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Tom Schiller is an American writer best known for his eleven-year stint writing and directing short films for Saturday Night Live (following the show's original short film makers Albert Brooks and Gary Weis). His films, often featuring members of the original SNL cast, aired on the program in a segment titled, "Schiller's Reel." He is the son of TV comedy writer/producer Bob Schiller.
Schiller was part of the original 1975 writing team when Saturday Night Live debuted on NBC. Schiller was an on-screen cast member for one season. [1] Notable films included the Federico Fellini send-up "La Dolce Gilda" and "Don't Look Back in Anger", which depicted an elderly John Belushi as the last living "Not Ready For Primetime Player" and dancing on the graves of his deceased castmembers. (Ironically, Belushi would be the first SNL cast member to die, four years after the film first aired.) Another favorite was "Java Junkie", a send-up of a 1950s-style cautionary film about a coffee addict (played by Peter Aykroyd) which Schiller made with producer/cinematographer Neal Marshad. Schiller wrote and directed the short film "Love Is a Dream" for SNL again with producer/cinematographer Neal Marshad and starring Phil Hartman and Jan Hooks. Schiller also wrote and directed a feature film, Nothing Lasts Forever (1984). The film, which was shelved by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, has never been officially released theatrically or for home media, featured Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Zach Galligan, Sam Jaffe, Mort Sahl, Lauren Tom, Imogene Coca, Apollonia van Ravenstein and Eddie Fisher, has gained a cult following and influenced a number of young directors.
Prior to working on Saturday Night Live, Schiller worked as an assistant to documentary filmmaker Robert Snyder and directed a film about his longtime friend and mentor, author Henry Miller. Schiller is the son of sitcom writer Bob Schiller, who was a staff writer on I Love Lucy .
Schiller has gone on to direct over 500 comedy TV commercials and is currently represented by his own company, Schillervision.
In spring 2013, the comedy album "Tom and Don", which is a compilation of improv interviews between Schiller and musician Donald Fagen, was released. Schiller's body of work is the subject of the 2005 book Nothing Lost Forever: The Films of Tom Schiller by Michael Streeter. Schiller is married to humorist, community volunteer, author and partygiver, Jacque Schiller, née Lynn.
John Adam Belushi was an American comedian, actor, and musician. He was one of seven Saturday Night Live cast members of the first season. Along with Chevy Chase he was arguably the most popular member of the SNL ensemble. Belushi had a partnership with Dan Aykroyd. They had first met while at Chicago's The Second City comedy club, remaining together as cast members on the inaugural season of the television show Saturday Night Live.
Daniel Edward Aykroyd is a Canadian and American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer.
The Blues Brothers are an American blues and soul revue band founded in 1978 by comedians Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi, who met and began collaborating as original cast members of Saturday Night Live.
Michael O'Donoghue was an American writer and performer.
Saturday Night Live (SNL) is an American late-night live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and streams on 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 was usually based on political events and 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.
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.
Nothing Lasts Forever is a 1984 American science fiction comedy-drama film written and directed by Tom Schiller. Shortly before its intended release date of September, 1984, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer postponed it. The film has never been officially released theatrically or on home media in the United States, though it was eventually broadcast on Turner Classic Movies. The movie was once uploaded onto YouTube, but was taken down at the insistence of Turner Entertainment, the copyright owner of the pre-1986 MGM film library.
James Woodward Downey is an American comedy writer and occasional actor. Downey wrote for over 30 seasons of Saturday Night Live, making him the longest tenured writer in the show's history. SNL creator Lorne Michaels called Downey the "best political humorist alive".
Wired is a 1989 American biographical film of comedian and actor John Belushi, directed by Larry Peerce. It was based on the 1984 book of the same name by Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward, and adapted for the screen by Buckaroo Banzai creator Earl Mac Rauch. It stars Michael Chiklis in his film debut as Belushi. Wired was both a critical and a commercial failure. The film has yet to be released on DVD or Blu-ray, and the videocassette originally released by International Video Entertainment is out of print.
Peter Aykroyd was a Canadian actor, comedian, and writer.
The ninth season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC between October 8, 1983, and May 12, 1984.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Neal Marshad is an American film and television producer, director, cinematographer, advertising executive, internet strategist, and designer.
"Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special" is a three-and-a-half-hour prime-time special that aired on February 15, 2015, on NBC, celebrating Saturday Night Live's 40th year on the air, having premiered on October 11, 1975, under the original title NBC's Saturday Night. It is produced by Broadway Video. This special generated 23.1 million viewers, becoming NBC's most-watched prime-time, non-sports, entertainment telecast since the Friends series finale in 2004. It is the third such anniversary special to be broadcast, with celebratory episodes also held during the 15th and 25th seasons.
"Saturday Night Live 15th Anniversary Special" is a 2 1/2 hour prime-time special that aired on September 24, 1989, on NBC, celebrating Saturday Night Live's 15th year on the air, having premiered on October 11, 1975, under the original title NBC's Saturday Night. SNL has since had two more specials celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 1998 and 40th Anniversary in 2014.
SNL 1975 is an upcoming American biographical comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman from a screenplay he co-wrote with Gil Kenan, with both also co-producing it alongside Jason Blumenfeld and Peter Rice. The film stars Gabriel LaBelle, Cooper Hoffman, Rachel Sennott, Lamorne Morris, Dylan O'Brien, Andrew Barth Feldman, Finn Wolfhard, J.K. Simmons, and Willem Dafoe.
Some of the names here will be familiar only to die-hard fans; others, like Murphy, defined what was funny for generations of viewers.
^ Interview - Tom and Don: Part 1 at Apple ITunes