From political sketches to celebrity impressions, there's nothing quite like Saturday Night Live. With 45 seasons since it began airing in 1975, the show manages to constantly stay fascinating, intelligent, hilarious, and relevant. That's no small feat, so we're definitely big fans and in awe of the people behind it.
SNL has made us aware of a lot of talented people, from writers to members of the cast, and it's fun to see which celebrity is hosting each week. But besides the amazing content on the actual show, there are a lot of behind-the-scenes happenings that we definitely want to hear about.
Keep reading to learn all about SNL's behind-the-scenes secrets.
20 SNL Originally Happened Because Johnny Carson Needed Time Off And The Network Needed A Replacement Show
Cheat Sheet says that Saturday Night Live originally came into being because Johnny Carson needed some time off. The network wanted another show to air when he wasn't filming The Tonight Show. We definitely would have never guessed that this is what went down, so it's an amazing behind-the-scenes fact to learn about.
19 Many Funny People Like Steve Carell And Lisa Kudrow Tried Out For SNL But Got Turned Down
Buzzfeed says that many funny people, such as Steve Carrell and Lisa Kudrow, tried out for Saturday Night Live but got turned down.
This isn't something that we ever would have thought was possible. How could you turn down Phoebe from Friends?! It sounds like a very competitive environment. Talk about a crazy behind-the-scenes fact.
18 Surprisingly, Only One Of Larry David's Sketches Was Chosen While He Was Working As A Writer For The Show
Whether we love Seinfeld or Curb Your Enthusiasm (or perhaps both), we know that Larry David is hilarious. So it's definitely surprising to learn that, according to Buzzfeed, he wrote only a single sketch that was chosen for the show when he worked for SNL. We would have thought that everything he wrote was total comedic gold.
17 Back In 1999, Tina Fey Was The Inaugural Woman Hired For The Head Writer Position
We all love Tina Fey, whether we're fans of her sitcom 30 Rock or the many funny movies that she has been in since then. She also has a long history of writing for and appearing on Saturday Night Live.
According to Buzzfeed, back in 1999, Tina Fey was in the inaugural woman hired for the head writer position.
16 Conan O'Brien Didn't Think Mike Myers' Iconic Wayne's World Sketch Was Good
Did we know that Wayne's World was a sketch on SNL before it was a hit film?
It's pretty wild to hear about now, but when Mike Myers pitched it, head writer Conan O'Brien said that he didn't think it would be funny, according to Little Things. The sketch was super popular and, of course, so is the movie.
15 The Balcony Seats Are Considered Lucky Because They're From Yankee Stadium
The balcony seats on the set of SNL are considered lucky. Why? Because, according to Cheat Sheet, they're from Yankee Stadium.
SNL doesn't want to get rid of them, and they pay for them, too. We often hear about people in show business having certain rituals or superstitions, so this does make a lot of sense.
14 Kanye West Screamed At A Crew Member For Moving Something When He Was On SNL In 2016
We might not expect Kanye West to be super well-behaved when appearing on a TV show, but we're definitely going to be shocked to hear about what he did behind-the-scenes on SNL.
According to Ranker, the celebrity screamed at a crew member for moving something when he was on the show in 2016. Yes, this is true.
13 Only 8 Out Of 40-50 Sketches Are Actually Chosen For Each Show
We know that a lot of hard, creative work goes into a show like Saturday Night Live, and as it turns out, this includes the sketches that are written for each episode.
Buzzfeed says that only 8 out of 40 or 50 sketches are chosen for each show. That's definitely a lot of time spent writing.
12 Bill Murray And Chevy Chase Had Real BTS Beef
Ranker says that Bill Murray and Chevy Chase really didn't like each other at all. According to Biography.com, Chevy Chase went into John Belushi's dressing room on-set and told Bill Murray that he wanted to fight. They actually got into one and it sounds like a pretty crazy, chaotic moment.
11 John Belushi Didn't Like The Sketches Written By Female Writers
According to Ranker, John Belushi didn't like the sketches by female writers when he was on SNL. He said that he couldn't perform them, and he didn't think that they were funny. This is pretty sexist, and also just plain weird. We're confident that many of those sketches were probably amazing.
