Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars
COLD OPENING
Louisiana governor’s race loser David Duke (DAC) gives concession speech
— Interesting how this is starting off with a Kevin Nealon Weekend Update report.
— Kevin breaking down various voting patterns has some pretty good laughs.
— Funny little bit that Kevin does with his finger after holding it up to his “earpiece” like news anchors typically do when receiving breaking news.
— After a promising start, this cold opening has unfortunately gone downhill with the David Duke speech. There’s not many laughs in that portion of the sketch, and it’s coming off too dull.
— Melanie Hutsell makes her SNL debut (last screencap above).
— Overall, the first subpar cold opening of this season.
STARS: **
OPENING MONTAGE
— Beth Cahill and the aforementioned Melanie Hutsell have been added to the cast tonight as featured players.
That raises the already-large number of cast members this season to EIGHTEEN, officially making this the all-time largest number of people who were in the cast at the same time. Season 39 also has 18 cast members total, but they weren’t all on at the same time. Colin Jost joined right after Seth Meyers’ mid-season departure.
MONOLOGUE
film clips tell the story of host’s explosion-filled life
— A one-joke bit, but a funny one-joke bit. The stock footage explosions representing Linda’s “average American life” are entertaining, especially the clip of her high school sweetheart running while being on fire and the “Scanners” clip of a man’s head exploding.
— It’s also fun recognizing some of these stock footage explosions from other sketches. The first shot of an exploding house was used at the end of the Tom Hanks sketch where he has a habit of repeating things as a double take, and I think the exploding car footage was used in both Shannen Doherty’s wedding monologue and the end of season 20’s Sparklebrite sketch.
STARS: ***½
LEEVI’S 3 LEGGED JEANS
the latest in strange denim legwear
— I’m loving the very early 90s aesthetic to this commercial. I also like how this is utilizing the large group of newer cast members (oh, and Victoria).
— The three-legged jeans reveal is priceless, as is the various displays of people doing physical actions in the jeans.
— Very catchy jingle.
— Tim’s one-liner “It’s not any dumber than acid wash” was perfect.
STARS: *****
TOONCES, THE CAT WHO COULD DRIVE A CAR
Sarah (host) & John (Edward Furlong) Connor try to escape The Tooncinator
— I like the “Bad joke” bit shown from Terminator’s perspective.
— Surprisingly, this is the first Toonces sketch in an entire year.
— Very creative use of Toonces and a great twist with him as a Terminator-type character.
— Awkward long delay before the first cutaway to Toonces crashing his car off a cliff. This would later be fixed in reruns.
— I’m really liking how Toonces keeps forming into different versions of Terminator each time he gets destroyed.
— I got a good laugh from Phil’s Terminator saying “I’m scared!” in that Arnold accent.
STARS: ****
IT’S PAT
health club employee (host) tries to tailor a workout for androgynous Pat
— Good set-up to Pat’s appearance here.
— Starting with this installment, the “It’s Pat” opening title sequence and theme song would be shortened.
— Funny scene with Linda using a tool to try to pinch Pat’s body fat.
— Didn’t care for the exercise bike scene. That could have easily been removed from this sketch.
— I enjoyed Pat’s line “This place is so kinky!”
— An absolutely classic and famous part with the men and women’s locker rooms, where Pat’s decision on which locker room to go to gets interrupted by a brief special report from Weekend Update anchorman Kevin Nealon. When they return to the sketch, we find out we missed Pat’s big gender reveal.
STARS: ****
MASSIVE HEADWOUND HARRY
Massive Headwound Harry’s (DAC) scalp gore ruins (host)’s cocktail party
— Oh, as if this episode weren’t already strong enough, now here comes one of my favorite sketches of all time.
— Third sketch in a row tonight starring a character with their own opening title sequence.
— A freakin’ priceless and outrageous visual of Dana casually entering the party with that gruesome huge head wound.
— I loved Farley’s reaction to the head wound, screaming “OH MY GOD!” while spitting out his food.
— Hilarious part with Dana unknowingly rubbing his head wound all over the bowl full of shrimp, sending a disgusted Phil running towards the bathroom while trying to hold in his vomit.
— There’s the legendary moment that puts this sketch over the top, where a dog begins licking Dana’s wound and then pulls at the wound with his teeth, nearly yanking off Dana’s wig in the process. After an uproarious response from the audience, Dana memorably says “He probably smells my dog!”
— Here’s something I never understood: what’s with the huge red stain on Siobhan’s shirt before she makes her exit (last screencap above)? It’s never explained. Did she or one of the other performers accidentally spill punch on her shirt off-camera while reacting to the dog incident? I recall one SNL fan having a theory that a portion of this sketch was removed from reruns in which Dana’s head wound comes into contact with Siobhan’s shirt, leaving blood stains on it. However, I’m watching the live version of this episode, and that never happened.
— Very funny ending regarding Dana putting on Kevin’s hat.
— And thus ends an all-time SNL masterpiece.
— They made the right decision to never turn this into a recurring sketch. Though I swear I remember reading a false claim at one time, back in my early SNL fandom days, that SNL supposedly did end up doing a follow-up to this sketch a season or two later, only with DAVID SPADE(!) in the Massive Headwound Harry role (because Dana Carvey was no longer in the cast by that point).
STARS: *****
DEEP THOUGHTS BY JACK HANDEY
on the sky as a metaphor for a salmon
BACKSTAGE
Zoraida bothers host by confusing her past roles with real life
— This character officially becomes recurring.
— I’m getting some laughs from Zoraida comparing the beast from the “Beauty and the Beast” TV series to her boyfriend Enrique.
— The quality of this has fallen off a bit after the first minute.
— Yeah, I can tell it won’t be too long until I officially get sick of seeing these sketches.
— We get the very first utterance of Zoraida’s “What makes you think I won’t cut you?” soon-to-be catchphrase, but it was drowned out by the sketch-ending audience applause here.
STARS: **½
MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Can’t Let Go”
WEEKEND UPDATE
Larry Roman (DAC) jokes about Michael Jackson’s “Black or White” video
— Fun segment with Kevin providing a “Louisiana Sports Update” for racist David Duke supporters.
— An amusing “metamorphosis” sequence, showing a montage of Michael Jackson’s physical changes over the years, ending with a future picture of him having a missing face.
— Interesting use of Larry Roman, an obscure recurring character of Dana’s.
— Loved Larry Roman’s description of the controversial ending of the “Black or White” music video, where Michael Jackson smashes a car and, as Roman says it, “proceeds to masturbate”.
— I like Dana’s ad-lib “I never know which ones you’re gonna go for!” when a joke of his gets a bigger reaction than he expected.
— Starting with the last episode’s Update, Kevin seems to have finally developed a niche. His Updates lately have had a nice consistent flow.
STARS: ***½
TOUGH GIRLS
(VIJ), (SIF), (BEC), (ELC), (JUS) challenge “buff” host to barroom brawls
— Surprisingly, this is the only appearance Mike makes in this entire episode, and it’s just a thankless small straight role.
— I’m really liking seeing Victoria playing this type of hard-ass, aggressive character. Very rare for her to be cast in a role like this. She’s giving a very good performance.
— Only one episode in, and Melanie Hutsell is ALREADY showing unfortunate signs of overacting tendencies.
— Good use of Beth Cahill in her very first SNL appearance.
— I like the increasing number of appearances from old-timey tough women challenging Linda to a fight.
— Ellen: “This Hamilton bitch is mine!”
— Weak ending.
STARS: ***
THE CHRIS FARLEY SHOW
CHF amateurishly interviews Martin Scorsese [real]
— This great sketch officially becomes recurring.
— Random Martin Scorsese cameo.
— Even though I know what’s coming, the set-up to Farley’s first “You remembeeerrrrr when…” in this installment is already making me laugh right before he’s even said it.
— Great part with Farley making Scorsese re-enact DeNiro’s famous “You talkin’ to me?” scene. I also love Farley excitedly mouthing things to the camera during that.
— A good laugh from how the caller (Melanie Hutsell) is doing Farley’s shtick.
STARS: ****½
MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “If It’s Over”
BABY TALK
at a restaurant, baby talk of (DAC) & (host) makes (JUS) & (PHH) uneasy
— Some good laughs from Dana and Linda’s exaggerated baby-ish, lovey-dovey treatment of each other.
— I liked Phil’s blunt “No we shouldn’t” response when Julia tells him maybe they should go to the same relationship seminar Dana and Linda went to.
— For once this season, David Spade has actually been in quite a lot of sketches tonight, though his roles have just been the usual forgettable bit parts that he’s usually stuck in this season. Just to show you how bad his airtime has been lately, this is only the sixth episode of this season and he’s already spent THREE episodes not being in any sketches at all (Jeff Daniels, Kirstie Alley, and Kiefer Sutherland). He’s also only had about three speaking roles all season so far, and only one of those speaking roles was noteworthy (his Matthew Broderick impression in the Christian Slater episode). This is Luke Null/Dean Edwards/John Milhiser levels of underusage.
— Another funny exchange between Phil and Julia, with a confused Phil explaining “We’re having the same thing!” when Julia tries to romantically offer him a bite of her meal just like Dana and Linda have been doing with each other.
— Dana’s increasingly baby-ish speaking and actions (e.g. “Baby want sauce”) are funny.
— Very amusing visual of Linda sincerely apologizing for her and Dana’s actions while still casually having her finger in Dana’s mouth.
STARS: ***½
HIDDEN CAMERA COMMERCIALS
(TOS) interviews angry victim of hidden camera ad (CHF)
— For some reason, I like the odd name of Tom Schiller’s character, Knorben Knussen.
— I love the sudden dark turn with Farley’s great slowburn after hearing his coffee has been switched.
— So many laughs from the insane, chaotic turn with Farley going completely berserk over such a minor thing, and doing things like throwing pies at customers and smashing everything in sight. He is killing me in this, and this is a perfect use of his knack for yelling, long before it became a tired weekly crutch.
— Great ending with a bruised and bandaged Farley explaining in a satellite interview that he’s “Aaaaannnnngrryyy…”
STARS: *****
GOODNIGHTS
IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A very strong episode, and also a very memorable one that I’ve always felt is a good microcosm of this season as a whole. You have well-remembered installments of recurring sketches like Pat, Toonces, and The Chris Farley Show, you have beloved one-off pieces like 3 Legged Jeans and Massive Headwound Harry, and you finish the show with a great Schiller’s Reel that features one of Chris Farley’s greatest performances.
— Aside from the mixed Jeff Daniels episode, this season has been on an absolute roll so far. This is one of the hottest starts that I’ve witnessed a season have during this SNL project of mine so far.
HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Kiefer Sutherland)
a very slight step up
My full set of screencaps for this episode is here
TOMORROW
An 11-year-old Macaulay Culkin
Massive Headwound Harry briefly appeared one more time when Dana returned to host and sang during his monologue about characters he’d played as images of them appeared over his shoulder.
The initial premise of the sketch was by Rob Schneider, but Tom Davis sent it over the top with the dog idea. Although it wasn’t really conveyed to the audience, the intended logic of the sketch was that the shrimp mishap was the reason the dog was so interested in his wound.
For a long time I actually thought it was a live flub and that the dog was intended to smell the wound but not get so into it to the point he would start trying to tear the wig off.
Highlight of this episode for me was in the monologue when Hamilton mentioned her hometown, also my hometown, “Salisbury, MD…”
The red stain on Siobahn’s shirt is a joke that simply doesn’t land. We weren’t meant to see Dana rub up against her shirt (that would have been funnier), but in the logic of the skit it happened sometime during the party off-screen. The blood stain is on Siobahn’s shirt the whole time (you’ll notice that Siobahn is facing deliberately away from the camera, look at the way she’s sitting on the couch at the beginning, and especially when she gets off the couch, so the stain won’t be revealed to the audience). And then we get the “reveal” of the blood stain, but the joke is a dud. First, because it’s kind of confusing because we don’t actually see Dana brush up against her, and second because they already do a joke of Dana leaving a stain when he lays down on the couch, and finally, it comes right after the dog incident, who STOLE the sketch (especially when it bites a big hunk out of the wound) I think the dog was only supposed to sniff Dana’s wound, but of course, the dog had other things in mind. Anyway, nothing was topping that.
This episode is fantastic. Headwound Harry is an all-time classic and so is the Hidden Camera with Farley. I love when he’s yelling “As God as my witness…” while the cook is repeatedly hitting him over the head with the frying pan. The slow build, the intense music, and the cartoonish violence of the sketch is just hilarious.
My theory is that maybe Siobhan had a larger role at one point, but the dog stole the show so Dana ad-libbed by extending that joke, so maybe they cut the sketch short. Or perhaps it’s a joke that is funnier if more rapid fire and not following the dog part. I dunno.
I just watched the hidden camera sketch this weekend. The music and crescendo are amazing, as is the anguished crying as Farley passes out. My friend and I constantly say “ANNN…GRYYY” whenever we’re asked how we’re doing.
Yes. That’s a possible explanation. I really think the dog was only supposed to sniff (or maybe lick) the wound. Since the bit clearly went on much longer than they had expected. Dana may have called an audible and just skipped a brief scene where Siobahn brushed up against him, etc. That’s definitely a possibility. Maybe it was done in the dress rehearsal sketch. We probably don’t have a copy of the dress available for this sketch, because I’m sure the live was a lot better thanks to the dog’s antics.
Unlike the Sharon Stone episode later this season, Linda Hamilton’s hosting gig is a strong blend of references to her career and her place in pop culture alongside putting her in the everyday of SNL sketches. It helped that Linda had a certain rough-hewn demeanor that worked for live sketch comedy. This was a great contrast for sketches like the baby-talking, which was meant to be unbearable, but could have become unbearable in an unfunny way with the wrong actress in the role.
Until now I thought Beth Cahill and Melanie Hutsell had joined the show at the start of the season.
Beth Cahill is one of those one-season wonders I have a soft spot for – she reminds me more of ladies who would have been cast under Doumanian or Ebersol, which was something different for this period, but she also has a certain normalcy to her that an increasingly loud era could have used. It’s unfortunate that, with a few exceptions, to be a woman and last in ’90s SNL would usually mean you’d have to mug, shout, and scream the same few catchphrases, begging the camera to love you.
It’s always surprising to me that Melanie Hutsell stuck around and Beth was the one to get the heave-ho. Beth is one of those one-season wonders that never really got a chance to do anything on the show. It’s a shame. Melanie…honestly, there are times where she could make me laugh, but she was usually so abrasive and over-the-top that it was hard to watch.
When Beth was interviewed a few years ago she said she probably didn’t fight enough for her material.
https://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/my-snl-testimonials-from-cast-members-who-lived-it/
“One week I got to do a “Weekend Update” spot as Miss South Side of Chicago about beauty tips for brides-to-be. I wrote it with one of the writers. It was a hit; everybody laughed. It felt great to hear the live audience laugh and cheer me on. A few weeks later, another writer suggested I do it again, and have that character talk about something else. I didn’t do it. I thought it would be cheating to rehash a thing I’d already done. I should have, because that’s what the show is. Duh. I wish I’d written more of my ideas out myself, instead of pitching to writers who might tend to be a bit jaded and have heard everything. And they’re trying to get their own thing on the show, too, so there’s that. When you pitch your idea and get shut down, the air goes out of your balloon. For me it does. And then I take no for an answer. Some of the most successful people I was working with would not stop pitching and never take no for an answer.”
In a 1994 interview she basically just says Lorne told her she was going because there were too many cast members.
I did like Melanie (I think her Jan Brady probably kept her on as it was pretty funny, and this was around the time ‘Bradymania’ was around again), but as a long-term cast member she didn’t really work, as she was just too one-note.
Of the three, given that I think Siobhan or someone said there was some material she refused to play because of her faith, Beth probably would have had the best long-term potential. Of course that is if any woman at that time had a chance on the show, which is a big if.
Thanks for the info.
SNL was operating with six women this season, which is twice as much as they had ever had (save for 80-81) and a total that wouldn’t be matched or exceeded for over 20 years. I think there was a clear plan to trim the cast at season’s end and even with Victoria leaving they were still running historically large on female cast members. Ellen wasn’t getting cut because a) she had enjoyed a degree of success in her first season and b) In Living Color was nipping at SNL’s heels and cutting black cast members would be an unwise move. I think it was between Sweeney and Fallon for one role as a sort of utility performer and the fact that Sweeney already had a hit charcter gave her the edge. Same for Hutsell and Cahill – for better or worse, Hutsell hit and Cahill didn’t and that was that.
Beth’s story is kind of a textbook example of why it’s a little harder for women on average to make advances in their careers. Usually being aggressive and not taking “no” for an answer benefits you. And those tendencies tend to be less common in women. The Chicago character she describes is definitely the one I most remember her for. And not agreeing to redo the character is unfortunately just a bad miscalculation of what SNL is all about, as she figured out.
I would also guess Melanie survived because of Jan. Having a hit character is what it was all about.
Of the three though, I really think Siobhan should’ve stayed on. She really made an impact and, because of that, is one of those cast members who I could’ve sworn was there for more than one season. The “delta delta delta” sketch was a pretty big one for her. And her face and voice, being quirky, were a natural for comedy. She helped send “funny signals” even in sketches were she just had an unnamed bit part. And this is why Siobhan had success in getting bit parts in big comedy movies made by major directors later as well as TV shows like Seinfeld.
I think Siobhan Fallon’s reaction — like a fish out of water that’s flopping around — is part of the problem. Was she just stabbed off-camera? Was this the only sweater she owns? Is she that tearfully devastated about having to leave the party so early? It’s just waaaaaay over the top, and for no reason. When I finally really thought about it, I figured maybe we’re supposed to think she brushed against him, or the dog, or the couch, in the melee of people leaving. Still, if they couldn’t think of something more logical (and funny) for her to do, she should have just left with the others, leading to the final exchange about the hat. Maybe she could have looked pregnant and Dana wants to put his ear to her belly to hear the baby kick? Still not great.
Agreed. Siobahn’s over-acting on the reaction does not help matters at all. Siobahn made a number of odd choices in her performances on the show.
I tend to agree that the Siobhan bit is there to show that Harry was messing more things up offscreen that we didn’t see. They definitely could’ve played that concept up. They could’ve had a longer scene where the hosts are arguing about Harry and we hear more mumbling and screaming in the background. Then when we see the wide shot again a lot of objects in the room and people have stains like Siobhan had.
If her reaction was more angry (like “you’re going to get the laundry bill for this, etc.”) instead of so distraught she could hardly speak…even that would have made for a better joke. I think your pregnant idea and Dana trying to “hear” the baby and that left the stain would also have been very funny. Either way, it doesn’t really matter, it’s a forgettable awkward moment from an otherwise fantastic sketch.
Sorry, I’m commenting a lot on this matter. 🙂 But it’s also possible that something between Dana and Siobahn was supposed to happen before the bit with the dog. It seems that the dog may have been early on its cue. The camera is still focused on Kevin and Linda and then you hear the audience start to laugh uproariously, and then it cuts to the dog in the middle of biting the wound…so that’s a possibility as well.
I forgot to say in my above comment that I don’t actually know who did the jingles and songs at this time, but they are effortlessly good in this era. Theme songs for recurring characters are, on paper, needless and annoying, but the themes in this period were so good, you don’t mind hearing them (which is more than I can say for when SNL tried to repeat this in the ’00s). And the commercials were even better – “Pump It” and “Three Legged Jeans” have songs that have remained in my head for nearly 30 years and are as fresh today as they were at the time.
I hope they got some recognition for their work at the time.
The theme songs for the recurring sketches were mostly the work of Cheryl Hardwick.
You have to wonder how Siobhan and Beth would have faired if Victoria had not come back. Could one of them have have had a longer run?
Everyone seems to think Voctoria should’ve left last season, or with Jon and Nora, but she really progressed in these two seasons, I think. That bar sketch has, possibly, the best performance I’ve seen her give. She was finally able to play more than the daughter or ditzy actress, at times, in seasons 16 and 17.
The beginning of Mariah’s second song almost had me thinking she was going to sing A Waltz in A.
IIRC, Carvey’s headwound was laced with Gerber Liver baby food (talk show interview?) making the dog go to town on said headwound. Fallon’s red stain could be interpreted as once the dog bit the headwound, blood spurted out onto her sweater. Regardless the dog bit got so much audience reaction that the sweater gag just fell limp.
This episode got mentioned tonight. Timothee Chalamet’s mom was an extra in Massive Headwound Harry.
Third screenshot on the far left is Chalamet’s mom
Here’s the monologue. Nice these last two weeks have referenced old moments, complete with clips.
On Steve Buscemi’s “Fireside Chat” for charity it was revealed that Rob Schneider and Sandler wrote “Massive Head Wound Harry”
Kate Flannery (Meredith from The Office) was on Seth Meyers tonight and revealed she came close to getting hired as a cast member on SNL (which I never knew) when Lorne and for some reason Quincy Jones came see a group of ladies from The Annoyance Theater audition. Believe she said it came down to her and two other women, and said she didn’t get the job and they went with Melanie Hutsell instead- I’m assuming Beth Cahill might’ve been the other women of the 3, since I think her and Melanie were hired at the same time from Annoyance. Interesting to picture Flannery in the cast, wonder if they didn’t go with her because they already had a redhead with Siobhan Fallon who started a month earlier.
Man what a night for Farley. Early on, he gets a great moment in an all time classic. Then he gets 2 showcases, both showing off completely different parts of his persona, and both of them he knocks out of the fucking park.
Right after the Pat sketch, as they’re going to commercial, G.E. Smith and one of his horn players are front and center as the band performs a very cool version of … The Andy Griffith Show theme ?? Lol. I had to replay it a couple of times because I wasn’t sure but that’s what it is. Just a random choice, I guess.
The thing is the Andy Griffith television show “Matlock” was popular at this time. The night before this episode of SNL, folks watched a Season 6 episode of Matlock. And Matlock was also airing on NBC at this time (switched to ABC for Season 8 and 9).
Here’s the screencap of G.E. (and the band member I don’t know his name) the moment they’re playing the theme to The Andy Griffith Show …
https://www.onesnladay.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/11-16-1991_0.24.43.00_e.jpg
@Geoff That’s Lenny Pickett on sax. The current SNL Band leader.
The Tooncinator sketch was replayed in full on the Toonces prime time special (which aired on February 2, 1992, later released on VHS as Toonces and Friends). It was the most recent Toonces sketch to air on SNL before that special aired. The special also has a new Toonces sketch, “Toonces Without a Cause,” three new, short Toonces bumper scenes, five new sketches unrelated to Toonces (using SNL cast members as well as some SCTV regulars) and an end credits POV shot of Toonces flying a plane. I think the whole special was written by Jack Handey.
I saw this one live and have looked at a lot of the individual sketches again over the years. Obviously there’s tons of great stuff in the episode. And there’s nothing really bad in this episode. The political and topical humor seemed to be the weak part tonight. Both the David Duke opening and the Weekend Update were the dullest parts of the show. Tough Girls and Baby Talk are in the middle somewhere. Baby Talk takes a while to get going and Tough Girls starts out strong and ends up going on too long.
Headwound Harry, Tooncinator, The Chris Farley Show, Zoraida, Hidden Camera and 3-Legged Jeans are all perfectly done and really memorable. I think Harry really benefits by having a theme song. It hits home that this guy just walks around with a head wound for his entire life, which suggests how repetitive sitcoms can be and how they sometimes never grow past their own premises. It’s funny how the “I think he smells my dog” line ended up not being needed due to the dog sight gag blowing things up enough already, but was still hilarious. The Edward Furlong cameo in Tooncinator adds a lot and the Time Life books gag, especially the part about supernatural phenomena, is totally on point for how those ads were flooding the air waves back then. The all-metal Tooncinator endoskeleton is an incredible prop. Farley gets to show his range with the shy TV host and the violent raging Farley in the coffee ad. I’m a Zoraida fan and I think this was a quintessential episode for her. I love how she combines “bad security guard” with “obsessed stalker fan” and “loser with pathetic life.” There’s a lot to this character. Her conversation descends into chaos really well in this one. 3-Legged Jeans has a tune I never forget and looks better than a lot of real ’90s commercials in this style.
I think Linda Hamilton is an extremely good actor throughout this episode. She’s clearly not a comedy actor, but is the perfect straight man presence here, which benefits the It’s Pat and Zoraida sketches the most. Baby Talk is the one she’s least suited for. This one would’ve been better with an actress who could do sillier sounds and facial expressions like Dana does. But she feels like she’s really into this show and gives it her all.
Saw an interesting theory about this sketch on YouTube. Siobhan’s dress may be an oblique reference to the blood stains on Jackie Kennedy’s dress after the JFK assassination. Harry’s head wound is in a similar shape and position to the wound JFK suffered.
And JFK was released around this time … OTOH, I feel like SNL would have maybe made the reference more obvious, like having Siobhan wear a pillbox hat and a pink suit. Still, interesting idea.
Yeah, JFK was released a month after this. And, although I don’t remember it necessarily, Wikipedia says there was months of controversy leading up to JFK’s release, with lots of major newspapers and magazines criticizing or debating the very idea of making the film and the merits of the book it was based on. So the SNL writers could’ve had it on their mind from that.
I don’t know all the history either, but I read this about Jackie’s suit:
“Jackie kept the bloodied suit on for hours after President John F. Kennedy’s death, leaving its image in the collective American memory as a symbol of the First Lady’s grief and enduring emotional strength.”
She even had it on while standing next to LBJ as he was sworn in. I think they would’ve wanted to avoid tying the sketch to the JFK assassination in any direct way. Not that they hadn’t made fun of things that grim before, e.g. Buckwheat being shot two years after the Lennon/Reagan/Pope shootings. But keeping it indirect is safer. So someone may have wanted to make a JFK reference in the sketch, and they could’ve been talked down into making it vague and more of an inside joke that some people may pick up on and others would just assume was a random gag.
Another interesting thing I learned from the YouTube comments on this, the sketch randomly came up in a recent interview with Robert Englund. At 1:15:00 here, Englund explains he was watching it with Wes Craven who found it hilarious. And Englund actually considers it a key moment in their friendship:
https://youtu.be/mvnwVAPLnWI
Dana Carvey and Al Franken got into a little discussion about Massive Head Wound Harry on Franken’s podcast a couple years ago. Nothing really new here, but it’s interesting to hear them talking about it and what was going through Dana’s mind during the dog incident. Discussion happens at 50:00. Another little mention at 1:03:20.
https://youtu.be/DisXU36Q2DY?t=3000
Tough Girls is a really fun sketch but the ending was indeed weak. A good example of the “extended family gathering” atmosphere this season sometimes had with its large cast. That’s one of the my favorite aspects of this season — sometimes it feels like you’re hanging out with a bunch of funny and offbeat relatives, flitting from one conversation to another, at Thanksgiving.
You can tell in Tough Girls that the ladies are absolutely thrilled to be doing the sketch and having a blast. It exudes exuberance, at least until the abrupt ending. I also thought Melanie’s acting was fairly restrained by her standards in it.
Victoria does indeed look out of place in the Three Legged Jeans commercial. I think the only reason they used her was because of her gymnastics background, as she could participate in the slow-motion shot at the end where she does the splits in the air.
Her gymnastic ability is probably the same reason she got cast in the Ghost parody sketch with Patrick Swayze: She had the flexibility to do the gross-out gag of biting her toenail.
Another big takeaway from watching this live air: The tune to Mariah Carey’s second number “If It’s Over” I found spot-on, to-a-tee, note-by-note the same as the closing credits theme of SNL (for the entire history minus season 6)!!
(***Colin Quinn’s Nick Drake story from this recent Fly on the Wall podcast brought me here…)
Future American Idol judge Randy Jackson on bass for Mariah’s performances. You can see him in the background of the “Can’t Let Go” screencap above.