AN SNL REVIEW: Season 6-Episode 4 Jamie Lee Curtis/James Brown - 12/13/80

 The Season 6 journey is often one that can give you surprises. Sometimes, when you least expect it, the show will have a small streak of sketches that will make you think that this group is onto something.

And then...it slowly falls apart again.

The season premiere was rather weak for the most part and then that got followed by one of the worst episodes in SNL history.

The 3rd and previous episode, hosted by Ellen Burstyn with Aretha Franklin as the musical guest, proved to be the most consistent outing so far and showed that there could be some promise on the horizon.

However, that high is about to settle back into something of a malaise.

In fact, this is a rare episode of SNL in that the only true highlight of the night (aside from maybe one sketch) belongs to the musical guest...and this is due to the fact that James Brown's performance here is first rate. 

Let's discuss the Jamie Lee Curtis/James Brown episode that managed to get a Classic SNL airing on NBC simply due to the power of James Brown and nothing else.

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COLD OPENING: The Mean Majority

As one might expect, The Mean Majority is a stand-in for The Moral Majority.

As we've established in the previous reviews, we are currently right in that transition period where Ronald Reagan is the President-Elect. In the world of SNL, it is obvious (and not a surprise) that they aren't exactly fans of a conservative movement.

We start off with the self-dubbed Three Musketeers Charles Rocket, Denny Dillon, and Gail Matthius (and that's not a joke, they called themselves that backstage) staring at the camera with their arms crossed.

They are ready to gloat because they can finally show their true colors and talk about how they were just "playing nice" when it came to civil rights.

Honestly...the lack of subtlety in this material is fascinating because I do have to wonder how something like this would play to today's audience with, perhaps, a rewrite or two.

As it stands, the studio audience doesn't respond much to it and it suffers greatly from bad pacing, erratic usage of a text ticker on the screen, and aiming at easy shock value to drag Republicans through the mud.

Thankfully, it is a mercifully short cold opening but the tone of it is so weird that when they get to the "Live From New York" bit, the audience doesn't even applaud at first.

After talking about shows that they feel audiences shouldn't watch (which include fake and try-too-hard joke names like Sex in a Condo or Let's Spit on the Flag), Dillon mentions that there is another show...

DILLON: It's live...

ROCKET: ...it's...from New York...

MATTHIUS: ...it's SATURDAY NIGHT!

As the three smile into the camera, the audience is so quiet that you can hear the band director count in the musicians to play the theme song.

A very unfortunate way to start the evening.

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OPENING MONTAGE leading into Jamie Lee Curtis' Monologue

As I write this review, we aren't far removed from when Jamie Lee Curtis won an Oscar for her performance in Everything Everywhere All at Once. 

Like most of the internet, I am not so sure the performance warranted an Oscar...or even a nomination...but it is hard not to be happy for the lady.

This is a woman who worked for years in genre films and even came close to getting nominated for some of them (Trading Places, True Lies, A Fish Called Wanda), and was known first for her Scream Queen title in the early stages of her career. It is in that horror stage that we find Jamie Lee Curtis hosting SNL for the first time. 

While this monologue isn't bad, it is pretty par for the course for this season.

It is quick and basically leads up to a one joke premise before it departs.

Curtis talks about how people expect certain things from performers and therefore, she gives us all a very loud scream.

But hey...she is very likable at least!

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COMMERCIAL PARODY: Clovin Hind Jeans #1 

This will be the first of three commercial parodies in the episode based around the iconic Brooke Shields' Calvin Klein Jeans ads.

This one is based on, arguably, the most famous one where Shields says "Do you wanna know what comes between me and Calvins? Nothing".

Here, Matthius as Shields says "Do you wanna know what comes between me and Clovins? My brains".

It does what it needs to do and leaves. Matthius captures the similar air of Shields, so while not an amazing bit, it works for what it is.

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SKETCH: Attack of the Terrible Snapping Creatures 

The obligatory host sketch in that they wanted to do something horror-themed for Jamie Lee Curtis.

They even name her Laurie after her Halloween character.

However, the sketch is structured to be more of a showcase for Gail Matthius...and while she does well with it and the audience responds fairly well, I think this sketch tries a little too hard at times.

I do love the set-up that these two moved into an apartment with several red flags, including the fact that their broker actually paid THEM a fee to move in.

Why is that? The apartment is infested with terrible snapping creatures...AKA...clothespins.

From here, the sketch just seems to bounce back and forth from the two just screaming about clothespins being attached to them which leads Curtis to run out of the apartment to look for help.

As I said before, Matthius ends up carrying this sketch and it soon descends into "shock value" humor of sorts.

Matthius finds "the mother": a large clothespin replica which starts to "snap" towards her and in a loud breathless manner, Matthius has to yell "Not my breasts" and then the comically unnecessary "NO! I WANT TO BEAR CHILDREN SOMEDAY!" as it approaches her vagina.

The ending with Curtis returning covered in clothespin is sort of expected. The sketch is by no means a failure, but it still shows a weird mix of underdeveloped ideas and a penchant for trying to push for brash humor. 

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SKETCH: Three Card Monty

If this sketch is important for anything, it is the first official sketch pairing (not counting last week's Weekend Update) of Joe Piscopo and Eddie Murphy.

Not surprisingly, Doumanian must have insisted they bring Piscopo's Paulie Herman back despite the fact he had just debuted in the previous episode...and sadly, this one doesn't really live up to the first outing.

Murphy plays a card hustler standing outside of Port Authority...using his exaggerated street wise that would end up becoming the voice he uses for Raheem Abdul Mohammed which...once again...was the name of the character he played in the Update piece from the Burstyn episode.

Piscopo's Herman seems more impressed by the fact that Murphy's character is from NYC...which is humorous considering he is...well...standing in NYC at that very moment.

It is nice watching these two interact but it just isn't an overly strong sketch...and it doesn't help when Charles Rocket shows up as a stereotypical Irish cop.

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SHORT FILM: Linda Lee's Who IS Gilbert Gottfried?

This is another example of something that I really want to like, and I do find it has its moments, but it just doesn't fully click.

This is a short film that tells the "true story" about how down-and-out comedian Gilbert Gottfried managed to weasel his way onto SNL.

I do love some of the bits, like the fact his family lived in a literal revolving door or that Gottfried sold freshly squeezed water (from sponges) to make a living. 

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SHOW SKETCH: Dying to Be Heard

Ann Risley playing a stuffy literary figure is about what one would expect her to excel at, but I feel like here, the pretentious tone she is trying to convey is coming off as just too dull.

Having said that, it works fine enough for the sketch...and thankfully, that is a great thing since this is easily my favorite sketch of the night and probably among the better ones of the season.

I mentioned in the last review that writer Mitchell Kriegman seems too have a surprising dark streak in his writing despite his genteel nature...and we see that in full force here.

Dying to Be Heard is a TV show in which poets are looking to get their works known to the masses...but as it was for the likes of Sylvia Plath or Virginia Woolf among a few others...it will probably take their death.

The poet will kill themselves on live TV and then Risley will read their work aloud and thus they will enter true immortality.

The first of these poets is Jamie Lee Curtis, who plans to die via beating herself to death with the hardcover edition of The Joy of Cooking (Risley: "How inventive"). Curtis' husband (Piscopo) and daughter (Dillon) beg her not to do it but she yells at them:

CURTIS: "Get away! You never cared about me! You never cared about my work! All you wanted was DINNER!" 

She then proceeds to beat herself senseless in the head with the cookbook before her body collapses over Dillon's lap.

Once she collapses, there is stunned silence and then Risley breaks it with: "I would like to read a poem by the late Anna Louise Ryder", which is probably Risley's best moment of the sketch and the timing of it couldn't be more perfect.

The poem, which insults her husband's size downstairs and also her daughter's behavior, is humorous but what kills me (no pun intended) is when Dillon is so offended by her mom's poem that she disgustingly pushes her dead body off of her to the floor. 

Then we get Gail Matthius, who ended up strangling herself with the cord on her Cuisinart, but did it too soon as when the camera cuts to her, she is already sprawled out on her table. Her poem is more straightforward in that it ends with "I am so depressed; I think I am going to kill myself".

It is funny, but I do feel like at that point, they are rushing to end the sketch and I actually wish we got to stay in this morbid world a little longer.

All in all though, this was a dark sketch that was mostly done right.

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MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: James Brown performs "Rapp Payback"

The first of two truly fantastic performances by the legendary Godfather of Soul. "Rapp Payback" is not a song most people don't remember but the energy he provides is nothing short of astounding...and it will only become even more impressive in the second performance.

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WEEKEND UPDATE with Charles Rocket: The Man of Smarm

It is with this installment of Update that we see Rocket slowly starting to make changes with how he presents himself and the material.

From here on out, I feel like there is a strong push for him to amp up the "comparison" to Bill Murray by having him take on Murray-isms. 

You start to see a glimmer of this on his "vibrating rocket" joke involing Soviet Premier Lenoid Brezhnev. After saying the punch line, he does this sort of quiet cocky laugh as if he just told the funniest joke ever when it was the furthest thing from it.

Interestingly enough, this joke was shown during SNL's 25th Anniversary Special when they featured clips of each Update anchor. While most received more than one, Rocket was one of the only few to just get one clip and it happened to be that joke. Seems kind of surprising because despite the dire nature of Update that year, there were better ones they could've chose.

Rocket may be slowly coming to life as an anchor but he is leaning too much into that smarmy cocky zone that he can't pull off as well as Bill Murray or even Chevy Chase.

Denny Dillon gets a bit as a character she used to perform in her stage act called "Woodswoman". And they try giving her a catchprase: "I been it. I seen it. I am Woodswoman".

This bit is totally what we would call "clapter" nowadays where it is all about how we should be dumping chemical waste at the White House if it isn't such an issue for Reagan to do it elsewhere...even though the man isn't even in office yet. Honestly, it is isn't like I have a problem with bashing Ronald Reagan because I will gladly do that every day of the week...but after a while, material like this can get old and lazy. I am not saying what Dillon is doing here is bad in terms of character work, but there isn't a lot of humor here.

Piscopo comes back as his Sportscaster persona and he is slowly morphing into the character we remember today. The appearance is very brief, but it is certainly more interesting than what Rocket is doing.

THEN - we get Eddie Murphy in his first true solo Update piece. 

This is one of the more bizarre pieces he would ever do considering he decides to give himself a southern twang (it sounds a lot like the "white man voice" he would often do but with a strong southern accent) and his editorial is a bit more basic and childish: eating dog food as a means to save money...especially for those on food stamps. 

It isn't a great bit, but I do love the small moment as he opens the can of dog food and says "Oh...lord have mercy.

While the audience has been a lot more responsive during this Update, I do have to stress that the material is still incredibly weak. In fact, one of the jokes gets an outright hostile boo from the audience which is the one involving the incoming Reagan Administration only allowing abortions if the fetus is female.

Eeeek indeed.

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PSA: POKER & DRUGS DON'T MIX

This one just screams like one of those "hip" sketches that Doumanian would push for even though she was "vehemently anti-drug" according to everyone who worked for her.

This was an era when basically anything drug related was almost an instant success with audiences (if you watch old episodes of ABC's Fridays from this era, the audiences on there would flip out with great joy at every drug reference)...so this bit with people struggling to play poker because they are high on marijuana is basically presented in the most banal way possible.

I think the only real solid moment is when one of the players (I think Risley?) is hallucinating that the Queen of Hearts is cheating on the King with the Jack. 

Otherwise, this is just a sketch that comes and goes with nothing really to offer.

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COMMERCIAL: Clovin Hind Jeans #2

"If my Clovins could talk, I could act". 

A solid dig at Brooke Shields and another solid send-up on the iconic Calvin Klein Jeans commercials of the era.

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SKETCH: Badger Convention

I hate this sketch. 

As inspired by the likes of Shriners Conventions and the Elks Club, etc... I think you may already know where this sketch is going.

A group of men participating in a convention for their Badgers group ends up BADGERING the poor waitress who is overseeing the event.

Curtis is the waitress and her performance in the sketch, which is supposed to be outrage and eventually despair over the badgering, is easily her weakest of the night. She gives some awkward line deliveries and just isn't able to overcome the weakness of the material...but I will give her a pass considering how poor the sketch is.

Gottfried's voice in this shows a glimmer of his famous squawking cadence while Murphy uses a very similar twang like he used in Update earlier.

This is just one of those one-joke sketches that gets spread way too thin. It hasn't been an overly strong episode, but this is easily the first real dud of the night.

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MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: James Brown performs a medley of his songs and wakes up the audience

This is really what is worth seeking out the episode for.

Brown performs a medley of many of his classic songs and ends up going on for over 8 minutes, which apparently causes the back end of the episode to be rushed and cut down. Granted...it is not like the material coming up was worth anything really.

I would seriously recommend checking out this performance. Brown gives it his all, the band is on fire, and as it progresses, Brown is practically dripping with sweat.

It is a stellar performance and I could make the case that is one of the top 3 best musical performances ever seen on SNL.

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COMMERICAL: Tort-u-matic

I would say that the concept for this is a bit ridiculous, but I could also say the same thing about a lot of the commercial sketches from the original era that were presented by Dan Aykroyd.

For that reason, I can't really fault anything with this concept: a machine that seemingly tortures you for the sake of being tortured...but it just isn't presented in any kind of humorous manner.

It also doesn't help that Charles Rocket is not as good in the role of a pitchman like his co-star Joe Piscopo.

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 SHORT FILM: Martin Brest's Hot Dogs for Gaugin

This is not all of the short film...nor have I seen this short film in its entirety, but I find it to be very well done.

Martin Brest would go on to be known for directing one of Eddie Murphy's earliest vehicles: Beverly Hills Cop and received an Oscar nomination for directing Scent of a Woman...and then his career ended due to Gigli. 

Moving past Gigli and the now 20 years we've had to treasure that disaster, Brest's short film about staging the destruction of the Statue of Liberty is dark and very bizarre...but a lot of fun to watch. Perhaps the most fascinating thing about it is that the film features a young Danny DeVito pre-Taxi and he was just as great at playing these darkly comedic roles even in his youth.

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SKETCH: Roweena's Cut 'n Curl

This is one of those sketches that briefly becomes recurring this season...and by recurring, I mean it only shows up twice.

I would say that the best part about this sketch is the strong character work between Matthius as Roweena and Nadine, her frequent customer.

Matthius is originally from South Dakota, and while her natural speaking voice shows no hint of it, Matthius is a natural at nailing that Northern Midwest cadence that would become highly linked to movies like Fargo.

Although, to millennials like myself, this voice will be especially familiar as Gail Matthius used a similar voice as Martha Generic on the animated show Bobby's World where she would frequently say the phrase "Dont'cha know?"

The salon sketches never seem to be going for hard laughs, but I still feel like they never quite get off the ground despite the solid character work...particularly from Matthius.

I do sort of like when Jamie Lee Curtis comes in as Dillon's daughter, who is visiting from LA and sporting a very early 80s New Wave look...which leads to Dillon saying that she looks like "a mermaid on drugs".

Solid character work, but the sketch does tend to drag. I wouldn't consider it a disaster by any means, though.

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COMMERCIAL: Clovin Hind Jeans #3

The final runner of the night and not as humorous.

She recites a very cheesy and inoffensive limerick before falling out of her pose...and without a real comedic button like the other two, the audience doesn't respond at first and has to be cued to applaud.

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SKETCH: Osselots

As someone who has not been particularly kind to Ann Risley thus far, I am going to continue down my path of critique.

First of all, the idea of a tough motorcycle gang devoted to giving roadkill a proper burial is not exactly a bad idea, but the writing is weak and they picked the most waspy woman in the cast to try to pull this off.

Curtis plays a reporter interviewing Risley, whose Camille Black leads this gang and its cause. While I will give Risley SOME credit for actually trying to create a strong character here, it is basically an awkward failure and a complete and total miscast.

I have revisited these episodes multiple times and I often skip this sketch mainly because I feel a strong sense of secondhand embarrassment from it. 

SNL was simply not the right fit for her.

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MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: New talent Ellen Shipley performs "Fotogenic"

Sort of a generic early 80s pop/new wave song that does have sort of a catchy melody, but is mostly just forgettable and nothing that remarkable. I also don't think I have ever heard of Ellen Shipley mentioned anywhere else other than through this SNL appearance either.

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GOODNIGHTS:

I do want to acknowledge the vigil that Jamie Lee Curtis promotes as this episode aired just a few days after the assassination of John Lennon outside of the Dakota here in NY.

It truly does feel crazy how he was looking to make a big comeback with the Double Fantasy album and that his and Yoko's legend dominated the first couple of episodes leading up to his death on December 8th.

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FINAL THOUGHTS:

While not as bad as the Malcolm McDowell episode, I would say that this episode is still pretty weak.

However, even some of the weaker material is still not necessarily bad.

The worst of the night easily falls upon the cold open, the Osselots, and the Badger Convention. Beyond that, the weaker stuff mostly just flirted with being a disaster, like the Poker and Drugs Don't Mix PSA.

Curtis did a nice job as host except for in the Badger sketch where I think she deserves a pass for dealing with such horrible writing all around.

Taking into account the weak material, I do think this episode gets a major boost from the legendary James Brown performances and also Mitchell Kriegman's Dying to be Heard sketch. 

Still, I am not sure it is enough to give the full episode a high or even really an average rating.

Performers wise, Charles Rocket is still settling into that annoying smarmy persona, Ann Risley is still very matronly and stiff, and Gilbert Gottfried feels like a bit of an enigma. When watching these episodes, it is almost hard to believe that this is the same man who would go on to be known for his offensive stand-up material told in his trademark squawk of a voice that he would never drop in public appearances from the late 1980s onward. 

Eddie Murphy gets his first multi-sketch episode in which he gets another Update piece, a co-lead with Piscopo, and a supporting role in the dreadful Badger sketch. While he takes on that strange white man southern twang in the Update and Badger bits, he seems more himself in the sketch with Piscopo and you can tell that the two of them have chemistry.

Piscopo, Matthius, and Dillon prove to show the best promise in these earlier stages in terms of the main cast members. I'd say Piscopo and Dillon seem the most assured (considering Piscopo was used to stand-up audiences and Dillon came from live theatre). Matthius is an interesting case, because she also came from a sort of stand-up/performing background but it was more based in character work.

I feel like she sometimes struggles with the weaker writing she is given, but when she nails something, it is typically among the best work you will see from this season. I agree with many who feel that Gail Matthius was the true unsung hero of this cast and I do wish she hadn't gotten fired by Dick Ebersol.

Next up, we have the Christmas episode hosted by David Carradine and it is...weird.

I don't even know if I would consider it worse or better than this episode, but I guess we will see how I feel when I revisit it.

AN SNL REVIEW: Season 6/Episode 3 12/06/80 - Hosted by Ellen Burstyn

 

When we last left the Season 6 team from SNL, they basically left us in the fetal position.

It isn't too often that you walk away from watching SNL feeling that you watched something so dark and dreary and bizarre in addition to not being funny the majority of the time. 

With the network now starting to greatly interfere in the behind-the-scenes process with some trying to push for the immediate dismissal of Jean Doumanian, she herself decided she would make her own changes.

This included firing two writers by the name of Sean Kelly and Nancy Dowd, while also deciding she was going to become more stubborn in dealing with the network...something that she stole from Lorne Michaels and how much he would frequently battle network interference. 

In this episode, there were 3 sketches (one of them a pre-tape) that riled up the network so much that they fought her hard on getting them removed.

While she agreed to tone down the two sketches, she tried to stand her ground on the pre-tape. She ended up losing the battle and the tape was discarded (though we will see it in the upcoming David Carradine episode).

I will make sure to point out these two sketches, because one of them is relatively tame by today's standards (though still rather dark in its approach) while the other seems so inconsequential that you may struggle to even understand the problem...well unless you are an Evangelical Republican who is ruining the country.

At any rate, the staff got a week off after the Malcolm McDowell trainwreck and I think that break did allow them a bit of renewed energy as this episode, while not great, is a marked improvement over the previous two.

Ellen Burstyn is arguably the most prestigious performer they get to host this season, but I will comment more on her when we get to her monologue.

Let's start discussing the episode and I will make sure to comment on those two sketches and where we start to see some slight improvements.

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COLD OPENING: Rockefeller Announces the U.S. is going Co-op

As we learned in the last episode with his takes on Ronald Reagan and Marlin Perkins, Charles Rocket is not a man for impressions.

But damnit, he is the star and Jean Doumanian wants him front and center every chance he has!

In the case of this sketch, David Rockefeller is not exactly a person that is known much for how they talk or their personality aside from just being the stuffy CEO of Chase Manhattan Bank. 

I suppose we should just thank the lord that we aren't having to watch his Reagan impersonation again...although we will sadly have to deal with that more once Reagan takes office a few episodes later.

The idea of the U.S. going co-op and basically evicting poorer citizens to countries like Cambodia and Haiti is actually rather humorous and I think the way this is written actually works. It certainly hits better than a lot of the cold openings I have seen from recent seasons.

What DOES hurt the sketch is the truly lazy shoe-horn of "Live From New York".

Rocket says, "We will welcome you back, and soon you will be -- LIVE FROM NEW YORK, IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT!" while giving us the most wide-eyed hammy spaced-out facial expression for seemingly no reason other than to appear comedic. 

Geez, Rocket...you were doing so well!

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OPENING MONTAGE followed by Ellen Burstyn's Monologue

There is a story in the Hill/Weingrad book that Lorne Michaels was having a talk with Burstyn in the early days of SNL before the show even premiered about her hosting during the first season. This ended when Chevy Chase entered and proceeded to act out the scene from The Exorcist where Linda Blair peed herself all over the carpet (with Chase using a watering can to simulate). 

This is speculation on my part, but it wouldn't shock me if Burstyn caved to hosting SNL as a means to promote herself and her film Resurrection which had opened two months earlier and had been bombing at the box office. Aside from a quick mention in the monologue, they don't flaunt the film at all.

There isn't much to the monologue, but I suppose the premise works better than the previous two monologues did thanks to Burstyn's energy and just the idea that due to her mostly dramatic material, it is time for her to have fun and lighten up...especially since it is her birthday.

An okay monologue, I suppose.

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COMMERCIAL: Ed McMahon's School of Laughing

This is the first instance of seeing Joe Piscopo in a commercial pitchman role, and while he is certainly no Dan Aykroyd or Phil Hartman or Harry Shearer, he is still one of the strongest in the show's history to do this kind of material. 

The idea of this being a way to make easy money by becoming part of a sitcom laugh track is kind of fun...as is the sampling of all the various laughs you often hear on those tapes.

I do have to call out Ann Risley though for some truly unconvincing fake laughter as she acts as though she isn't even trying. It literally does sound like she is saying "Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha." with only a slightly heightened affection. 

As expected, Charles Rocket comes off annoying as one of the laughers while Matthius and Dillon seem more charming.

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SHOW SKETCH: What's It All About? w/ Pinky and Leo Waxman

After making its debut in the season premiere, this sketch returns and actually manages to improve upon the first outing.

The premise hasn't changed much, but I think what works so well is how much Burstyn responds to these two with charm rather than anger like Elliott Gould did.

I do think its fun that that they don't even know her name.

Pinky calls her Helen Bernstein, and the Leo calls her "The Exorcist". 

I really love how much they focus on Burstyn's abilities as an actress in this segment and how much Pinky wants to impress her. 

My favorite bit is when Pinky mentions she once played Linda Loman (or "Linder" as she says) in Death of a Salesman at a local dinner theatre. She is very proud of this performance and the audience response, saying one of my favorite lines: "They wept, Ellen. They put down their forks and they wept".

Gottfried also excels in this thanks to his thick Yiddish accent when he says that her performance in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore was so convincing that he wanted to order a sandwich from her...or when he was intrigued by her adultery in Same Time Next Year...which leads to Burstyn actually starting to flirt with him, much to the shock of Pinky.

I also love when Leo bluntly assumes that Burstyn is bisexual, to which she replies she is "multisexual", which admittedly I don't know how much truth there is to that.

Overall, I liked this one...and so far, this episode is off to a good start.

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THE ROCKET REPORT: A trip on the Staten Island Ferry

The Staten Island Ferry is a crucial source of public transportation as it is one of the only ways that residents of Staten Island can actually get to and from Manhattan unless they drive a car over the Verrazano Bridge.

Those orange ferries zig-zag across New York Harbor 24/7...and I should know, I see them from my balcony window seemingly every time I look out it.

As I have established thus far, Rocket does well in these segments...and within the first moments, Rocket reveals his premise. He is convinced that all of the people riding on the ferry back to Staten Island have spent the day in Manhattan having sex.

Right away, the premise sounds fun...and one very charismatic man plays along with Rocket.

ROCKET: How much sex would you say you had today?

MAN: Oh let's see...I had BEAUCOUPS of sex!

But from there, it just sort of settles into a malaise. Instead, it is obvious that he is approaching people and probably asking them how they like commuting the 25-minute ferry ride each day, but it is edited to seem as though it is still about the sex.

While not the weakest Rocket Report we will get, it is still a missed opportunity that didn't live up to its strong beginning.

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SKETCH: Paulie Herman Wants to Date

In many ways, this is the moment that a star was born.

Despite the fact that we've had success with characters like The Waxmans, there is certainly a bit of a lightning bolt with the reveal of Joe Piscopo's Paulie Herman. 

Paulie Herman is a character that is certainly divisive...and I won't argue that they dive a tad too much into the well in just the span of 10 episodes, but I do sort of enjoy him.

Paulie is a chemical plant worker from Piscataway who is very proud of his New Jersey roots. Here, he is about to participate in a video dating service and the employee asks for his name and where he is from which leads to his immortal catchphrase:

"I'm from Jersey! (obnoxious laugh) Are you from Jersey?! (obnoxious laugh) I'M from Jersey!"

As a native Jersey-ite, Piscopo is definitely having a ball doing this character...particularly with how he proceeds to serenade Gail Matthius with Anthony Newley's "Who Can I Turn To?" or when he gleefully and proudly states he would take his date to the Paramus Mall.

With Piscopo staring down the barrel of the camera with his scrunched-up face, I gotta admit...I find it a lot of fun...even if a lot of the sketches that utilize him following this fail to really come close to the excitement from here.

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MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: Aretha Franklin performs "United Together"

While not a song that is remembered from her canon, I have to say that Ms. Franklin sounds exquisite here on this very jazzy/Easy Listening tune. 

It definitely has that late 70s/early 80s Adult Contemporary vibe, but Franklin does find a way to impress with her remarkable voice.

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WEEKEND UPDATE with Charles Rocket but it is actually stolen by an uncredited extra....

So yes...this installment of Weekend Update is most known for being the official true debut of Eddie Murphy on SNL...but I will get to that in a moment.

First off, you can tell that people noticed about the dark set/lighting in the previous two episodes which now has lighter fixtures and a world map behind Rocket...but the lighting is still a little dim, which will become very noticeable later on.

Rocket's jokes, as mostly written by Brian Doyle-Murray, are still very weak but maybe not near the level of painful dreck that the previous two installments provided. The audience also seems far more receptive this time, which is probably due to the fact that the episode so far has not featured sketches about redneck Nazis.

One of the more successful jokes comes from this installment is the one is about Ed Koch being found kissing Bella Abzug, which was meant more as knock to Koch to the rumors of him being gay.

Piscopo comes on as his sportscaster character, still not fully in form yet, but as the legend goes, he allowed some of his time to be chopped off so that Eddie Murphy could have his official speaking debut.

The premise was originally created by Barry Blaustein and David Sheffield, who saw an article about how a judge in Cleveland declared that for the sake of racial equality, there needed to be a certain number of white guys on high school basketball teams.

Murphy met with the two and they devised a monologue and character: Raheem Abdul Mohammed (who would go on to become a recurring character though not in this same context).

As soon as the camera pans to Murphy, you just instantly know this guy has something...and then hilariously, they have to adjust the lighting because...embarrassingly, it is so dark that is hard to see him clearly at first.

Right off the bat, you get the line about how he has been a junior at the high school for "going on 7 years now" which isn't met with much response, but detail is fantastic.

The meat of the monologue is about how white people try to appropriate black things, such as how we style our hair, wearing platform shoes, and how by 1981, white people will be on welfare.

By this point, the audience is laughing and applauding to which you get the only glimmer of Murphy sort of appearing "green" in that he awkwardly pauses not expecting to get that applause break.

The moment finally ends when Murphy proclaims that if God wanted "whites to be equal to blacks, everybody would have one of these", to which he pulls out a ghetto blaster to much uproarious laughter and applause.

Just like that, this 19 year old kid who grew up on Long Island and was treated like dirt by most of the entire staff, waltzed onto Weekend Update and stole the show in less than a minute.

This is quickly followed by the camera cutting back to Rocket (who is now practically blinded by the sudden change in lighting) and he tries to do a stupid bit about a report being handed to him and not actually commenting on what it says...which promptly dies with the audience.

We do get another Gilbert Gottfried character named Dr. Calvin Zuko, who is saying he doesn't believe that the female orgasm exists because he "has been with a lot of women, and not a single one of them has had an orgasm". While not the greatest bit ever, I do commend Gottfried for not having any shame in directly making himself the butt of the joke.

This will end up being one of the better installments of Update this season by default. Rocket simply doesn't improve as he will find new ways to make us squirm as we watch each time.

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SHOW SKETCH: Our Front Door

This is the first of the two sketches tonight that got relentless protests from NBC's team.

A perky suburban family straight out of a 50s sitcom is overjoyed and intrigued when a junkie comes to their door looking to sell potholders to further keep up his habit. 

Piscopo does well as the stuffy father who tells his wife that a junkie is at the door, which leads to Matthius as the wife saying in this sort of sing-songy voice: "A junkie? Well, ask him IN!" 

I think this sketch mostly falls into misguided rather than all-out terrible.

It feels like a sketch that might've fit more into one of the last two episodes due to its darker undertone...particularly when Gottfried as the son asks if he ever OD'd and later when Rocket shows them his track marks...which is one of those moments where you can feel the audience's tension, even if it is broken by Piscopo's great line delivery of "That's quite an arm!".

While not as rough as some of the worst sketches from the first two episodes, this is still the first true dud of the night and that is actually kind of a major win for this season thus far.

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SHORT FILM: Pepe Gonzalez

It's cute and sort of fun, but this film featuring Gilbert Gottfried as NYC's only matador is just not my cup of tea. I do love a lot of the street visuals as I am a sucker for NYC in that era...but it isn't really worth much beyond that.

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SKETCH: Planned Parenthood

This is the second sketch that the network had an issue with.

Nowadays, I am sure a lot of Republicans would even hate the idea of this sketch even happening...just as I am sure they probably did then.

Although, I think the direct talk about sex/orgasms/birth control is what really drove the network to be offended...but of course, they didn't seem to be offended about Gilbert Gottfried's take on the subject of orgasms.

As for the sketch itself, it is pretty solid. Gail Matthius is back as Vickie the Valley Girl character, but she gets paired with Denny Dillon playing her best friend Debbie...and automatically, it makes the sketch work a lot better.

I do think the idea of putting them in the Planned Parenthood setting does feel fresh...especially when taking into account that this aired in 1980 after a particularly conservative presidential candidate just won in a landslide.

Perhaps my favorite moment is when Vickie tells the counselor, played by Burstyn, that she already takes birth control to help with her acne...but that she steals it from her mother's supply and replaces the pills with saccharin.

I wouldn't say that the Vickie/Debbie sketches are necessarily great when they come along, but I respect them a lot because of the character work. When it comes to the true unsung hero of this season, I think a lot of people who watch this season now would agree with me that Gail Matthius is that person.

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MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: Aretha Franklin performs "Can't Turn You Loose"

While yet another song from her catalog that isn't exactly known today, Franklin does an excellent job with this up-tempo number. It serves as a great contrast to "United Together" and works well as a lively addition in the waning moments of the show.

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SKETCH: Mary Louise's Lesson

This is one of those sketches where I feel like the idea is fun, but it is just yet another example where I find the execution/pacing/timing of it to be a bit erratic.

The trope of someone using a puppet to vent out frustrations has been seen many a time, but I do think Denny Dillon does well enough as the snobby British child who can't help but interrupt her tutor's history lesson. 

Although - this sketch is the first of the evening (not counting her lethargic laughing performance in the School of Laughing sketch) to feature Ann Risley in a somewhat prominent role as the cockney maid.

Here, we can see that Risley seemingly has a talent for accents but her nervous and subdued energy with it just doesn't work for the sketch. It almost feels like she is trying to restrain herself even though something a little bolder would work for the comedy.

Dillon's Mary Louise mocks the maid, saying how she is of "the lower class", which...of course...it is England...gotta love that stuffy class system. And that is what makes Risley snap...and while I do think the vulnerable nervous energy does make us side with her, something just feels off with the energy and the timing.

Burstyn plays the straight character as the tutor, but she provides the right kind of strict energy.

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SHOW SKETCH: The Toni Tennille Show - Live From the Westchester County Courthouse

Oh lord...

So, first off...Toni Tenille, best known as half of the famous husband/wife duo Captain & Tennille, briefly had a daytime talk show in the fall of 1980...and it was considered one of the biggest and cheesiest flops in the history of the talk show format.

The idea of putting a talk show like that in a very unlikely setting could make for some fun dividends, but instead...we get yet another case where the idea simply just doesn't work and I also think that another major issue comes from the sketch's lead.

Despite being so lightly featured in the first two episodes and barely even in this episode, the final half hour of this episode is dominated with Ann Risley in the previous sketch, the sketch following this one, and the chance to finally anchor a sketch herself here. 

As Toni Tennille, she certainly does an okay job at the vain/narcissist energy (which judging by how Risley was described in the Hill/Weingrad book isn't exactly a stretch), but the opening in which she sings the famous "Love Will Keep Us Together" is laughable. 

Risley doesn't appear to be a singer, as she seems to flip back and forth from being too sharp or too flat with the notes.

The actual setting is at the Westchester County Courthouse where she is set to interview Jean Harris, the woman accused of murdering Dr. Herman Tarnower, the man behind the Scarsdale Diet. 

Dillon plays Harris, but she isn't given much to do. Most of the sketch, she just repeats some variation of "I didn't do it!" while Tennille talks to the camera about silly and somewhat problematic personal problems she has at home with her husband Daryl (The Captain) Dragon. 

This post-Update section is not as strong as the pre-Update section, but thankfully we will see another uptick with the next segments.

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SHORT FILM/SONG: Fish-Heads

This is a truncated version of the now-cult favorite short film that is frequently credited to the late actor Bill Paxton.

Fish-Heads is such a bizarre little gem of a song that manages to stay stuck in your brain forever...and I think it is worth checking out the full video on its own separate from the cut version we have here.

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SKETCH: Children Ruin Everything

Some have deemed this sketch to be way too mean-spirited and that it could be grouped in with the shock value material I have been complaining about, but in all honesty, I ike this one.

The setup is that Charles Rocket & Ann Risley tell their kids (Gail Matthius and writer Mitchell Kriegman making his only live appearance on the show) that they are getting divorced and that they are the reason for it.

Now, in the case, I am still not overly happy with the performances of Rocket or Risley for the most part but this is one where just the whole idea of the sketch helps carry it without too much concern for the performances.

I do love how the seem to blame their children for the downfall of the country, such as the assassinations of RFK and MLK Jr to the economy crashing...which leads to my favorite exchange:

MATTHIUS: Oh gosh, I'm sorry I was ever born!

RISLEY: Well, so are we darling...

The fact that Kriegman is here makes me wonder if he had a hand in writing this one. Despite Kriegman's genteel nature (and eventual success in children's TV), he did show moments of having a deliciously dark comedic side...which will blossom in a sketch in the next episode).

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MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: Keith Sykes performs "B.I.G. T.I.M.E."

The musical guest roster this season is undeniably impressive for the most part. In this case, we get the first of a new idea for the season which is the "New Talent" portion. Each week, an up-and-coming talent gets the chance to do a song on the show. For the most part, these artists don't leave a lasting impression (except for one major exception we get later this season) and I would loop Keith Sykes into that group as I am pretty sure I have not heard anything of him or his work outside of this one appearance.

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SKETCH: Lonely Old Lady

Who would've thought going into this season that this particular staff of writers and cast members would excel in doing the quiet semi-dramatic character pieces that were a staple of original writer Marilyn Suzanne Miller?

This sketch manages to be the season's first true success and while I wouldn't be shocked if many at the time wrote it off as being dumb and boring and pointless, they simply would've just been blinded by the worst aspects we encountered thus far. 

The pairing of Gail Matthius and Ellen Burstyn is fantastic as the former gets to further do great character work and the latter gets a chance to really show her dramatic chops after telling the audience she was going to "lighten up" in her monologue.

Matthius plays a little girl wearing a bunny outfit who is dared to knock on Burstyn's door because she has a reputation as being a creepy old lady, whereas she's actually just incredibly lonely and mourning the loss of her family.

Matthius' little girl voice is fantastic and reminds me so much of the little girl characters that Gilda Radner would play, but the vocal work reminds me a lot of when Laraine Newman would get the chance to do those characters. 

I had heard about this sketch before actually seeing it, so a lot of the shock of it didn't really land but I feel like this had to hit like a ton of bricks for those originally watching it. I feel like everything about this sketch works so well, and the crazy thing is that there is another bittersweet slice-of-life sketch from later in the season that I would consider even better than this one.

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GOODNIGHTS

The cast wishes Burstyn a Happy Birthday and noticeably, Eddie Murphy is front and center. 

Right where he should be.

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FINAL THOUGHTS:

Compared to the first two episodes, this one was basically a success. It certainly had its downsides, but overall, it showed a lot of promise for this group.

While this episode is certainly known for being Eddie Murphy's real true debut moment, I think multiple viewings of it had made me appreciate that there truly was more to this group than may meet the eye. I think they just needed time to grow and to simply have a better leader at the helm...and perhaps fire one or two of the cast members.

This episode still establishes Denny Dillon's strength as a performer, but it also establishes the strengths of Joe Piscopo and Gail Matthius.

Even with all of that, there is no way to ignore or deny that Eddie Murphy in a matter of just a couple of seconds proved that he had whatever "IT" is to truly pop on TV. His natural presence and confidence was exactly what the show needed...and honestly, while you can see that in Piscopo, Matthius, and even Dillon, there is simply just something cosmic about how Murphy just steals everything so quickly.

A pretty solid show that happens to contain one of the best sketches of the whole season that is actually worthy of high praise.

I wish I could say that the high wave continues but the next episode ends up dipping again. I am not saying it'll get to Malcolm McDowell levels of bad (although the winter episodes will flirt with that), but the show is going to struggle more until we manage to get a surprisingly strong episode during a mostly dire winter stretch.

Stay tuned for the fourth episode of the season which will be hosted by then-Scream Queen Jamie Lee Curtis.

AN SNL REVIEW: The Infamous Malcolm McDowell Episode - Season 6/Episode 2 - 11/22/80

Welcome back!

So, if you are new here, please check out the following posts, including my review of the Elliott Gould episode.

My goal is to review each of the 12 episodes of SNL that were produced by Jean Doumanian and have been the source of much intrigue and apathy for the last 40+ years.

After a much-maligned premiere episode, it seemed like the cast and staff had a lot to prove in order to regain the trust of the critics and audiences alike...

Well...

So much for that.

If you read the Saturday Night book by Hill/Weingrad, they will state how many people feel the Malcolm McDowell episode is the single worst episode in SNL's history.

Considering that book was written between 1983-1985, that claim is probably valid.

I would argue that other episodes in the years since have made a strong claim to this title (particularly a few episodes from seasons 20 and 30...and maybe season 11), but that isn't to deny that this episode is still one to brush off as not being rough.

Quite the contrary.

I still think this episode contains what is easily the worst sketch ever to appear on SNL. Any SNL aficionado out there already knows which sketch I am talking about...and I will make sure to go into when we get there. 

On top of that, there are a few sketches here that suffer from horrendous execution and an all-around laziness that seems to rely too much on cheap puns. 

It is also an episode that FEELS dark and LOOKS dark. 

(Andrew Dick on That Week in SNL: "This whole episode needs a light")

I will address this more as we go along, but I will go ahead and state now that I am prepared to have a lot of fun talking about an episode that is truly baffling and even flat out disgusting at times. It is one of those trainwrecks that you just have to see to believe.

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COLD OPENING: The Execution

If you read my last post, you will recall I did like to point out that a lot of what makes an idea work is simply how it is executed.

Here, we just get to watch an execution that has been executed in a truly bizarre way.

We are literally watching a man (Gilbert Gottfried) being led to the electric chair while being read his last rites by a priest (Charles Rocket) until he solemnly repeats over and over "I'm sorry Father" as he is getting strapped into the chair.

Just before he is about to be executed, his overly Jewish mother (Denny Dillon) comes forward to see him one last time and to tell him to "sit up straight!"

As Gottfried is electrocuted, he yells "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!".

And that's it. That's the bit.

It is so quick and presented in such a stark and matter-of-fact way that you would think I would praise it for the approach...but instead, it just leads to a quick cheap gag about a stereotypical overbearing Jewish mother telling her son to sit up straight before he is killed.

If this cold opening does anything, it sets you up exactly for the kind of material you are going to get tonight. While the last episode was mired in raunchy material aimed at shock value, this one seems more geared toward shock value that is surprisingly cold and dark.

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MALCOLM MCDOWELL'S MONOLOGUE:

After Gould's monologue embarrassingly made him handle dirty undergarments, McDowell gets spared by just having to deliver a boring story about trying to obtain a permit to remain in the US as he is a citizen of the UK.

A lot has been said by McDowell himself how much he loathed doing this episode of SNL as he found the material to be truly awful. He hated it so much that over a decade later, he told Gary Oldman to run away from the show when he was offered to host even though this was well after Doumanian was fired and the show was arguably still in the midst of its highest creative peak. 

McDowell, aside from a couple of strange roles, does do fine in this episode but instead, a lot of the worst aspects fall onto the writers and the true early signs that Doumanian was about to shove Charles Rocket down all of our throats.

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SHOW SKETCH: MUTUALLY OMAHA'S WILD KINGDOM - IN SEARCH OF THE NEGRO REPUBLICAN 

I find it interesting that Hill/Weingrad consider this to be "the one genuinely witty moment" of the McDowell episode as I actually find that not to be the case. 

I do think the premise of this sketch is interesting, but that it all comes down to the...

Say it with me...

...EXECUTION!

This sketch was written by Barry Blaustein & David Sheffield, the writing duo who would go on to serve as headwriters for season 8 and would be the driving force for pushing Eddie Murphy on air.

In fact, this sketch is the first to feature Eddie Murphy, even though he is an uncredited extra sitting on the sofa while they hired a middle-aged day player (whom no one seems to know his name) to play the "lead" of the sketch.

First off, we get Charles Rocket doing a horrendous impression of Marlin Perkins as he tells us that a lot of people of color are abandoning the liberal wasteland to be a part of the GOP. Therefore, they are going "In Search of the Negro Republican".

We then cut to a swanky party set in the Upper East Side of Manhattan (which, at that time, was arguably the closest thing to a safe neighborhood that the city had) where Joe Piscopo as Jim Fowler stalks the crowd as a waiter while Rocket annoyingly keeps chiming in with his nasal voice saying such fraught lines like "Oh he's a Negro all right, and maybe a Republican!"

This is just the beginning though because later in this episode, Rocket will get to say a truly horrendous line that will put saying "Negro" to shame.

When Piscopo does find the "Negro Republican", the sketch really drags as the actor just doesn't seem to be gelling with anything happening...and when you know about the story of Eddie Murphy and how Doumanian would not put him on the air in a prominent role, that makes this sketch seem even more ridiculous.

I don't think this sketch is bad necessarily...and it is probably a step up from some of the weaker material in the previous episode, but in short, I just think it is another prime example of material that could've used another rewrite or two...and some recasting.

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COMMERCIAL: TOBACCO GROWERS ASSOCIATION

In one of the few truly good showcases that Gilbert Gottfried got during his brief tenure, we get to see a glimpse of how well he handles the slow-burn anger used for comedic effect.

Out of all of the performers, it does seem apparent that Gottfried is one of two (along with Risley) that seems a lot greener on camera compared to the others. However, the thing about Gottfried is that when he would find a hook, he would often do well with it. 

In this sketch, he starts off in a very proper and serious tone, but it isn't until he starts to turn into an irate delivery that he comes alive. 

His whole editorial is that tobacco gets a bad rap and that it isn't the true cause of lung cancer, but rather...plot twist...the lung itself.

When he pulls out the big and ugly lung prop, that is when the sketch truly takes off.

He proceeds to practically speak at a sustained shout by the time he makes the claim that the lung traps the smoke and therefore causes its own demise.

Not until Aaron Eckhart in Thank You For Smoking has their been as staunch an advocate for smoking as this guy.

I would say this sketch works and is one of the better live-sketches of the night quite easily.

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SKETCH: SERF CITY

And now for a sketch that is not one of the better live-sketches of the night.

I find this sketch to be completely and utterly stupid...and with the way it is structured, you can clearly tell that they were trying to give Rocket all the glory while using McDowell as his straight man.

Set during medieval times, Lord Jack (Rocket) is showing one of the Earls (McDowell) his new idea for a fun game: Serfing...in which you lay a Serf on the ground, stand on their back, and then a wench tickles you with a feather.

In case I haven't made it clear, they are trying to mimic surfing.

Rocket and McDowell act out the "Serfing" while two wenches played Matthius and Risley (named Bingo and Moondoggy...and also, only of the two roles they each play tonight) tickle them...all the while, McDowell inquires about some of the rules and logistics of the game while Rocket rattles off a lot of surf lingo.

Perhaps one of the worst "jokes" in this sketch which absolutely DIES with the audience is when Rocket proclaims his name is Jack Lord, to which McDowell proclaims "It isn't. It's Lord Jack".

Now...I suppose this is supposed to somehow tie into the fact that Jack Lord had been on Hawaii Five-0 and that was enough to justify a joke in a sketch about surfing.

Rocket is annoying in this one as he truly plays the snobbish Lord too well...and then you have McDowell basically gasping with glee in falsetto as if he is playing a woman in a Monty Python sketch (and don't worry, we will actually get to see THAT later.....brace yourself now....)

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SKETCH: THE REAGANS ADOPT AMY CARTER

I am not sure who wrote this, but I wouldn't be surprised if Terry Sweeney had a hand in it.

It is certainly a premise that stretches believability a little bit and tries too hard at times to dig at the Carter family...but it does have some good moments and is basically carried by Denny Dillon's manic take on the quiet young Amy Carter.

As the Reagans, Matthius and Rocket are not particularly strong.

Matthius mostly just speaks in a drawn-out voice, while Rocket gives us possibly the worst Reagan impersonation ever which is mostly just a gravelly voice that has just a hint of the Reagan cadence.

Technically set in the near future at that point, we learn that Amy was taken in as "an act of mercy" by the Reagans after the pitiful election loss of her father.

However, as much as the sketch does show the calculating and cold nature of the Reagans (mainly Nancy), it really takes a frying pan to the Carter family and even members of his administration.

Perhaps one of the best bits of the sketch is when Amy's parents call her and she hides under the table out of fear for being made to go back to Georgia.

She yells out "I don't want to talk to them! They're losers! Tell them I took the bus!" 

Then she proceeds to call her grandmother Lillian a dope, her uncle Billy a drunk...but then the sketch overplays this by also trying to tie in Bert Lance's indictment and the cocaine usage of Hamilton Jordan  to the bashing.

In the end though, one of the best jokes of the season and also one of the best audience reactions comes at the end of the sketch when Amy tells Nancy she wants to be a Republican like everybody else, that she wants to be beautiful like her, and then she turns to Ronald: "And I wanna wear makeup...like YOU!"

Such a great slam at all of the talk that Reagan wore makeup to appear more youthful at a time when he was the oldest man to be elected president...something that has sadly since been beaten by both Trump and Biden.

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COMMERCIAL: AMERICAN MILK ASSOCIATION

In the Hill/Weingrad book, it is said that NBC VP of Programming Brandon Tartikoff strongly opposed the idea of Malcolm McDowell as host because he was not exactly a household name.

Even if he was in Caligula which had recently come out, his most famous role was Alex in A Clockwork Orange which had been released 9 years prior.

As expected, it doesn't seem too shocking that they would bring out this character for a parody...and it does remain the only time McDowell ever reprised the character in any capacity.

The sad thing is that it is for such a throwaway gag that ties into the milk that the Droogs would drink in the film...but as I learned while reading Bronwyn Douwsma's page, this was actually inspired by McDowell getting an offer to do a milk commercial in Japan. 

And much like how he turned that down, I am sure he wishes this hosting appearance hadn't happened either.

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SHORT SHOT: SHOWDOWN - KEN FRIEDMAN

Not particularly memorable, but mostly just a similar homage to something like The Dirty Dozen or The Wild Bunch.

When it comes to the short films for this season, they are often highlights or they are relatively unmemorable. There is never really much of an in-between.

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MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band performs "Hot Head"

I have to say...I am not exactly someone who would actively listen to the music of Captain Beefheart, but I still have to commend Jean Doumanian of all people for letting this music on the air. It is easily one of the most, if not THE most, transgressive musical acts to ever appear on the show.

And it is obvious that the audience is unsure of how to take them.

A lot of people have compared Beefheart to Tom Waits...but Beefheart would very much be a more abstract version of Waits. 

In the case of Waits, I would argue he would have songs that would have something of a melody whereas Beefheart's material is almost a repetitive monotone that almost sounds demonic.

It isn't my thing, but I still love the fact it got on air.

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WEEKEND UPDATE with good old Charlie Rocket....

And now for something that should probably have not been let on air, we get the sophomore installment of Charles Rocket's Weekend Update tenure and man oh man is he trying hard to put us to sleep.

His delivery is very sloppy with frequent line flubs and his very first joke (about the Mirage Hotel fire in Las Vegas) is met with complete silence from the audience.

Another joke that was met with quiet apathy was his Mary Crosby joke as this episode aired the night following the reveal that Mary Crosby's character Kristin was the one who shot J.R. on Dallas. In response, Bob Hope supposedly commented considering he was close friends with Mary's father Bing and that Bing couldn't relate because "he only shot an occasional birdie".

If you are waiting for a good joke...you may be waiting for a while.

Perhaps the most memorable segment of this installment (though not my favorite) is when Rocket interviews John Lennon and Yoko Ono as played by McDowell and...gulp...Denny Dillon.

I suppose its good they didn't try to put any kind of extensive yellowface makeup on Dillon, but it is such a major miscast. Then again, not sure Matthius or Risley would've been any better.  The whole bit with Lennon being a house husband is overly cheesy, right down to the infamous line: "Yoko is just loco about my cocoa".

This episode aired only 16 days before Lennon was killed...and for a while, McDowell felt horrible to have done this bit so close to the tragedy but it was actually discovered that both Lennon and Ono loved this bit. I suppose that's nice, at least for McDowell's sake but this was not a good segment at all.

If you would like to see that bit, here you go:

Joe Piscopo makes his first Update appearance as his sportscaster and while he is still not fully in his staccato mode yet, you can tell he is slowly getting there, and the audience is already responding well to him. I think what often works so well about these early bits he will do is he often relies on silly gimmicks and he never outstays his welcome. His confidence shines through which only makes Rocket's performances as anchor seem a hell of a lot worse.

This Update ends once again with a commentary by a Gottfried character. 

Gottfried was known for doing characters in his standup prior to adopting the iconic voice he used in such films as Beverly Hills Cop II and Aladdin. One of these characters was a psychologist named Murray Abramovitz, an agressively Jewish character with big glasses and a thick accent. The accent does sound a lot like Jerry Seinfeld if you gave him more of an older Yiddish tilt.

The audience doesn't respond as strongly to the character, but I find it interesting that they allowed Gottfried do this as he actually comments on the negative response to the first show, particularly the crass jokes towards homosexuals and Jewish people, which leads him to saying the immortal line:

"I counted four Jewish jokes and at least two of them were funny. Who writes this show? HITLER?!"

He ends with saying that the entire SNL staff needs analysis...and then Update comes to a close with Rocket's boring sign-off: "Good night and...watch out".

The dreary lifeless nature and horrible writing and Rocket's lethargy still make Update a chore to watch.

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SKETCH: GOTHIC NOVEL SHOP

I'll just go ahead and say it. This was my favorite sketch of the night.

It wasn't particularly hilarious, but it had a lot of charm and I felt it utilized McDowell in the best way (it is also the first time he seems to truly be enjoying being in a sketch). It is also the first real role to be given to Ann Risley, who does well with it but as we will soon learn, a repressed spinster is basically one of the only roles that Risley seems born to play.

Risley enters a gothic novel shop that is run by McDowell, and she is seeking a very particular kind of novel with a specific kind of romantic leading man.

McDowell does his best to service her requests, which strangely seems to be that she wants his leading man to have some kind of speech impediment. 

McDowell suggests leading men with cleft palates or harelips, but Risley really wants "a handsome bastard who stutters".

The end result is that McDowell basically does what kids today would call a "cosplay" and becomes the leading man she is looking for and they passionately embrace.

It is a little cutesy, but it works so well. Many have said this sketch is "Pythonesque" and I do agree that it shares a similarity to some of their more genteel bits...and McDowell seems to be channeling Eric Idle quite strongly in this role.

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SHORT FILM: THE 100 YEARS WAR

I feel like this quick film, which is basically just images with narration by McDowell, is simply if some slacker kid tried to write a history report about the 100 Years War and they got a British actor to read it.

All it does is take up some time in the show, but frankly dead air would've been about the same quality as this...or they could've given us an extra 30 seconds to the next sketch. 

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SKETCH: LEATHER WEATHER REPORT

Okay, no...scratch that request for 30 seconds more of this.

Thanks to Bronwyn Douwsma's extensive blog, we often get treated to writing credits, which is something that isn't normally public knowledge for most sketches as SNL only shows the full writing staff in the end credits of each episode. So in theory, you could be on the writing staff for a full year, get zero sketches on the air, and end up winning an Emmy.

Ferris Butler took credit for the sketch (along with rewrites by Billy Brown and Mel Green), and I have to admit that while I am not overly fond of this sketch, I do think Butler was among one of the more interesting writers that season...and I also admire that that he took the time to help Bronwyn in their research.

I still find this to be a bit of rough sketch both in terms of content, but also for the unfortunate performance it got on the show.

While Dillon holds herself well enough as the Dina the Leather Weather Girl, she starts off instantly with a line flub "Welcome to the Leather Report....Leather Weather Report" and then has to contend with the awkward and quiet line deliveries of Charles Rocket strapped to the weather map.

Oh...and how can one forget when the aerosol can just doesn't work?

Even if she had a better "Johnny" on the weather map and the props worked more smoothly, I really don't think this would be a good sketch.

I do have to agree that it isn't one of the worst offenders of this season like many make it about to be...especially considering the sketch we are about to discuss.

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SKETCH: COMMIE HUNTING SEASON

In November 1979, members of the American Nazi Party and the Ku Klux Klan shot and killed 5 members of the Communist Workers Party during a march in Greensboro, NC.

One year later, a grand jury (all of whom were white) acquitted those from this radical right-wing groups, but in a statement that feels eerily similar to the infamous Trump comments following the 2017 Charlottesville protests, it was said that "both sides" exchanged in inflammatory rhetoric.

This was a truly heinous and horrific event. 

So obviously, you need to do a sketch about it.

Let's give a shout-out to Larry Arnstein & David Hurwitz, the two writers who earn the title of writing the worst sketch to ever appear on SNL.

Feeling renewed and rejuvenated for the first time in two decades, a group of racist Nazi rednecks want to go shoot some commies. 

Of the group, we get Joe Piscopo who has yet to be on one of the hunts. He gets advice from Charles Rocket as to what he needs to do to succeed, such as how to spot a commie.

Now...I have already made the hyperbolic statement that this is the worst sketch to have ever been on SNL but I think one of the major factors of that claim stems from one line uttered by Rocket.

"Well hell Jim-Bob, alls you got to do is shoot yourself a Jew or a n*gger. Chances are better than even you'll be shooting a commie, anywho."

This line is followed by a deadly silence as it seems as if they were waiting for the character played by McDowell to enter, but it is also clear...they were expecting this to get a laugh from the audience.

Instead...it is nothing but pure awkward tension.

And then...Piscopo's character accidentally shoots and kills McDowell, who was basically the leader of the group. They disband and the sketch ends.

On one hand, a Nazi dying is always a delight...but...WHAT EXACTLY WAS THE POINT IN THIS?!

I keep going on and on about the importance of execution with writing, but I am not even sure you could truly take something from this subject matter and make it work. 

I am not saying that every sketch on SNL necessarily has to be a laugh riot. Great character pieces filled with charm and pathos can often be some of the best sketches that show has ever offered...but this one is something else entirely.

It is so dark and dreary and offers no kind of value. It seems like it wants to come off as some kind of profound political satire, and instead just becomes this dark void of nothing. 

There are times where I almost wish I could see a sketch being developed behind the scenes to see how people responded to it. I would absolutely LOVE to hear about how people reacted to this text and what made them think it was actually viable to put on air.

I suppose you are in luck...because due to the powers of YouTube and the rather brazen nature of whomever is running SNL's social media these days, this sketch was uploaded to their channel.

Take a look at the link above if you want to see SNL at its worst.

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FILM: The Rocket Report - CHARLES ROCKET ON 5TH AVE

One has to wonder what made them choose to put the first official Rocket Report this late in the show...but I suppose we should just accept it because we need the frivolous laughs after the complete dumpster fire we just witnessed.

The Rocket Report segments were the closest thing that Rocket had to consistency during his brief tenure. The success of these films clearly show that Rocket had a charisma that was understandable as to why Doumanian loved him so much...and yet, a lot of what makes these films work are the people he interacts with.

This premise is more basic as he seemingly walks up and down 5th Avenue from the east end of 30 Rock and plans to just walk up to strangers and ask them random questions.

Perhaps the best bit is when he walks up to a charming elderly man dressed in a nice suit and asks "You're on drugs right now?" which catches him off guard, but he seems quietly game for the moment.

When Rocket asks him "What gives you that look? That sorta drug takers look?" The man replies "Probably because I am very happy".

It is a nice little diversion after the crater we just tried to climb out of...but I am sorry to say we are about to get pushed back down into crater.

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SKETCH: JACK THE STRIPPER

In the Gothic Novel Shop sketch that I rather liked from earlier, I mentioned that Malcolm McDowell did rather well in that Pythonesque sketch, and he was reminiscent of the performing style of Eric Idle.

Here - McDowell is doing drag and in the Python tradition, it is one of those that is simply a man in a dress and wig and he has an obnoxious falsetto voice. 

Keeping the episode's theme of dark and dreary, this sketch is set on a London street at night complete with fog because why not make everything a lot harder to see.

Gilbert Gottfried is also there in drag and he is appalled when a man dressed in royal clothes starts to perform a striptease in front of him.

It is amusing that Gottfried's female voice actually sounds a lot like his iconic squaking voice but with a British falsetto.

McDowell and Denny Dillon enter as Dame Lydia Snoot and Dr. Woofta respectively...not that anything in this sketch deserves to be called out with any respect, but whatever.

They are on a mission to find out the true identity of Jack the Stripper.

Now...let's take a moment to talk about that pun, shall we?

Someone in that writers room was like "We have Malcolm McDowell hosting this week. We should do a lot of sketches focused on British themes! Who are some very well known British figures?"

Someone chimes in: "Well...what if we do a sketch about Jack the Ripper?"

Another person: "Wait...I got it...what if we make it modern day and called him Jack the Stripper".

Jean Doumanian: "Am I witnessing comedy gods developing in front of me? I can barely drink my vegetable smoothie!"

Another writer: "What if we make the stripper Prince Charles?"

The writer Sean Kelly: "What does that have to do with anything?"

Jean Doumanian: "You get the FUCK out of my office! You don't know comedy!"

*Shout out to Sean Kelly, who was one of the first writers to get the axe after this episode*

Anyways...this is another sketch where I do suspect they could've gotten more out of it if they tried to focus solely on either the concept of then Prince Charles being the stripper or if they did something based around Piscopo's random Swedish stripper.

Either way - while not the most disastrous sketch ever on the show like Hill/Weingrad claimed in their book, I would still say it is a pretty horrible sketch that would normally be the worst sketch in most episodes.

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MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band perform "Ashtray Heart"

Then 20 year old actor Radames Pera was in the audience that night and dubbed this song to be "shit" on live TV...and you can clearly hear his voice at the end of the song as the audience is clearly not sure how to respond to it. However, the Magic of the Magic Band consumed him as the night went on and at the after party, he realized he actually loved what they were doing.

My thoughts still stand. It isn't my thing...but I admire the uniqueness and I appreciate that it got on the air.

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SHORT FILM: Someone is in My Apartment - Mitchell Kriegman

Kriegman is back again. While this one isn't as effective as his piece in the previous episode, I do feel like this genteel and cerebral style is much welcomed after the content we got all evening. 

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COMMERCIAL: THE WINE CELLAR

Much like last week, we end on yet another solo Denny Dillon piece...and considering she dominated tonight, I am not sure needed the extra screentime. 

Years ago, Comedy Central would air full length SNL episodes and these were often the only time that the 6th season were seen in repeated viewings on TV. I do recall seeing some of these episodes way back in the 90s, but I also remember watching reruns of SCTV. On that show, they did a bit called Dom Perignon: The Beer of Imported Champagnes.

I almost feel like what Dillon is trying to go for here is something similar but it doesn't quite take off. 

Although, as someone who grew up outside of Pittsburgh, I do love the idea of The Iron City having a wine...or as she calls it "Football wine".

A silly idea about learning to adapt to cheap wine, but I guess it is fine for what it is.

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GOODNIGHTS:

And we all breath a sigh of relief...

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FINAL THOUGHTS:

After this episode aired, Doumanian essentially lost any faith that anyone had left in here. 

Well Brandon Tartikoff expressed hope for growth after the response to the first episode, he quickly realized that the show was going in the wrong direction.

His criticisms were valid as he felt that the comedy had "no joy in it" and that the show felt so dark. Reportedly, Doumanian was stunned at how intensely Tartikoff expressed this concern as she felt the episode was not that bad...which did not help her case with Tartikoff.

I read about this episode before I ever actually saw it, and I was amazed at how much his response was not an exaggeration once I did obtain a full copy.

This second outing is truly what did the season in, because I do have to think that they might have had an easier hill to climb had it not been for the truly dire quality of the material they dished out. 

Not to blow my wad ahead of time but the next episode, hosted by Triple Crown of Acting winner Ellen Burstyn, is actually something of a marked improvement over both of the episodes we have discussed and yet...it did nothing to affect the discourse in a positive way.

Only two sketches and a pre-tape truly shined as being solid moments for the evening...but I still think that any true SNL fan needs to seek out this episode.

Charles Rocket is pushed so hard as the MVP for the episode, but basically fails at every sketch except for his own pre-tape.

Denny Dillon is also used excessively but is far more palatable.

Risley and Matthius are underused, but we still barely have a handle on Risley. The next episode will change that and it will only make us a little more confused as to how we should take her.

Piscopo shows confidence in brief moments, but he too will also get a major breakout moment in the next episode.

Gottfried does well with his Tobacco spokesperson sketch, but honestly, the gradual decline in his screentime and his energy is already in process.

Next week is when we get the official debut of Eddie Murphy in a speaking role...and I will make sure to give that the attention it deserves.

And now if you'll excuse me, I need a drink...