Women of SNL (Part 1)

This past year has been an explosion of female comedic talent in movies and television shows. It is not a surprise to me that most of these women got their start on Saturday Night Live. However, women from SNL have been making their mark in America since it started in 1975.

The first cast consisted of 3 (of 7 cast members) women Jane Curtin, Gilda Radner and Laraine Newman. During these times, NBC was a boy's club and the men were not going to be out-shined by the women. 

 In my opinion, Gilda Radner was the best and most successful of these three. She created characters such as "Roseanne Roseannadanna", "Judy Miller", "Baba Wawa", her imitation of Barbara Walters, and Emily Litella, the elderly woman who was notorious for mishearing information. She was on the show from 1975 until 1980 and went on to star in many films. She also won a Primetime Emmy for Best Supporting Actress in a Variety or Music show. It also didn't hurt that she married Gene Wilder either. This comedic sweetheart struggled with bulimia and was diagnosed with cancer in 1986 and passed away in 1989. To this day she is the inspiration for female comedians everywhere. Tina Fey and Maya Rudolph both idolized Gilda as children and was the reason they decided to become who they are today.

Molly Shannon is another notable cast member whom everyone has heard of. She was a cast member from 1995-2001. Her characters include Sally O'Malley, an infamous impression of Monica Lewinsky-which as a kid, I thought was actually Monica herself who landed a role on the show because of the Clinton sex-scandal, I obviously was not correct. And last but not least, Mary Katherine Gallagher. Perhaps the oddest, most awkward character of hers, Mary Katherine Gallagher was the Catholic school girl who had odd nervous habits and aspirations to be glamorously famous or a "Superstar". This original character spawned a movie based off the sketches. Since, she has made cameos in many television shows and movies. She even wrote a few children's books.

Next is my favorite human being on the planet. Representing nerdy brunettes everywhere is the one and only Tina Fey. She started out at SNL as a writer in 1997 under head-writer Adam McKay. She went on to be the show's first woman head writer in 1999. She eventually became a performing cast member and Weekend Update Anchor with Jimmy Fallon. She was the sole reason that Saturday Night Live made the change from showcasing both male and female cast members. During Tina's time, Ana Gasteyer, Rachel Dratch, Molly Shannon and Cheri Oteri were in their prime. There had not been a group of women on the show that held their own against the men since the first few seasons. The men during this time were also a huge part of the show's success at this time but when Tina joined Weekend Update, the attitude of the show changed significantly. Her quick wit matched with that of the goofiness of Jimmy Fallon. After the show, she created/produced/wrote the still successful, Emmy-winning, 30 Rock.

In 2008, she coined her Sarah Palin impression which was so spot on that even friends of both women couldn't tell the difference. Her impression became an instrumental part of the McCain-Palin parody and was awarded the prestigious, Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Her speech when accepting this award is perhaps my favorite speech she has ever made partly because it encompasses who she is; normal, awkward, feminist, Democrat, professional, sarcastic, and "stone cold bitch". Her self-berating humor is something everyone can relate to and is showcased in her book, Bossypants. 

Stay tuned for Part 2!