Season 1, Episode 17, Host:Press Secretary Ron Nessen, with Patti Smith Group and Billy Crystal

Aired April 17, 1976.

Cold opening:"The Dead String Quartet"
Written by Chevy Chase.
A string quartet made up of dead people fall on top of each other, knocking one (Chevy Chase) off the stage and on to the floor.

Suddenly, President Gerald Ford appears on screen (in a pre-filmed cameo) and announces “Live, from New York, it’s Saturday Night!”

Monologue:
Ron Nessen, Pres. Ford’s Press Secretary, explains that his job is to simplify what happens in the White House so the press can pass it on to the public.  This means Nessen spends most of his time saying things like “what the President meant was…” and "what the President really said was..."
Nessen’s monologue is interrupted when he gets a call from Pres. Ford!

Commercial:”Super Bass-O-Matic ‘76”
Written by Dan Aykroyd.
A pitchman (Dan Aykroyd) promotes a new device that will liquefy bass so it can be easily prepared for consumption.

“An Oval Office”:
Written by Chevy Chase, Al Franken and Tom Davis.
Nessen tells Pres. Ford (Chase) that he’s been asked to host Saturday Night and says it could help the President in the upcoming election.  While they discuss this, Ford inadvertently ransacks the Oval Office.

Commercial:”Fluckers”
Written by Michael O'Donoghue.
Fluckers Jam comes in bizarre flavors, such as Nose Hair, Death Camp and Dog Vomit!

Patti Smith Group:”Gloria”
This classic rock n roll song was written by Van Morrison and recorded by Morrison’s band Them in 1964.  It was the lead track on Patti Smith Group’s 1975 album Horses.

“Press Secretaries Through History 1”:
Catherine The Great’s press secretary Leonid Pushnev (Nessen) announces Empress Catherine’s 1796 death to the press.

“Lie Detector”:
Julie Nixon (Gilda Radner) interrogates her husband David Eisenhower (Aykroyd) while David is hooked up to a lie detector.

Commercial:"The New Army":
U.S. Army Colonel Scott Shuman (John Belushi) tries to recruit soldiers by telling them that joining the army will get them easier access to drugs.

“Weekend Update”:
Anchorman Chevy Chase greets viewers by telling them “I’m Chevy Chase and you’re not.”  Which prompts (pre-recorded) Pres. Ford to reply “I’m Gerald Ford and you’re not.”

Update correspondent Laraine Newman interviews “Mr. Boyardee,” (Nessen) press secretary to Spanish dictator Francisco Franco, who is still dead.

And commentator Emily Litella (Radner) declares that she's opposed to “Presidential Erections.”

Commercial:"The Berkeley Collection"
Repeat from Episode 2.

Film by Gary Weis:"Garbage"
Weis interviews New York City sanitation workers, who describe their job and tell stories about all the strange things they’ve found in the garbage.

Commercial:"Autumn Fizz"
An ad for a new carbonated douche that “brings out the natural fragrance of femininity, with the effervescence of uncola.”

“The Tomorrow Show with Tom Snyder”:
Tom Snyder (Aykroyd) interviews Nessen and asks him about “wild parties” in Washington DC and how he handles dumb questions from reporters.

Home Movie:"Once In Our Lives"
Several men perform the chant “Once In Our Lives Let Us Drink To Our Wives” while using urinals.  This chant was composed by Henry Purcell in 1686.

"Press Secretaries Through History 2":
Julius Marcellus, press secretary of Oedipus, announces that King Oedipus plans to marry his mother.

"Supreme Court":
When Rhonda (Jane Curtin) and her fiance Greg (Chase) start to make love, the nine Supreme Court justices suddenly appear in their bedroom to tell them which positions are legal and illegal.

"Press Secretaries Through History 3":
John Quincy Ross, press secretary to Pres. Thomas Jefferson clarifies the President’s position on slavery and the Louisiana Purchase.

Billy Crystal:
The comedian reenacts his recent encounter with an elderly jazz musician.

"Misconception":
A show that attempts to disprove unfounded cliches that have become part of our language.  This episode tries to disprove the idea that “too many cooks spoil the broth.”

Patti Smith Group: “My Generation”
The band performs a song that was originally recorded by The Who in 1965.  The Patti Smith Group’s live recording of this song was released as the B-side of “Gloria.”

Goodnights:
Nessen says that Toni Basil and the Muppets were going to be on the show but didn’t appear due to “technical complications” and announces that Raquel Welch will host next week.  Nessen says he had a good time hosting the show and the Not Ready For Prime Time Players join him.  Chase says they have a minute to kill and the cast fills time.

Notes about this episode:
A lot has been written about this over the last four decades.  Rather than go into all the background details of the episode and the political fallout that ensued, I'm going to recommend that you read the book Saturday Night Live and the 1976 Presidential Election by M. Heather Carver and William T. Horner. 

It covers the process of setting up Ford's filmed cameos, the booking of Nessen and it features new interviews with Nessen, Lorne Michaels and others connected to Saturday Night and Gerald Ford.  I highly recommend the book to every fan of SNL.  You can get the print version of the book here, or get the E-book version here and here.

At the end of Patti Smith's second song, she says "Happy Easter, CBGB's!"  That's because CBGB, the famous New York Punk club where Smith got her start, turned on their TV sets so people in the club could watch her SNL performances.  By the time Smith's first song concluded, it was past midnight Eastern Time, making it April 18, Easter Sunday in New York.[1]

During the episode's goodnights, Nessen mentions that the Muppets didn't appear due to "technical complications."  The Muppets Wiki says the Muppets were cut, this photo shows that the Nessen's scenes  scenes got as far as the rehearsal stage:

You'll notice in the photo that King Ploobis is wearing a Bee costume and Nessen is sporting Bee antennae.

Classic Moments:
Ron Nessen as host and Pres. Ford's cameos-Nessen's guest appearance was hugely historic  In 2016, on the 40th anniversary of this episode, Time magazine called it "The episode that changed American politics." [2]

Lots of political figures would appear on SNL after this episode.  In their aforementioned book, Horner and Carver say that John McCain's guest cameo on SNL in 2008, two days prior to the Presidential Election happened "because three decades earlier, Ron Nessen and Gerald Ford made it possible for politicians to even conceive of such behavior." [3]

I also want to say Nessen was a good host.  He's not a comedian or a trained actor, but Nessen is excellent in every sketch in which he appears.  Nessen is particularly good in the "Press Secretaries Through History" solo sketches.

"An oval office"-Chevy Chase performs an absolute masterclass in physical comedy in this sketch, one of his finest performances of all time.  Nessen, playing himself, is a perfect "straight man" to Chase's Ford and also gets to deliver some funny lines.

”Super Bass-O-Matic ‘76”-This was one of Aykroyd's best sketches.  It's appeared on multiple best-of clip shows and it's still hilarious and edgy more than 40 years after it aired!

"Tomorrow Show"-This marks the first appearance of Dan Aykroyd as Tom Snyder.  "Snyder" would become one of SNL's signature recurring characters and Aykroyd would imitate him in 10 more sketches.

What stands out?:

Patti Smith Group:I'm a big fan of Smith's music, but there's not a lot of professionally recorded concert footage from her early days.  So it's nice to have these two great performances preserved and easily accessible forever.  It's also historically important because punk bands rarely performed on television in 1976.

J.A. Morris' rating:
This episode is very historically significant and it features lots of classic funny moments and two great musical performances.  It gets my highest rating.

4 Stars!

Footnote:

[1]Patti Smith: An Unauthorized Biography, by Roberta Bayley and Victor Brooks,  p.149

[2]"The Saturday Night Live Episode That Changed American Politics" by Katherine Cramer Brownell April 15, 2016. https://time.com/4292027/gerald-ford-saturday-night-live/

[3] Saturday Night Live and the 1976 Presidential Election, by M. Heather Carver and William T. Horner, p.15-16