Spring Break
Pop Culture
by Marianna Faynshteyn
Staff Writer
Arts | 10/28/08
Posted online at 3:13 AM EST on 10/28/08
The most recent Saturday Night Live reached a milestone, but it was not one that is represented in ratings, anniversaries or celebrities-this achievement was far more subtle. This past Saturday, SNL managed to showcase a lesser-known (but brilliant) celebrity, devise several political sketches without the crutch of Tina Fey's dead-on Sarah Palin, coordinate a weekend update sans Amy Poehler (who happened to be in labor at the time) and did it all while being funny!
Jon Hamm, the lead in one of the best television dramas airing at the moment (Mad Men), took to the stage to perform a monologue with no gimmicks and no help from any SNL castmates and managed to hold his own while describing the underrated and underviewed program, citing the 1960s, advertising and dancing ... with stars.
Much-missed SNL alum Maya Rudolph made a cameo as Michelle Obama in a political promo-turned-variety show in which she, Barack, Joe Biden, Bill Clinton and even the ghost of John F. Kennedy danced and sang before capping off the sketch with an emphatic "Solid as Barack" to the tune of "Solid as a Rock."
A personal favorite was the Vincent Price Halloween Special, a seasonal gift that provides plenty of camp and old Hollywood impersonations. Kristen Wiig proved, as she has in past seasons, her SNL worth with her uproarious Norma Desmond impression. Jon Hamm provided the inappropriate, old-fashioned dirty jokes as the original Humbert Humbert, Mr. James Mason.
With no Amy Poehler, Seth Myers was left to man the Weekend Update booth alone, and he proved that he could deliver funny news as well as past solo SNL Weekend Updaters, Kevin Nealon and Norm McDonald. Granted, Amy Poehler's absence was felt, a fact that the cast made light of by singing a ballad to the baby-bearing star while signing off.
As the show's credits rolled, I felt proud of the show I once religiously tuned in to, considering my next week's schedule and whether there was room for the late night slot to pay homage to SNL the way I used to.
Jon Hamm, the lead in one of the best television dramas airing at the moment (Mad Men), took to the stage to perform a monologue with no gimmicks and no help from any SNL castmates and managed to hold his own while describing the underrated and underviewed program, citing the 1960s, advertising and dancing ... with stars.
Much-missed SNL alum Maya Rudolph made a cameo as Michelle Obama in a political promo-turned-variety show in which she, Barack, Joe Biden, Bill Clinton and even the ghost of John F. Kennedy danced and sang before capping off the sketch with an emphatic "Solid as Barack" to the tune of "Solid as a Rock."
A personal favorite was the Vincent Price Halloween Special, a seasonal gift that provides plenty of camp and old Hollywood impersonations. Kristen Wiig proved, as she has in past seasons, her SNL worth with her uproarious Norma Desmond impression. Jon Hamm provided the inappropriate, old-fashioned dirty jokes as the original Humbert Humbert, Mr. James Mason.
With no Amy Poehler, Seth Myers was left to man the Weekend Update booth alone, and he proved that he could deliver funny news as well as past solo SNL Weekend Updaters, Kevin Nealon and Norm McDonald. Granted, Amy Poehler's absence was felt, a fact that the cast made light of by singing a ballad to the baby-bearing star while signing off.
As the show's credits rolled, I felt proud of the show I once religiously tuned in to, considering my next week's schedule and whether there was room for the late night slot to pay homage to SNL the way I used to.
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