It is hard to imagine Saturday Night Live without Lorne Michaels. Not only is he the creator of the show, but he has also made himself indelibly linked to its legacy. Stories about his demeanor behind the camera are the stuff of legend. Actors and comedians talk about him like he is a father figure, a boss, a mentor, and someone they are all genuinely afraid of. Still, there was a time when Michaels stepped away from the show, and the cast and the writing staff went with him.
What followed were five years of the show that feel almost like a fever dream. It wasn’t all bad, though. Those years saw some incredibly talented individuals join the show. Gilbert Gottfried joined the cast and, if we are to believe Paul Reubens, he beat out the Pee-Wee Herman actor to get the job. Eddie Murphy took off like a rocket, quickly becoming a megastar. Julia Louis-Dreyfus would join the show during those years as well, and would eventually be joined by Billy Crystal, Martin Short, and Christopher Guest. Can you imagine if, say, a young John Goodman had been among those ranks? Well, don’t cause he ruined that chance.
John Goodman has hosted Saturday Night Live 13 times. 13! That’s a lot! The only people who have hosted more are Steve Martin and Yoga Instructor Hilaria Baldwin’s husband (Axel, I wanna say?). It’s easy to see why Goodman has appeared on the show so often. The man is DTF and performs as if he’s a sketch comedy pro, despite having little in the way of experience when he first hosted in 1989. Yes, he was a network sitcom star at that point, but SNL is a different beast, which could explain why Goodman blew his audition for it.
Goodman, who was fresh out of college and living in New York City, auditioned for the first season without Lorne Michaels. Different times, am I right?! Saturday Night Live is no stranger to casting unknowns, but it’s still wild to think that a wild-eyed eighteen-year-old could just audition for the show. Perhaps Goodman already had an agent, or maybe Saturday Night Live had open calls. Or, he just walked over from his apartment in Hell’s Kitchen, said, “I heard y’all make TV here” or something to that effect, and got seen. No matter how it happened, it didn’t go well.
“That was 1980 when the original cast left, Lorne [Michaels] left, and I didn’t put a lot of thought into it, unfortunately,” Goodman recently explained to The Hollywood Reporter. “I didn’t have any improv or stand-up background, and I had a terrible audition, but for some reason, I still thought I’d get cast.” I don’t blame Goodman for assuming he would be cast. As we have learned, he is perfect for the show. Maybe his skills just weren’t honed enough at the time.
Regardless, the Roseanne actor wouldn’t have to wait long to appear on the show. “Nine years later, I got to host the show [for the first time],” noted Goodman. “That was always the best part of my year, going to host the show for a week.” It was the best part of our week, too, John. Maybe he’ll get a chance to host again soon. He hasn’t since 2013, which feels crazy. However, he has popped back on a couple of times to play Rex Tillerson. So, that’s something, I guess.
