Courtesy YouTube/Fox
"If keeping a clean house is a crime, then let me be guilty!"
"(whispers to other woman) Guilty!"
For today's viewing, I tried to arrange the sketches to look like an average SNL episode. The show had only three female hosts in 1988, Justine Bateman, Demi Moore and Melanie Griffith. Justine and Melanie were definitely plugging a movie (Satisfaction and Working Girl, respectively) and I think Demi was a holdover from when she would have been plugging a movie (The Seventh Sign). If not for that year's writers strike, there would have been at least one more female host: Gilda Radner. Talk about what could have beens ...
Also, while I like the gif I have, I wish I could have worked with SNL's 1988-90 credits, which had a great image of Nora Dunn, Jan Hooks and Victoria Jackson laughing together in the back of a car. I know that according to show lore, Nora and Jan didn't get along with Victoria, but you'd never guess from the credits.
The Oprah Winfrey (Jan) Show -- She's 67 pounds lighter, but still tempted by food.
-- It's interesting to hear the audience's "Wait, is she supposed to be ...? ... She is!" reaction at the start of the sketch. This aired four days after the real Oprah infamously wheeled out 67 pounds of animal fat to show off just how much she had lost from dieting. Oprah now regrets having done it and it's possible that if she were alive today, Jan (neither the first white person to wear blackface on SNL nor the last) might feel similar about this sketch.
-- Problematic execution aside, this has some great visuals. Oprah's hallucinations include a turkey over the face of her stage manager (Kevin Nealon), a panel of guests whose heads have been replaced by a burger (voice of Phil Hartman), pancakes (voice of Nora Dunn) and a cake (voice of Dana Carvey) and an audience of "french fries."
-- "My boyfriend Steadman said, 'Oprah, either take it off you, or get it off me.'"
-- Nora's character, a housewife leading a coalition of parents victimized by their children, wears a piece of SNL history. The "Bobbi Mohan-Culp dress" was most commonly worn by Ana Gasteyer in the Culp medley sketches and dates back to at least 1982, when it was worn by Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
-- Dana voices two characters in this sketch. As Oprah's director, he delivers "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!" Jan would co-deliver the line two episodes later, as Ivana Trump alongside Donald (Phil).
Justine Bateman's monologue -- She recalls a unique childhood valentine before sharing St. Valentine's story.
-- This was more cute than anything. Justine was given a frog, which she claims she's still hung onto. Hanging in her room, it now looks like a dried pepper that you see in the window of a Mexican restaurant. Justine uses the same comparison when describing how St. Valentine looked after being tortured. Not much of a payoff, but Justine was likable.
-- This episode originally aired on Feb. 13, 1988, the day after Satisfaction opened. That same day, my aunt and uncle's engagement announcement ran in the paper. They're also my godparents and have been around all these years, so this monologue was an easy sentimental pick.
-- I liked that G.E. Smith and the band played "I Only Have Eyes For You" under the story.
Compulsion -- The world's most indulgent disinfectant, by Calvin Kleen.
-- An all-time classic. Jan, as the model living in "immaculate madness," is well-matched by spokesman Phil, Dana as the lover who threatens to overshadow the spokesman and Nora as a bitchy fellow model.
-- *Jan's tending to spilled wine* "A little club soda will get that out." "Liar!"
-- I cheated to include this sketch, which first aired in 1987 but was repeated early in 1988.
The Pat Stevens (Nora) Show -- She's got more rapport with Elizabeth Dole (Jan) than Barbara Bush (Phil).
-- If nothing else, this sketch has a place in the history book for including Phil's first appearance as Barbara Bush. He played her three times in under a year -- twice in Pat Stevens Show sketches -- then one last time in 1992. Compare that to the years of diminishing returns from Kate McKinnon as various men in politics.
-- The opening bit with Pat using a Vogue for weight training made me smile, but things really got cooking with the non-objective interview.
-- "Barbara ... well. I’d like to congratulate George on his starling victory in New Hampshire. He’s doing well in the south. He’s had a wonderful reign as vice president. Tell me ... are you proud of your son?"
"... Pat, George is not my son, he’s my husband."
"Oh, heavens! I guess I dropped a fly in your soup! Well, she looks so much older, I hardly think it’s my faux pas!"
Sitcom Actress -- Susan (Jan) loses an ashamed fiance (Phil), returns to her pimp-like agent (Carl Weathers)
-- A clever sketch with funny details. Susan's roles have included playing crazy neighbors and girlfriends. She lied and claimed to be a flight attendant. Paul's upset that Susan acts on shows recorded on tape.
-- Jan once again gives a great performance. The best moment involves Susan complaining about producers calling the shots during auditions, wanting her to read lines slower, faster, alone, with Leonard, etc.
-- Victoria Jackson makes her first appearance in this batch, as a bar patron who recognizes Susan from TV. I tried for a near-even amount of sketches featuring all three of SNL's late '80s female cast members, but unfortunately, I couldn't find two of them that I watched to watch, "Raspberry Response" and "The Thumper Family." The former had Victoria playing Kevin Kline's wife, the latter had Jan and Victoria playing mom and sister to Matthew Broderick.
First Guardian MetroCard -- Operator (Kevin) and customer (Melanie Griffith) recall how he took interest in her card usage.
-- The lesser-known precursor to a classic sketch between Phil and Roseanne ("She gave me several options."), this had some good writing and performances. It picks up once the dad figure-daughter figure dynamic between Kevin and Melanie is apparent. He questions what she spends her money on ($80 for cashmere socks, a Christmas present to the real father she barely sees) and makes threats to keep her in line.
-- "I said I don't care what the other banks do. I assured her that with the touch of one button, I could obliterate her credit altogether, and she wouldn't have a merry Christmas for a very, very long time. It was up to her." "I weighed the options and we decided that I could return the socks. And it gave me a good feeling. It was like living with my father all over again."
Laurie Has a Story -- Laurie Metcalf is unable to fully tell dinner party hostess Catherine O'Hara and guests her anecdote involving a Winnebago and margaritas.
-- A filmed piece, one featuring two women whose paths may have briefly crossed at SNL in 1981.
-- Laurie appeared in the first episode produced by Dick Ebersol. Her one-and-only sketch was Weekend Update, where she did a straight bit asking citizens if they, like Jimmy Stewart, would go on record as willing to take a bullet for the president. Catherine was originally slated to join Dick's cast, but backed out. Catherine has denied the folklore that she was scared off SNL after witnessing Michael O'Donoghue's "The show needs more DANGER" rant and spray paint session.
-- This originally aired on Oct. 15, 1988, as part of the Matthew Broderick episode. Three days later, Roseanne premiered.
-- As for the film itself, it's got a relatable premise, a good performance by Laurie and some amusingly cruel details, like one guest having a better anecdote (she saw Andy Warhol at the place Laurie was at) or a guest having to leave the party because he was choking. This prompts another guest to share his story about choking at the White House.
-- This concluded a two-year run of SNL airing short films from an assortment of directors. The best remembered of the bunch might be the one that introduced Bob Roberts (Tim Robbins). Two months after "Story" aired, SNL revived the "Schiller's Reel" series of films written and directed by Tom Schiller.
Sex Life -- Bob and Jackie (John Larroquette and Victoria) overshare while dining with Bill and Cheryl (Phil and Nora).
-- Larroquette's episode aired the week after Matthew Broderick's, which featured the classic "Nude Beach" sketch. In 1988, as part of continued cost-cutting, NBC got rid of its censor's office. Shows were evidently expected to self-govern. I suspect that this sketch was written to take advantage of the new freedom. Then again, the idea might have been pitched back in the '70s. The sketch ends in a somewhat expected fashion. Bob and Jackie are chastised, they reveal that sex is the only form of intimacy they're currently capable of, she leaves in humiliation, he goes after her and soon after, everyone can hear them going at it again.
-- "Bill and I broke a bed once." "A bed, huh? Last week we broke a sink." "Hell, I broke a bed once masturbating." "Of course, I was watching."
Weekend Update with Dennis Miller -- He gives a postmortem on the presidential election, interviews Imelda Marcos (Nora) and welcomes Victoria to sing and dance about getting rid of chronic depression.
-- Dennis' joke about 60 percent of SNL viewers getting their news from Weekend Update plays interestingly in 2021, when SNL's in kind of a damned-if-they-do, damned-if-they-don't situation regarding politics. The show seems to feel that not devoting so much attention to the White House, etc. would be an admission of obsolescence. Who doesn't enjoy sketch comedy created from the perspective of "because we have to"?
-- While I'm on the soapbox, I'll again acknowledge problematic casting, in this case Nora as Imelda. That said, I laughed at Dennis responding to the initial downplaying of her wealth. "Oh, come on, Mrs. Howell! Are we supposed to think that you and Thurston are helping the Professor make radio headphones out of coconut shells?" I also laughed at Imelda admitting she and Ferdinand had a lot of money. "I knew how to party. I was the party! I was hot! I could disco all night long and look like a million bucks the next day!"
-- Sadly, my memory of Victoria's song and dance was better than the actual thing. I liked the concept, and it's always funny to see Dennis responding to one of Victoria's bits. Here, he gives her a $5 while she dances. But the lyrics were hard to understand and Victoria didn't have that good of a voice.
Sweeney Sisters -- Mistaken for prostitutes on Christmas Eve, Candy (Jan) and Liz (Nora) befriend then entertain a cell of working girls including Doreen (Melanie Griffith).
-- The penultimate Sweeney Sisters sketch, this was once again carried by Jan and Nora's chemistry. I did laugh at Candy misunderstanding when Doreen figures the sisters are good enough to work in Vegas.
-- Candy and Liz's medley begins with prison-related songs, including "Release Me," "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree," "Chain of Fools" "Chain Gang" and "Think." It segues to holiday stuff. Candy had a bad year, including the time "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus." The sisters also make sure to remind Doreen, "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" before concluding with "The Trolley Song."
-- For the third consecutive year, a Sweeney Sisters sketch aired as part of SNL's Christmas episode and included the host. In 1986, it was William Shatner. In 1987, it was Paul Simon. The sisters were apparently retired by December 1989, when Andie MacDowell hosted. And honestly, the last sketch, with Mary Tyler Moore as older sister Audrey, was the perfect one to go out with.
-- This sketch aired two weeks after the Dec. 3, 1988 episode hosted by Danny DeVito. In it, Jan "made history" by playing four sex workers (well, three and Jessica Hahn) in one episode. As she said in the SNL 15th Anniversary Special, "I broke the previous record of three, held by myself and Buck Henry."
Learning to Feel -- Dr. Denise Venetti, PhD (Nora) advises guests to "look at yourself."
-- I watched the first installment of a sketch that aired three times total in 1988. Besides Denise, the only other recurring character was Neil Simmons (Jon Lovitz). The first time around, he fears and feels like he's constantly falling. Denise's other patients are a woman convinced she's ugly (Victoria) and a couple split on having children (Jan and Phil).
-- I'm curious if Nora is imitating a specific NYC-area TV personality. At the same time, I'm not sure if knowledge of the inspiration would really improve my thoughts on the sketch.
Carbon Paper -- It's messy, but it works in a pinch when (Victoria) only has a few minutes to make copies and all the other office technology isn't available.
-- "Come back ... to carbon paper. Please? We're dying out here."
The Garden -- A hairstylist (Nora) has taken to decoupaging the deceased in this film.
-- Interesting credits. "A film by Nora Dunn" is followed by "Directed by Tom Radtke." Pseudonym?
-- This wasn't too bad. The laughs came from the unique situation (which began when Nora's husband Gleason was hit by a truck), Nora's characterization (quirky but apparently harmless), one customer having died after receiving the works ("There was no question she was ready to meet her maker.") and the real estate agent who wants to evict Nora.
-- "There's beauty and there is death. And even in death, there is beauty."
The Cop and the Prostitute -- Jerry (Judge Reinhold) and Chrissy (Victoria) banter about being a two-career couple in this sitcom.
-- Hey, It's 1988!: The show is airing on FOX. Remember, this was before the network gained respectability and wider audiences in the '90s.
-- Kind of a one joke premise, but Judge and Victoria have okay chemistry and I liked lines like Jerry not appreciating that Chrissy's boss acts like he owns her. Good ending lines, too, of the couple each promising to be safe on the job. "I always am."
Love is a Dream -- "(Jan) and (Phil) share a romantic fantasy"
-- Written and directed by Tom Schiller.
-- The first time I saw this was on SNL's 25th anniversary special in 1999. Phil Hartman had been dead for over a year, but the hurt was still clearly strong among his cast mates, including Jon Lovitz and Jan Hooks.
Courtesy YouTube
-- If you haven't read Jan's eulogy for Phil, here it is. "Dream" would be re-aired on SNL in 2014, following Jan's death.
-- In all honesty, I didn't initially realize that Phil and Jan were lip syncing to Bing Crosby and Joan Fontaine's voices. I just thought they were just that good.
-- The whole sketch is an emotional experience, but the ending takes the cake. I couldn't find or make a gif of it, so here's some screen grabs.
Courtesy One SNL a Day/NBCUniversal/Broadway Video
Thoughts:
-- "President-elect George Bush this week finally owned up and admitted that the only reason he chose Dan Quayle as his running mate was to guarantee that no one would attempt to assassinate him in the next four years. 'This guy is a walking, breathing bullet-proof vest,' said Bush."
-- Awards Watch: Saturday Night Live won the Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program for 1988-89, over the likes of The Tracey Ullman Show, Late Night with David Letterman (specifically his seventh anniversary special), Not Necessarily the News and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. The Tracey Ullman Show, however, won the variety, music or comedy program honor.
-- Hey, It's 1988!: Bob, Jackie, Bill and Cheryl have great seats to The Phantom of the Opera.
-- Castmember Count: Phil's in 10, followed by Nora in eight, Jan in seven, Victoria in six, Kevin in four, Jon and Dana in two and Dennis in one.
-- "She was an incandescent angel, dancing on the edge of a ritual that was both innocent and jejune."
-- Next: St. Elsewhere's last two episodes and the China Beach pilot. On deck: Designing Women.
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