Saturday Night Live: Season 7
The seventh season of Saturday Night Live, which aired on NBC from October 3, 1981, to May 22, 1982, marked a period of significant transition for the program. Following the dismissal of producer Jean Doumanian and the majority of her cast, the show underwent a restructuring under new producer Dick Ebersol. The production had previously faced a shutdown due to the 1981 WGA strike. The resulting ensemble featured retu
Season 7 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Producer Jean Doumanian and most of her cast members were dismissed from the show.
- The program experienced a production shutdown due to the 1981 WGA strike.
- Dick Ebersol was hired to replace Doumanian as the developer of the program.
- Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopo remained as the only survivors from the previous era's cast.
Season overview
The seventh season of Saturday Night Live, which aired on NBC from October 3, 1981, to May 22, 1982, marked a period of significant transition for the program. Following the dismissal of producer Jean Doumanian and the majority of her cast, the show underwent a restructuring under new producer Dick Ebersol. The production had previously faced a shutdown due to the 1981 WGA strike. The resulting ensemble featured returning cast members Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopo, alongside Robin Duke, Tim Kazurinsky, and Tony Rosato, who had appeared in the April 11, 1981, episode. To complete the roster, Ebersol hired Mary Gross and Christine Ebersole to replace departing members Denny Dillon, Gail Matthius, Laurie Metcalf, and Emily Prager. Seeking to distinguish the show from its first five seasons, Ebersol implemented stylistic changes, including the removal of the traditional opening line, Live from New York, It's Saturday Night! from the cold openings. Additionally, the show occasionally omitted cold openings and monologues entirely. These structural adjustments were temporary, as Ebersol ultimately decided to reverse these specific formatting changes for the eighth season. The season consisted of 20 broadcast episodes in total.
Episode Guide
Season 7 Progress Shield
(no host)/Rod Stewart
Oct 3, 1981 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Our Age is Showing,"" ""The Little Richard Simmons Show,"" ""The Clams"" (film), ""Nuns on the Beach,"" ""A Few Minutes With Andy Rooney,"" ""Prose and Cons"" (f
Susan Saint James/The Kinks
Oct 10, 1981 · 67 min
Sketches include ""McDonald & Wife,"" ""The Bizarro World,"" ""Buckwheat Sings,"" ""Skanky Fiancee,"" ""Cheap Laffs,"" and ""The Alan Alda Guide to Sensitivity."" The Kinks perfor
George Kennedy/Miles Davis
Oct 17, 1981 · 67 min
Sketches include ""To Tell the Truth Gone Awry,"" ""Mister Robinson's Neighborhood #2,"" ""Velvet Jones #1,"" and ""Harry Anderson's Grappler Tricks.""
Donald Pleasence/Fear
Oct 31, 1981 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Vomiting for Luck,"" ""Jogger Motel,"" ""Profiles in British Courage,"" ""Last Night I Killed My Husband"" (musical number), ""Sugar Breakfast"" and ""Andy Warho
Lauren Hutton/Rick James
Nov 7, 1981 · 67 min
Sketches Include: "Here's 'Cos", "Dressing Room", "Hail To The Chief", "Transeastern", "Whisper", "Cheap Laffs", "Harlequin Romances", "Reach Out", "Velvet Jones School of Technolo
Bill Murray/The Spinners, Yale Whiffenpoofs
Dec 12, 1981 · 67 min
Sketches include ""The Phone Company,"" ""Tales of the Unlikely,"" ""Washed-Up Tom Snyder,"" ""MX-5 Tampons,"" and ""The Economics of Christmas."" The Spinners perform ""I'll Be A
Robert Urich/Mink DeVille
Mar 20, 1982 · 67 min
Sketches include ""He's No Burt Reynolds,"" ""Paul Harvey Radio News,"" ""Golden Age Obedience School,"" and ""Koala Bear Embryo."" Mink De Ville performed ""Maybe Tomorrow.""
Blythe Danner/Rickie Lee Jones
Mar 27, 1982 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Lorne Greene,"" ""The New Celibacy,"" ""20/20,"" ""The Uncle Tom Show,"" ""Senior Spring Fling '82,"" ""Meet the People,"" and ""Help Out Blythe Danner."" Ricki
Daniel J. Travanti/John Cougar
Apr 10, 1982 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Save Larry the Lobster,"" ""Whiners' Anniversary,"" ""Hill Street Blues,"" ""Too Many Ethel Mermans,"" and ""Career Corner."" John Cougar Mellencamp performed "
Johnny Cash/Elton John
Apr 17, 1982 · 67 min
Elton John performs the John Lennon tribute ""Empty Garden."" Sketches include ""Velvet Jones"" and ""Shadows.""
Danny DeVito/Sparks
May 15, 1982 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Louis DePalma's Revenge,"" ""The Executive Test,"" ""The Whiners on an Airplane,"" ""Solomon and Pudge,"" ""Enzo,"" and ""Looks at Books."" Sparks performs ""Mi
Olivia Newton-John
May 22, 1982 · 67 min
Sketches include ""Ebony & Ivory,"" ""I Married a Monkey,"" Grease, ""Hitler In Heaven,"" and ""Ballpark Organ Favorites."" ONJ performs the hit ""Physical"" in lieu of the openin