SNL101

Timothée Chalamet's third time hosting on January 25 2025 did not necessarily disappoint, but some fan favorites like SmokeChedda TheAssGetta and Tiny Horse were noticeably absent. We discuss James Austin Johnson's ability to impersonate Trump's haughty cruelty in Founding Fathers Cold Open, the role of AI in interpersonal relationships in AI Software, and the power intra Black conversations in Giselle, A Concerned Businesswoman, on Trump's Executive Orders. We are again honored to have Chuck Hayward join us as we also unpack Oedipal Arrangements, God - An SNL Animated Short, and Bungee. Readings include current articles on the rise of conservatism in the United States, the psychology of education, AI, and collaborative creativity, and the history and effects of anti-Black hair discrimination.

Dave Chappelle's fourth time hosting on January 18, 2025 featured a markedly mature appearance that balanced the political and the personal. We discuss his progressively classic Stand-Up Monologue and political aesthetics, journalism's struggle in the current communication environment with MSNBC Special Coverage Cold Open, and the power of ambiguity and backstory in Evacuation Alert. We are joined in the virtual studio by friend of the pod, Chuck Hayward for an exciting conversation about Chappelle's trajectory. Readings include a 15-year-old article from Oprah.com, a lesser known MLK speech from 1965, and Gramsci's essays while imprisoned by the Italian Fascist regime in the 1920s.

Martin Short played the elder statesman during his fifth time hosting on December 21, 2024. This Christmas episode was filled with cameos, callbacks, and current events. We discuss the complexity of homelessness and the rhetoric of anti-woke publics in An Act of Kindness, the intractable intersection of gender and comedy in Parking Lot Altercation, and the winner of this year's Joke Swap. Emmy nominated Chuck Hayward also joins to share his thoughts on demographic trends in the Five-Timers Club Cold Open. Readings include analyses of race, gender, and entertainment including Hanif Abdurraqib's 2022 collection of essays, A Little Devil in America: In Praise of Black Performance.

We talk about Chris Rock's fourth time hosting on December 14, 2024. The alum anchors a largely forgettable episode, interlaced with a few showstopping bangers. We talk about impactful lines from Rock's Opening Monologue, fan fictionalizing the 2022 Oscars Slap in Simpsons Christmas Gift, as well as racial memory and application with Grandpa's Magic Car and Mall Santas. Readings include histories of standup and fan fiction as well as recent articles on honestly representing mythic and iconic figures.

Paul Mescal puts on an adequate performance in his SNL debut on December 7, 2024. We discuss spontaneity, creativity, and social comparison in Italian Restaurant Commercial, representations of masculinity in Please Don't Destroy: Paul Mescal is Daddy, and the inconsistent appeal of multi and cross genre content in Gladiator II: The Musical and Shaboozy's A Bar Song (Tipsy). Readings including a meta analysis of social comparison, philosophy and psychology of creativity, and a review of genre performances at the box office.

In Charlie XCX's debut as host on November 14, 2024, we talk about prison abolitionism in Here I Go and the intersection of entertainment, journalism, and social media in Banger Boys, as well as a selection of #chejokes in Weekend Update that hit on national identity, gender, race, and class. Readings include reflections on prison abolition, a new chapter from Charisse on the intersection of entertainment and journalism, and the connection between patriotism and xenophobic jingoism.

Bill Burr hosts the post election episode on November 9, 2024, which feels disorganized and arbitrary at best. We talk about the complicated nature of satire and power in SNL for Trump Cold Open, and the complicated nature of meaning and commercial representation in Calling Dad, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Sex Rock CD. We also take time to appreciate Michael Che's frustration with the election on Weekend Update. Readings include articles on the philosophy and psychology of music, as well as the role of semiotics in conversation and advertising.

John Mulaney returns to host for the sixth time in this pre-election episode. In our post-election analysis, we consider Kamala Harris' appearance in the Pre-Election Cold Open, the role of memory in democratic participation with What's That Name: Election Edition, and what it means to know New York with Port Authority Duane Reade. Readings include Alexis de Tocqueville's "Democracy in America" as well as philosophical and psychological explorations of memory and knowledge.

Michael Keaton's fourth time hosting on October 19, 2024 was unfortunately short on Batman, Beetlejuice, and Birdman jokes. We discuss the Weekend Update appearances of Sarah Sherman and Emil Wakim, as well as the absurdity of internalized oppression and how the film by Please Don't Destroy: Skydiving can remind us to be more empathetic in our everyday lives. We also take a brief detour to ruminate on Tony Hinchcliffe's remarks at a Trump Rally in New York. Readings include psychological, philosophical, and sociological investigations into whiteness and Susan Sontag's essay, "Regarding the Suffering of Others."

In this special episode, we are joined by Bob Thompson, Trustee Professor of Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University, to talk about Saturday Night, the 2024 film directed by Jason Reitman about the night of 1975 premiere of SNL. We discuss the viability of historical fiction in a post-modern media ecosystem that has been oral-history'd and behind-the-scene'd to death and how the film continues some of the longstanding critiques of SNL regarding issues of race and gender.