Top 10 Older SNL Skits Everyone Must See
You can't call yourself an "SNL" fan without watching these skits. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the vintage skits from “Saturday Night Live” that could serve as a primer for that show’s classic history.
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00:00 "Hey! Too hot in the hot tub. Famous, eh?"
00:05 Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the vintage skits from
00:10 Saturday Night Live that could serve as a primer for that show's classic history.
00:14 "I hope I've made my point."
00:16 Number 10. Wayne's World
00:20 Saturday Night Live has turned a number of its sketches into films over the years,
00:25 but very few of them have entered the zeitgeist of pop culture in the same fashion as Wayne's World.
00:31 "Welcome to Wayne's World. I'm your excellent host, Wayne Campbell. With me, as always, is Garth."
00:36 "You party on, Wayne."
00:38 "Alright, party on, Garth."
00:39 This recurring SNL skit featured Mike Myers and Dana Carvey as Wayne Campbell and Garth
00:45 Algar, two enthusiastic headbangers on a search for riffs and chicks.
00:50 "Barry, you're a roadie, right? It must be chick central for you."
00:54 "Yeah, you must be a citizen of Babylon."
00:58 The skit focused on the pair's cable access show, Wayne's World,
01:01 making the most out of Myers and Carvey's natural charisma, comic timing, and joint chemistry.
01:07 "OK, the next category is Best Actress."
01:10 "OK, Garth, you don't have to do that every time."
01:16 "Oh, good. I was starting to hyperventilate."
01:18 There are few SNL skits out there that capture the spirit of the late 80s and early 90s better
01:24 than this one, and that's a compliment.
01:26 "OK, and finally, we saw one more movie. It was called…
01:30 'Live From New York, It's Saturday Night!'"
01:34 9. Gumby - The Gumby Story Film
01:37 Only a performer as innately talented as Eddie Murphy could bring such an
01:42 anarchic sense of craziness to the wholesome character of Gumby.
01:46 "You're playing Gumby as a young man, alright? And Gumby is not a garbage mouth, OK?"
01:51 "Alright, but what's my motivation?"
01:53 "Your motivation is not for me to rip your lungs out, OK?"
01:56 That feeling of chaos is doubled when Murphy is playing Gumby as a stereotypically demanding
02:01 writer/director of his life story.
02:04 "Cut! Who is talking on my set? Who the hell is talking on my set?"
02:11 The Gumby Story Film leans heavily into broad humour and in-jokes about set life
02:17 and the Hollywood system, while always remaining funny.
02:20 "That's it, that's a wrap for the day. OK, tomorrow we move on to the pokey years. Everybody out."
02:25 Murphy, as expected, is truly great and makes this wild scenario work with his
02:31 off-the-cuff comic timing. After all, he's Gumby, dammit, and we just can't get enough.
02:36 "You ruined me! You ruined me! You ruined me! You ruined me!"
02:41 8. President Reagan - Mastermind
02:44 It speaks volumes that a show known so much for its satirical political humour
02:49 could reach creative heights back in the late '80s that we're still discussing nearly 40 years later.
02:55 "Goodbye and God bless you."
02:57 "Thank you, Mr. President."
02:58 "Thank you very much.
02:59 OK, get back in here. Alright, let's get down to business."
03:06 One doesn't necessarily need to know the complete ins and outs of the Iran-Contra
03:12 scandal or Reagan's U.S. presidency to appreciate President Reagan Mastermind.
03:17 "There's still a lot about the Iran-Nicaragua operation I just don't understand."
03:20 "And you don't need to understand. I'm the president. Only I need to understand. Is that clear?"
03:26 "Yes."
03:27 Sure, it helps to understand the context, but the joke is clear. A dichotomy of this world's
03:32 leaders, public and private personas, Phil Hartman masters both the befuddled Grandpa
03:38 Reagan and the devious Mastermind Reagan with his performance.
03:42 "Well, how did I come out?"
03:43 "Very well."
03:45 "Well, does it say I approve shipments of arms to Iran?"
03:48 "Uh, yes it does."
03:50 "Did I?"
03:52 It's honestly scary how laser-focused Hartman is when he dives into his hard-ass cowboy Ronnie
03:57 Schtick. So much so that it makes his softer doppelganger feel even more disingenuous and evil.
04:03 "I'm telling you, I know people."
04:06 Number 7. The Coneheads
04:09 The Coneheads were part of another recurring SNL sketch that was adapted into a feature film,
04:15 a fan favorite that dates back to the 1970s.
04:18 "Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad."
04:20 "Hello, my young one. How was school today?"
04:22 "This wig was ineffective. The kids at school know that I am different from them.
04:27 It's really bugging me."
04:29 Dan Aykroyd, Jane Curtin, and Lorraine Newman portray the titular space aliens,
04:34 and do so with tons of charm and genuine warmth. A 2022 article from
04:40 UltimateClassicRock.com detailed Aykroyd's inspiration for the sketch, i.e. being on a
04:46 whole lot of pot. "Twenty earth years ago, the five highmasters of Remulak
04:50 dispatched a fleet of star cruisers to this solar system."
04:53 "Star cruisers?"
04:55 "Metallic disks powered by an anti-gravity field reactor."
04:58 "Flying saucers, dear."
04:59 We totally get how it appealed to a 1970s audience that was largely receptive to the
05:05 sort of stoner humor that classic SNL could often vibe with during this time.
05:09 "Disney World?"
05:11 "Yes. A vast man-made construction which duplicates human
05:14 psychosexual experiences through tension-releasing fantasy mechanisms."
05:19 The Coneheads have their own vernacular and idiosyncratic ways of interfacing with us
05:24 earthlings. One thing remains constant, however. They always make us laugh.
05:29 "Just out of curiosity, Beldar, are you circus folk?"
05:32 "Lemgar, Carnian, Themmetheps."
05:38 Number 6. Baba Wawa
05:40 Not every celebrity takes kindly to SNL's not-ready-for-prime-time players mimicking
05:46 them on national television.
05:47 "Sometimes controversial, but to my mind, a weary, regular guy.
05:51 Secretary of State, Dr. Henry Kissinger."
05:56 Journalistic icon Barbara Walters was one of those celebrities. Well, at least at first.
06:02 Walters eventually couldn't help but join the laughter as SNL's audience
06:06 cackled alongside Gilda Radner's iconic portrayal onscreen.
06:10 "Dr. Kissinger, in conclusion, there is one thing that really, really irritates me about you.
06:16 After 40 years of being in this country, why do you still talk with that silly, silly accent?"
06:24 Baba Wawa was a not-so-gentle needling of Walters' noticeable speech patterns and diction.
06:30 "And I have had everything wefted."
06:34 "You mean you've had your wags wefted?"
06:36 The scene also parodied the real-life Walters ponchon for soft-focus lighting.
06:41 Meanwhile, Radner herself remained charming through it all. And it's perhaps this charm
06:46 that eventually helped Walters come to terms with her immortalization on the Saturday Night Live stage.
06:53 "It's the only reason I'm weaving. Will."
06:55 5. Church Chat
06:58 Every SNL performer hopes for a breakout original character. Dana Carvey's church lady,
07:03 however, just has to be one for the ages.
07:06 "Well, there's been so much going on, we have so much to talk about tonight,
07:10 so let's just get right to it. Alrighty."
07:12 As the host of Church Chat, Carvey's Enid Strick did a marvelous little jig known as
07:17 "The Superior Dance." But that was about it as far as her goodwill goes.
07:22 "Well, it's just quite frankly, I find this whole Satan thing kind of silly."
07:25 "Oh. Well, perhaps you'd find burning an eternal hellfire silly as well."
07:30 The church lady only invited guests onto the Church Chat stage to admonish them for their
07:35 sinful lifestyles. "Well, apparently some of us do our thinking below the Bible Belt."
07:39 Carvey brought a smug sense of self-satisfaction to the character, but never made the church lady
07:46 so reprehensible that she couldn't connect with the SNL audience. The end results were pure comedy
07:51 gold. "Well, when trouble erupts, power corrupts. I'm sure you'll all agree I'm just a little bit
07:58 superior to all of thee. Okay, hit it, Pearl."
08:01 Number 4. The French Chef. Julia Child was another renowned celebrity who was able to
08:07 handle the parodic barbs sent her way from Saturday Night Live. "Welcome. I'm Julia Child.
08:15 Today we're going to make a holiday feast, or Les Fêtes de L'Holiday, and we're going to start
08:22 with half-boned chicken, or Poulard demi dessauce." Of course, it helped that Dan Aykroyd's portrayal
08:29 of the iconic celebrity chef came from a place of love and respect. That said,
08:34 Child's unique cadence, voice, and mannerisms made her ripe for parody. "Now, where was I?
08:40 Oh, yes. Poulard demi dessauce. I had to remove the giblets and save the..."
08:46 The French Chef skit doesn't disappoint in this regard either, as Aykroyd completely
08:50 nails the impression. Beyond this, however, SNL's version of Julia Child seems to be a bit
08:56 accident-prone. The chef cuts herself in an exaggerated, bloody fashion,
09:00 yet Child carries on instructing. "Now, every kitchen should have the emergency number written
09:06 on it somewhere." Not only on surviving a kitchen accident, but also hammering home
09:11 her encyclopedic knowledge of liver and its many uses in the kitchen. "I'd recommend natural
09:18 coagulants such as chicken liver. The only reason not to throw away the liver."
09:24 Number three, Nick the Lounge Singer. It's difficult to explain to those who weren't
09:29 there about lounge culture, and the lizards who often frequented these dark, smoky establishments.
09:35 "Welcome to the Potter Room, everybody, up here at beautiful Meatloaf Mountain.
09:38 I'm Nick Winters, and I'm here to entertain you, so sit back, have a hot buttered rum,
09:42 and let it happen." Just trust us when we say that SNL skits like The Fest-Drunk Brothers
09:48 and Bill Murray's Nick the Lounge Singer embody the aesthetic perfectly.
09:52 "Ah, Star Wars, nothing but Star Wars."
09:59 Murray, in particular, embodies those resilient souls who plied their musical
10:04 wares to lounge audiences, who probably couldn't have cared less.
10:07 "Oh, we don't ask for experience, we care that."
10:14 Still, singers like Nick remain steadfast, singing their hearts out as if they're playing
10:19 the shiniest Las Vegas showroom, even if, in reality, they're probably just in some dump
10:24 off the strip. "My seventh winner up here, Star Wars."
10:33 Number two, The Blues Brothers. Is there any SNL skip from the 1970s that better
10:38 encapsulates that show's breakout success than The Blues Brothers?
10:42 "I said, 'Well, baby, you know, when you bend over, I see every bit of Christmas,
10:47 and when you bend back, I'm looking right into the new year.'"
10:50 The original characters, played by Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi, were given so much depth
10:56 and backstory that the Saturday Night Live faithful felt connected almost immediately.
11:00 Jake and Elwood Blues have charisma and coolness personified. Whether they're singing
11:12 classic blues and soul songs, or hitting the road at 100 miles per hour, the sketches were
11:17 so popular that The Blues Brothers earned their own film in 1980. "106 miles to Chicago,
11:23 we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing
11:28 sunglasses. Hit it." By that point, they'd already soared past fan-favorite status
11:33 and lived rent-free as total SNL icons.
11:37 "I'm so...
11:38 Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
11:48 Ed Grimley. Martin Short creates a character for the ages.
11:52 "Thank you for being so decent, I must say."
11:55 The stand-ups. What is the deal with all of these Seinfeld impersonators?
12:00 "I hate dinner, but look at this. 99% fat-free milk. Where's the other 1%?"
12:08 Olympia Cafe. A diner order enters the pop culture lexicon.
12:14 "Cheeseburger, cheeseburger, two Pepsi, one chip."
12:16 "Cheeseburger, cheeseburger, two Pepsi, one chip."
12:19 Master Thespian. John Lovitz makes us laugh with a single word.
12:26 Sprockets. Craftwork, krautrock, and every German stereotype in between.
12:31 "Your story has become tiresome. Now's the time when Sprockets and me die."
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12:55 Number 1. Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood.
12:57 The sixth season of Saturday Night Live enjoys a contentious and controversial reputation amongst
13:03 fans. But this sketch proves that even a broken clock is right twice a day.
13:08 "I'm all alone today, but that don't mean you can stay too long,
13:17 because my wife will be home from work soon."
13:19 Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood does exactly what you think it's going to do.
13:23 Parody Mr. Rogers in a hilariously skewed and funny fashion.
13:27 "Who can that be? I'll go and check."
13:32 Eddie Murphy's Mr. Robinson largely speaks with the sort of down-to-earth,
13:44 genteel mannerisms of our beloved PBS host. But this ain't exactly a safe neighborhood, ya dig?
13:51 "Can you use this word in a sentence, boys and girls? Ransom."
13:56 This could have been a very one-note sort of sketch, but Murphy brings so much personality
14:01 to the role that even the real-life Mr. Rogers was a fan. "Tomorrow, tomorrow,
14:07 I'll come back home tomorrow when the coast is clear. Goodbye, boys and girls."
14:14 Can you remember the first time you were allowed to stay up late and watch SNL?
14:18 Let us know in the comments.
14:20 "It came from beyond the grave. A creature so rude,
14:24 so inconsiderate, they thought it would never leave."
14:27 Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo,
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14:36 [music]