NBC'S SATURDAY NIGHT {SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE} {FRAN TARKENTON, LEO SAYER, DONNIE HARPER} (TV)
Summary
One in this series of live, late-night comedy/variety programs featuring topical satire. Football star Fran Tarkenton hosts this program, with Leo Sayer and Donnie Harper and the Voices of Tomorrow as guest performers. In the opening sequence, John Belushi plays a Vince Lombardi-esque football coach giving a locker-room pep talk to try and fire up Tarkenton and the cast for a good show. In the monologue, Tarkenton makes another "foolish" prediction that his Minnesota Vikings will appear in the next Super Bowl before singing "Feelings" -- much to "coach" Belushi's chagrin. Next is a commercial parody for Rovco's multi-purpose fishing tool -- the Swiss Army gun. Sketches include: Presidential daughter Amy Carter (Laraine Newman) takes a school quiz with the assistance of her Secret Service agents; football halfback Chambers (Dan Aykroyd) gets his arm torn off causing him to fumble the ball and aggravate his coach; "Black Perspective," a talk show hosted by Garrett Morris in which he interviews Tarkenton about the "brotherhood" of the National Football League and why there are so few black quarterbacks; a man and woman dine at a bizarre restaurant: a home where the owners' antics in the kitchen get increasingly out of hand; a commercial parody where Tarkenton promotes Anabolic Steroids cereal; Jane Curtin hosts "Weekend Update" which features Curtin's attempt at adding some sex appeal to the segment; a commercial parody where Tarkenton promotes Community Appeal, a "special program" that rehabilitates drug-addicted individuals, exemplified by Belushi, dressed in a Boy Scout outfit; Tarkenton takes an overly-talkative, self-obsessed one-night stand (Newman) back to his hotel room, where he plays "the seductive jock" in jeans, white socks, and loafers, but he needs a "time out" to plot a strategy with coach Belushi in an attempt to "score"; "Grand Stand," a halftime show, hosted by Lee Whitehead (Murray) and Brian Gumbo (Morris), which reports on the first half of the program's comic success; Gary Weis's short film on Small Worlds, a store that sells artificial environments for creatures such as lizards, snakes, tarantulas, and frogs; a commercial parody for French Liquid, a most unique perfume; and Rhonda Weiss (Gilda Radner) gets her credit card suspended, leading to a one-upmanship contest with a bargain-conscious bank employee (Curtin). Sayer performs "When I Need You" and "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" and Donnie Harper and the Voices of Tomorrow perform "Sing." Includes commercials.
Details
- NETWORK: NBC
- DATE: January 29, 1977 11:35 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:27:46
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:50294
- GENRE: Comedy/Variety
- SUBJECT HEADING: Comedy; She Made It Collection (Marilyn Suzanne Miller)
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1975-
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV - Commercials - Alpo dog food
- TV - Commercials - Behold furniture polish
- TV - Commercials - Bic shavers
- TV - Commercials - Coca-Cola soft drinks
- TV - Commercials - Cricket lighters
- TV - Commercials - Listermint mouth wash
- TV - Commercials - Marriott's Essex House hotel
- TV - Commercials - Nestle cookie mix
- TV - Commercials - NyQuil cold medicine
- TV - Commercials - Pabst Blue Ribbon beer
- TV - Commercials - Pillsbury cinnamon rolls
- TV - Commercials - Pillsbury frosting
- TV - Commercials - RCA televisions
- TV - Commercials - Renuzit odor controllers
- TV - Commercials - Right Guard anti-perspirant
- TV - Commercials - Ultra Brite toothpaste
- TV - Promos - "Hearts of the West"
- TV - Promos - "The Adventures of Frontier Fremont"
CREDITS
- Lorne Michaels … Producer, Writer
- Jean Doumanian … Associate Producer
- Patricia O'Keefe … Associate Producer
- Dave Wilson … Director
- Anne Beatts … Writer
- Al Franken … Writer
- Tom Davis … Writer
- James Downey … Writer
- Marilyn Suzanne Miller … Writer
- Michael O'Donoghue … Writer
- Herb Sargent … Writer
- Tom Schiller … Writer
- Rosalind Shuster (See also: Rosie Shuster) … Writer
- Alan Zweibel … Writer
- Dan Aykroyd … Writer
- John Belushi … Writer
- Fran Tarkenton … Host
- Don Pardo … Announcer
- Leo Sayer … Performer
- Donnie Harper and the Voices of Tomorrow … Performer
- Dan Aykroyd … Cast
- John Belushi … Cast
- Jane Curtin … Cast
- Garrett Morris … Cast
- Bill Murray … Cast
- Laraine Newman … Cast
- Gilda Radner … Cast
- Amy Carter
- Vince Lombardi