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| Milton Berle, AKA "Mr. Television" presents an Emmy to Lorne Michaels. (photo borrowed from Saturday Night, A Backstage History of Saturday Night Live) |
I'm taking a break from reviewing episodes to put the latter third of Season 1 into context. [1] I plan to write more of these "Intermission" posts in the future, such as the beginnings and ending of seasons, cast changes, etc.
Forty years of documentaries and clip shows might give those who weren't around in 1975-76 the impression that SNL was a hit show from day one. It was not a ratings success during its first season and episodes were often over-budget. Some NBC executives favored killing the show, since it cost much more to produce than the Tonight Show reruns that previously ran in its timeslot. In the Spring of 1976, NBC's Saturday Night was in serious danger of being cancelled.
In fact, NBC in general was in serious trouble at this time. The 1975-76 season was disastrous for the network. Eight series that made their debut that season were not around for a 2nd season. Many of these series didn't even make it to the end of the season before getting the axe.
Unlike those cancelled series, Saturday Night received lots of critical acclaim in publications like the The New York Times, The Washington Post and The New Yorker. This meant the show was one of the few positive things NBC executives could talk about at the time.
In the middle of the critical praise and talk of cancellation, two events took place between May 10 and 17.
During the first season, Chevy Chase became the series' first breakout star. In addition to Chase being very funny and talented, his stardom rose because he often used his real name onscreen and had two personal showcases every week:"Weekend Update" and the opening fall. He was getting lots of offers from all over the entertainment industry and was appearing on the cover of magazines.
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| Chevy Chase appeared on the cover of the December 22, 1975 issue of New York magazine. |
Chase was seen as a potential movie star or a successor to Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show. NBC was desperate to keep a hot commodity like Chase on their network. At a May 10 meeting, Chase's representatives secured a lucrative deal that committed him to appearing in several NBC TV specials...and leaving Saturday Night. Chase took more money for a much lighter work schedule. A clause in his new contract with NBC stated that he would leave in October of the second season. His last show as an "official" member of SNL's ensemble was broadcast on October 30 of Season 2, followed by a few cameo and pre-taped appearances which fulfilled his contractual obligations.
Now it's commonplace for SNL's cast members for to depart to the show for Hollywood. But I imagine fans of the show at the time were shocked and saddened when they heard Chevy Chase was leaving.
A week after that, on Tuesday, May 17 (three days after the episode hosted by Dyan Cannon), the 28th Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony was held in Los Angeles. Saturday Night was nominated in the following categories:
Outstanding Comedy-Variety or Music Series
Outstanding Directing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series:Dave Wilson, for directing Episode 2, hosted by Paul Simon.
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series:For Episode 10, hosted by Elliott Gould.
Outstanding Supporting Actor in Comedy, Variety/Music Series:Chevy Chase
Outstanding Achievement in Graphic Design and Title Sequences:Edie Baskin and Bob Pook, for episode 11, hosted by Buck Henry.
Its competition in the Comedy-Variety, writing, directing and acting categories was The Carol Burnett Show and The Sonny And Cher Show, two shows that represented "the establishment" of the TV world.
Saturday Night won four Emmy Awards that night, losing only in the Graphic Design category.
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| SNL's writers celebrate at the 28th Prime Time Emmy Awards. (photo source: Disney ABC Television Group) |
Here's footage of Saturday Night producer Lorne Michaels accepting the award for Outstanding Comedy-Variety or Music Series:
Chevy Chase won two Emmys, one for his writing and another for Outstanding Supporting Actor, beating out Tim Conway and Harvey Korman of Carol Burnett. Here's a clip of Chase winning his acting Emmy:
The Emmys changed everything. After winning the awards, Saturday Night gained a million viewers. Ten days after the Emmy ceremony, NBC placed an ad in The New York Times that saluted all of the network's Emmy winners. A photo of SNL's writers and director Dave Wilson was placed at the top of the ad.
In order to cash in on the Emmy victories, NBC requested the production two additional episodes of Saturday Night that would be aired in July.
After the Emmys and Chevy Chase's departure, the show would never be the same.
I hope you enjoyed this bit of SNL history, please stop by tomorrow when I examine Buck Henry's second appearance as host of Saturday Night.
See you then,
J.A.
Footnotes:
[1]Saturday Night, by Doug Hill and Jeff Weingard, p.145-156
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