SNL 1986-87: Final thoughts

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In summary:

After barely getting renewed following the 1985-86 season, the next year was a make-or-break year for Saturday Night Live. Fortunately for Lorne Michaels, the show, and NBC, this reprieve paid off with the strongest season since the original cast’s heyday in the late 70’s.

The biggest factor in the season’s success was the new cast, which hit the ground running in the season opener. Dana Carvey was the first new player to really break through, getting both the Church Lady and Derek Stevens (“Choppin’ Broccoli”) in his first show, but the rest of the cast were also quick to prove themselves. The only new addition that really had much of a learning curve was Victoria Jackson, but she worked as a personality and niche performer (somewhat like the Pete Davidson of her era).

It also helped that this cast had chemistry. As brilliant as Carvey, Jan Hooks, or Phil Hartman were on their own, they also worked excellently with other new performers like Kevin Nealon and veterans like Nora Dunn and Jon Lovitz; having such a strong group also took the load off Dunn and Lovitz, the performers that were leaned on the most in the previous season. Even Weekend Update anchor Dennis Miller, not normally a sketch performer, collaborated with Carvey on a throwaway that managed to make air twice.

Buoyed by this cast, the writing also improved this season, with a renewed focus on political satire thanks in part to a news cycle that included Iran-Contra, the PTL Club scandal, and the Gary Hart/Donna Rice affair. Veterans like Jim Downey and Al Franken were getting back into their rhythms, while newer hires such as Robert Smigel and George Meyer were coming into their own; Andy Breckman’s contributions should not be overlooked either. The midseason hiring of Christine Zander and Bonnie & Terry Turner also was a smart move, as they would become important writers over the following seasons.

1986-87 isn’t quite a perfect season, but many of the shows have some very good moments (even the uncharacteristically weak Bronson Pinchot show has “Amerida”), and there were a number of episodes with packed with instant classics (William Shatner) or some of the most daring material in years (Bill Murray). SNL wasn’t quite at their next hot streak, but the groundwork was there.

Strongest shows:

  1. William Shatner / Lone Justice (average sketch rating: 4/5)

  2. Robin Williams / Paul Simon and Ladysmith Black Mambazo (average sketch rating: 3.78/5)

  3. Bill Murray / Percy Sledge (average sketch rating: 3.73/5)

Weakest shows:

  1. Bronson Pinchot / Paul Young (average sketch rating: 2.59/5)

  2. Mark Harmon / Suzanne Vega (average sketch rating: 2.96/5)

  3. Rosanna Arquette / Ric Ocasek (average sketch rating: 2.96/5)

Best sketches:

  1. Reagan Mastermind (Chevy Chase, Steve Martin, Martin Short / Randy Newman, 12/06/86)

  2. Trekkies (William Shatner / Lone Justice, 12/20/86)

  3. Support Group (Garry Shandling / Los Lobos, 05/16/87)

Worst sketches:

  1. The Life of Golda Meir (Bronson Pinchot / Paul Young, 02/14/87)

  2. Valentine’s Day (Bronson Pinchot / Paul Young, 02/14/87)

  3. Pet Chicken Shop (Sam Kinison / Lou Reed, 11/15/86)

Best musical guests:

  1. Wynton Marsalis

  2. Roy Orbison

  3. Anita Baker

(honorable mention: Eddie Van Halen, who wasn’t an official musical guest)

Worst musical guests:

Like last year, I couldn’t find a musical performance that was truly bad; by default I would say Paul Young and Ric Ocasek, but it was more the weak material than the actual performances (though Young was a bit hammy).

Writer tally and turnover:

(*) indicates the writer remained credited on-staff next season and (~) indicates a returning writer from an earlier season.

  • Andy Breckman (~)

  • A. Whitney Brown (*, ~)

  • E. Jean Carroll (credited 10/11/86-12/20/86 only)

  • Tom Davis (* credited 01/24/87-05/23/87 only, ~)

  • James Downey (*, ~)

  • Al Franken (*, ~)

  • Eddie Gorodetsky (credited 11/15/86-05/23/87 only)

  • Phil Hartman (*)

  • George Meyer (*,~)

  • Lorne Michaels (*, ~)

  • Kevin Nealon

  • Herb Sargent (*,~)

  • Marc Shaiman

  • Rosie Shuster (*, ~)

  • Robert Smigel (*,~)

  • Bonnie & Terry Turner (*, credited 02/21/87-05/23/87 only)

  • Jon Vitti

  • Christine Zander (*, credited 01/24/87-05/23/87 only)

Guest writers:

  • Jack Handey

  • Billy Kimball

  • Larry Levin

  • Brian McConnachie

  • Margaret Oberman

  • Paul Raley

  • Alan Zweibel

Special thanks to the following people who have contributed to the process of writing these reviews: Troy Bellam, A. Whitney Brown, Andrew Dick, Nora Dunn, Pat Durkin, Guillermo Gomez, William Ham, Raj Kaup, Dave Mackey, Dennis Perrin, Callie Ray, Robert Smigel, Andrew Savoy, Donald Smith, and Charlie Thomson. Special thanks to Darren O’Toole for his notes on changes to repeat airings. As well, thank you to all those who regularly visit the site and leave comments; while I may not reply to all of you (particularly if I don’t feel like I have anything to add to what you say), I do appreciate it a lot.

I consider this blog a living document, so any new information that comes to light will be added to the reviews as it becomes available. If any SNL writers, performers, or crew members from this time frame have information they would like to contribute or correct, I welcome their insight and encourage them to get in contact with me.