List of Saturday Night Live episodes
Encyclopedia
Saturday Night Live
(SNL) is a late-night sketch comedy
and variety show
created by Lorne Michaels
. It premiered on NBC
, a terrestrial
television network
, on October 11, 1975, under the title NBC's Saturday Night. The show often satirizes contemporary American popular culture and politics. Saturday Night Live features a two-tiered cast: the repertory members, also known as the "Not Ready for Prime-Time Players", and newer cast members, known as "Featured Players." Each week, the show features a host, often a well-known celebrity, who delivers an opening monologue
and performs in sketches with the cast. A musical guest is also invited to perform several sets (usually two, and occasionally more). Every so often a host or musical guest will fill both roles, such as was the case with Britney Spears
in 2000 and 2002, Jennifer Lopez
in 2010, and most recently Elton John
in 2011. With the exception of Season 7
and several other rare cases, the show has begun with a cold open
that ends with someone breaking character
and proclaiming "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!
"
Saturday Night Live is one of the longest running network programs in American television history, with over 700 episodes broadcast over the span of 36 seasons. A number of the show's sketches have been developed into feature film
s, including Wayne's World
, A Night at the Roxbury
, Superstar
, and MacGruber
.
Seasons 1 through 5 are available on DVD in Region 1
. Various Saturday Night Live sketches are available in several new media
formats, including streaming
on Hulu
and Netflix
. Selected sketches and segments are also available for purchase at the iTunes Store
to download and playback on home computers and certain iPod
and iPhone
models.
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
(SNL) is a late-night sketch comedy
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
and variety show
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
created by Lorne Michaels
Lorne Michaels
Lorne Michaels, CM is a Canadian-American television producer, writer, and comedian best known for creating and producing Saturday Night Live and producing the various film and TV projects that spun off from it.-Early life:...
. It premiered on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, a terrestrial
Terrestrial television
Terrestrial television is a mode of television broadcasting which does not involve satellite transmission or cables — typically using radio waves through transmitting and receiving antennas or television antenna aerials...
television network
Television network
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
, on October 11, 1975, under the title NBC's Saturday Night. The show often satirizes contemporary American popular culture and politics. Saturday Night Live features a two-tiered cast: the repertory members, also known as the "Not Ready for Prime-Time Players", and newer cast members, known as "Featured Players." Each week, the show features a host, often a well-known celebrity, who delivers an opening monologue
Monologue
In theatre, a monologue is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes also to directly address another character or the audience. Monologues are common across the range of dramatic media...
and performs in sketches with the cast. A musical guest is also invited to perform several sets (usually two, and occasionally more). Every so often a host or musical guest will fill both roles, such as was the case with Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
in 2000 and 2002, Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lynn Lopez is an American actress, singer, record producer, dancer, television personality, and fashion designer. Lopez began her career as a dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color. Subsequently venturing into acting, she gained recognition in the 1995 action-thriller...
in 2010, and most recently Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
in 2011. With the exception of Season 7
Saturday Night Live (Season 7)
Saturday Night Live aired its seventh season during the 1981–1982 television season on NBC. The seventh season started on October 3, 1981 and ended on May 22, 1982...
and several other rare cases, the show has begun with a cold open
Cold open
A cold open in a television program or movie is the technique of jumping directly into a story at the beginning or opening of the show, before the title sequence or opening credits are shown...
that ends with someone breaking character
Breaking character
Breaking character, "to break character", is a theatrical term used to describe when an actor, while actively performing in character, slips out of character and behaves as his or her actual self...
and proclaiming "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!
Live from New York, It's Saturday Night!
"Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!" is the famous line featured on the American comedy sketch show Saturday Night Live which runs on the NBC broadcast network...
"
Saturday Night Live is one of the longest running network programs in American television history, with over 700 episodes broadcast over the span of 36 seasons. A number of the show's sketches have been developed into feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
s, including Wayne's World
Wayne's World
Wayne's World was originally a recurring sketch from the NBC television series Saturday Night Live. It evolved from a segment titled "Wayne's Power Minute" on the CBC Television series It's Only Rock & Roll, as the main character first appeared in that show...
, A Night at the Roxbury
A Night at the Roxbury
A Night at the Roxbury is a 1998 comedy film based on a recurring skit on television's long-running Saturday Night Live called "The Roxbury Guys." Saturday Night Live regulars Will Ferrell, Chris Kattan, Molly Shannon, and Colin Quinn star....
, Superstar
Superstar (film)
Superstar is a 1999 comedy film and Saturday Night Live spin-off about a quirky, socially inept girl named Mary Katherine Gallagher. The character was created by SNL star Molly Shannon and appeared as a recurring character on SNL in numerous skits. The story follows Mary Katherine trying to find...
, and MacGruber
MacGruber (film)
MacGruber is a 2010 American action comedy film based on the Saturday Night Live sketch of the same name, itself a parody of action-adventure television series MacGyver. The film stars Will Forte in the title role; Kristen Wiig as his love interest/partner, Vicki St...
.
Seasons 1 through 5 are available on DVD in Region 1
DVD region code
DVD region codes are a digital-rights management technique designed to allow film distributors to control aspects of a release, including content, release date, and price, according to the region...
. Various Saturday Night Live sketches are available in several new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
formats, including streaming
Streaming media
Streaming media is multimedia that is constantly received by and presented to an end-user while being delivered by a streaming provider.The term "presented" is used in this article in a general sense that includes audio or video playback. The name refers to the delivery method of the medium rather...
on Hulu
Hulu
Hulu is a website and over-the-top subscription service offering ad-supported on-demand streaming video of TV shows, movies, webisodes and other new media, trailers, clips, and behind-the-scenes footage from NBC, Fox, ABC, and Obstacle on October 20th 2011 Nickelodeon and CBS and many other...
and Netflix
Netflix
Netflix, Inc., is an American provider of on-demand internet streaming media in the United States, Canada, and Latin America and flat rate DVD-by-mail in the United States. The company was established in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California...
. Selected sketches and segments are also available for purchase at the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
to download and playback on home computers and certain iPod
IPod
iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
and iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
models.
Series overview
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season premiere Season premiere In North America, a season premiere is the first episode of a new season of a given television show. It often airs in September or October, after several months of reruns.-Evaluating the changes:... |
Season finale Season finale A season finale is the final episode of a season of a television program... |
|||
| 1 | 24 | October 11, 1975 | July 31, 1976 | |
| 2 | 22 | September 18, 1976 | May 21, 1977 | |
| 3 | 20 | September 24, 1977 | May 20, 1978 | |
| 4 | 20 | October 7, 1978 | May 26, 1979 | |
| 5 | 20 | October 13, 1979 | May 24, 1980 | |
| 6 | 13 | November 15, 1980 | April 11, 1981 | |
| 7 | 20 | October 3, 1981 | May 22, 1982 | |
| 8 | 20 | September 25, 1982 | May 14, 1983 | |
| 9 | 19 | October 8, 1983 | May 12, 1984 | |
| 10 | 17 | October 6, 1984 | April 13, 1985 | |
| 11 | 18 | November 9, 1985 | May 24, 1986 | |
| 12 | 20 | October 11, 1986 | May 23, 1987 | |
| 13 | 13 | October 17, 1987 | February 27, 1988 | |
| 14 | 20 | October 8, 1988 | May 20, 1989 | |
| 15 | 20 | September 30, 1989 | May 19, 1990 | |
| 16 | 20 | September 29, 1990 | May 18, 1991 | |
| 17 | 20 | September 28, 1991 | May 16, 1992 | |
| 18 | 20 | September 26, 1992 | May 15, 1993 | |
| 19 | 20 | September 25, 1993 | May 14, 1994 | |
| 20 | 20 | September 24, 1994 | May 13, 1995 | |
| 21 | 20 | September 30, 1995 | May 18, 1996 | |
| 22 | 20 | September 28, 1996 | May 17, 1997 | |
| 23 | 20 | September 27, 1997 | May 9, 1998 | |
| 24 | 19 | September 26, 1998 | May 15, 1999 | |
| 25 | 20 | October 2, 1999 | May 20, 2000 | |
| 26 | 20 | October 7, 2000 | May 19, 2001 | |
| 27 | 20 | September 29, 2001 | May 18, 2002 | |
| 28 | 20 | October 5, 2002 | May 17, 2003 | |
| 29 | 20 | October 4, 2003 | May 15, 2004 | |
| 30 | 20 | October 2, 2004 | May 21, 2005 | |
| 31 | 19 | October 1, 2005 | May 20, 2006 | |
| 32 | 20 | September 30, 2006 | May 19, 2007 | |
| 33 | 12 | September 29, 2007 | May 17, 2008 | |
| 34 | 22 | September 13, 2008 | May 16, 2009 | |
| 35 | 22 | September 26, 2009 | May 15, 2010 | |
| 36 | 22 | September 25, 2010 | May 21, 2011 | |
| 37 | 22 | September 24, 2011 | May 2012 | |
| Specials | 18 | February 28, 1977 | — | |
Episodes
Key- The number in the "#" column refers to the order the episode aired during the entire series.
Season 1
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 2
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 3
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 4
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 5
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 6
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 7
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 8
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 9
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 10
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 11
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 12
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 13
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 14
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 15
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 16
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 17
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 18
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 19
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 20
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 21
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 22
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 23
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 24
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 25
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 26
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 27
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 28
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 29
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 30
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 31
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 32
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 33
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 34
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 35
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 36
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Season 37
| # | Host(s) | Musical Guest(s) | Original airdate |
|---|
Specials
| Title | Original Airdate |
|---|