Saturday Night Live has a long and storied 40-year history, launching the careers of dozens of high-profile comedians since its inception in 1975. To celebrate, NBC will be highlighting some of the show's most iconic episodes as part of SNL's 40th anniversary on Saturday night in a segment called SNL Vintage.
Vintage starts tonight, Sept. 27, at 10 p.m. ET, and will take viewers back to the 1975 debut of the show in an episode hosted by Richard Pryor, with musical guest Gil Scott-Heron. The Vintage episode airing next week on Oct. 4 will come from the show's 25th season and feature host Christopher Walken along with musical guest Christina Aguilera.
For many viewers, watching the weekly throwbacks will be a stroll down memory lane, but just as many viewers are likely to be watching the old episodes for the first time. The show, over the course of its run, has won 45 Emmy Awards and currently holds the distinction of being the most nominated show in Emmy history with 187 nominations. That's plenty of reason to give SNL Vintage a watch: no matter what decade or season the show is from, there are guaranteed to be some laughs.
Several change-ups have come to the show in the last few weeks. Michael Che will be replacing Cecily Strong on Weekend Update, becoming the first black anchor of the fake news segment. Colin Jost will stay on the Weekend Update desk alongside him, while Strong will work on sketches.
It has been rumored that SNL veteran Kenan Thompson may be calling it quits after this latest season, but when asked about the rumors on Today, Thompson simply shrugged it off.
"You don't have to worry about stuff like that," he said on the morning show. "We need to worry about the premiere Saturday. It's the 40th anniversary! That's what we need to focus on."
Whether the veteran comedian will be around next season is something only Thompson knows, but SNL's 40th season is sure to be worth watching regardless.
