBYA (1999-Present) – As much as I love Carvey playing Bush Sr. Will Ferrell playing Junior comes a microscopically close 2nd—must be something about the name “Bush” that garners a laugh automagically. Pretty much take what I just said about Phil playing Clinton and just change a couple names and Details around, and you’ve got what I think of Ferrell playing everybody’s favorite War-mongering, English language battering, Pretzel Choking former President and part-time painter. Ferrell was already pretty well established by the time the 2000 elections were taking shape, but it’s pretty hard to argue that this portrayal put him on the map and kept him there. There’s really not much to add to the sentiment; Ferrell’s Bush was about as endearing as the Real Dubya was perplexing; and in the wake of all that’s going on in the world, I would Happily take somebody who’s bumbling over a textbook narcissist any day of the week.

 

MOJO: 7
BLOG: 1
PUSH: 1

 

 

 

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

 

DAN AYKROYD AS JIMMY CARTER (1976-1979) – I guess it was OK, but a little too low-key at times. His impression Did get better as the years went on, but only because around 1977, Aykroyd finally got around to shaving his mustache; thus making the impression more realistic (Though if he kept it, he probably would’ve made a great Ted Turner). Push for Mojo.

 

LARRY DAVID AS BERNIE SANDERS (2015-2017) – As talented as McKinnon is, it would be unfair for her to have the game all to herself. So when LD came along to play Sanders after countless internet memes suggest they were practically related (Oh, Wait…), it was both a welcome surprise to the audience, and a justifiable revenge for Larry after getting shafted in the 1984 “Steinbrenner Season”. Unless the Real Sanders tries again in 2020, Mojo just barely got it right.

 

JON LOVITZ AS MIKE DUKAKIS (1988) – Really? I might be wrong but the ’88 Debate, “Dukakis After Dark” and a “Cheers” parody months later might’ve been the Only times I’ve seen Lovitz’s portrayal…and quite honestly, it wasn’t all that great. It sort of felt like he was Toning down his “Liar” character by about 90% and with far less lying; Mojo’s Wrong.

 

MOJO: 8
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 2

 

 

 

 

1.TINA FEY AS SARAH PALIN (2008-Present) – I think I may have mentioned a thing or two before about Tina’s portrayal of “Alaska’s Next Top Model of 1992”. And while I agree with Mojo that it was an important impression for both Tina and the Show, the Law of Diminishing returns kind of makes the #1 spot a little dubious—Incidentally, “The Ringer” just listed the portrayal’s debut appearance as one of the top 100 greatest TV episodes of the 21^st century (so far), and pretty much echoes the sentiment of diminishing value over time. Quite honestly, Tina should’ve stopped doing it the night after the Real Palin cameoed in ’08—or by the end of the Election at the latest. But nope, she just kept going with it, even as recent as this past May’s finale. There was really no need for her to continue doing so (unless the Real one made the news in some way), she did what she had to do, and she should’ve taken a bow afterward……Then again, Rock stars are prone to doing encores whether they want to or not. I can’t imagine there was a high audience demand for the impression to keep coming back, but it did anyway. Not unlike Baldwin as Trump, this too was an impression that had a significant impact when it happened, but now just seems like beating a dead horse—even more so since the Real Palin’s relevancy grows dimmer every day she’s not on Fox News. In which case, just switch Palin with Carvey’s Bush Sr, and all will be right with the world.

 

 

 

FINAL SCORE:

MOJO: 8
BLOG: 2
PUSH: 3

 

 

 

So, Mojo was mostly right this time—and I also want to give them all the credit in the world for leaving out Chevy as Gerald Ford, because the impression was as much an “impression” the same way a Taco Salad could be considered a “Salad”. Unfortunately; they just didn’t have enough room to include Hartman as Reagan, Carvey as Perot, or even some vastly underappreciated ones like Chris Parnell doing John McCain or Piscopo’s version of Reagan—Hell, why limit things to the United States, I would’ve included McKinnon’s Angela Merkel or Beck Bennett as Putin in a heartbeat. The important thing, though, is that they hit all the “necessary” targets, so there was really little to complain about…….So, it’s only fair that next time we look at things that the rest of the viewing public (allegedly) complained about in much louder tones.