Saturday Night Live, or SNL as it is commonly known, is a sketch comedy television show that has been airing on NBC since 1975. Over the years, the show has featured some of the funniest and most memorable sketches in television history. Many of these sketches have become cultural touchstones and have been referenced and parodied countless times. In this article, we will be taking a look at the funniest sketches from the 1970s, a decade that saw the inception of SNL and the birth of many of its most iconic characters and sketches.
From the early days of the show, when it was hosted by George Carlin and Chevy Chase, to the later years of the decade, when it was helmed by the likes of Steve Martin and John Belushi, SNL was a hotbed of comedic talent and the sketches produced during this time continue to stand the test of time as some of the funniest in the show’s long history. So without further ado, let’s dive into our ranking of the funniest sketches from SNL’s 1970s run.
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10 The Coneheads
NBC
The Coneheads sketch centers around a family of extraterrestrial beings called the Coneheads, who have cone-shaped heads and are attempting to blend in with human society. In the sketch Coneheads on Family Feud, the Conehead family, including two parents, Beldar and Prymaat, and their daughter, Connie, competes on the game show Family Feud. Like the traditional game show, two families compete to guess the most popular answers to a series of survey questions.
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However, the Conehead family’s alien nature leads to comical misunderstandings and misinterpretations of the questions. The sketch is known for its absurd humor and for the characters’ distinctive appearance and speech patterns.RELATED: The Best Sketch Comedy TV Shows of All Time
9 The Festrunk Brothers (Two Wild And Crazy Guys)
The Festrunk Brothers sketch is a dating show parody that features two characters, Georg and Yortuk Festrunk, foreign exchange students from Czechoslovakia. The brothers boast about their physical attributes and try to seduce the women with their charm and accent. They also discuss their love of American culture, particularly the “wild and crazy” styles of the 1970s. Despite their efforts, the women are not impressed, and the brothers ultimately fail to win them over. The sketch is known for its catchphrase, “We are two wild and crazy guys!” which has become a popular meme. It is also notable for portraying the Festrunk Brothers as exaggerated, stereotype-based characters.
8 The Land Shark
The character Land Shark, played by actor Chevy Chase, was created in 1975 in response to the film Jaws and the widespread fear of shark attacks that it inspired. In the sketch, he knocks on the door of a person’s home and tries to gain entry by pretending to be someone else. The person inside the house becomes suspicious and tries to find out who the Land Shark really is, but the Land Shark is always one step ahead.
The humor of the sketch comes from the absurdity of the premise and the clever use of disguise and misdirection by the Land Shark. Chevy Chase’s performance as The Land Shark is also a key part of the sketch’s comedic appeal, as he brings a sense of enthusiasm and energy to the character that helps to make it funny.
7 The Blues Brothers
Universal Pictures
The Blues Brothers sketch was first performed on Saturday Night Live in 1976. The sketch features characters Jake and Elwood Blues, a pair of blues musicians on a mission to save the Catholic orphanage where they were raised from foreclosure. Jake, played by John Belushi, and Elwood, played by Dan Aykroyd, are known for their black suits, sunglasses, and skinny ties. The Blues Brothers sketch was so popular that it spawned a successful film, The Blues Brothers, released in 1980, and a sequel, Blues Brothers 2000, released in 1998.
RELATED: Best Films Based On SNL Skits, Ranked
6 The Thing That Wouldn’t Leave
The 1970s sketch The Thing That Wouldn’t Leave is a humorous take on the absurd situation of having a house guest who simply refuses to leave. The sketch plays on the idea that this house guest, “The Thing,” is a disruptive and unwanted presence in the household, and the efforts of the homeowners to get rid of it are comically futile. One of the key elements of comedy in this sketch is the concept of the unexpected.
The homeowners are taken aback by the fact that their house guest won’t leave, and their increasingly desperate attempts to get rid of it are unexpected and, therefore, humorous. The situation’s absurdity is also a source of humor, as it is inherently ridiculous to have a house guest that won’t leave no matter what you do.
5 Saturday Night Live Samurai (The Samurai Futaba)
The Samurai Futaba sketch was a prime example of comedy, humor, and absurdity. The sketch featured actor and comedian John Belushi as the titular character, a samurai warrior with a penchant for wild, over-the-top physical comedy. John Belushi’s character “Samurai Futaba” was known for appearing in unexpected occupations and always performing his tasks to perfection, despite often startling his clients.
In his debut sketch “Samurai Hotel,” which aired in 1976, Belushi played a samurai who worked as a hotel clerk and engaged in a sword fight with a bellhop (portrayed by host Richard Pryor) over who had to carry a guest’s bags. This was the only time that any other samurai character was depicted besides Belushi’s “Samurai Futaba.” The character spoke only one line in English during the sketch, saying “I can dig where you’re coming from.” The “Samurai Futaba” sketches were notable for their use of physical comedy and Belushi’s impressive performance as the samurai.
4 Weekend Update
Weekend Update is a segment on Saturday Night Live that features a news anchor or anchors delivering a satirical summary of the week’s events. The segment has been a mainstay of the show since its inception in 1975 and has been anchored by a number of different comedians over the years. In the 1970s, Weekend Update was anchored by Chevy Chase and was known for its irreverent and often controversial humor.
Chase would often begin the segment by greeting viewers with the phrase “I’m Chevy Chase… and you’re not,” and he would frequently mention that “Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead.” Another popular element of the segment was his use of the phone, during which he would appear to be speaking to a lover until realizing he was on air. At the end of each Weekend Update, Chase would sign off with the phrase “That’s the news. Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow.”
3 Nick The Lounge Singer
Bill Murray played the character of Nick The Lounge Singer on the sketch comedy television show Saturday Night Live (SNL) in the 1970s. In each sketch, Nick would have a different last name depending on the season or the specific setting of the performance (for example, Nick Summers, Nick Slammer and Nick Springs), and he would often alter the lyrics of popular songs to fit the occasion. The character’s willingness to perform at even the most undesirable gigs added to the humor of the sketch. Nick The Lounge Singer remains a memorable and beloved part of SNL’s history.
RELATED: Key and Peele: The Best Comedy Sketches, Ranked
2 The Mr. Bill Show
The Mr. Bill Show is a parody of children’s clay animation shows that was created by Walter Williams in 1974. It initially gained popularity through its appearances on Saturday Night Live, where it was featured as a series of Super 8 films. The show centers around Mr. Bill, a clay figurine, and his dog Spot, and each episode starts off innocently but quickly becomes dangerous for Mr. Bill. The show’s primary antagonist is Mr. Hands, a man who is only seen as a pair of hands, and is often accompanied by another clay character named Sluggo.
The sketches typically involve Mr. Bill being subjected to various forms of abuse and suffering indignities, often at the hands of Mr. Hands and Sluggo. The violence in the sketches is known for escalating and ending with Mr. Bill being crushed or dismembered, with him squealing “Ohhhh noooooooooooooo!” in a high-pitched voice.
1 The Olympia Café (The Cheeseburger Sketch)
The Olympia Café was a recurring sketch on Saturday Night Live. It featured a fictional greasy spoon diner run by a group of Greeks, including John Belushi as Pete Dionisopoulos, Bill Murray as Nico, Dan Aykroyd as George, and Sandy, a waitress acted by Laraine Newman. Run regulars Gilda Radner, Garrett Morris, and Jane Curtin also appeared as recurrent customers.
In the sketch, only three entries on the menu could be ordered successfully: cheeseburgers, chips, and Pepsi. Attempts to order other items, such as Coke or fries, were met with the phrase “No Coke! Petsi!” or “No fries! Cheeps!” If a customer complained about being required to order a cheeseburger, Pete would highlight the fact that other customers seem to enjoy it, and the short-order cook would mistakenly interpret this as an order for more cheeseburgers, adding an excessive number of patties to the grill.
