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NBC'S SATURDAY NIGHT {SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE} {BRODERICK CRAWFORD, THE METERS} (TV)

Summary

One in this series of live, late-night comedy/variety programs featuring topical satire. The opening features Gilda Radner as the lead singer of Rhonda Weiss and the Rhondettes, crooning a tune about the demise of the sugar substitute, saccharin. (One of her backup singers is Linda Ronstadt.) Guest host Broderick Crawford's monologue concerns the time he was fired by NBC radio for showing up late to a program. Sketches include: John Belushi as "Samurai Hit Man" employed by an organized crime boss; Dan Aykroyd as the proprietor of "Mel's Hide Heaven" where you rope, stun, and kill your own cow, and even make your own garment; the "new guy" Bill Murray implores the audience to be kind to him and laugh at his jokes even when he is not funny; an "I Love Lucy" parody has Gilda Radner's "Lucy" having difficulty keeping pace with the conveyor belt at a nuclear warhead plant; "Weekend Update," hosted by Jane Curtin, offers a field report from Garrett Morris at an empty Black Governors' Conference, an increasingly irate John Belushi commenting on the "luck of the Irish," and a commercial for drugged canine treats called "Puppy Uppers" and "Doggie Downers"; Crawford revives his "Highway Patrol" role in a spoof of the series; "Baba Wawa at Large" has Radner as a Barbara Walters-type interviewer speaking with film star Godzilla; and Aykroyd plays President Richard Nixon to Crawford's J. Edgar Hoover in a sketch in which the President attempts to entice the F.B.I. Chief to help him create a secret police force. There is also a film by Gary Weis in which Crawford visits old New York City haunts, including his childhood home in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen. Musical performances are provided by RCO All-stars (featuring Dr. John, Levon Helm, and Paul Butterfield) and the Meters. Includes commercials and promos.

Details

  • NETWORK: NBC
  • DATE: March 19, 1977 Saturday 11:30 PM
  • RUNNING TIME: 1:24:03
  • COLOR/B&W: Color
  • CATALOG ID: T:20822
  • GENRE: Comedy/Variety
  • SUBJECT HEADING: Comedy/variety; Dog food - Parody; Music, popular (songs, etc.); Parody; Political satire; She Made It Collection (Anne Beatts); She Made It Collection (Marilyn Suzanne Miller); She Made It Collection (Rosie Shuster); TV - Commercials - Parody; TV - Parody; TV - Parody - News
  • SERIES RUN: TV - NBC series, 1975-
  • COMMERCIALS:
    • TV - Commercials - Behold Furniture Polish
    • TV - Commercials - Bic lighter
    • TV - Commercials - Certs breath mints
    • TV - Commercials - Coca Cola soft drinks
    • TV - Commercials - Harley-Davidson motorcycles
    • TV - Commercials - Marriott's Essex House Hotel
    • TV - Commercials - Morgan Brittany for Ultra Brite toothpaste
    • TV - Commercials - Oil of Olay cosmetics
    • TV - Commercials - Penn Tennis Balls
    • TV - Commercials - Pioneer car stereo
    • TV - Commercials - RCA ColorTrak
    • TV - Commercials - Radio Shack
    • TV - Commercials - Schlitz Malt Liquor
    • TV - Commercials - Soft &Dri anti-perspirant
    • TV - Commercials - Taster's Choice freeze-dried coffee
    • TV - Commercials - Underalls undergarments
    • TV - Commercials - Vitalis superhold pump hairspray
    • TV - Promos - "Kingston: Confidential"
    • TV - Promos - "The Life and Assassination of the Kingfish" (TV movie)

CREDITS

  • Lorne Michaels … Producer, Writer
  • Jean Doumanian … Associate Producer
  • Audrey Peart Dickman … Associate Producer
  • Arthur White … Producer (Misc.), Production Manager
  • Gary Weis … Producer (Misc.), Film Segments produced by
  • Dave Wilson … Director
  • Peter Fatovich … Direction (Misc.), Associate Director
  • Dan Aykroyd … Writer
  • Anne Beatts … Writer
  • John Belushi … Writer
  • Bill Murray … Writer
  • Al Franken … Writer
  • Tom Davis … Writer
  • James Downey … Writer
  • Marilyn Suzanne Miller … Writer
  • Michael O'Donoghue … Writer
  • Herb Sargent … Writer
  • Tom Schiller … Writer
  • Rosie Shuster … Writer
  • Alan Zweibel … Writer
  • De Shields, Andre … Choreographer, "Rhonda Weiss and the Rhondettes"
  • Howard Shore … Music (Misc. Credits), Musical Director
  • The Meters … Performers, Music Group
  • Dr. John … Singer, Instrumentalist, Piano Player
  • Levon Helm … Singer, Instrumentalist, Drums
  • Paul Butterfield … Singer, Instrumentalist, Harmonica
  • Broderick Crawford … Host
  • Don Pardo … Announcer
  • Linda Ronstadt … Guest, Singer
  • Dan Aykroyd … Cast
  • John Belushi … Cast
  • Jane Curtin … Cast
  • Garrett Morris … Cast
  • Bill Murray … Cast
  • Laraine Newman … Cast
  • Gilda Radner … Cast
  • J. Edgar Hoover
  • Barbara Walters