It is a chilly October Saturday night in the city that never sleeps. Even though it is late there are still people wandering the streets. You wander down to the world famous Rockefeller Center and step inside to get out of the cold. You hear laughter coming from deeper inside the building and you move towards it. Soon you are standing outside a doorway and it is labeled studio 8H. You step inside and then it hits you. "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!!!" The crowd goes wild and another night of live sketch comedy begins. In reality most of us will probably never be able to visit New York, much less go to the season premier of Saturday Night Live, SNL for short. However, the distance between you and New York does not have to keep you from enjoying one of the greatest shows ever created. Have you ever been stuck home on a Saturday night with nothing to do? Maybe you were at a lame party just looking for some relief? Wouldn't it have been great if you had turned on the TV and turned the channel to NBC and seen some of the world's finest upcoming comedy stars in action? I have been watching the latest group of upcoming stars every Saturday for the past four years. I also spent an entire summer watching classic episodes on Comedy Central and E! The show is humorous and entertaining; it has given rise to countless stars and is considered to be an American institution with a rich tradition. First I will tell you about the history of the show, then the quality of the shows over the years, and finally the famous faces that have appeared on the show. Now that I have you attention I would like to move on to the rich history and tradition that is Saturday Night Live.
SNL ran its first broadcast on October 11, 1975. During this time period the Tonight Show was hosted by Johnny Carson, Tiger Woods had just been born, VHS was introduced, a woman climbed Mount Everest, and Paul McCartney was fined for growing marijuana.
