Saturday Night Live: Comedy Daycare

I like to think of Saturday Night Live as a daycare for comedians with Lorne Michaels as the overruling nanny for all the little kids who don't know any better. After 40 years on air, it's a proven staple on our television line up. It's popularity has only risen in recent years because of Internet video sharing, and sites like YouTube, in which 4-6 minute videos are all anyone's attention can handle. Not only that, but we've seen the success of past SNL comedians and the all the brilliant work they've done after leaving the show. With people like Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Adam Sandler, Eddie Murphy and countless more, the potential for success after leaving the show is very high. So like I said, it's a daycare. Young, talented comedians come in and play around with their funny and creative ideas. They grow and step into their comedic talent, mastering impressions and nailing their punchline timing. It's very obvious which cast members are brand new and which are the veterans. All the while, Lorne Michaels watches over with an insightful eye and approves or disapproves of whatever skit is being pitched. He turns these no name youngsters into show runners and head writers. It's a given that some skits will work and others will completely miss the mark, but that's part of the growing process for all these comedians.
 After leaving daycare, many of these talented jokesters have gone on to write and/or star in our favorite television shows. Most recently, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler have finished their long running shows, 30 Rock and Parks and Rec. In addition, many of SNL's recent departures are now putting their footprint on the industry. Fred Armisen, who was on SNL for 13 years, is now in his 6th season of Portlandia, which he created. Last Man on Earth, Fox's new hit comedy, stars Will Forte who spent 10 years at SNL. Andy Samberg, digital short genius and 8 year cast member, is now the star of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and recently hosted the Emmys. Kristen Wiig gifted the world with Bridesmaids, and Seth Meyers is the host of Late Night. These recent SNL grads are only at the beginning of their post-SNL career and have a lot of room to grow. 

All in all, we should thank Lorne Michaels for creating such a program to help these comedians grow. Who knows if Tina Fey would have ever written Mean Girls or if Will Ferrell would have starred in dozens of hilarious comedies. Maybe? Probably not. So for all those new cast members who are awkward and mess up their lines, you may have your own show in 5-10 years. Hell, you may even host The Tonight Show.

Colin Jost, Cecily Strong, and the Weekend Update Desk

This week, Saturday Night Live announced that Michael Che, currently a correspondent for The Daily Show, would be replacing cast member Cecily Strong and joining head-writer Colin Jost at the Weekend Update anchor desk. This comes just half a year after Jost took Seth Meyers' seat at the desk. I think that Lorne Michaels and the show's other creative staff made a serious misstep in this decision.

The history of the Weekend Update segment in the 21st century is dominated by names that went on to achieve even greater success elsewhere. Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Seth Meyers have all gone on to anchor their own shows: Poehler and Fey found second lives on the NBC sitcoms Parks and Recreation and 30 Rock, respectively, and Fallon and Meyers occupy back-to-back time-slots in the network's late-night schedule. However, when Meyers announced his plans to depart at Christmas 2013 posed a unique problem for the show, with no truly strong contenders in the cast available to take his place. Lorne Michaels decided to pair Meyers with Cecily Strong for the first half of the show's 39th season last fall:

Meyers and Strong

After strong reviews of the pair, hopes were high when Jost, the show's head-writer and Meyers' best friend, replaced the male half of the pair. However, Jost gave a less than memorable performance in his first couple of shows, and although he began to improve by the end of the season, he had already lost the trust of much of the SNL audience. It was clear that the show was going to make changes at the desk going into the 40th season. However, this week's announcement seems like a step in the wrong direction to myself and many other fans. 

Michael Che's work on The Daily Show has admittedly been strong. His correspondent segments often dealt with race and the experience of being a modern black American in interesting ways. 

The Daily Show
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However, Lorne Michaels' decision to go with Jost instead of Strong shows a bit of bias towards the longer-tenured writer, who may have payed his dues on the show more. That's all well and good, but I     believe that the stronger performer should have won out. Many fans are speculating that the decision was based on giving Cecily Strong more time to write and perform sketches and characters. I hope that that's the case. 

Sephen Colbert set to replace David Letterman on the Late Show

I don't know if you've heard the news, but recently David Letterman announce his planned retirement in 2015. After three decades on the Late Show he feels it is time for him to take a break and enjoy the simple things in life. Now being that the Late Show holds some of the highest ratings then any other late night show we are all wondering who would replace this icon. Well, it turns out that there is talk about Stephen Colbert taking over for David Letterman which doesn't seem like a bad idea. Lately everyone has been getting promoted haven't they? First it was Jimmy Fallon, then Seth Meyers, Now David Letterman. The tides have really changed recently with who will be running these talk shows for the indefinite future. It is said that if Stephen Colbert does in fact take over the Late Show, he will not longer be posing as the political mastermind that he acts as for the Colbert Report. Instead, Stephen will just be his normal self and do what he does best. So far the transition of Seth Meyers taking over Jimmy Fallon's has been going well so hopefully if this switch takes place with the Late Show it will go just as smoothly. Fortunately tonight Seth Meyers i preforming at Ithaca College, so all those who will be seeing him first hand today (including me) can be the judge of his live performance. Hope to see you all there!

Late Night with Seth Meyers

As my all time favorite late night show host moves on to the bigger leagues, it is time for Seth Meyers to move up in his career. Seth is taking over the Late Night show on February 24th. I have always been a huge fan of Seth on SNL. My favorite part of the show would be the Weekend Update with Seth and Amy Poehler (when she was still on the show.) It will not be the same without him, however I could not be more thrilled for the launch in his career. Seth has a way of connecting with his audience and is an incredible writer. He is funny, but not too cocky. He has wrote some amazing sketches on SNL.  One of my all time favorites that he co-wrote was the opening with Tina Fey playing the role of Sarah Palin and Amy Poehler playing the role of Hilary Clinton. This was one of the best sketches on SNL of the presidential election back in 2008.

To start off the show, Amy Poehler will be Meyers' first guest. I think this is the best decision for the show. It will create tons of hype because it will be a reunion and a new beginning at the same time. The Late Night show is going to be different for sure, but it is time for a change. Seth deserves to move up in his career and to be the spotlight. As devastasting as it is that after 22 years, Jay Leno is retiring, it is time for a new face to shine in Late Night. I believe that Jimmy Fallon is the perfect choice to fill Leno's shoes and will continue the shows longtime success. With Seth Meyers going into the Late Night Show, I have complete faith that he will make us all proud. I can't wait to see what these two shows, Late Night with Seth Meyers and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon have in store.