Saturday Night Live: Season 15
Saturday Night Live aired its fifteenth season during the 1989 - 1990 television season on NBC. The fifteenth season started off with a 15th anniversary special on September 24, 1989 and ended on May 19, 1990. 21 episodes were produced, including the anniversary special. Few changes happened before the start of the season. The only change was the absence of Ben Stiller. After being on the show for five episodes, Sti
Season 15 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Saturday Night Live Season 14.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Season overview
Saturday Night Live aired its fifteenth season during the 1989 - 1990 television season on NBC. The fifteenth season started off with a 15th anniversary special on September 24, 1989 and ended on May 19, 1990. 21 episodes were produced, including the anniversary special.
Few changes happened before the start of the season. The only change was the absence of Ben Stiller. After being on the show for five episodes, Stiller left the show due to creative differences with Lorne Michaels. Mike Myers was upgraded to repertory status.
This season saw the first hosting gigs of three celebrities who would go on to be frequent SNL hosts: John Goodman, Christopher Walken, and Alec Baldwin.
This season is also notorious for an in-cast spat towards the end of the season. Nora Dunn staged a boycott over the host of the episode, controversial comedian Andrew Dice Clay. Dunn refused to appear in the episode because of Clay's profane jokes about women. The original musical guest for the episode, Sinéad O'Connor, joined Dunn in her boycott and canceled her scheduled appearance. O'Connor was replaced by Julee Cruise and The Spanic Boys.
Episode Guide
Season 15 Progress Shield
Bruce Willis/Neil Young
Sep 30, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches include: Thirtysomething, Wayne's World, Donahue, Home Improvement, New Leading Man, Sprockets, Bruce Willis: The Man and His Music
Rick Moranis/Rickie Lee Jones
Oct 7, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches include: The Big Bitch Bulldyke Bust Out of '89, Honey I Shrunk Hans & Franz, Resorts International Hotel, Wild Horse, New Commissioner, Baby Talk, Word Busters
Kathleen Turner/Billy Joel
Oct 21, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches Include: Plug Away With Harvey Fierstein, Die Squaren Ost Berliner, Egg Man, Really Ordinary People, All About Deborah Norville, Lank Thompson: I'm A Handsome Man, 555-Too
James Woods/Don Henley
Oct 28, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches include ""The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson,"" ""Yard-a-pult,"" ""Dracula and AIDS,"" ""Primetime Live,"" ""Ventriloquist Act,"" ""Falling in Love,"" ""Three Dudes Holis
Chris Evert/Eurythmics
Nov 11, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Wimbledon,"" ""Oneupmanship,"" and ""Lothar of the Hill People.""
Woody Harrelson/David Byrne
Nov 18, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Jack Nicholson,"" ""Pumping Up with Hans & Franz,"" ""A&E Attitudes,"" ""Sprockets,"" and ""Three Very Lonesome Cowboys.""
John Goodman/k.d. lang & The Reclines
Dec 2, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches include ""It's a Wonderful Savings and Loan,"" ""Wayne's World,"" ""Cooking with the Anal-Retentive Chef,"" ""Toonces The Cat Who Could Drive a Car,"" ""The Mike Ditka Typ
Robert Wagner/Linda Ronstadt & Aaron Neville
Dec 9, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches include ""George Bush and Dan Quayle"", ""Yard-A-Pult,"" ""Messy Date"", ""Tales of the Runaway Boulder,"" ""Attack of the Masturbating Zombies,"" ""Rockefeller is Evil,""
Andie MacDowell/Tracy Chapman
Dec 16, 1989 · 67 min
Sketches included ""Interrupted PSA,"" ""Church Chat,"" ""The Night Hanukkah Harry Saved Christmas,"" ""Hal Jerome Tribute,"" and ""Before the Wedding."" Tracy Chapman performed "
Ed O'Neill/Harry Connick, Jr.
Jan 13, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""George Bush,"" ""Bizilady,"" ""I Got What You Need,"" ""Wayne's World,"" ""The Nagging,"" ""Dennis Woo's Real Estate Fortunes The Easy Way,"" ""Ceaucescu's Wake,
Christopher Walken/Bonnie Raitt
Jan 20, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson,"" ""Eternity,"" ""Hired Break-Up,"" ""The Continental,"" ""Attitudes,"" ""Lease With an Option to Kill,"" ""Hardbound""
Quincy Jones
Feb 10, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Pumping Up With Hans and Franz,"" ""Century 21 Marriage Counselors,"" ""Toonces,"" ""Bob Waltman Special,"" ""Jazz Perspective,"" ""Reverend and Rabbi,"" ""Tonto
Tom Hanks/Aerosmith
Feb 17, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Ivana Trump Pre-Nup"", ""Wayne's World,"" ""Tales of Ribaldry,"" ""Tradtional Irish Drinking Songs for St. Patrick's Day,"" ""The Mob,"" ""Singles Cruise,"" and
Fred Savage/Technotronic
Feb 24, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Church Chat,"" ""Left Alone with a Gun,"" ""The Pat Stevens Show,"" ""Imaginary Friend,"" and ""Hooked on Sushi"" (film). Technotronic performed ""Pump Up The J
Rob Lowe/The Pogues
Mar 17, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include "George Bush/Rob Lowe", "Irish Drinking Songs", "Church Chat", "Sprockets", "Arsenio Beckman Show", "Lambada Prison", "Helmet Head", and "Alexander's Fur World".
Debra Winger/Eric Clapton
Mar 24, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Reagan Census Count,"" ""Wayne's World,"" ""Toonces the Cat Who Could Drive a Car,"" ""Calamity Jane,"" and ""Senate Record Labelling Hearings"", ""Weekend Updat
Corbin Bernsen/Smithereens
Apr 14, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Cable Shopping Network,"" ""Celebrity Lawyer Court,"" ""Hanukkah Harry,"" ""George F. Will's Sports Machine,"" ""His Face,"" ""Movers and Shakers,"" and ""Playgi
Alec Baldwin/The B-52's
Apr 21, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include "Bush Talks to Nation", "Greenhilly", "The Environmentally Conscious One", "Sexual Tension Diner", "The Garbo I Knew", "Only In New York", "Nude Talk Show" and "Mi
Andrew Dice Clay/Spanic Boys & Julee Cruise
May 12, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""It's a Wonderful Dice,"" ""Diceman Employment Agency,"" ""Cooking With the Anal-Rententive Chef,"" ""What's Sex?"", ""DJ Tony Trailer,"" ""Jan Hooks Protest,"" "
Candice Bergen/Notting Hillbillies
May 19, 1990 · 67 min
Sketches include ""George Bush,"" ""Toonces The Cat Who Can Drive a Car,"" ""The Carsenio Show,"" and ""Wayne's World.""