October 29, 1977 – Charles Grodin / Paul Simon (S3 E4)

Sketches are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

COLD OPENING
having missed dress rehearsal, host is surprised to find that SNL is live

— Ah, yes, the famous premise of Charles Grodin missing the dress rehearsal.
— The concept of having an entire episode where the host doesn’t know how the show is run, doesn’t know it’s live, doesn’t know there’s an audience, etc. is one of the most creative and intriguing ideas the show would ever do, and would go on to be one of SNL’s very few “conceptual episodes” that deviates from the format of a normal episode.
— I remember seeing the syndicated 60-minute version of this episode way back in early 2002, and despite going into the episode with eager anticipation after hearing so many things about the big running premise, I recall being underwhelmed by the result of it. We’ll see if that opinion changes after this current viewing, 16 years later.
— John: “He doesn’t smoke dope; he’s just not one of us.”
— I liked the joke of everyone acting like it’s tragic that Charles forgot to get a gift for Garrett.
— An overall great way to kick off tonight’s premise.
STARS: ****

OPENING MONTAGE
— The jumbotron montage has been modified once again. For starters, the SNL logo is completely different, and I remember this being the logo they would go on to use for the rest of the season.
— The guests’ names are in the same font as the new SNL logo.
— A new animated graphic of the NBC logo appears in a rolling ball throughout this.
— New cast shots.
— In Garrett’s shot, he does the same “suspiciously hiding a seemingly-stolen handbag while innocently smiling at the camera” bit he does in the montage from the preceding two episodes. BTW, I can’t help but find it kinda racist that they gave the “stealing a handbag” bit to the one black guy in the cast.
— Laraine’s shot is a little strange. Not only does she not do anything beside stare stone-faced at the camera, but her shot is noticeably a few seconds shorter than the rest of the cast’s.

   

MONOLOGUE
(no synopsis available)

 
— Hmm, bright light bulbs surrounding the stage floor. I wonder if this is just for a guest performance tonight, or if it’s a now part of the overall look of the homebase stage.
— A continuation of the cold opening, with Charles not knowing there was going to be an audience.
— I liked his comment about how this “looks like a really cute show”.
— Wow, this was short.
STARS: **½

UPDATE PROMO
Weekend Update reporter DAA works overtime, but doesn’t accomplish much

  
— Another plane commercial with Dan.
— A Weekend Update commercial!
— I got a good laugh hearing Dan announced as an “award-winning newsman”.
— Funny reveal of the typewriter a sleep-deprived Dan is using not having any paper.
— Another surprisingly short segment.
STARS: ***½

RETURN OF THE CONEHEADS
neighbors (BIM) & (GIR) investigate Coneheads’ odd Halloween treats

   
— I remember seeing this when I was much younger, probably in one of SNL’s Halloween compilation specials. Back then, I recall loving one part where the Coneheads give trick-or-treaters an inappropriate gift, though I can’t remember what exactly it was.
— The audience went nuts at the beginning when one of the Coneheads entered.
— Ah, a 6-pack of beer. So THAT was the hilariously inappropriate gift I was trying to remember.
— After growing back a slight mustache in the last two episodes, Dan has gone clean-shaven again.
— Overall, this was a more straightforward installment compared to the extensive preceding Coneheads sketch where they travel back to their home planet, but this was still very strong and and one of the more memorable Coneheads installments.
— Knowing how hugely influential SNL was in the 70s, I bet self-made Conehead costumes were a hot trend among SNL fans that Halloween.
STARS: ****½

CHUCK’S FILM
host’s long-winded set-up leaves little time for chase scene clip

 
— The clip getting cut off before anything interesting happened in it, and Charles’ reaction to that is fairly funny.
— Another short sketch.
STARS: ***

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE

CONSUMER PROBE
Irwin Mainway promotes some unsafe Halloween costumes

   
— LOL at Jane’s character being named “Joan Face”. Also, a rare change of pace not seeing Jane play a talk show host with her own name.
— Great to see Irwin Mainway back, after his classic debut in the previous season’s Christmas episode.
— As usual, some very funny dangerous toys so far, especially Invisible Pedestrian.
— Jane has started a coughing fit that she seems to be having trouble getting out of.
— I liked Jane indignantly saying that “Johnny Human Torch ” is nothing more than oily rags and a lighter.
— I like how at the end when the camera panned above the set and into the audience, you can see the Weekend Update set directly behind this sketch’s set. That’s also interesting since this sketch’s only two performers are also the two Update anchors.
STARS: ****

ANYONE CAN HOST
BIM plugs Anyone Can Host Contest while MOD disqualifies entries

— Is this gonna be a sequel to Bill’s famous “I don’t think I’m making it on the show” piece? Bill’s dressed in the exact same outfit he wore in that sketch. And judging from the huge pile of letters on the desk, I guess this is going to be him reading fan mail. Why is O’Donoghue there, though?
— Oh, this is actually an Anyone Can Host follow-up segment.
— O’Donoghue deadpan-edly calling out the minor flaws of some of the postcards (“smudged corner”, “uneven margins”, “typing error”, etc) is really funny.
— Bill to viewers: “Lorne Michaels is willing to take a chance on an unknown, just like he did with me. Heck, this time next year, you can have my job.” LOL, did Bill really think he was still in danger of getting fired? He’s been doing undeniably well so far this season, and has come a long way from his awkward days as a newbie in season 2. I’m sure viewers came to like him by this point. Eh, I’m probably looking too much into what was simply a funny throwaway line.
— I like how Bill ended this with his smarmy, playful “get out of here, ya knuckleheads!” catchphrase that we’ve been hearing a lot this season. It’s almost become a personal game for me to predict when he’ll say it in sketches/Update segments where he either plays himself or a character like himself.
— I don’t usually rate these Anyone Can Host segments where it’s usually just Lorne or a cast member straightforwardly explaining the rules, but this one actually had a lot of humor in it, as well as a funny performance from both Bill and Michael, so……
STARS: ***½

SAMURAI DRY CLEANERS
Futaba’s antics cause host to break character

 
— Futaba!
— I like Charles ruining the sketch with his constant little fourth wall-breaking comments while Gilda keeps trying to shush him.
— I got a good laugh from Charles actually reading John’s fake Japanese gibberish off the cue cards
— Good ending with a frustrated John angrily destroying the table with the sword after his sketch has been ruined.
STARS: ***

WEEKEND UPDATE
NBC Dancing N hands DAA a filler bulletin as an excuse for dancing
BIM criticizes one-man theater for being cheap
silent DAA mimes news stories for silent film buffs
FBI agent (GAM) refutes claims of Jimmy Hoffa’s skeleton being found

     
— I liked the opening bit with Pardo reading “Jane Curtin” backwards (“Enaj Nitruc”).
— Another review from Bill “now get out of here, ya knuckleheads” Murray.
— Some funny lines here and there, but overall, Bill’s done better commentaries that this. Also, the bit with him telling bad ant puns seemed out-of-character for his Update role.
— Loved the “News For the Silent Movie Buff” segment. Dan may have been considered by many to be a poor Update anchor (I’m personally still up in the air about him; he had a disastrous second Update, but he hasn’t been TOO bad yet in the other Updates so far, despite occasional flashes of awkwardness), but this silent movie bit was something he was absolutely PERFECT for. It also reminded me of some of the random fun side bits that Jimmy Fallon and Tina Fey would do in their Updates decades later.
— Is this Garrett’s first appearance of the whole night?
— I liked the “the baby is holding his own” punchline to Jane’s news story about fetuses experiencing sexual stimulation in the womb.
STARS: ***

SIMON & GARFUNKEL
host as Art Garfunkel & musical guest try to do “The Sound of Silence”
Art Garfunkel [real] halts host’s pitiful “Bridge Over Troubled Water”

   
— Haha, oh my god at Grodin in that Garfunkel wig.
— I like Grodin defending his not knowing lyrics by saying he’s learning them as they go along.
— It’s over already? This wasn’t quite as funny as I wanted it to be.
— Oh, wait, now Grodin’s starting another song after Paul walked off.
— Him singing the wrong lyrics to “Bridge Over Troubled Water” is hilarious, especially the random bad attempt at a high note.
— Interesting that they’re actually replaying audio of what he just sang.
— Hmm, the real Art Garfunkel has shown up.  Doesn’t he actually host later this season?  Can’t imagine how that episode went.
— That was great, with Garfunkel bluntly saying “Chuck, hand it over” and Grodin shamefully pulling off his wig and handing it to Garfunkel.
— Great ending to an overall solid sketch. I really liked the way all of this built up.
STARS: ****

THE KILLER BEES
host’s unpreparedness ruins skit about trick-or-treating Killer Bees
JOB & GIR confront host about his absence at rehearsals

   
— Another example of Grodin breaking the fourth wall and Gilda shushing him while John and the others try desperately to keep the sketch going.
— This also keeps alive the general recurring theme of Killer Bees sketches always getting “ruined” by something.
— I liked Grodin over-questioning the logic of the Bees and starting a chain reaction of the cast members themselves also questioning it.
— I really liking John’s passionate “I’m a professional” rant. Not quite as funny as his angry rant to Rob Reiner in the Bees sketch from Reiner’s episode, but it’s still good.
— Funny how Grodin keeps moving his head along to the flailing antennae on John’s head while John’s ranting seriously.
— Love how John’s rant ended with him declaring Grodin “the lamest host we’ve ever had”.
STARS: ***½

BROWNIE
young girl Judy Miller (GIR) pretends to star in her own television show

   
— The famous Judy Miller sketch! I didn’t know that was in this episode. Then again, I think this ended up becoming a recurring sketch, so who knows if this is even the version of the sketch I’m thinking of (the one that’s often shown in highlight reels and compilation specials like “The Women of SNL”).
— Gilda is adorable and eerily dead-on as this hyperactive bouncy child character, and it’s a lot of fun to watch her throughout this.
— Okay, there’s the well-known part with her repeatedly throwing herself against the door, which I guess proves this IS the version often shown in specials. BTW, I remember hearing she broke a rib doing that. I always wondered if that’s true or not.
— Jane as the off-camera mother yelling at Gilda to quiet down throughout this is adding a very realistic feel to this already very accurate, true-to-life piece.
— Overall, a wonderful sketch, and an excellent sample of so many things that made Gilda a beloved performer.
STARS: ****½

PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL OF FOOTBALL
The Professional School of Football can make you a pro athlete, says GAM

  
— I almost thought this was going to be some kind of follow-up to that Ambassador Training Institute commercial from season 1.
— The repeated “groin injury” option in the multiple choice questions is kinda funny and reminds me of the “Mesopotamia” running joke in the ATM bank sketch from season 2. That one was definitely funnier, though.
— Overall, this was forgettable filler. Garrett’s had a long streak of unimpressive solo sketches these last two seasons.
STARS: **

AUDIENCE CAPTION

 
— Haha, funny use of tonight’s running premise, by having a confused Grodin spotted in the audience. Reminds me of when they did that with Gilda in the episode where she was being “phased out”.

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE

HIRE THE INCOMPETENT
host speaks on behalf of incompetents like Roseanne Roseannadanna (GIR)
host finally gets to sing his song about his feelings about life

   
— Bill’s dopey testimonial about making grocery bagging mistakes is really funny. “Eggs bottom, cans top.”
— This feels like Laraine’s first appearance of whole night, until I remembered there was a Coneheads sketch earlier. Geez, Laraine was even more underused tonight than Garrett, and that’s saying something. When it comes to airtime in this cast, those two seem to be the low man on the totem pole.
— The debut of Roseanne Rosannadanna! Knowing she would go on to become a hugely popular Weekend Update-only character, it feels weird seeing her as an unnamed random character among other unnamed random characters giving testimonials in a sketch.
— Also, it’s interesting how we got the debut of two of Gilda’s most beloved characters in the same night.
— The Rosannadanna testimonial has been the funniest part of this sketch so far, and it’s making me kinda look forward to her future Update appearances. I just hope I don’t get as sick of her as quickly as I got sick of Emily Litella’s frequent appearances. Rosannadanna’s an inherently funnier character, IMO, so I don’t see myself getting TOO fatigued from her.
— I remember the aforementioned 60-minute syndicated version I saw of this episode abruptly cut this sketch off right after Grodin’s befuddled facial reaction to Gilda’s testimonial. I guess that edit was made for time reasons?
— Grodin insulting himself as a host, then stopping and saying “Wait, I’ve never seen that cue card before” made me laugh a lot.
— Grodin’s intentionally bad short song was pretty funny.
STARS: ***½

GOODNIGHTS

 
— Tonight’s running premise concludes with Grodin revealing they were just kidding and John (jokingly) brushing him off with a “Yeah, whatever” type of attitude.

---

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS:
— I mentioned earlier that in my previous viewing of this episode in early 2002, I was underwhelmed by how the whole “Grodin missed dress rehearsal” running premise turned out. I’m not quite sure what 17-year-old me was thinking back then, because I enjoyed the concept MUCH more tonight. It was pulled off well, was interesting to watch the fourth wall constantly break, and added a fun vibe throughout the show. There were also several strong, memorable sketches unrelated to tonight’s running premise (Coneheads Halloween, Consumer Probe, Judy Miller). All of these positive aspects add up to a very solid episode.
— It tickles me that some SNL fans actually think the whole gimmick with Grodin being lost on how to do the show was REAL.
— IIRC, the only other time an SNL episode would try a running meta-premise of “the host isn’t on the same page as the cast” is when Garry Shandling hosted in 1987. You could also argue the Jason Patric episode from 1994 made a slight attempt at that, but BOY did that particular one not turn out well at all.
— I can’t wait until the next “conceptual episode” SNL does later this season, with the Attack of the Atomic Lobsters in the Robert Klein episode. I’ve never seen it before, but have heard so many good things.

HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Hugh Hefner):
— a step up

My full set of screencaps for this episode is here

TOMORROW:
Ray Charles