"Saturday Night Live" George Carlin/Billy Preston, Janis Ian (1975)

Directors:

Dave Wilson
Albert Brooks

Writers:

Anne Beatts (written by) &
Chevy Chase (written by) ...

TV Series:

"Saturday Night Live" (1975)

Original Air Date:

11 October 1975 (Season 1, Episode 1)

Genre:

Comedy | Music

Plot:

The host for the episode is George Carlin, and the musical guests are Billy Preston and Janis Ian. The...

Plot Keywords:

Pilot Episode | Satire | Sketch Comedy | Actor Playing Multiple Roles | Cult TV

Cast

George Carlin	...	Himself - Host
Janis Ian	...	Herself - Musical Guest
Billy Preston	...	Himself - Musical Guest
Albert Brooks	...	Reporter (voice)
Rhonda Hansome	...	Vazh (voice) (as Jim Henson's Muppets)
Jim Henson	...	King Ploobis (voice) (as Jim Henson's Muppets)
Jerry Nelson	...	Scred (voice) (as Jim Henson's Muppets)
Frank Oz	...	The Mighty Favog (voice) (as Jim Henson's Muppets)
Alice Tweedy	...	Queen Peuta (voice) (as Jim Henson's Muppets)
Jane Curtin	...	Various
Garrett Morris	...	Various
Laraine Newman	...	Various
Gilda Radner	...	Various
Dan Aykroyd	...	Various
John Belushi	...	Various

Runtime:

USA:90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

NBC Productions

Trivia:

Billy Crystal was scheduled to guest appear, but walked out when Lorne Michaels told him that his monologue had to be trimmed by a few minutes. Valri Bromfield was his replacement. Crystal later appeared in the 17th episode and joined the cast in the 1984-1985 season.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Don Pardo accidentally announces the cast as The Not For Ready Prime Time Players.

Quotes:

[talking about the phrase "jumbo shrimp"]
Himself - Host: It's like "military intelligence." The two words don't go together.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Live from New York: The First 5 Years of Saturday Night Live (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Fancy Lady

God Bless George!

This show was the first of hundreds which was hosted by none other than George Carlin. The sketches were done with the not for ready prime time players. George never appeared in them but he was there to introduce the two musical performers, Billy Preston and Janis Ian who each performed twice themselves. Despite the initial premise, George performed his baseball-football comparisons to the laughter of an audience who should be so lucky to have attended the first night of many on live television. The show was never at outlandish as it is now. The humor was from within. It was nice to see the original players who all became stars on their own. The show evolved and changed. Janis Ian, an American folk singer, sang beautifully and poetically the second time around while Billy Preston was legendary in his performance. It showed that the show took chances in bringing the popular and unpopular performers who should be famous.