Right before celebrating 50 years of Saturday Night Live, NBC will go back to where it all began.
The network will air the inaugural episode of SNL — then called NBC’s Saturday Night — at 11:30 p.m. ET/PT Feb. 15, a night before the primetime 50th anniversary special. Additionally, NBC will rebroadcast the documentary Ladies and Gentlemen … 50 Years of SNL Music in primetime on Feb. 15.
The first SNL, which aired on Oct. 11, 1975, was hosted by George Carlin and featured musical performances from Billy Preston and Janice Ian along with sketches by the show’s original cast: Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Chevy Chase, Jane Curtin, Garrett Morris, Laraine Newman and Gilda Radner. Andy Kaufman also appeared on the show, and it featured a sketch with Jim Henson’s Muppets. (The episode is also in Peacock’s SNL streaming library.)
The first episode — or rather, the chaotic minutes leading up to the premiere — was the subject of director Jason Reitman’s movie Saturday Night, which debuted in theaters last fall.
The re-airing of the first episode is part of a full weekend of SNL celebrations leading up to the SNL50 primetime special. On Feb. 14, Peacock will live stream a concert special featuring a host of artists who have been musical guests on the show — among them Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, David Byrne, Arcade Fire and the Backstreet Boys. Peacock is also home to a four-part docuseries, Beyond Saturday Night, that delves into several aspects of the long-running series.
The primetime special on Feb. 16 will feature appearances by Tom Hanks, Steve Martin, Scarlett Johansson, Paul Simon, Martin Short, Woody Harrelson, Adam Driver, Ayo Edebiri, Bad Bunny, Dave Chappelle, John Mulaney, Kim Kardashian, Miley Cyrus, Paul McCartney, Pedro Pascal, Peyton Manning, Quinta Brunson, Robert De Niro and Sabrina Carpenter, with more to be announced in the coming week.
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