Saturday Night Live Season 1

Saturday Night Live - Season 1

1975 • 24 episodes

6.5
24 episodes
Oct 11, 1975

About this season

The first season of Saturday Night Live, the weekly late-night 90-minute American sketch comedy/variety show on NBC, aired during the 1975–1976 television season. Saturday Night Live premiered on October 11, 1975 and consisted of a total of 24 episodes, the last of which aired on July 31, 1976. In 1974, NBC Tonight Show host Johnny Carson requested that the weekend broadcasts of "Best of Carson" come to an end, so that Carson could take two weeknights off and NBC would thus air those repeats on those nights rather than feed them to affiliates for broadcast on either Saturdays or Sundays. Given Carson's undisputed status as the dean of late-night television, NBC heard his request as an ultimatum, fearing he might use the issue as grounds to defect to either ABC or CBS. To fill the gap, the network drew up some ideas and brought in Dick Ebersol – a protégé of legendary ABC Sports president Roone Arledge – to develop a 90-minute late-night variety show. Ebersol's first order of business was hiring a young Canadian producer named Lorne Michaels to be the show-runner.

Episodes

Seasons & Episodes

24 episodes
George Carlin with Janis Ian and Billy Preston
Episode 1

George Carlin with Janis Ian and Billy Preston

Episode 1 • Oct 11, 1975

Live from New York, It's...George Carlin! Sketches Include: Wolverines, New Dad Insurance, The Courtroom, Victims of Shark Bite, Jamitol, Triopenin, Jim Henson's Muppets, Bee Hospital, Academy of Better Careers, Show Us Your Guns, Trojan Horse Home Security, Triple-Trac

7.9
65m
Paul Simon with Randy Newman, Phoebe Snow, and Art Garfunkel
Episode 2

Paul Simon with Randy Newman, Phoebe Snow, and Art Garfunkel

Episode 2 • Oct 18, 1975

Live from New York, It's...Paul Simon! Sketches Include: The Berkeley Collection, Bees, Jim Henson's Muppets, Try-Hard 1-11

5.4
66m
Rob Reiner
Episode 3

Rob Reiner

Episode 3 • Oct 25, 1975

Live from New York, it's...Rob Reiner! Sketches Include: National Pancreas Association, Fashion Don'ts, Golden Needles, Dangerous But Inept, Felina Cat Food, Middle American Van Lines, Musical Performance (Joe Cocker), Jim Henson's Muppets, Drooler's Anti-Defamation League, Square Dance, Mark Hampton and Denny Dillon, What Gilda Ate, Bees

7.0
65m
Candice Bergen with Esther Phillips
Episode 4

Candice Bergen with Esther Phillips

Episode 4 • Nov 08, 1975

Live from New York, It's...Candice Bergen Sketches include: Ambassador Training Institute, CIA Department of Records, Jaws II, Long Distance, Chanel, Feminine Talk, Midnight Probe, Crank Call, Jim Henson's Muppets, Irk The Turk, Black Perspective, Pong

7.8
64m
Robert Klein with ABBA and Loudon Wainwright III
Episode 5

Robert Klein with ABBA and Loudon Wainwright III

Episode 5 • Nov 15, 1975

Live from New York, It's...Robert Klein Sketches include: Pong, Minute Mystery, Bee Centennial Minute, Greg Allman How's Your Love Life?, Tough Director, Jamitol, Exterminators, Fireman, Jim Henson's Muppets, K-Put Price-Is-Rite Stamp Gun, Looks At Books, I Can't Stop My Leg

6.6
66m
Lily Tomlin
Episode 6

Lily Tomlin

Episode 6 • Nov 22, 1975

Live from New York, it's...Lily Tomlin Sketches Include: Beethoven Part 1, Jaws III, Bell-Hop, Edith Ann Skates, Beethoven Part 2, Spud Beer, Patty, Jim Henson's Muppets, Beethoven Part 3, Hard Hats, Speed, Margo's Dance Palace

7.0
64m
Richard Pryor with Gil Scott-Heron
Episode 7

Richard Pryor with Gil Scott-Heron

Episode 7 • Dec 13, 1975

Live From New York, it's...Richard Pryor! Sketches Include: Samurai Hotel, Looks At Books, Line-Up #1, Word Association, Pong, They're Taking Over, Line-Up #2, L-Pill, Jim Henson's Muppets, Line-Up #3, Exorcist II, Assassination

7.2
66m
Candice Bergen with Martha Reeves and The Stylistics
Episode 8

Candice Bergen with Martha Reeves and The Stylistics

Episode 8 • Dec 20, 1975

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include-- Fireside Chat with Gerald Ford, "Mel's Char Palace", "What Gilda Ate", Billy is guilty of murder, Teddy the Elf, "The Fritzie Kringle Show", "Minute Mystery", Candice and the cast perform 'Winter Wonderland', The Bees Christmas Party, Homeward Bound.

6.5
67m
Elliott Gould with Anne Murray
Episode 9

Elliott Gould with Anne Murray

Episode 9 • Jan 10, 1976

Live from New York, it's... Chevy Chase Sketches include "The Dead String Quartet," "Interior Demolitionists," "Vito Corleone in Therapy," "The Killer Bees," "Birthright", "Gilda and Elliot," "New Shimmer," The Muppets, "Play Misty for Me" (film), "Jamitol," "Try-Hard 1-11," and "Powwow With the Press" (stand-up). Anne Murray performed "Long Distance Call" and "Boogie With You."

6.8
67m
Buck Henry with Bill Withers and Toni Basil
Episode 10

Buck Henry with Bill Withers and Toni Basil

Episode 10 • Jan 17, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include--Suicide Prevention, "Samurai Deli", Operation Stumblebum, "Citizen Kane II", King Bee(the Blues Brothers), Auto mechanic tells bedtime story, "Presidential Foreplay", Chevy misuses a joint, The Constipated Man, The Muppets and the Japanese sex Device.

6.7
67m
Peter Cook & Dudley Moore with Neil Sedaka
Episode 11

Peter Cook & Dudley Moore with Neil Sedaka

Episode 11 • Jan 24, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include-- Bomb Squad, Prisoner Auditions, "Don Pardo's Holiday on A Elevator", "Table Talk", "Backstage Banter", Sonny and Cher, The Baby Jesus, Chevy talks to Angola's roommate, The Muppets.

6.2
67m
Dick Cavett with Jimmy Cliff
Episode 12

Dick Cavett with Jimmy Cliff

Episode 12 • Jan 31, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include--Voodoo on Chevy Chase, Alcohol and Firearms, Lowell Brock of H&R Brock, "Looks at Books", Dick Cavett's School of Hydroplane Operation, Dance To The Nation, "The Apple Follies", Our Town.

6.3
67m
Peter Boyle with Al Jarreau
Episode 13

Peter Boyle with Al Jarreau

Episode 13 • Feb 14, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include "The Valentine's Day Massacre," "Samurai Divorce Court," "Jason and Sunshine," "The Corrida." "All Pro Wrestling," "Remembering of Things Past", "Dueling Brandos," "A Home Movie" (film), and "The Orgy." Al Jarreau performs "We'll Get By."

7.0
67m
Desi Arnaz with Desi Arnaz Jr.
Episode 14

Desi Arnaz with Desi Arnaz Jr.

Episode 14 • Feb 21, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include-- Gerald Ford gives a word association, Literary Recital, Very White(Chevy Chase)sings unsoulful songs, "The Failed Pilots of I Love Lucy", Cuban accupunture, Lucille Ball talks about Desi's book, Bisexual Minute.

6.3
67m
Jill Clayburgh with Leon Redbone
Episode 15

Jill Clayburgh with Leon Redbone

Episode 15 • Feb 28, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include-- No More Falls, "Great Moments in Herstory", White Guilt Relief Fund, Inquisitive Girlfriend, Grable and Lombard, Car Yummies, Paying the Milkman, Jill Carson Guidance Counselor!, Andy Kaufman sings "Old Macdonald", "The Mr. Bill Show".

6.3
67m
Anthony Perkins with Betty Carter
Episode 16

Anthony Perkins with Betty Carter

Episode 16 • Mar 13, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include--'SNL is not ad-libbed' says Chevy Chase, A President's View on Marijuana, Dominatrix Cleaning Tips, "Norman Bates School of Hotel Management", Low-budget Movie Trailers, Sherry protest her B(ee), Policemen Dance Party, "Hello Dolly".

6.7
67m
Ron Nessen with the Patti Smith Group
Episode 17

Ron Nessen with the Patti Smith Group

Episode 17 • Apr 17, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Gerald Ford Sketches include-- "The Dead String Quartet", Super Bass-O-Matic 76, An Oval Office, David Eisenhower is Anti-Nixon, Thomas Jefferson denies slavery, The New Stoner Volunteer Army, Catherine the Great, Disgusting Jam, Autumm Fizz--The Carbonated Douche, "Tomorrow With Tom Snyder".

7.7
67m
Raquel Welch with Phoebe Snow and John Sebastian
Episode 18

Raquel Welch with Phoebe Snow and John Sebastian

Episode 18 • Apr 24, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include-- "Get to the fall Chevy!", Purina Rat Chow, Joseph Franklin's 10-letter Metric Alphabet, "The Claudine Longet Ski Invitational", "One Flew Over The Hornest Nest", Chevy tries to convince Raquel to take off her shirt, Baba Wawa, Bisexual Moment, The Muppets are finished on SNL.

6.3
67m
Madeline Kahn with Carly Simon
Episode 19

Madeline Kahn with Carly Simon

Episode 19 • May 08, 1976

Live from New York, it's Chevy Chase! Sketches are "Ronald Reagan's Jam Session," Not for Ladies Only, Wilderness Comedian, "Slumber Party," Bride of Frankenstein, "Fondue Pots for Namibia," "The Muppets Can Reunite the Beatles," New York's My Home (film), "Super Absordent Dry Hose," and "The Final Days." Carly Simon performs You're So Vain.

6.5
67m
Dyan Cannon with Leon & Mary Russell
Episode 20

Dyan Cannon with Leon & Mary Russell

Episode 20 • May 15, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include--Chevy has to do the fall again, "Hearing Test," "The Adulterer," "Vacationland Adventure", "Minister with Hiccups," "Dyan Cannon's Dream," "Orange Juice," "The Bathwater of The Stars", "Johnny Angel", "Cresk Toothpaste,"" and "The Hubcap Thief" (film). Leon Russell and Joe Cocker (Belushi) perform "Daylight".

5.3
67m
Buck Henry with Gordon Lightfoot
Episode 21

Buck Henry with Gordon Lightfoot

Episode 21 • May 22, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include--Emmy winner Chevy tries to get Laraine todo the fall, Samurai Tailor, "Talk Back!", "Dell Stator's Toad Ranch Resturaunt", "Looks at Books", The Crowd Audition, Peter Lemon Moodring, "Not For Ladies Only", Lorne Micheals offer to the Beatles.

6.7
67m
Elliott Gould with Leon Redbone and Harlan Collins & Joyce Everson
Episode 22

Elliott Gould with Leon Redbone and Harlan Collins & Joyce Everson

Episode 22 • May 29, 1976

Sketches include "Wax Museum," "Phone Operator Academy," "European Poker Player," "Babs's Uvula," "The Last Voyage of the Starship Enterprise," "The Bee Honeymooners," "Shirley Temple Black," "Vibramatic," "Uncle Charlie's School," and "Show Us Your Guns." Leon Redbone performed "Shine On Harvest Moon."

6.3
67m
Louise Lasser with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band
Episode 23

Louise Lasser with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band

Episode 23 • Jul 24, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include--Belushi thinks Chevy has a big head, Louise Lasser locks herself dressing room, General "V.D" Amin, Sven and Inger, John Belushi tries to sell his clothes, Ode to Television, Louise apologizes to her dog, Jimmy Carter talks about the campagin.

3.0
67m
Kris Kristofferson with Rita Coolidge
Episode 24

Kris Kristofferson with Rita Coolidge

Episode 24 • Jul 31, 1976

Live from New York, It's...Chevy Chase Sketches include--Kristofferson signs "Help Me Make it Through The Night", new SNL employer Sherry, Samurai General Practitioner, the Great White Athelete, Gerald Ford dosent want to talk about local issues, "Talk Country", My Blind Date is My Gynocologist, Andrew Young is a Suckup, Police State, "Waiting For Don Pardo".

6.3
67m