Sketches include “U.S. Embassy”, “Laramie Vice”, “Reverend Dwight Henderson, World’s Meanest Methodist Minister”, “The Pat Stevens Show”, “Master Thespian”, “Discover”, “Cross Country” and “The Fighter”. Anita Baker performs “Sweet Love” and “Same Ole Love”
Read MoreSketches include “Oral Roberts University”, “The Fruiting”, “The New Paper Chase”, “The President Has Mustard On His Chin”, “Brookfield Zoo Banquet”, “The Hustler of Money”, “The Slave Drivers” and “UNLV”. Wynton Marsalis performs “J Mood” and “Juan (E. Mustaad)”.
Read MoreSketches include “Contract”, “New York Telephone”, “One Night Stand”, “Donahue”, “Nick Slammer”, “It’s A Girl”, “Il Returno De Hercules”, “Tough Parents” and “Taxi”. Percy Sledge performs “When A Man Loves A Woman”.
Read MoreSketches include “Affair”, “Dinner at the Van Halen’s”, “Hard News Cafe”, “Discover”, “Pet Chicken Shop”, “Washington Center (two parts)”, “Let’s Go To The Movies”, “On Broadway” and “Opera Singer Doctor”. The Robert Cray Band performs “Smoking Gun” and “Right Next Door”. Eddie Van Halen performs “Stompin’ 8H” with G.E. Smith and the Saturday Night Live Band.
Read MoreSketches include “Afterlife Styles of the Rich and Famous”, “Great Moments in the History of White Trash (three segments)”, “Police Wire”, “Church Chat”. “Redneck Tanning Parlor”, “Bar”, “The Boyfriend Song”, and “Truck Stop Cafe”. Willie Nelson and the Family perform “Nightlife”, “Partners After All”, and “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain”.
Read MoreSketches include “Heaven”, “Amerida”, “Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue”, “Jingle”, “Valentine’s Day”, “The Life of Golda Meir”, “Sketch Artist”, “Hardware Store” and “Miss Connie’s Fable Nook”. Paul Young performs “War Games” and “in The Long Run”. Buster Poindexter performs “Heart of Gold”. Supermodel Paulina Porizkova also appears.
Read MoreSketches include “Hip”, “What’s My Addiction?”, “Synthesizer”, “The Grenada Experience”, “The Pat Stevens Show”, “Chinese New Year”, “Ticket Line”, “Asociacion Mexicana del Riñon”, and “SNL Memories”. Bruce Hornsby and The Range perform “The Way It Is” and “Mandolin Rain”.
Read MoreSketches include “NFL Video Countdown”, “Bar”, “The Honest Man”, “Crack”, “The NFL Today”, “Mace”, “Chick Hazard, Private Investigator”, “Church Chat”, “The Michael Jackson Workout Tape” and “United Way”. Debbie Harry performs “French Kissin’ in the USA” and “In Love With Love”.
Read MoreSketches include “Ballad of the Mute Marine”, “Trekkies”, “Christmas Party”, “T.J. Hooker”, “Star Trek V: The Restaurant Enterprise”, “Look At That!”, “Christmas Memories”, “It’s A Wonderful Life” and “The True Life Story of Frankie Toussaint”. Lone Justice performs “Shelter” and “I Got Love”. G.E. Smith and the Saturday Night Live Band with Buster Poindexter performs “Zat You, Santa Claus?” Kevin Meaney also appears.
Read MoreSketches include “Iranian National Assembly”, “McSooshi”, “Derek Stevens”, “Two Guys”, “Sideshow of the Stars”, “Movie Talk”, “The Back Page”, “Marge and Steve”, “Casting Director”, “Bob Roberts”, and “Christmas Tree”. The Pretenders perform “Don’t Get Me Wrong” and “How Much Did You Get For Your Soul?”. G.E. Smith and the Saturday Night Live Band with Buster Poindexter performs “A Rockin’ Good Way (To Mess Around And Fall In Love)” with Chrissie Hynde. Penn & Teller also appear.
Read MoreSketches include “Stumblebums Anonymous”, “Couch Cushions”, “The Devil & Ed Grimley”, “A Christmas Wish”, “Mastermind”, “The Eggshell Family”, “The Pat Stevens Show”, “Church Potluck Luncheon”, and “Halsey & Roarke: British Customs”. Randy Newman performs “Longest Night” and “Roll With The Punches”.
Read MoreSketches include “Earpiece”, “Ticket Line”, “Hamlet”, “New York Word Exchange”, “Baycrest Jewish Retirement Home”, “And So Adieu”, “Translator” and “Automobile Club of America”. Paul Simon performs “Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes” (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo), “The Boy In The Bubble”, and “The Late Great Johnny Ace”.
Read MoreSketches include: “Church Chat”, “Adobe”, “Parent-Teacher Conference”, “The Jungle Room”, “These Things”, “Pet Chicken Shop”, “Love Connection”, “Leaping Lord”, and “Krypton Survives”. Lou Reed performs “I Love You, Suzanne” and “The Original Wrapper”.
Read MoreSketches include “Preemption Newsreel”, “Dressing Room”, “The People’s Court”, “Church Chat”, “Helmsley Spook House”, “Pork (two parts)”, “A Couple of Sammies”, “Dog Baseball”, “Make Joan Baez Laugh”, “Miss Connie’s Fable Nook”, “I Saw God”, and “Pango, Giant Dog of Tokyo!”. Ric Ocasek performs “Emotion In Motion” and “Keep On Laughin’”.
Read MoreSketches include “Bartles & Jaymes”, “Team Xynex”, “Donahue”, “The Crosby Show”, “Instant Coffee with Bill Smith”, “Parent-Teen Contract”, “Old Hollywood” and “Dover Chalk Works”. Run-DMC performs “Walk This Way” and “Hit It Run”. G.E. Smith and the Saturday Night Live Band with Buster Poindexter performs “Hit The Road, Jack”. Spike Lee and Sam Kinison also appear.
Read MoreSketches include “It Was All A Dream”, “General Dynamics”, “Girlfriends”, “Quiz Masters”, “The Amazing Alexander”, “Hef-Tea Teabags”, “Church Chat”, “Mr. Subliminal”, “Alienses”, “Ten Weeks In Jail”, “Baby It’s Cold Outside”, “Comeback”, and “Brecht-Rogers Medley”. G.E. Smith and the Saturday Night Live Band with Buster Poindexter perform “Smack Dab In The Middle” and “Oh Me Oh My (I’m A Fool For You”). Playwright Christopher Durang also appears.
Read MoreLorne Michaels’s first year back at Saturday Night Live after a five-year hiatus wasn’t what you would call a success. While the writing staff included a mix of SNL veterans and unknowns that would soon establish themselves on the show, the new cast (which included movie stars Anthony Michael Hall and Randy Quaid) never quite clicked, and the ratings and reviews were less than favorable. The show was on the brink of cancellation that spring, but NBC president Brandon Tartikoff decided to give Michaels and SNL another chance.
Read MoreLorne Michaels’ first season back at SNL following his five year hiatus from the show is considered one of the worst seasons in the show’s history, along with 1980-81 and 1994-95. Indeed, there are quite a few obvious problems with this season, and as a whole the quality was below the standard of the first four seasons of the show, or even the later Dick Ebersol years. Yet for some reason, this year has a certain watchability to it that 1980-81 or 1994-95 don’t have.
Read MoreSketches include “Hands Across America”, “The People’s Second Choice Awards”, “Moments of Doubt”, “Glamorous Drinking”, “Actors on Film”, “Mafia Greeting Cards”, “Lesbian Pick-Ups”, “Bocce Ball My Way”, “Backstage”, “Book Minute”, “Movie Theatre”, “My Friend” and “Fire”, George Clinton and the Parliament Funkadelic perform two medleys. Damon Wayans also appears.
Read MoreSketches include “Weigh-In”, “Reagan’s Command”, “Tornadoville”, “A Message from Marvelous Marvin Hagler”, “Midday with Jennifer Hicks”, “Lone Wolf McCord”, “The Pat Stevens Show”, “Assembly” and “A Message from Jody Hagler”. Level 42 performs “Something About You”. E. G. Daily performs “Say It, Say It”. Sam Kinison also appears.
Read MorePersonal website of photographer and writer Bronwyn Douwsma.
I’m on the bus. It’s too early to be human and I haven’t had my coffee yet so I don’t really want to do much; maybe read or listen to music, things that help tune out the other people or the monotony of the commute. When I leave the suburbs, it's usually dark. I sometimes look out the windows, but more to see how far I’ve traveled than at anything interesting. By the time I arrive downtown, I can see the sun coming up over the harbour.
The year is winding down. I’m preparing to go to New Brunswick for my regular Christmas visit with the family; my travel arrangements up there have all been taken care of. I haven’t bothered with Christmas shopping yet; my cash flow was a little tight until my last paycheque came in, and my tolerance for the malls has dropped over the years. Everything costs too much money now.
Looking back at my writing about SNL from years ago, I now feel like I was a bit harsh on the show at times. Maybe it was just disappointment about talented performers being used for the most irritating sketches possible at the expense of their range. It was also partially untreated depression and burnout.
If there was one word to describe the 13th season of SNL, it would be “consistent”. No longer on the bubble thanks to the previous year’s success, SNL in 1987-88 continued pretty much in the same direction as the last season with a little more confidence and a little less to prove.
Sketches include “Pumping Up With Hans & Franz”, “Wilson Trap Doors”, “Church Chat”, “Airline”, “Jorge Garcia, Nice Guy Dictator”, “The Cop & The Prostitute”, “When Great Minds Meet” and “Pirates”. 10,000 Maniacs performs “Like The Weather” and “What’s The Matter Here”.
Sketches include “Calgary 1988”, “Giant Businessman”, “The Bean Cafe”, “The Pat Stevens Show”, “Girl Watchers”, “Computer Panic”, “Casey Kasem Sings The Beatles”, “Delivery Room”, “Stand-Ups III”, and “The Pawn Shop”. Randy Travis performs “Forever And Ever, Amen” and “What’ll You Do About Me”.
It’s been a while since I’ve posted here.