The best Saturday Night Live sketches of the 1990s featured some of the best to ever appear on the long-running comedy show, doing what they do best, making people laugh. The 1990s ushered out one era of top performers like Adam Sandler, David Spade, Mike Meyers and Dana Carvey, and welcomed a new crew with the likes of Will Ferrell, Chris Kattan and Molly Shannon, with both providing some of the funniest sketches to ever appear on SNL.
From the classic Wayne's World and Church Lady skits to the unforgettable moments like the living in a van down by the river routine, the best SNL sketches from the 1990s easily rival that of any other era on the show.
Helping viewers resist the temptations from Satan, Church Chat features none other than the Church Lady, played by Dana Carvey. Appearing as an older woman, Carvey used a squeaky voice to interview a variety of guests. As a host for Saturday Night Live in 2011, Carvey donned the cat's eye horn-rimmed glasses to remind us of the classic sketch. Well, isn't that special?!
Spoofing a BBC television program, Mike Meyers appeared in the recurring Simon sketches as the title character. Simon filmed his show from the most-reasonable place for a young boy, the bathtub. Simon liked to "do drawings" and share his bath with a variety of characters while uttering his catch phrases such as "cheeky monkeys" and "bum lookers."
An "informative training program for the serious weightlifter," Pumping Up with Hanz and Franz was filled with comical weightlifting tips, hilarious padded bodysuit costumes and Austrian-accent love for then-actor and bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger. Dana Carvey and Kevin Nealon starred as Hanz and Franz, respectively, as they vowed to "pump.. you up!" The sketch was so successful that years later Schwarzenegger used the famous term "girlie man" during his time as governor of California.
Easily one of the best and most well-known performances of his life, Chris Farley turned into a legend in his portrayal of motivational speaker Matt Foley. Appearing in a handful of sketches, Matt Foley attempted to help youths with his unique story about living in a van down by the river. Only rarely during the comical sketches could the other actors, such as David Spade, keep from laughing on camera due to the absolute hilariousness of the piece.
Airing 14 times between 1996 and 2002, Celebrity Jeopardy! was arguably one of the best recurring Saturday Night Live sketches of the 1990s. Alex Trebek, portrayed by Will Ferrel, was constantly tormented by frequent contestant Sean Connery, played by Darrel Hammond, among other colorful and often clueless celebrities. Characters like Burt Reynolds (Norm Macdonald), Sharon Osbourne (Any Poehler) and Bill Cosby (Kenan Thompson) served as other contestants, each with their own horribly incorrect Jeopardy! answers.
As one of the most successful Saturday Night Live sketches to live on after the show, Wayne's World was a short public-access television show skit performed by Mike Meyers, as Wayne, and Dana Carvey, as Garth. The show filmed from Wayne's basement and included features about all things they loved, mainly rock bands and babes. After two films, Wayne's World, like Church Chat, made a brief comeback when Carvey hosted SNL in 2011.
Chronicling the sadness, disappointment and stalking that comes after one man broke up with his girlfriend, The Denise Show was a call-in talk show starring Adam Sandler as Brian. Brian could not deal with breaking up with girlfriend Denise, portrayed by Shannen Doherty, and spent his time talking about her and talking to people who knew her. As if his heartbreak was not enough, his father, voiced by Phil Hartman, would also call and shout at him.
Featuring perhaps the best androgynous fictional character ever, Pat was a popular recurring sketch that revolved around the title character, played by Julia Sweeney. No matter how hard the co-stars of the sketch tried, no one was ever able to determine Pat's gender. Like many sketches from the decade, Pat spawned a film, ""It's Pat,"" however the film was widely panned.
Showcasing his vocal prowess, Adam Sandler often appeared as a guest on the mid-show news program Weekly Update as Opera Man to tell the news in song. Opera Man was just one of many musical characters played by Sandler on Weekend Update as the comic also debuted his popular holiday songs, like the ""Chanukah Song"" during the segment.
Debuting in 1996 and continuing into the 2010s, The Ambiguously Gay Duo is an animated sketch produced by Robert Smeigel. Featuring two comic superheroes voiced by Steven Colbert and steve Carrell, the sketch widely hinted that the superheroes, in between saving the world from random evildoers, were gay lovers.
Appearing as a never-prepared talk show host, Chris Farley interviewed a number of celebrities, generally the weekly Saturday Night Live host, on The Chris Farley Show. Farley was nervous at all times, constantly doubting himself and asking elementary questions, many of which asked the guest if they "remembered when" they appeared in film scenes.
Featuring a well-fed bunch of Chicago sports enthusiasts, the Bill Swerski's Superfans was perhaps the best sports-themed sketch of the 1990s on Saturday Night Live. Mike Meyers, Chris Farley, Robert Smigel, George Wendt and a number of guests like Joe Mantegna appeared in the sketch as they drank beer and talked about "da Bearss" and "da Bullss" from their favorite bar, Mike Dikta's.
For everyone who ever wanted to see Mike Meyers portray a stereotype of a middle-aged Jewish woman with a thick New York accent, Coffee Talk was absolute "buttah." Meyers portrayed talk show host Linda Richman as Richman and other hosts, played by the likes of Madonna and Roseanne Barr, answered calls and proclaimed their love for Barbra Streisand. In one notable sketch, Streisand herself even appeared on the program, much to the surprise of the actors and characters alike.
Complete with its own disclaimer about telling a true story, Canteen Boy was a "highly intelligent though quite eccentric 27 year old who loves with his mother, and who, despite his age, remains active in scouting." Played by Adam Sandler, Canteen Boy was often joined by other scouts, played by Chris Farley, David Spade and Jay Mohr, who made fun of Canteen Boy, and an overly affectionate scoutmaster, played by Alec Baldwin.
Taking the setting of an NPR radio show about all things food, Delicious Dish featured actresses Ana Gasteyer and Molly Shannon as foodies. While many of the sketches were pretty unremarkable, one spot featuring Alec Baldwin is perhaps one of the best of the decade. On a holiday episode, Baldwin played bakery owner Pete Schweddy who brought along his own holiday treat, Schweddy Balls!
In yet another sketch featuring Mike Meyers, Sprockets featured main character Dieter, an effeminate German who enjoyed tight black leotards and wire-rimmed glasses. After urging fans to "touch my monkey," mocking his boring guests and showing Germany's most disturbing videos, Dieter would end each sketch frantically with techno-dancing.
Seducing women during his many appearances on the show, The Continental is an upscale gentleman portrayed by Christopher Walken. The sketches were shot from the perspective of the woman, who would visit The Continental at his apartment for his attempt, usually awkward and failed, at romance.
One of several Saturday Night Live sketches to prompt a feature film, Leon Phelps was The Ladies Man. Portrayed by Tim Meadows, The Ladies Man provided dating and sexual advice to callers in a 1970s setting. His advice, which often consisted of an answer of "the butt" no matter the question, was not the best, but funny none the less.
Played by Molly Shannon, Mary Katherine Gallagher was an unpopular and quirky Catholic school girl who was sure she was a ""superstar."" Later appearing in a film titled ""Superstar,"" Mary Katherine Gallagher was either hyper or ultra-nervous at any given time and especially anxious when she took the stage to audition for one of various school-related drama performances.
Striking out with women on a regular basis during the 1990s, Doug and Steve Butabi, played by Chris Kattan and Will Ferrell, were The Roxbury Guys. Easily distinguishable in their rayon suits, The Roxbury Guys enjoyed visiting clubs, bobbing their heads in unison to "What is Love" and gyrating against unwilling women as much as possible. Kattan and Ferrell later took the characters to a movie, "A Night at the Roxbury."
KirkSawyers The Best Saturday Night Live Sketches of the 1990s at 3/05/2012 5:16 PM
So many to try and remember so easy to see how you missed some greats. My favorite of the decade was Amazing Time Savers with Heather Locklear and Mike Myers.
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The Best Saturday Night Live Sketches of the 1990s at 3/05/2012 5:16 PM