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Saturday Night Live season 4

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Saturday Night Live
Season 4
The title card for the fourth season of Saturday Night Live.
Starring
No. of episodes20
Release
Original networkNBC
Original releaseOctober 7, 1978 (1978-10-07) –
May 26, 1979 (1979-05-26)
Season chronology
← Previous
season 3
Next →
season 5
List of episodes

The fourth season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC between October 7, 1978, and May 26, 1979.

The season 4 DVD was released on December 2, 2008.

Cast

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The entire cast from the previous season returned. The only change was Bill Murray's joining Jane Curtin as co-anchor for Weekend Update, replacing Dan Aykroyd. This would be the final season for Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as cast members (who both left to work on SNL's first film, The Blues Brothers).

Repertory players

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bold denotes Weekend Update anchor

Writers

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Main article: List of Saturday Night Live writers § Season 4

Walter Williams, creator of the Mr. Bill shorts, joined the writing staff.

This season's writers were Dan Aykroyd, Anne Beatts, Tom Davis, Jim Downey, Brian Doyle-Murray, Al Franken, Brian McConnachie, Lorne Michaels, Don Novello, Herb Sargent, Tom Schiller, Rosie Shuster, Walter Williams and Alan Zweibel. The head writer was Herb Sargent.

Episodes

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Main article: List of Saturday Night Live episodes
No.
overall		No. in
season		HostMusical guest(s)Original air date
671The Rolling StonesThe Rolling StonesOctober 7, 1978 (1978-10-07)

682Fred WillardDevoOctober 14, 1978 (1978-10-14)

693Frank ZappaFrank ZappaOctober 21, 1978 (1978-10-21)

  • Frank Zappa and his band perform "Dancin' Fool"[1] from the 1979 album Sheik Yerbouti, "The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing"[1] from the 1981 album You Are What You Is and "Rollo",[1] which was cut from the 1974 album Apostrophe (') and would remain unreleased until 2006's Imaginary Diseases.[2]
  • During Zappa's performance of "Rollo", John Belushi, in character as Samurai Futaba, briefly appears on stage with the group.[2] Singing into a microphone duct taped to the body of an electric guitar, Belushi carries out a call and response bit with the band.
  • Zappa was unpopular with the cast and crew, possibly in part because their lax views on drug and alcohol consumption did not mesh with his anti-drug stance.[2] This is highlighted in the sketch "Night on Freak Mountain", which also features Paul Shaffer as Don Kirshner. Throughout the episode, Zappa regularly mugs for the camera and frequently notes to the audience that he is reading from cue cards.[2]
  • Mr. Bill Moves In.
704Steve MartinVan MorrisonNovember 4, 1978 (1978-11-04)

  • Van Morrison performs two songs from his September 1978 release Wavelength: the title track and "Kingdom Hall".[1][3]
  • Final appearance of the Festrunk Brothers.
  • The last sketch was cut short. When the show closes, Steve Martin announces there were technical problems and that the sketch would resume the next time he hosted.
  • This is Martin's sixth time as host.
715Buck HenryGrateful DeadNovember 11, 1978 (1978-11-11)

  • The Grateful Dead performs "Casey Jones" and "I Need a Miracle/Good Lovin'" medley.[1]
  • John Belushi as Elizabeth Taylor chokes on chicken.
  • First appearance of "Uncle Roy" sketch.
  • "Samurai Optometrist" sketch.
  • First appearance of "Chico Escuela".
  • Buck Henry's seventh time as host.
  • Grateful Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann makes a non-verbal cameo appearance during the "Nick Sands, the Lounge Singer" skit.
726Carrie FisherThe Blues BrothersNovember 18, 1978 (1978-11-18)

737Walter MatthauGarrett MorrisDecember 2, 1978 (1978-12-02)

  • There is no billed musical guest for this episode. At host Walter Matthau's request, Garrett Morris performs Mozart's "Dalla sua pace" ("On her peace"), an aria from Don Giovanni.
  • George Coe appears in the Epoxy-Dent commercial parody.
  • Pepsi is replaced with Coke in the Olympia Cafe sketch.
  • Mr. Bill Is Late.
  • This episode features the last appearance of the Bees in a sketch called the Bad News Bees. In the skit, Coach Buttermaker (Matthau reprising his role from the 1976 film The Bad News Bears, albeit in a bee costume) tries to get his team to stop "buzzing off"
748Eric IdleKate BushDecember 9, 1978 (1978-12-09)

759Elliott GouldPeter Tosh
Mick Jagger		December 16, 1978 (1978-12-16)

  • Peter Tosh and Mick Jagger perform "(You Gotta Walk And) Don't Look Back", and Tosh performs "Bush Doctor".[1]
  • "Mommie Dearest" sketch.
  • "Point/Counterpoint" regarding relations with China.
  • The comedy team of "Bob and Ray".
  • Elliott Gould (his 4th time hosting) and Garrett Morris sing "It's Christmas Time in Harlem" during the opening monologue, accompanied by Paul Shaffer.
7610Michael PalinThe Doobie BrothersJanuary 27, 1979 (1979-01-27)

7711Cicely TysonTalking HeadsFebruary 10, 1979 (1979-02-10)

7812Ricky NelsonJudy CollinsFebruary 17, 1979 (1979-02-17)

7913Kate JacksonDelbert McClintonFebruary 24, 1979 (1979-02-24)

  • McClinton performs "B Movie Boxcar Blues".[1]
  • A running gag throughout the show is Fred Silverman trying to sabotage NBC's line-up.
  • Brian Doyle-Murray is one of the people taking a tour during the opening monologue.
  • Kate Jackson plays a nurse who Bill Murray falls for in a sketch involving the Nerds.
  • Andy Kaufman plays the bongos and yodels.
  • Final appearance of The Coneheads sketch.
  • "Bad Cabarat for Children" with Leonard Pinth-Garnell.
  • Mr. Bill Goes on a Diet.
8014Gary BuseyEubie Blake & Gregory Hines
Gary Busey with Rick Danko & Paul Butterfield		March 10, 1979 (1979-03-10)

  • Eubie Blake and Gregory Hines performs a medley of "Low-down Blues", "I'm Just Simply Full of Jazz" and "I'm Just Wild about Harry".[1]
  • Gary Busey's band performs "Stay All Night".[1]
  • Brian Doyle-Murray is one of John Belushi's sycophants during the cold open and also appears as an audience member with a question in "Women's Problems".
  • Paul Shaffer plays the bass in Busey's rock-n-roll band in the 1950s sketch.
  • Bill Murray stars in the Tom Schiller short, "Perchance to Dream".
8115Margot KidderThe ChieftainsMarch 17, 1979 (1979-03-17)

  • The Chieftains performs "If I Had Maggie in the Woods" and "Morning Dew"[1]
  • Lorne Michaels and the production staff appear with Margot Kidder and Gilda Radner in the opening monologue.
  • "Point/Counterpoint" regarding Lee Marvin's palimony case.
  • Mr Bill hides from Mr Hand.
8216Richard BenjaminRickie Lee JonesApril 7, 1979 (1979-04-07)

8317Milton BerleOrnette ColemanApril 14, 1979 (1979-04-14)

  • Ornette Coleman performed "Times Square".[1]
  • Milton Berle's opening monologue featured bits from his nightclub stand-up routine, some of which were met with scant laughter.[7][8] After about five minutes, Bill Murray dropped a large pipe offstage, making a loud noise and disrupting Berle's routine. When Berle was told by a producer at the foot of the stage that his monologue segment was complete, Berle responded incredulously.[7] During the audience's applause while transitioning to a commercial, he can be seen angrily yelling, although it is unclear whether he is serious.[8]
  • While on-air, Berle frequently mugged for the audience, did spit-takes, and ad-libbed straight to the camera.[7]
  • At the end of the show, Berle broke into a "dreary version" of the 1950s standard "September Song" and, according to Lorne Michaels, loaded the audience with friends and family members who gave it a standing ovation.[7] Michaels told director Dave Wilson immediately afterwards that this show was the worst ever; he kept it from appearing in syndicated reruns later.[9]
8418Michael PalinJames TaylorMay 12, 1979 (1979-05-12)

  • The opening monologue featured James Taylor performing "Johnnie Comes Back", his first of three songs in the show. Taylor later performs, "Up on the Roof" and "Millworker", all from his then recently released album, Flag.[1]
  • Dickens's "Miles Cowperthwaite", Part 2.
  • Final appearance of Dan Aykroyd's Jimmy Carter impersonation.
  • Mr Bill Runs Away From Home.
8519Maureen StapletonLinda Ronstadt & Phoebe SnowMay 19, 1979 (1979-05-19)

8620Buck HenryBette MidlerMay 26, 1979 (1979-05-26)

Special

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TitleOriginal air date
"Things We Did Last Summer"October 28, 1978 (1978-10-28)
On October 28, 1978, a special episode entitled "Things We Did Last Summer" aired, starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd performing 2 songs as The Blues Brothers, Garrett Morris, Bill Murray (playing baseball for the Grays Harbor Loggers), Lariane Newman and Gilda Radner.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w Saturday Night Live: The First Twenty Years. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 1994. pp. 124–127. ISBN 0-395-70895-8.
  2. ^ a b c d "Saturday Night Live > Season 4 > Episode 3 : Frank Zappa". TV.com. October 21, 1978.
  3. ^ "Saturday Night Live > Season 4 > Episode 4 : Steve Martin/Van Morrison". TV.com. November 4, 1978. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  4. ^ Saturday Night Live: The First Twenty Years. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 1994. pp. 91. ISBN 0-395-70895-8.
  5. ^ Saturday Night Live: The First Twenty Years. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 1994. pp. 119. ISBN 0-395-70895-8.
  6. ^ "Season 4: Episode 11". Saturday Night Live Transcripts. February 10, 1979.
  7. ^ a b c d Kovalchik, Kara (July 9, 2008). "5 Awful Saturday Night Live Hosts of the '70s". Mental Floss. Archived from the original on September 17, 2009.
  8. ^ a b "Season 4: Episode 17, 78q: Milton Berle / Ornette Coleman". Saturday Night Live Transcripts. October 8, 2018.
  9. ^ Hill, Doug; Weingrad, Jeff (2011). "33: Off the Air". Saturday Night: A Backstage History of Saturday Night Live. Untreed Reads. ISBN 9781611872187. Retrieved May 1, 2015.
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