No.
overall | No. in
season | Host | Musical guest(s) | Original release date |
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| 47 | 1 | Steve Martin | Jackson Browne | September 24, 1977 (1977-09-24) |
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| 48 | 2 | Madeline Kahn | Taj Mahal | October 8, 1977 (1977-10-08) |
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| 49 | 3 | Hugh Hefner | Libby Titus | October 15, 1977 (1977-10-15) |
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| 50 | 4 | Charles Grodin | Paul Simon | October 29, 1977 (1977-10-29) |
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- Paul Simon performs "Slip Slidin' Away"[6] and "You're Kind"[6] (a song fromStill Crazy After All These Years), accompanied on both songs by harmonica playerToots Thielemans and a backing band. The first song was performed withThe Persuasions.
- A running gag throughout the episode involves Grodin breaking character and ruining sketches, as if he missed the dress rehearsal. While many speculated this was genuine and Grodin was banned from hosting, Grodin later confirmed that it was all part of the act. Regardless, Grodin would never host again.
- One sketch features Simon and Grodin attempting to sing "The Sound of Silence", with Grodin wearing an Art Garfunkel wig. After several aborted starts (with Grodin singing off-key and forgetting the lyrics), Simon walks off the stage. Grodin then proceeds to sing a verse of "Bridge Over Troubled Water", after which the realArt Garfunkel walks on stage and asks Grodin to take off the wig.
- Roseanne Roseannadanna made her debut in this episode's "Hire the Incompetent" sketch.
- New title sequence debuts showing the logo in a new typeface and the cast individually standing in front of the Times Square Jumbotron.
- First appearance of Judy Miller.
- Grodin makes an appearance in the audience right after the football sketch with the caption "THIS WEEK'S HOST!"
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| 51 | 5 | Ray Charles | Ray Charles | November 12, 1977 (1977-11-12) |
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- Ray Charles performs "I Can See Clearly Now," "What'd I Say," "Oh! What a Beautiful Mornin'" and a medley of "I Got a Woman," "I Believe to My Soul," "Them That Got" and "Hit the Road Jack".
- Special Guest:Franklyn Ajaye
- Buck Henry makes an uncredited guest appearance as himself to plug the next episode he hosts and tease the "Anyone Can Host" contest.
- Ray Charles led the band, cast and crew in a jam during the closing credits.
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| 52 | 6 | Buck Henry | Leon Redbone | November 19, 1977 (1977-11-19) |
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- Leon Redbone performs "Champagne Charlie" and "Please Don't Talk about Me When I'm Gone".[6]
- Special Guest: Franken and Davis
- Henry uses his monologue to introduce the five finalists in the "Anyone Can Host" contest. The five finalists are then featured sporadically throughout the episode, including an appearance in a film byGary Weis.
- In a sketch,John Belushi plays himself as a retired athlete, endorsing "Little Chocolate Donuts," a parody ofCaitlyn Jenner'sWheaties ad. The voice over for the commercial while Belushi is running is done by sportscasterMarv Albert.
- A film byTom Schiller was featured.
- With this episode, Henry becomes the first to host five times.
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| 53 | 7 | Mary Kay Place | Willie Nelson | December 10, 1977 (1977-12-10) |
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- Willie Nelson performs "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain", "Whiskey River" and "Something to Brag About".[6] The last song was performed as a duet with Mary Kay Place.
- Special Guest: Andy Kaufman
- Contains the classic Marilyn Suzanne Miller penned sketch, "Married in a Minute!"
- The Weekend Update set is slightly modified to include an image screen, before, the images were shown on the blue chroma key background.
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| 54 | 8 | Miskel Spillman | Elvis Costello | December 17, 1977 (1977-12-17) |
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- Elvis Costello performs "Watching the Detectives"[6] and was scheduled to perform "Less Than Zero" but halted his band the Attractions seven seconds into the song, launching into "Radio Radio",[6] an as-yet unreleased song critical of mainstream broadcasting.
- Miskel Spillman was the winner of SNL's "Anyone Can Host" contest.
- Special Guests: Franken and Davis,Mr. Mike
- Al Franken's parents, Joseph and Phoebe, appear in the "Franken and Davis Show" sketch.
- Emily Litella makes her final regular appearance as Weekend Update's consumer affairs correspondent.
- TheSex Pistols were originally scheduled to perform as announced byDon Pardo on the previous show during the closing credits.
- Buck Henry makes a cameo appearance during the cold open and monologue (trying to snatch the bowl of fruit away held by Spillman, only to have his hands slapped) and during the "Sartresky and Hutch" sketch.
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| 55 | 9 | Steve Martin | Randy Newman,The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band | January 21, 1978 (1978-01-21) |
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- Randy Newman performs "Short People" and "Rider in the Rain".[6] Members ofThe Nitty Gritty Dirt Band perform backing vocals during Newman's set. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, in turn, performs "On the Loose" and "White Russia".[6] (Martin accompanied them on banjo for the latter song.)
- Steve Martin announces that a snowstorm the day before caused limited rehearsals.
- Roseanne Roseannadanna makes herWeekend Update debut in this episode replacingEmily Litella as consumer affairs correspondent.
- First appearance of the What if? sketch. (What if Napoleon had a B-17 bomber?)
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| 56 | 10 | Robert Klein | Bonnie Raitt | January 28, 1978 (1978-01-28) |
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- Bonnie Raitt performs "Give It Up or Let Me Go" and "Runaway".[6] Klein joined Raitt on harmonica on the former song.
- The cold open featuresPaul Shaffer asDon Kirshner and Mr. Mike.
- Bill Murray's "Nick Winters" lounge singer performs "Star Wars, nothing but Star Wars ...".
- Paul Shaffer appears asNick the Lounge Singer's pianist.
- First appearance of theOlympia Cafe sketch,[8] during which the word "cheeseburger" is said 80 times.[9]
- First appearance ofThe Nerds sketch.[10]
- Because of the then-recent crash of the highly radioactive Russian satelliteKosmos 954 (which took place just 4 days earlier), this episode features a running gag about the radioactive debris having created giant mutant lobsters heading for the U.S. east coast which saw them attack30 Rockefeller Plaza at the show's end.
- Chevy Chase does the lobster roars as stated in the closing credits.
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| 57 | 11 | Chevy Chase | Billy Joel | February 18, 1978 (1978-02-18) |
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- Billy Joel performs "Only the Good Die Young" and "Just the Way You Are".[6] When introducing Joel's first performance, Chevy Chase notes that Joel missed his high school reunion to perform on SNL.
- Chevy Chase becomes the first former cast member to come back and host with this episode.
- Chase appeared onWeekend Update as "senior anchorperson".
- The season 1 and 2 opening title sequence is used for this episode.
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| 58 | 12 | O. J. Simpson | Ashford and Simpson | February 25, 1978 (1978-02-25) |
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- Ashford and Simpson perform "Don't Cost You Nothing" and "So, So Satisfied".[6]
- Special Guest: Franken and Davis
- The title sequence shows new footage of the cast (exceptDan Aykroyd andGilda Radner) without the Jumbotron in the background.
- Every cast member, as well asDon Novello and O.J. Simpson, are featured inSamurai Night Fever, a parody ofSaturday Night Fever. John Belushi dances to TheBee Gees'Stayin' Alive.
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| 59 | 13 | Art Garfunkel | Stephen Bishop | March 11, 1978 (1978-03-11) |
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- Stephen Bishop performs "On and On" and Art Garfunkel performs "Wonderful World" with Stephen Bishop on backup, "Crying in My Sleep" and a medley of "All I Know"/"Scarborough Fair".[6]
- Special Guest: Andy Kaufman
- This episode features the short film,Don't Look Back in Anger, in which an aged John Belushi visits the graves of the "Not Ready for Primetime Players" cast and claims he's the last living member. (The sketch is now seen as ironic due to Belushi's being the first of the original cast to die.)
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| 60 | 14 | Jill Clayburgh | Eddie Money | March 18, 1978 (1978-03-18) |
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| 61 | 15 | Christopher Lee | Meat Loaf | March 25, 1978 (1978-03-25) |
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| 62 | 16 | Michael Palin | Eugene Record | April 8, 1978 (1978-04-08) |
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- Eugene Record performs "Have You Seen Her" and "Trying to Get to You".[6]
- In the opening monologue, Michael Palin plays his manager who ends up stuffing live cats down his trousers; one of the cats defecates freely all over his arm. Palin, with only a one-minute costume change afterward, performed the RC Priest and Very Famous Man (Trunk Escape) sketches with feces still on his clothes.[11]
- Mr. Bill pays his taxes.
- During Weekend Update, John Belushi does an editorial aboutRadio City Music Hall.
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| 63 | 17 | Michael Sarrazin | Keith Jarrett | April 15, 1978 (1978-04-15) |
|---|
- Keith Jarrett performs "Country" and "My Song."[6] Gravity performed "Tuba City Gitback."[6]
- This episode features a short black and white film,La Dolce Gilda.
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| 64 | 18 | Steve Martin | The Blues Brothers | April 22, 1978 (1978-04-22) |
|---|
- The Blues Brothers perform "I Don't Know".[6]
- The cold opening featuresPaul Shaffer asDon Kirshner introducingThe Blues Brothers singing "Hey Bartender".
- Sketches include the Czech brothers, The classic Franken and Davis skit, "Theodoric of York, Medieval Barber"[12] a Martin and Radner dance sketch (Written by Miller), a performance of "King Tut,"[13] aGary Weis film with ballet dancers and breakdancers and "Nerds at the Science Fair".
- This episode was nominated for anEmmy Award and was later selected as TV Guide's #12 Top TV Episode of all time.[14]
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| 65 | 19 | Richard Dreyfuss | Jimmy Buffett, Gary Tigerman | May 13, 1978 (1978-05-13) |
|---|
- Jimmy Buffett performs "Son of a Son of a Sailor" and Gary Tigerman performs "White Oaxacan Moon".[6]
- First appearance ofFather Guido Sarducci (Don Novello). Novello is credited as a special guest in the opening, under Sarducci's name.
- Novello performs in crutches, having injured himself in the hockey sketch in the Michael Sarrazin episode. Also Jimmy Buffett performs in a cast, having broken his leg.
- Paul Shaffer appears as lounge singer Nick Winter's piano player and as Dreyfuss' piano player, as Dreyfuss sings "Seduced" by Gary Tigerman.
- John Belushi joins Dreyfuss on stage and, as part of the monologue, attempts to help Dreyfuss with the lines of his Shakespeare soliloquy (suggesting that he use the cue cards since he's not used to being on television) and then angrily mocks and argues with him saying he didn't deserve the Oscar he had received that year (over Richard Burton).
- Twice in the episode, Dreyfuss hears theJaws theme.
- During the "Cone Encounters of the Third Kind" sketch, Dreyfuss (reprising his role as Roy Neary from his 1977 filmClose Encounters of the Third Kind) accidentally and briefly speaks in the Coneheads tone.
- During the closing credits, Dreyfuss is attacked by theLand Shark.
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| 66 | 20 | Buck Henry | Sun Ra | May 20, 1978 (1978-05-20) |
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- Sun Ra performs a medley including "Space Is the Place," "The Sound Mirror" and "Watusa".[6]
- Special Guests: Mr. Mike, Franken and Davis
- Final episode where the cast was referred to as "The Not Ready for Primetime Players".
- Dan Aykroyd's final episode asWeekend Update co-anchor.
- Final episode with Weekend Update's blue chroma key set.
- Final episode to feature audience caption bumpers
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