History of SNL series
1975 - 1980
1980 - 1985
1985 - 1990
1990 - 1995
1995 - 2000
2000 - 2005
2005 - Present
Weekend Update
Transition in progress (1990–1991)[]
The 1990–91 season was a transitional year. Jon Lovitz and Nora Dunn left the show after the previous season, the latter in a cloud of controversy.
Lorne Michaels introduced a number of players who quickly became stars on the show: Chris Farley, Tim Meadows, Chris Rock, Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, David Spade & Julia Sweeney.
Memorable characters and sketches introduced by the new cast members from this period included Sweeney's "Pat", Sandler's "Opera Man" & "Canteen Boy", Farley's "Matt Foley", Schneider's annoying office geek "The Copy Guy", Rock's black perspective talk show host "Nat X", and Spade's caustic commentary piece "Hollywood Minute".
The popularity of these new cast members helped to offset the departure of several popular long-time players over the first two seasons of this era (including Jan Hooks and "Weekend Update" anchor Dennis Miller after this season) as well as Victoria Jackson after the following season.
The remaining cast members of the "older" cast (Dana Carvey, Phil Hartman, Mike Myers and Kevin Nealon) also remained popular with audiences.
Nealon succeeded Miller as "Weekend Update" anchor. For the remainder of his tenure, he found himself playing the straight man during "Update" and other sketches, particularly against the newer cast members.
Nealon's participation in that role increased after Carvey, Hartman & Myers left the show. Myers introduced many popular new characters during this period, including Linda Richman, host of a talk show "Coffee Talk".
Meanwhile, Hartman, who had impersonated President Ronald Reagan on the show, began appearing regularly with his impression of Democratic candidate and soon-to-be President Bill Clinton.
Carvey's impersonations of President George H.W. Bush remained an audience favourite, and Carvey also developed a popular impression of independent presidential candidate Ross Perot.
In the period leading up to the 1992 presidential election, Carvey & Hartman dominated the show with these impressions, creating mock debates.
The Myers and Carvey characters Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar from the "Wayne's World" sketch would become household names during the early 1990s following the release of the successful feature film, "Wayne's World."
Chris Farley[]
Of the new cast members of the show, Chris Farley was not afraid to trade on his size for laughs.
In one sketch he played a shirtless dancer, opposite the trim and muscular "Dirty Dancing" star Patrick Swayze, as they competed in an audition for a position with the Chippendales male dance troupe.
Sandler and Farley also did a song called "Lunch Lady Land", with Farley dancing while dressed up as a lunch lady.
Another recurring Farley character was the manic, thrice-divorced motivational speaker Matt Foley, whose schtick consisted mainly of yelling at and whining to his clients about having to live "in a van down by the river", and hurling himself around the room, demolishing everything in sight.
Farley was fired from the show in 1995, but he went on to star in successful movies like "Tommy Boy" & "Black Sheep" with David Spade, and "Beverly Hills Ninja" with Chris Rock & Nicollette Sheridan.
1993–1994 season[]
After the end of the 1993–1994 season, having already lost star cast member Dana Carvey, who left midway through the previous season, the show's 1994 post-season saw more departures. Julia Sweeney left the show due to frustration and burnout.
Another departure was that of Phil Hartman, whose final moment on the show was at the end of a musical number with the entire cast singing a parody of the "So Long, Farewell" song from "The Sound of Music."
After all of the cast had left the stage, Farley (in his Matt Foley character) was left sitting on the stage, with Phil walking back on stage, cuddling next to Farley to sing goodbye & waving at the audience.
Producer Lorne Michaels hired a number of new cast members, beginning midway through the 1993–1994 season.
1994–1995 season[]
Similar to his decision in the mid-1980s to bring in established actors Randy Quaid, Joan Cusack and Robert Downey, Jr., Michaels added Michael McKean, and later Chris Elliott, to the cast. Both left at the end of the 1994–1995 season.
Later acquisitions were sketch veteran Mark McKinney of the recently wrapped, Michaels-produced Canadian sketch comedy show, "The Kids in the Hall" and stand-up comic Janeane Garofalo, the latter of whom joined at the beginning of the 1994–1995 season & the former joining in January, shortly before the departure of Mike Myers. Garofalo left in mid-season, replaced by Molly Shannon.
Myers also left in mid-season, as would Nealon after season's end. Farley and Sandler left at the end of the season. Longtime featured player Jay Mohr left as well & Al Franken, who had worked on the show as a writer and featured player on and off since 1975, left at season's end as well.
British actress Morwenna Banks joined the cast for the last four episodes of the season as a full cast member, but did not return the next season.
Much like season 6 (or, to a lesser extent, season 11), season 20 is considered one of SNL's worst-received seasons. The season was home to many cast turnovers and much dissension.
Disgusted by a perceived sexist and homophobic attitude of the writers and the sketches, Janeane Garofalo left the show halfway through the season and Mike Myers left the show to pursue a movie career.
Longtime feature player Al Franken quit, angry over the box office failure of his film, "Stuart Saves His Family" and upset at being passed up as a Weekend Update anchor in favor of Norm Macdonald.
Ellen Cleghorne, Kevin Nealon, Chris Elliott & Michael McKean also quit the show as well, although had it not been for her contract, Cleghorne would have left after the 1993-94 season.
Laura Kightlinger left to join Roseanne Barr's ill-fated FOX comedy series, "Saturday Night Special".
Morwenna Banks, Chris Farley, Jay Mohr & Adam Sandler were fired. Banks was hired as a contract player for the last four episodes of the season, leaving behind no memorable characters or celebrity impersonations.
Towards the end of the 1994–1995 season on "SNL," the show was in a state of turmoil, with the show enacting the highest turnover rate going into the next season.
The 1994–1995 season had a total of 14 cast members; only five remained for the 1995–1996 season: Molly Shannon, Mark McKinney, Norm Macdonald, David Spade and Tim Meadows.