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Short, punchy facts about short, punchy pieces

45 Random Bits of Behind-the-Scenes Trivia From Your Favorite Sketch Comedy Shows

January 14, 2025

Sketch comedy is basically the condensing of an entire movie or TV show premise into one tight little package. Some are popular enough to be given entire movies, but most of them stay as little one- to six-minute stories or scenes. We love them so much because they remind us of facts. A fact is basically an entire subject broken down into one tight, punchy little piece of knowledge.

And like sketches, some of them are a hair too long and need to be trimmed for time. Not cut for time! These are all way too good for that.

45

More Tim and Eric

BEHIND-THE-SCENES FACTS An editor found comedy in OOH, MAMMA TIM AND ERIC AWESOME SHOW, GREAT JOB! CRACKED.COM A sketch about an indifferent student wasn't working, but a video editor found some funny in looping the line Ooh, Mamma. The sound was paired with new images of Tim and Eric trashing a basement rec room and the result was a very surreal piece of comedy. — New York Times, YouTube

44

Tom Kenny

TOM KENNY liveS in a pineapple under the sea CRACKED COM The voice of Spongebob was reading to kids in a school and this teacher comes up to me and whispers, I loved you on Mr. Show' almost like, If they ever found out I was watching a show about priests — SPIN

43

British SNL

SNL around the world From 1985 to 1988, the U.K. had Saturday Night Live on Channel 4. The show had such cast members as Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie, among others. ISR CRACKED.COM — Source

42

The iPad

MADtv invented the iPad... sort of CRACKED.COM Five years before Apple would launch their tablet, MADtv aimed its sights at the tech giant with their indentically titled sketch iPad, a sketch about a sanitary pad that lets users hook up your Apple to your peach! — Source: 12 Angry Facts About MADtv, SNL's Wilder, Louder, Messier Little Brother

41

Lorne Michaels’ Return

CRACKED LORNE MICHAELS: FROM SNL TO THE NEW SHOW AND BACK AGAIN. Michaels quit Saturday Night Live after five seasons, but his new show, The New Show, didn't do well. Не had to go back to SNL to make money again. — Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Retracing Lorne Michaels’ Missing ’Saturday Night Live’ Years

40

Trading Spouses

IN 2003, CHAPPELLE'S SHOWFEATURED A SKETCH TITLED TRADING SPOUSES, PLAYING OFF THE REALITY SHOW TRADING SPACES. IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A PARODY. It's a standard comedy formula: take one element of the real thing, Trading Spouses and exaggerate it to ludicrous ends. But a year after the sketch aired, FOX created a show with that exact premise, and it was Meet your new mommu indeed called Trading spouses. CRACKED.COM — Source: Entertainment That Made Crazy-Specific, Crazy-Accurate Predictions

39

SCTV

A Canadian comedy show that ran from 1976-1981 called Second City Television better known as SCTV) turned second rate actors into first rate actors in

38

Paul Reubens

PAUL REUBENS CRACKED COM After losing a spot on SNL to Gilbert Gottfried, Reubens borrowed five grand from his parents to develop his own stage show. — Source: UPROXX

37

Tin Robinson

COMEDY NERD CRACKED.COM THERE'S A WHOLE BUNCH OF SKETCHES FROM TIM ROBINSON WE NEVER SAW ON SNL. They include an intentional walk cage rather than a batting cage - as Robinson explains, it's so you would just go in and it would shoot four balls outside of your range. — Source

36

Kato Kaelin

Kato Kaelin guest starred in the first B season-- twice CRACKED.COM Just 11 days after the verdict of the O.J. Simpson murder trial, star witness Kato Kaelin starred as himself in MADtv's series premiere. It was a joke so nice they told it twice, as Kaelin would return for the second episode before departing to do a cameo on Mr. Show. This would not be the last time MADtv invited a guest star of O.J. fame. — Source: 12 Angry Facts About MADtv, SNL's Wilder, Louder, Messier Little Brother

35

Fire Marshall Bill

BEHIND-THE-SCENES FACTS A failed sketch turned into FIRE MARHALL BILL St. or IN LIVING COLOR CRACKED.COM Many Jim Carrey sketch ideas were too extreme, like Make a Death Wish Foundation' about a dead kid whose posthumous wish was to go to an amusement park. But I came up with the face of the kid, and it eventually turned into the 'Fire Marshall Bill' face. — Hollywood Reporter, YouTube

34

Key & Peele’s Substitute Teacher

BEHIND-THE-SCENESE FACTS Ya done messed up, A-A-Ron. SUBSTITUTE TEACHER VELETAL ENDOSKEL LOPIAN - SONE CN vet CULAR TERUS CONTRACTILE BLADOW ATTACHED 27 ASOME INTE ARY MATERIAL BODY CONERY SCALES an TIVE TUBE EXTEL ULS/LUNGS KEY & PEELE CRACKED.COM SPINAL All it took was teacher mangles Caucasian names to light up the writers' room. It was like sharks in a frenzy after chum had been dumped in the water, says Key. He improvised in-your-face bits with students, who had to suck my lips into my face to keep from laughing. — EW, YouTube

33

SNL

CRACKED SEVEN AMATEURS AND A CANADIAN PRODUCER CREATED A COMEDY EMPIRE. The first season of Saturday Night Live was made up of seven inexperienced improvisers and a nervous Canadian producer, Lorne Michaels. Even though the show had a rough start, the cast eventually made SNL a cultural phenomenon. — NBC
A Pre-Premiere Interview with the Original ’Saturday Night Live’ Cast Shows How Scared Lorne Michaels Was of Crashing and Burning

32

Tim and Eric

BEHIND-THE-SCENESFACTS TIM AND ERIC AWESOME SHOW GREAT JOB! GRACKED.COM How did they come up with the show's name? Producer Bob Odenkirk suggested that Tim and Eric be part of the title. Eric Wareheim came up with Awesome Show. And Tim Heidecker chipped in with Great Job! It's a good thing they didn't have more people making suggestions. — IMDB

31

More Key & Peele

KEY & PEELE K&P was almost a entirely different show. We talked about what it would look like if we made it look like found footage, said Key, but intial writing proved difficult. Comedy Central told the worried pair not to overthink things, so they settled on the more traditional sketch format. CRACKED.COM — HuffPost

30

Bill Hader

CRACKEDCOr Bill Hader's most memorable moment on Saturday Night Live was playing in a punk band with Dave Grohl. In a sketch about aging rock stars, H

29

Dave Chappelle’s Favorite Sketch

Dave Chappelle's favorite sketch isn't one you'd expect. Chappelle's Show Chappelle revealed that Season 1, Episode 9's The Playa Hater's Ball was the most fun he's ever had on a sketch. CRACKED — Comedy Central
Okayplayer

28

Quincy Jones

Record mogul Quincy Jones created and produced MADtv CRACKED.COM Following Gaines' death in 1992, the music monolith and father to Rashida purchased the television rights through his production company QDE which, at the time, was enjoying the success of Jones' first venture into comedy programming, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. — Source: 12 Angry Facts About MADtv, SNL's Wilder, Louder, Messier Little Brother

27

Debbie Downer

A Saturday Night Live performance ended up shaping an Inside Out character. They took inspiration from Debbie Downer from SNL for Sadness (and also Wednesday Addams). And their first idea for her? A teardrop. CRACKED.COM — The Hollywood Reporter

26

John Mulaney

JOHN MULANEY ALL STAR CRACKED.COM After his audition, Mulaney got a call from Seth Meyers with a writing job offer. I want to be clear, said Meyers, this is not the cast. Mulaney responded, I want to be clear. I would never think I would be in the cast. — Paste Magazine

25

Jeff Richards and Taran Killam

Only two actors appeared in both MADtv and SNL Feedpo RK MIC CRACKED.COM ACULA The only two comedians to become cast members on both MADtv and SNL were Jeff Richards and Taran Killam. Despite the success of MADtv's illustrious alumni, Richards and Killam were the only ones who managed to jump ship and join MAD's arch nemesis, not counting Keegan-Michael Key, who hosted an episode of SNL in May 2021. — Source: 12 Angry Facts About MADtv, SNL's Wilder, Louder, Messier Little Brother

24

The Dieter Movie

COMEDY NERD CRACKED.COM AFTER AUSTIN POWERS BECAME A HIT, DIETER ALMOST DID, TOO. Based on Mike Myers' sketch about a West German TV show host, it was supposed to feature Will Ferrell - but it never got off the ground. — Source: 11 Proposed Saturday Night Live Movies That We Never Got To See

23

The Ben Stiller Show

BEN STILLER SUCCESSFUL FOCKER STILLER SIGNED A 5-YEAR SNL DEAL IN 1989, THEN QUIT AFTER FIVE EPISODES. HE FOUND SKETCH SUCCESS ON MTV'S 'BEN STILLER SHOW,' THEN GOT FREAKING HUGE WITH 'THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY,' 'ZOOLANDER,' AND THE 'MEET THE PARENTS' TRILOGY. — Rolling Stone

22

SNL Russia

SNL around the world СУББО ВЕЧЕР ШОУ Russia had Суббота Вечер Шоу (Saturday Evening Show) a taped sketch comedy show that was canceled after two episodes in 2013. Eventually, though, all six taped shows aired late night in 2014. CRACKED.COM — Source

21

I Think You Should Leave

BEHIND-THE-SCENESFACTS The Characters launched I THINK YOU SHOULD LEAVE GRACKED.COM Netflix's The Characters gave several comedians an episode each to create comedy-- and Tim Robinson ran with it. Lonely Island's Akiva Schaffer said it was the funniest 20 minutes of sketch I'd seen in years. The episode helped convince Netflix to give Robinson his own show. — The Ringer

20

In Living Color

IN LIVING COLOR CRACKED In Living Color was an Emmy-winning sketch-comedy show on FOX for 5 seasons. It launched stars like Jim Carrey, Jamie Foxx and Jennifer Lopez. — Source

19

Dave Chappelle

COMEDY NERD Dave Chappelle says that Key & Peele hurt his feelings with their show. Peabody Award Peabody An bod Peab Awa Peabod dy Awa Не says that they took a format he'd come up with, and claimed that it was Created by Key y & Peele .. Put some respect on my name, he said. CRACKED.COM — Source: 13 Comedian Feuds We Didn’t Know About

18

Mike Myers and Dana Carvey

COMEDY NERD CRACKED.COM SNL AIRED A SKETCH THAT HAD A JOKE ABOUT CHELSEA CLINTON, AND HAD TO APOLOGIZE. It aired when Bill Clinton was in the White House, and the joke was Chelsea... well, she's a babe in development. Mike Myers and Dana Carvey (who had performed the sketch), and Lorne Michaels, all apologized to the White House. — Source

17

Johnny Knoxville

CRACKED W Madison JOHNNY KNOXVILLE TURNED DOWN SNL. Knoxville decided not to take a job on Saturday Night Live and instead focus on his own show, Jackass. Just think of what might have been. — Paramount Pictures, MTV Films
Johnny Knoxville Was Offered ’Saturday Night Live’ But Chose ’Jackass’ Instead

16

The Comedy Legends Who Influenced Key & Peele

BEHIND-THE-SCENESFACTS Comedy legends influenced KEY & PEELE CRACKED.COM Keegan-Michael Key says his comedy influences are Peter Sellers and Richard Pryor. They are my spirit animals. For Jordan Peele, his 'comedy parents' are Martin Lawrence and Steve Martin. Key decided that Steve Martin Lawrence would be a delicious matchup. — Ranker

15

Jordan Peele

SNL tried to poach Jordan Peele, but MADtv refused CRACKED COM Jordan Peele was an undeniable talent-- which is why MADtv denied his request to be released from his contract when Lorne Michaels came calling. Peele remained resentful over the incident, later saying that he was upset with MAD producers for using my fate as chess pieces. While his comedy partner Keegan-Michael Key returned for the 20th anniversary reunion special, Peele was a notable no-show. — Source: Hollywood Reporter

14

Rick James, Bitch

BEHIND-THE-SCENES FACTS When a sketch gets too popular RICK JAMES, BITCH CHAPPELLE'S SHOW CRACKED.CO The sketch was everywhere, and part of the reason Chappelle left his show. Once when he took his kids to Disney World, everyone in the park greeted him with Rick James, bitch! A disheartened Dave asked, Do you mind not calling me a bitch in front of my kids? — Vulture, YouTube

13

French SNL

SNL around the world In France, Le Saturday Night Live lasted only a single episode. They got to air their version of the More Cowbell sketch, though. CRACKED.COM — Source

12

Jim Carrey

JIM CARREY CRACKED.COM Carrey was only 18 years old when he auditioned for SNL. Didn't get the gig but he was quickly hired at — Entertainment Weekly

11

Dave Attell on SNL

DAVE ATTELL PUT IN A FEW DAYS OF HARD WORK 1993 CRACKED.COM I WOULD SAY I WAS ON FOR A YEAR AND I WROTE FOR MAYBE TWO WEEKS, ATTELL TOLD HOWARD STERN. I WAS ALWAYS LEAVING EARLY. WHEN YOU'RE A COMIC AND YOU HAVE TO GIVE YOUR GOOD JOKES TO THE WEEKEND UPDATE GUY, IT'S LIKE UGH! — Howard Stern via Soundcloud

10

Frank Zappa

FRANK ZAPPA OCTOBER 21, 1978 Live CRACKED.COM He deliberately delivered his monologue in a stilted, hey everybody, I'm reading cue cards! style, enraging both the cast and Lorne Michaels. — Mental Floss

9

Chappelle’s Show

CHAPPELLE'S SHOW Chappelle's Show was one of the most extraordinary and exciting shows we ever did, says CC's Tony Fox. It was extremely edgy in terms of it dealing with racial subject matter. I mean, the very first episode had, like, a 12-minute sketch in it, The Blind Supremacist. CRACKED.COM — AV Club

8

Mr. Show

BEHIND-THE-SCENES FACTS A suicidal fan gets a visit from TITANICA MR. SHOW CRACKED.COM The sketch was inspired by Ozzy's problems with his song Suicide Solution, says writer Brian Posehn. The reveal of David's 'wet cigar body' got one of the biggest reactions I witnessed. Posehn still has the prop-body: Someday, I'm going to make a killing on eBay. — Mr. Show What Happened?, YouTube

7

Ms. Swan

BEHIND-THE-SCENES FACTS There was nothing suburban about MS. SWAN MAD TV CRACKED.COM MADtv found 90s SNL to be vanilla and targeted more diverse audiences with characters like Ms. Swan. She fit everything, says Alex Borstein. People were like, JOH my God, that's my Greek grandmother? 'Oh my God, that's my Mexican aunt.' 'Oh my God, that's my Chinese... — Vulture, YouTube

6

Portlandia

BEHIND-THE-SCENESFACTS SNL created a competitor in PORTLANDIA CRACKED.COM Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein pitched the show to Lorne Michaels while Armisen was still a cast member. In addition to giving his blessing, Lorne agreed to be executive producer of the show. Through its first four seasons, Portlandia featured nine current and former SNL cast members. — Mental Floss

5

Second City Television

BEHIND-THE-SCENESFACTS There was never a show called SCTV E N A 5 CRACKED.COM For the first two seasons, the show was called Second City Television. Season 3? SCTV Television Network. For its fourth and fifth season, the now 90-minute show went by SCTV Network 90, later shortened to SCTV 90. Its final season was known as SCTV Channel. — Mental Floss

4

Mr. Show

BEHIND-THE-SCENESFACTS Goofballz minus dead comic MR. SHOW MR. Show CRACKED.COM David Cross and Bob Odenkirk first worked together on stage as The Three Goofballz. Who was Goofball number 3? The joke was that the mystery comic was either out getting high or dead. — Mental Floss

3

Tina Fey

SARAH PALIN lost an election I think SNL is egotistical if they believe that it was truly an effect on who should lead the country in the next four years, says Palin. But polls show Republican voters thought less of Palin after watching Tina Fey's parody. — Pacific Standard

2

Key & Peele

Key and Peele were pitted against each other in their audition Awards by Av CRACKED.COM As ludicrous as it sounds, MADtv producers were originally only interested in Key or Peele. The Chicago-based comedians were brought in to audition for a single spot, and it was only once producers saw the duo's synchronicity that they decided to make room for both of the show's decorated alumni. Said Keegan-Michael Key, I think that what happened is that they saw that we worked really hard and that we wouldn't stop working until something is perfect. — Source: 12 Angry Facts About MADtv, SNL's Wilder, Louder, Messier Little Brother

1

Christoph Waltz

COMEDY NERD CRACKED.COM WHEN DJANGO UNCHAINED CAME OUT, SNL AIRED A SKETCH CALLED DJESUS UNCROSSED. Christoph Waltz himself played Our Lord and Savior, and the sketch wasn't too warmly greeted - for one, Sears pulled their advertising. — Source

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