Authors: Tom Shales, James Andrew Miller
ISBN-13: 9781598872460, ISBN-10: 159887246X
Format: MP3 Book
Publisher: HighBridge Company
Date Published: March 2007
Edition: Abridged
Saturday Night Live changed the face of television: it introduced brash new stars, trashed TV taboos, and had an impact on American life, laughter, and politics.
Dozens of stars, writers, guest hosts, contributors, and craftsmen (as read by professional narrators) recall the backstage stories, behind-the-scenes gossip, feuds, foibles, drugs, sex, struggles, and calamities, including personal details never before revealed. Stars interviewed include Mike Meyers, Chris Rock, Bill Murray, Tom Hanks, Adam Sandler, Chevy Chase, Will Ferrell, Dan Aykroyd, Steve Martin, Jon Lovitz, Jane Kattan, Julie Louis-Dreyfus, Garrett Morris, Molly Shannon, Damon Wayans, Chris Elliott, Julie Sweeney, Norm Macdonald, and Paul Simon-plus writers like Al Franken, Conan O'Brien, Larry David, Rosie Shuster, Jack Handey, Robert Smigel, Don Novello, and others who got their big breaks as part of the SNL team...
SNL fans, beware: this audiobook, while chock full of dishy dirt on everybody from Chevy Chase to Jimmy Fallon, requires a little playing along on the part of the listener. Shales and Miller went to great lengths to compile this work, but unfortunately, for this audio version, the oral history is read by stand-ins masquerading as Bill Murray, Lorne Michaels, Jimmy Fallon and others. So listeners have to imagine that it's really Chevy Chase speaking, not an audiobook reader who sounds nothing like him. A narrator introduces each chapter, helping listeners orient themselves, and then reads each person's name before that person speaks. Hearing the narrator pronounce, "Dan Aykroyd, actor:" and then hearing the voice of a complete stranger (there are no liner notes explaining who's reading which parts) tell of his memories of the show is somewhat disconcerting. The actors' deliveries range from the lackadaisical to the high-strung. Despite the obvious troubles of not having the book's contributors read their own parts, the book's content is terrific, with tons of behind-the-scenes gossip and juicy tales of backstage goings-on. Simultaneous release with the Little, Brown hardcover (Forecasts, Sept. 9). (Oct.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Acknowledgments | xi | |
Preface to the Paperback Edition | 3 | |
Prologue | 7 | |
1. | Exordium: 1975-1976 | 15 |
2. | Heyday: 1976-1980 | 106 |
3. | The Stars Come Out: 1980-1985 | 203 |
4. | Behemiel Rising: 1985-1990 | 309 |
5. | Overpopulation: 1990-1995 | 376 |
6. | Still Crazy After All These Years: 1995- | 448 |
7. | Lorne | 557 |
SNL Cast Lists | 603 | |
Index | 609 |