Emily Litella

Last updated
Emily Litella
Saturday Night Live character
Saturday night live welch radner 1976.JPG
Radner (right) dressed as Emily Litella with Raquel Welch during a 1976 SNL rehearsal
First appearancesegment "Looks At Books"
SNL
November 15, 1975
Created by Gilda Radner
Portrayed byGilda Radner
In-universe information
Based onReal-life person:
Elizabeth "Dibby" Clementine Gillies

Emily Litella is a fictional character created and performed by comedian Gilda Radner in a series of appearances on Saturday Night Live . [1] Based on a person in her early life, Emily Litella was a popular character in Radner's comedy repertoire.

Contents

Premise

Emily Litella is an elderly woman with a hearing problem who appeared 26 times on SNL's Weekend Update op-ed segment between November 15, 1975 (Season 1) and December 17, 1977 (Season 3). [2] [3] Attired in a frumpy dress, sweater and Lisa Loopner eyeglasses, Litella was introduced with professional dignity by the news anchors, who could sometimes be seen cringing slightly in anticipation of the malapropisms they knew would follow. These sketches were, in part, a parody of the Fairness Doctrine, which at the time required broadcasters in the United States to present opposing viewpoints on public issues.

Litella would peer through her reading glasses and, in the character's high-pitched, warbly voice, would read a prepared statement in opposition to an editorial that the TV station had supposedly broadcast. Litella would become increasingly agitated as her statement progressed. Midway in her commentary, it became apparent to the anchor and the audience that Litella had misheard or misunderstood the subject of the editorial to which she was responding. A typical example:

What is all this fuss I hear about the Supreme Court decision on a "deaf" penalty? It's terrible! Deaf people have enough problems as it is! [4]

The news anchor would interrupt Litella to point out her error, along the lines, "That's death penalty, Ms. Litella, not deaf ... death." [4] Litella would wrinkle her nose, say something like, "Oh, that's very different," then meekly turn to the camera and say, smiling, "Never mind!" [5]

When Litella played against news anchor Chevy Chase (whom she often called "Cheddar Cheese" [6] ), he would be somewhat sympathetic to her. But when Jane Curtin took over the anchor role, she would scold Litella, "Every week you come on and you get it wrong," to which Litella would reply, "Bitch!" [5]

Appearances

Air dateLitella malapropismActual phrase
December 13, 1975Busting schoolchildren Bussing schoolchildren [7] [8]
December 20, 1975Firing the handicappedHiring the handicapped [2] [9]
January 24, 1976Saving Soviet jewelrySaving Soviet Jewry [10] [11] [12]
January 31, 1976Eagle Rights Amendment Equal Rights Amendment [7]
February 14, 1976 Canker research Cancer research
February 28, 1976Deaf penalty Death penalty
March 13, 1976Conserving natural racehorsesConserving natural resources [13]
April 17, 1976Presidential erections Presidential elections [14]
May 8, 1976Violins on televisionViolence on television [13]
May 29, 1976Flop storyTop story
September 18, 1976 Crustacean hijackers Croatian hijackers [15]
December 11, 1976 Unisex donations UNICEF donations
January 15, 1977Making Puerto Rico a steak Making Puerto Rico a state [16] [17]
January 22, 1977Burning tissues Burning issues
Transcendental medication Transcendental meditation
Maguda triangle Bermuda Triangle
Air fags in cars Airbags in cars
(unspecified vulgarity)Duck
Flea elections in China / Flea erectionsFree Elections in China
February 20, 1977Liverboats Riverboats [7]
March 12, 1977Endangered feces Endangered species [5]
April 9, 1977"(You Make Me Feel Like) a National Woman""(You Make Me Feel Like) a Natural Woman"
April 23, 1977Air solution Air pollution
"I Will Swallow Him""I Will Follow Him"
May 14, 1977 Jeep beep
May 21, 1977Stella Abzug Bella Abzug
Cat in the ringHat in the ring
December 17, 1977Mr. AdenoidMr. Aykroyd
Jan / Miss Clayton Jane Curtin
sst SST
February 10, 1979 Porky and Bess Porgy and Bess
Rodeo and Juliet Romeo and Juliet

History

Radner based Litella on her childhood nanny, Elizabeth Clementine Gillies, known as "Dibby", who was allegedly hard of hearing. [18] [19] The running gag "Never mind" became a lighthearted catchphrase of the era. [20] [21]

In her first appearance on SNL, the character of Emily Litella was an author who appeared as an interview subject on a show called "Looks At Books". Though she had the same wavery voice and somewhat frumpy wardrobe as she would in later episodes, Litella did not appear to have a hearing problem in this appearance. All but one of the subsequent SNL appearances by Litella were at the newsdesk, and featured the by-now much more familiar "editorial reply" iteration of the character. In the eleventh episode of season four, on February 10, 1979, with guest hostess Cicely Tyson, the final comedy sketch was called "Emily Litellavision", and featured Litella hosting a staging of a song from Porky and Bess, her Porky Pig–based mis-hearing of Porgy and Bess by George and Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward, with Garrett Morris singing a song to Tyson with added stuttering, and the orchestra shown wearing pig masks.

Outside of Saturday Night Live, Radner played the character briefly on The Muppet Show . At the top of that episode, Miss Litella is discovered backstage by stage manager Scooter, where she is vociferously complaining about the indignity of her appearing in something so silly as "The Muffin Show", whereupon Scooter gently persuades Miss Litella that she would be appearing on "The Muppet Show", not "The Muffin Show". After hearing this reassurance, she withdraws her objection, and meekly apologizes to Scooter by saying, "Never mind."

The character also appeared in Radner's 1979 one-woman off-Broadway show, Gilda Live, in which Litella took a job as a substitute teacher in Bedford-Stuyvesant, replacing a teacher who had been a victim of a stabbing by one of his students, which put him in the hospital. Miss Litella further cautioned her new students to be very careful where they put their toes, as the regular teacher's "stubbing" was the third such "stubbing", as Miss Litella put it, at the school that week alone; and that the "stubbings" must be pretty serious, in order to have put their teacher in hospital indefinitely. [ citation needed ]

A similar character, Anthony Crispino (played by Bobby Moynihan), made his first appearance on a Weekend Update in Season 35, and became a recurring character. [22]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gilda Radner</span> American actress and comedian (1946–1989)

Gilda Susan Radner was an American actress, comedian, writer, and singer. Radner was one of the seven original cast members of the "Not Ready For Prime Time Players" on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from its inception in 1975 until her departure in 1980. In her routines on SNL, she specialized in parodies of television stereotypes, such as advice specialists and news anchors. In 1978, Radner won an Emmy Award for her performances on the show. She also portrayed those characters in her highly successful one-woman show on Broadway in 1979. Radner's SNL work established her as an iconic figure in the history of American comedy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Curtin</span> American actress and comedian

Jane Therese Curtin is an American actress and comedian. First coming to prominence as an original cast member on the hit TV comedy series Saturday Night Live in 1975, she went on to win back-to-back Emmy Awards for Best Lead Actress in a Comedy Series on the 1980s sitcom Kate & Allie portraying the role of Allison "Allie" Lowell. Curtin later starred in the hit series 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996–2001), playing the role of Dr. Mary Albright.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laraine Newman</span> American actress, writer and comedian

Laraine Newman is an American actress, comedian, and writer. Newman was part of the original cast of NBC's long-running sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from its inception in 1975 until her departure in 1980. She took an interest at improv in high school. After graduating, she studied mime with Marcel Marceau for a year in Paris. She then moved to Los Angeles and became a founding member of comedy improvisational group The Groundlings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevy Chase</span> American comedian, writer and actor (born 1943)

Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He became a key cast member in the first season of Saturday Night Live (SNL), where his recurring Weekend Update segment became a staple of the show. As both a performer and a writer, he earned three Primetime Emmy Awards out of five nominations and two Golden Globe Award nominations.

<i>Weekend Update</i> Saturday Night Live parody newscast

Weekend Update is a Saturday Night Live sketch and satirical news program that comments on and parodies current events. It is the show's longest-running recurring sketch, having been on since the show's first broadcast, and is typically presented in the middle of the show immediately after the first musical performance. Historically, one or two of the players are cast in the role of news anchor, presenting gag news items based on current events and acting as hosts for occasional editorials, commentaries, or other performances by other cast members or guests. In modern times, dedicated anchors are chosen among writing staff, often lead writers, in lieu of cast or featured players. Chevy Chase has said that Weekend Update – which he started as anchor in 1975 – paved the way for comedic news shows like The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael O'Donoghue</span> American actor and writer (1940–1994)

Michael O'Donoghue was an American writer and performer. He was known for his dark and destructive style of comedy and humor, and was a major contributor to National Lampoon magazine. He was the first head writer of Saturday Night Live and the first performer to deliver a line on the series.

<i>Saturday Night Live</i> American late-night live TV sketch comedy and variety show

Saturday Night Live is an American late-night live television sketch comedy, political satire, and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves as the program's showrunner. The show’s premiere was hosted by George Carlin on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title NBC's Saturday Night. The show's comedy sketches, which often parody contemporary American culture and politics, are performed by a large and varying cast of repertory and newer cast members. Each episode is hosted by a celebrity guest, who usually delivers the opening monologue and performs in sketches with the cast, with featured performances by a musical guest. An episode normally begins with a cold open sketch that ends with someone breaking character and proclaiming, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!", properly beginning the show.

Saturday Night Live is an American sketch comedy series created and produced by Lorne Michaels for most of the show's run. The show has aired on NBC since 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roseanne Roseannadanna</span> "Saturday Night Live" character created and portrayed by Gilda Radner

Roseanne Roseannadanna is a character created and portrayed by Gilda Radner on Weekend Update in the early seasons of Saturday Night Live (SNL). She was the segment's consumer affairs reporter who, like an earlier Radner character Emily Litella, editorialized on current issues, only to go off-topic before being interrupted by the anchor. Unlike Litella's meek and apologetic character, Roseannadanna was brash and tactless. The character was based on Rose Ann Scamardella, a former anchorwoman on WABC-TV's Eyewitness News in New York City. The character also appeared later in Radner's live one-woman shows.

Weekend Update has been a platform for Saturday Night Live characters to grow and gain popularity ever since Gilda Radner used it to create Emily Litella and Roseanne Roseannadanna. Many cast members have used Update as the primary vehicle for a certain character. Don Novello was featured almost exclusively on the news segment as his breakout character, Father Guido Sarducci, and Tim Kazurinsky, in the face of Eddie Murphy's overshadowing popularity, created characters almost exclusively for Update. Before becoming an anchor on Update, Colin Quinn used the segment as his main sounding board as well.

The Land Shark was a recurring character from the sketch comedy television series Saturday Night Live.

<i>Gilda Live</i> 1980 film by Mike Nichols

Gilda Live is a 1980 American comedy documentary film starring Gilda Radner, directed by Mike Nichols and produced by Lorne Michaels. Radner and Michaels and all of the writers involved with the production were alumni from the television program Saturday Night Live.

<i>Saturday Night Live</i> (season 5) Season of television series

The fifth season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC between October 13, 1979, and May 24, 1980.

<i>Saturday Night Live</i> (season 4) Season of television series

The fourth season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC between October 7, 1978, and May 26, 1979.

<i>Saturday Night Live</i> (season 2) Season of television series

The second season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC from September 18, 1976 to May 21, 1977.

<i>Saturday Night Live</i> (season 1) Season of television series

The first season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC from October 11, 1975, to July 31, 1976. The show served as a vehicle that launched to stardom the careers of a number of major comedians and actors, including Chevy Chase, John Belushi, and Dan Aykroyd.

Rosie Shuster is a Canadian-born comedy writer and actress. She was a writer for Saturday Night Live during the 1970s and 1980s.

The following is a list of recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced between September 24, 1977, and May 20, 1978, the third season of SNL.

The following is a list of recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced between October 7, 1978, and May 26, 1979, the fourth season of SNL.

The following is a list of recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced between October 13, 1979, and May 24, 1980, the fifth season of SNL.

References

  1. ↑ Barone, Michael (September 28, 2005). "At NASA, an Emily Litella Moment". U.S. News & World Report . Retrieved September 15, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Fruchter, Rena (January 17, 2013). I'm Chevy Chase ... and You're Not. London: Random House. p. 199. ISBN   978-0-7535-2114-4.
  3. ↑ "Emily Litella, played by Gilda Radner". SNL Archive. Retrieved April 8, 2014.
  4. 1 2 Baskin, Edie (1977). Anne P. Beatts (ed.). Saturday Night Live. John Head. Avon Books. ISBN   978-0-380-01801-7.
  5. 1 2 3 Shales, Tom; Miller, James Andrew (November 16, 2008). Live From New York: An Uncensored History Of Saturday Night Live. New York, NY: Little, Brown. p. 125. ISBN   978-0-316-04582-7.
  6. ↑ "Joey the dachshund: 'OK, OK, I get it. I'm short. Must you keep reminding me?'". Saint Paul Pioneer Press. Bulletin Board. 8 November 2011.
  7. 1 2 3 "Amusing Monday: Recalling SNL's Emily Litella | Watching Our Water Ways". 11 January 2010.
  8. ↑ "Watch Saturday Night Live Highlight: Weekend Update: Emily Litella on Busting School Children - NBC.com".
  9. ↑ "SNL Transcripts: Candice Bergen: 12/20/75 - SNL Transcripts Tonight". 8 October 2018.
  10. ↑ Shales, Tom (22 May 1989). "The Afterglow of Gilda Radner; The Nutty but Nice Graduate of Saturday Night". The Washington Post. B01.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  11. ↑ "Soviet Jewelry".
  12. ↑ "SNL Transcripts: Peter Cook & Dudley Moore: 01/24/76: Weekend Update with Chevy Chase - SNL Transcripts Tonight". 8 October 2018.
  13. 1 2 Sorensen, Roy A. (January 22, 2002). Pseudo-Problems: How Analytic Philosophy Gets Done. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis. p. 108. ISBN   978-0-203-04868-9.
  14. ↑ Robinson, Peter M. (2010). The Dance of the Comedians: The People, the President, and the Performance of Political Standup Comedy in America. Amherst & Boston: Univ of Massachusetts Press. pp. 200–. ISBN   978-1-55849-785-6.
  15. ↑ "Watch Saturday Night Live Highlight: Weekend Update 9-18-76, Part 2 of 2 - NBC.com".
  16. ↑ Malloy, Merrit (August 30, 1990). The Quotable Quote Book. New York, NY: Carol Publishing Group. p. 174. ISBN   978-0-8065-1220-4.
  17. ↑ Saltzman, David A. (March 2008). "Never Mind". Life Insurance Selling. 83 (3): 112–114. OCLC   2906328.
  18. ↑ Jackson, Kenneth T. (1998). The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives: 1986-1990. Charles Scribner's Sons. p. 718. ISBN   0684804913 . Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  19. ↑ Radner, Gilda (June 2, 2015). It's Always Something. Simon and Schuster. ISBN   978-1501126635 . Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  20. ↑ Robinson, Marc (2002). Brought to You in Living Color. Wiley. p. 134. ISBN   9780471090168 . Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  21. ↑ Stein, Ellin (June 24, 2013). That's Not Funny, That's Sick: The National Lampoon and the Comedy Insurgents Who Captured the Mainstream. W. W. Norton. p. 298. ISBN   9780393074093 . Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  22. ↑ Busis, Hillary (December 7, 2014). "Saturday Night Live recap: 'James Franco and Nicki Minaj'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.