Season 3, episode 15;Host:Christopher Lee, with Meat Loaf and Richard Belzer

 Aired March 25, 1978.

Network disclaimer:
Don Pardo announces that "101 Dalmatians Get Run Over By 101 Moving Vans will not be seen tonight so that NBC may present the following special program."

Cold opening:"Belushi's gone Hollywood"
In the locker room, Gilda Radner and Bill Murray are discussing how John Belushi is going to Hollywood to play the title role in the series Grizzly Adams. 

However, NBC wants John to change his name to Kevin Scott. Belushi then arrives and gets annoyed when they address him as "Kevin." 

John says that when he's moved on to Hollywood, he'll miss the cast, but most of all he'll miss saying "Live, from New York, it's Saturday Night."

Monologue:"Christopher's rejected films"
Host Christopher Lee says even though he's primary known for his roles in horror movies, it's been a few years since he appeared in one. 

Lee then shows us some trailers of films he rejected:

"The Island Of Lost Luggage":
"When you visit the island of Dr. Mobius (Garrett Morris), you leave your soul and your bags behind!" 

"The Thing That Wouldn't Leave":
"It came from beyond the grave! A creature (John Belushi) SO rude, SO inconsiderate… they thought it would NEVER leave!"

"Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Rogers":

"Dr. Henry Jekyll! A brilliant scientist! But there are some doors man was NEVER meant to open! Vincent Price (Dan Aykroyd) IS Dr. Henry Jekyll, in…“Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Rogers”!

 

"Henry Higgins Meets Baba Wawa"
Phonetician Henry Higgins (Lee) takes on the challenge of teaching Baba Wawa (Radner) how to improve her speaking.

Meat Loaf:"All Revved Up with No Place To Go"
Meat Loaf performs "All Revved Up with No Place To Go," which appeared on his album Bat Out Of Hell. The album was issued on October 21, 1977.

"Weekend Update"
Anchors Jane Curtin and Dan Aykroyd report on the top news stories of the day.

Kevin Scott (Belushi) uses a model of a supertanker to demonstrate what happens during an oil spill.

Film critic Bill Murray predicts who will win Academy Awards at the upcoming Oscar ceremony.

Plus, a new Update segment, "Point/Counterpoint." This features a debate between Aykroyd and Curtin about whether a Point/Counterpoint segment has any point.

"Mr. Death"
Written by Alan Zweibel and Gilda Radner.
When a little girl named Penny's (Laraine Newman) dog Tippy dies, she gets a visit from Death himself (Lee). Mr. Death apologizes to Penny and tries to explain why he had to take her dog.

"Sadat needs help"
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat laments that nothing is going right for him and his nation. Sadat asks viewers to send him their suggestions about what is next course of action should be.

Film by Gary Weis:"Cold As Ice"
A woman repeatedly tortures a man (Stacy Keach) by shooting and stabbing him. 

The scenes of torture are accompanied by the song "Cold As Ice" by Foreigner. The song appeared on their self-titled debut album and was released as a single in July 1977. It peaked at #6 on the Hot 100.

Commercial:"Del Stator's Rabbit Hut"
Del Stator (Aykroyd) invites customers to visit his rabbit hut so they can enjoy "a reasonably priced meal of hot rabbit."

"Nixon's memoirs"
A team of vampire hunters (Lee, Belushi, Curtin) visit the home of Richard Nixon (Aykroyd), where the ex-President is preparing his memoirs for publication. The hunters aim to destroy the memoirs in order "to put the soul of Watergate to rest."

Richard Belzer:
Comedian Richard Belzer imitates Mick Jagger, wedding singers and speculates what Bob Dylan will be like when he's 86 years old.

Meat Loaf:"Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad"
"Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad" is another track from Bat Out Of Hell. It was issued as a single in March of 1978 and peaked at #11 on Billboard's Hot 100.

The Mr. Bill Show:"Mr. Bill's Circus"
Mr. Bill tells viewers that this episode will be lots of fun because "today because we’re having our own circus!" His mood darkens when he learns that the ringmaster for the circus is his nemesis Mr. Sluggo. 

Goodnights:
Lee says "Thank you, all of you, for coming this evening. I’ve never had an experience like this in  long, long time. I’ve had a wonderful time. And, yeah. And all I can say is, quite simply thank you! Thanks!" 

Newman and Radner each give Christopher a flower and kiss him. The cast and Meat Loaf surround Lee and the credits roll.

Notes about this episode:
If it's not obvious from my description, "Henry Higgins Meets Baba Wawa" is a parody of My Fair Lady.

Classic moments:
Point/Counterpoint-This "Weekend Update" debate segment would create another national catchphrase ("Jane, you ignorant slut!"). Point-Counterpoint would be featured ten more times during Seasons 3 and 4. 

Bill Murray's Oscar predictions-This would become a tradition during Oscar season. Murray would do the bit in the next two seasons and also predicted the winners 3 times when he returned to host SNL.

What stands out:

Christopher Lee-The host appears in 4 sketches and is great in every role. "Mr. Death" is especially good, Lee makes the personification of death seem like a nice old man.

Rejected movie trailers-All three of the trailers are funny, especially "The Thing That Wouldn't Leave," which has appeared in "Best Of" compilations. 

What doesn't work:
The cast disappears-The last 3 segments are Richard Belzer's standup, a Meat Loaf performance and "The Mr. Bill Show." The Not Ready For Prime Time Players are nowhere to be seen. I would have like to have seen them at least once near the end of the episode. 

J.A. Morris' rating:
This is a very good episode and Lee is a very likeable host who appears to be genuinely enjoying himself. The Oscar Predictions and Point/Counterpoint are also great. However, the disappearance of the cast near the end prevents me from giving my highest rating.

3 and a half stars.

Season 3, episode 14;Host:Jill Clayburgh, with Eddie Money

Aired March 18, 1978.

Network disclaimer:"Bowling For Medicine"
Don Pardo announces that “Bowling For Medicine” will not be seen tonight, so that NBC can present the following special program."

Cold opening:"Danny Boy"
Garrett Morris sings "Danny Boy" while dressed as a leprechaun. "Danny Boy" was written by Frederic Weatherly in 1910, and set to the traditional Irish melody of "Londonderry Air" in 1913.

While he sings, a scroll appears onscreen that discusses how whenever Garrett sings on the show, they usually display words. This time, Morris gets to write the words. The scroll says they got the leprechaun suit for 40% off, since it was the day after St. Patrick's Day.

When his song is over, Garrett announces "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night."

Monologue:"Jill is unprepared"
Host Jill Clayburgh mentions that she had fun when she hosted in Season 1. However, she learned after watching her previous episode that she didn't prepare a good monologue. Unfortunately, she hasn't prepared much of a monologue for this appearance either.

Commercial:"Royal Deluxe II"
Repeat from Season 3, episode 1.

"Olympia Cafe"
Written by Don Novello.
A new waitress (Clayburgh) is being trained to work at the Olympia Cafe. Unfortunately, the cafe employees' incessant screaming of "CHEEBURGER, CHEEBURGER" pushes her over the edge. 

"Sybil III"
Dr. Wilbur (Clayburgh), a therapist, treats a woman named "Sybil" (Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman, Gilda Radner) who has three clearly defined different personalities. The three women try (in vain) to make Dr. Wilbur understand that they are actually three different women who all happened to be named Cybil.

"Bad One Man Theater"
Leonard Pinth-Garnell (Dan Aykroyd) presents Bad One Man Theater, which features four one-person performances happening at the same time. We see portrayals of Mark Twain (Tom Schiller), Harry Truman (John Belushi), Edgar Allan Poe (Bill Murray), Paul Robeson (Morris) and Eleanor Roosevelt (Curtin). Pinth-Garnell describes their performances as "brilliantly bad." 

Eddie Money:"Baby Hold On"
Eddie Money performs "Baby Hold On," which was written by Money and Jimmy Lyon.

"Baby Hold On" appeared on Money's 1977 self-titled debut album and was released as a single in December of that year. The song peaked at #100 on Billboard's Hot 100.

Commercial:"Nutrifix"
A busy mother (Curtin) finds the fastest instant breakfast for her and her busy family. Nutrifix comes with five injectable cartridges, each cartridge contains "1000 milligrams of dextroamphetamine sulfate for extra pep."

"Weekend Update"
Anchors Jane Curtin and Dan Aykroyd report on the top news stories of the day.

Correspondent Laraine Newman interviews a mine inspector in West Virginia. 

Consumer reporter Roseanne Roseannadanna offers advice about filing taxes. Unfortunately, she gets distracted and goes off on tangents about body odor and egg salad sandwiches. 

"Everything is blurry"
On an airplane, a man (Belushi) tells a woman that all the places he visits are disappointing and blurry. The woman surmises that he might need glasses.

"Shower Mike"
Richard Herkiman (Bill Murray) hosts a variety show in his shower while he talks and sings into soap shaped like a microphone. 

Richard and his wife Jane (Radner) are joined in the shower by their neighbors Judy (Clayburgh) and Morty Cooney (Belushi).

During this sketch, Richard sings "Love Will Keep Us Together." The song was written by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield, it's most successful version was recorded by Captain & Tennille. Their cover of the song reached #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 in 1975. 

"Coneheads On Earth"
Driving instructor Beldar Conehead (Aykroyd) has an affair with one of his driver's ed students (Clayburgh).

When his wife Prymaat (Curtin) discover's Beldar's infidelity, she is furious. However, we learn that Prymaat also has something to answer for. 

Talk show:"Celebrity Crackup"
Jane Curtin interviews Tony Orlando (Murray), Richard Pryor (Morris), Claudine Longet (Radner) and Robert Blake (Belushi). Each celebrity discusses their recent mental breakdowns.

Eddie Money:"Two Tickets To Paradise"
Money performs "Two Tickets To Paradise," the leadoff track of his self-titled album. It was released as a single in June of 1978 and peaked at #22.

SNL's director Dave Wilson fills the screen with five Eddie Moneys shot from different angles.

Jill Clayburgh:"Serious Song"
Written by Marilyn Suzanne Miller and Cheryl Hardwick.
The host sings a song about the difficulties of being in a relationship.

Goodnights:
Clayburgh says "Well, thank you all very much. And the cast and Eddie Money, and, uh, it’s really been it’s been great being here, and I’m still thinking about that opening for the next time that I come and that I’m on this show." Someone offscreen then throws an orange towards the host, she catches it and says "oh, see, I’m quick, too! So… good night!" 

The cast then surrounds Clayburgh and the credits roll.

Notes about this episode:
This episode is important to me because it contains the first time I ever watched Saturday Night Live. I fell asleep on the couch and woke up at the beginning of the Olympia Cafe sketch. 

So of course this episode has lots of sentimental value for me. 

Jill Clayburgh says that she'll be better prepared for the monologue next time she hosts. However, Clayburgh never hosted again before she passed away in 2010.

"Sybil III" is a parody of Sybil, a 1976 made-for-TV film about a woman named Sybil who suffers from multiple personality disorder.

What stands out:
"Danny Boy"-I like when the show gives Garrett Morris a chance to sing and the onscreen scrolling text during the song was funny too.

Roseanne Roseannadanna's commentary-This is her best commentary so far. Jane Curtin's reaction is also memorable.

"The Coneheads On Earth"-Another solid Coneheads sketch that features great work from Curtin and Aykroyd. Plus, Connie Conehead (Newman) has a great description of drive-in movies that I won't spoil.

What doesn't work:
Clayburgh's monologue-It's a monologue about how Clayburgh didn't prepare for the monologue. Why didn't Lorne Michaels and the writers give the host something to work with? I enjoyed the "Serious Song" that Clayburgh sings at the end of the show. Why not have her perform it during the monologue and close the show with something else? Also, "Serious Song" is proceeded by an Eddie Money song. That means the cast is missing from the last two segments.

J.A. Morris' rating:
Another very good Season 3 episode. I generally enjoyed it and it was my introduction to SNL, so it earns a high rating. 

Three and a half stars.