Jim Henson and Saturday Night Live: A Muppet Moment in History
You might know Jim Henson for iconic creations like The Muppets and Sesame Street, but did you know he had a brief stint on Saturday Night Live? Yes, way back in 1975, the legend of puppetry took a shot at making it big on SNL's very first season. It didn't exactly go according to plan. You gotta imagine how bizarre that might have been! You know, taking Sesame Street Muppets to the craziest late-night show!
Henson brought a team of his puppet pals to SNL, aiming to create a skit that would work for a more adult audience, kind of like how we see The Muppets today on shows like Muppet Mayhem. However, his SNL venture, "The Land of Gorch," got some mixed reactions from those viewers who watched it in those early days. What might seem weird today, must have felt even wilder when the show first premiered, since it's been running strong for over 40 years now.
Henson's "Land of Gorch" - An Unexpectedly Crude Turn
Before landing on SNL, Henson worked with Sesame Street, designing and operating puppets for that beloved children's show. He hoped that "The Land of Gorch," featuring a royal family from a fictional world with bizarre, somewhat rude puppets (who wouldn't love characters with names like Ploobis, Peuta, and Wiss?) , would reach a different audience! They would break out from the Sesame Street world, as a way to avoid just doing children's entertainment. However, audiences weren't exactly jazzed, because the sketch just didn’t really fit into the kind of humor SNL became famous for.
The show’s humor focused on a different kind of edgy comedy. "The Land of Gorch" featured a whole bunch of off-color humor that pushed some boundaries for a wide audience at that time, with nods to drugs, sex, and all sorts of craziness, and ultimately, didn't get those laughs.
Jim Henson, SNL, and Writer's Union Drama
One of the problems that ended up halting "The Land of Gorch" came down to writers. Back then, writers for SNL had to be specifically part of the show's team because of a rule from the Writer's Guild of America! Meaning that even though Henson was a genius with creating those crazy characters, he had to hand over the script-writing duties. This kind of sucked for the show, since Henson really was the person who had those imaginative story ideas for these characters, not just random writers.
The other side of the coin? The writers on the show apparently didn’t really appreciate having to write these “felt puppets,” not really wanting to contribute to "The Land of Gorch". The SNL team was a talented bunch, but a little too keen on more typical comedy skits, so it was all kinda disastrous from the start.
Why It All Went South
"The Land of Gorch" just couldn't gain any traction. It was as if those SNL audiences were screaming “Not those weird puppets, we don’t get it!” While it's pretty easy to look back at those times with a little humor now, it wasn’t such a fun moment back then, because these sketches also served as the building blocks for what we see as The Muppet Show now. We're looking at some pretty incredible stuff.
Even though "The Land of Gorch" failed, it helped Henson learn some of the things he needed to take those characters and those ideas, and turn them into a full-on TV show! That show was The Muppet Show, which is one of those super beloved and popular creations to this day. Maybe the SNL showrunners might regret that cancellation, considering The Muppets got more famous! And those early SNL writers who said, “I don't write for felt," must feel bad about those comments right now! They really missed out!
SNL’s Beginnings Come To Life in a New Movie - Saturday Night
Want a sneak peek at the early days of SNL? Well, get ready to check out "Saturday Night", a movie directed by Jason Reitman, which brings the beginning of that wild show to life! The cast is totally packed with big names like Lorne Michaels (the guy who started it all, a real legend!), Dan Aykroyd, and even George Carlin, played by actors like Gabriel LaBelle, Dylan O'Brien, and Matthew Rhys.
Nicholas Braun (he’s Greg from Succession!), will play Jim Henson! That's a big one! So if you’re already super pumped for “Saturday Night” you can bet this movie is gonna give us a front-row seat to the legendary world of SNL as it took its first steps to being a comedic classic, with all its early, pretty wild moments!
