I would be remiss as a comedian and as a feminist if I didn’t talk about how amazing Betty White was on SNL. The Broadsheet and Feministing posts already say most of what I’d want to say– that White was a natural, that some of the jokes were kind of stupid but she rocked them anyway, and that she’s proof that women (and old people!) can be funny.
I’d like to add, though, that I’m an SNL loyalist. I pretty much came into consciousness watching SNL– my family had a cat named Toonces, I had Eddie Murphy’s “Mr. Robinson” sketches memorized will I was still watching Mr. Rogers, and my parents have watched the show every week for probably 25 years. People love to shit on SNL, and say it’s not as good now as it was before, but people have been saying that ever since I was 5, and there’s been some damn good stuff on since then. Which is all to say that, today, as people write about how awesome the show was but how shitty SNL is, I don’t think it’s very fair. But, to each his own.
The White episode was, without question, one of the best shows I’ve seen in a while, consistantly funny all the way through. It was a big night for girl power, too, with the return of Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Rachel Dratch, Molly Shannon, Maya Rudolph, and Ana Gasteyer. These six are some of the best cast members to come out of SNL in recent history, and they, too, are a wonderful counter-argument to the “girls aren’t funny” popular narrative. It was great to see all of them and be reminded of how effortlessly funny they are. And speaking of effortlessly funny, Betty White might be the most naturally hilarious performer I’ve seen in my entire life. Her command of every sketch was incredible. Even if some of the jokes were goofy, watching her was so much fun that I enjoyed pretty much every minute of the episode.
Plus, how amazing is it to see a woman who looks like Betty White introduce Jay Z? Very amazing, especially when she adds “If I had a dime for every time I’ve said that I’d have one dime.” Here’s the monologue, and I recommend watching the whole episode on Hulu.
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What a great way to knock down a straw man: they, too, are a wonderful counter-argument to the “girls aren’t funny” popular narrative. Clearly, no evidence that such a narrative still exists is needed. Just call it ‘popular,’ and let that word to the argumentative work. Case closed. How superbly effortless.
Desargues,
I’m pretty active in the comedy world and have been involved with comedy since I was 14, and I do feel that that narrative a powerful one. I didn’t get into it in this article– my apologies to have upset you. I was referencing the argument, which was made in both of the pieces I linked to, but I didn’t really take it on myself because, as I wrote, I was mostly agreeing with the pieces I linked to. But I’d love to take on this idea in more detail, so thanks for reading and keep your eyes out for an upcoming piece getting into the women in comedy issues in more depth.
Please do. I’d love to read about that. And no, I don’t think girls aren’t funny; on the contrary. In fact, I’m wondering what so many unfunny guys are doing on SNL, and why all those obviously funny women have been booted out. Lorne, it’s time to rethink the line-up. But this time, do it better.
(Also: you didn’t upset me, don’t worry. I’m fairly laid back. I was just trying to point out a weak spot in your piece.)
Freeda and I took your advice last night and watched the episode last night. We were both moderately amused, some of the time. White was natural, it’s true, but I’d bet you need to develop a real sense of ease and confidence if you are going to be on stage and screen for fifty plus years. As for the jokes, most of them were pretty damn tired. Most sketches had a funny moment, but not so funny as to redeem. The goal it seemed was just to get White to say whatever your grandma wouldn’t say. The audience was unbareably amused. The faux news section was ill informed and scarily like a bad news show rather than a satire of one. And didn’t some sexist or ageist alarms go off in your head?
Due to age and a similar lack of parental judgment, I’ve been watching SNL from a very young age since the Steve Martin days: 1975? (I’ve been watching it for 35 years?)
The show has its good and bad years- maybe more bad than good, but you stick with it thinking it’ll get better if you wait it out.
In the good years, the skits are short, funny, and over, and a lot of no-name bands that might be famous in a year. In the bad years, the skits last way too long, with hardly a laugh, but the music acts are pretty famous.
A new lead joins the cast, starts to develop a recurring character which may not be funny but is familiar, so you laugh the way you laugh along with your semi-amusing friend largely out of sympathy. Then they inexplicably spin that character off into a movie which you watched when you were young and bored, often enduring the most painful 88 minutes since the last SNL spinoff.
And the next thing you know, it’s 11:28 on a Saturday night and the local NBC news is showing closing credits. “Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead!” The series doesn’t age well in repeats though.