“Saturday Night Live” kicked off a monumental season in September, and is rapidly closing in on 1,000 total episodes. But Jason Reitman’s new film “Saturday Night” specifically pays homage to the very first one.
In theaters now, “Saturday Night” tells the story of the 90 minutes immediately preceding the first ever episode of “SNL.” At the time, even creator Lorne Michaels (played by Gabriel LaBelle in the movie) couldn’t quite describe what the show would be.
The cast was known as the Not Ready for Primetime Players, and was significantly smaller than it is now. But, it contained some now-legendary faces.
Here’s how you can go back and watch them make their debuts and see what the full episode was really like after you see “Saturday Night.”
When was the first episode of “SNL”?
The very first episode of the NBC series — which was only called “Saturday Night” at the time, hence the title of Jason Reitman’s new film — aired on Saturday, October 11, 1975.
Is the first episode of “SNL” streaming?
Yes it is! You can find the very first episode over on NBC’s streaming service, Peacock, which is also where other past and present episodes of “SNL” are streaming.
Who hosted the first episode?
Comedia George Carlin was the first host of “SNL,” and yes, he gets his due in “Saturday Night.”
How many seasons of “Saturday Night Live” are there?
“SNL” just kicked off its milestone 50th season in September. So, if you want to binge the whole thing, it’ll take a while. But it’s possible!
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