Hello again, as I get ready to review and annotate episodes from SNL's second season, I thought it was time for another "State Of The Show" essay.
Season 2 represents a time of major changes for Saturday Night. After the 6th episode of the season, Chevy Chase became the first cast member to depart the show for Hollywood (after his departure, Chase appeared in a few taped and filmed cameos in order to fulfill his contract). This opened the door for John Belushi and Gilda Radner to become SNL's next breakout stars.
Jane Curtin took the Weekend Update" desk from Chase and remained an "anchor" on Update for the next three seasons.
Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald Ford in the Presidential election and Dan Aykroyd would impersonate Carter even more often than Chase imitated Ford.
Bill Murray joined the cast in January of 1977, the midpoint of the season.
Nick The Lounge Singer and the Coneheads made their debuts in the second season and would become some of SNL's most popular characters.
The Not Ready For Prime Time Players were frequently short-handed during their sophomore season. Before his departure, Chevy Chase missed three shows in September and October after he sustained an injury during a dress-rehearsal. When Bill Murray joined the cast, Lorne Michaels held back Murray's SNL debut for five episodes so that he wouldn't be seen as "replacing" Chevy Chase.[1]
On Murray's first episode, John Belushi was absent and injured. This means that Season 2 featured eight episodes with a cast of only six. In spite the departures and injuries, the cast and writers brought their A-Game every week and created great work throughout the season.
Saturday Night's head writer Michael O'Donoghue became a frequent onscreen presence during the second season, most notably appearing in a series of sketches titled "Mr. Mike's Least-Loved Bedtime Tales."
Season 2 featured some of the same hosts, like Buck Henry, Elliott Gould and Candice Bergen, who worked well with the cast during SNL's first season.
Steve Martin and and Eric Idle made their first appearances on the show that season and would host the show multiple times between 1976 and 1980.
And musical guests during the 1976-77 season featured such rock luminaries as George Harrison, The Band, Chuck Berry, The Kinks and Brian Wilson.
So please stop by tomorrow as I begin tackling Season 2 of SNL!
Footnote:
[1]Saturday Night, by Doug Hill and Jeff Weingard, p.184.
Chevy claims he didn't leave for Hollywood, but instead because his girlfriend, that he was madly in love with, wouldn't move to New York.
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