Saturday Night Live hosts
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The following is a series of lists of Saturday Night Live hosts who meet various additional criteria. The hundreds of episodes of Saturday Night Live (SNL) have featured hundreds of hosts, who most often come to the show as
- comedians, such as Steve Martin, Robin Williams, Eric Idle, Peter Cook & Dudley Moore and George Carlin;
- actors, such as Alec Baldwin, Robert De Niro, Tom Hanks, Jude Law, Charlize Theron, Charlton Heston and Russell Brand; or
- musicians, such as Jennifer Lopez, Taylor Swift, Christina Aguilera, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Britney Spears and Katy Perry.
The following lists focus on hosts with less typical backgrounds. Some are known from their accomplishments in sports, including Peyton Manning, Deion Sanders, Michael Phelps, Derek Jeter, Wayne Gretzky and Tom Brady. Others are political figures, such as former Vice-President Al Gore, U.S. Senate members John McCain and George McGovern and New York City Mayors (Ed Koch and Rudy Giuliani), or political leaders such as Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and Ralph Nader.
SNL has also invited people with various connections to the show to host, particularly former cast members, such as Eddie Murphy, Chevy Chase, Billy Crystal, Dana Carvey, Chris Rock, Norm Macdonald and Will Ferrell.
Contents |
[edit] Host backgrounds
The following are lists of hosts based on their careers or ages.
[edit] Sports figures
As of 2010, there have been 34 sports figures who have hosted SNL. These sport figures include athletes, former pro athletes, coaches, owners, & sports commentators. The following is a list of such hosts:
| Host | Occupation | Number of episodes |
First hosted | Last hosted |
| Fran Tarkenton | football player | 1 | January 29, 1977 | |
| O. J. Simpson | football player | 1 | February 25, 1978 | |
| Bill Russell | basketball player | 1 | November 3, 1979 | |
| John Madden | football coach/sportscaster | 1 | January 30, 1982 | |
| Bob Uecker | baseball player/sportscaster | 1 | October 13, 1984 | |
| Alex Karras | football player/wrestler/sportscaster | 1 | February 2, 1985 | |
| Howard Cosell | sportscaster | 1 | April 13, 1985 | |
| Hulk Hogan | wrestler | 1 | March 30, 1985 | |
| Mr. T | wrestler/actor | 1 | March 30, 1985 | |
| Tony Danza | boxer/actor | 2 | April 19, 1986 | January 28, 1989 |
| Marvin Hagler | boxer | 1 | May 17, 1986 | |
| Billy Martin | baseball player/manager | 1 | May 24, 1986 | |
| Joe Montana | football player | 1 | January 24, 1987 | |
| Walter Payton | football player | 1 | January 24, 1987 | |
| Carl Weathers | football player/actor | 1 | January 30, 1988 | |
| Wayne Gretzky | hockey player | 1 | May 13, 1989 | |
| Chris Evert | tennis player | 1 | November 11, 1989 | |
| George Steinbrenner | New York Yankees owner | 1 | October 20, 1990 | |
| Michael Jordan | basketball player | 1 | September 28, 1991 | |
| Charles Barkley | basketball player | 3 | September 25, 1993 | January 7, 2012 |
| Nancy Kerrigan | figure skater | 1 | March 13, 1994 | |
| George Foreman | boxer | 1 | December 17, 1994 | |
| Deion Sanders | football/baseball player | 1 | February 18, 1995 | |
| Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson | wrestler/actor | 3 | March 18, 2000 | March 7, 2009 |
| Derek Jeter | baseball player | 1 | December 1, 2001 | |
| Jonny Moseley | freestyle skiing | 1 | March 2, 2002 | |
| Jeff Gordon | NASCAR driver | 1 | January 11, 2003 | |
| Andy Roddick | tennis player | 1 | November 8, 2003 | |
| Tom Brady | football player | 1 | April 16, 2004 | |
| Lance Armstrong | cyclist | 1 | October 29, 2005 | |
| Jason Lee | skateboarder/actor | 1 | November 12, 2005 | |
| Peyton Manning | football player | 1 | March 24, 2007 | |
| LeBron James | basketball player | 1 | September 29, 2007 | |
| Michael Phelps | Olympic swimmer | 1 | September 13, 2008 | |
[edit] Political figures
As of March 2007, there have been 11 political figures who have hosted SNL. These public figures include elected officials and/or political activists. The following is a list of such hosts.
| Host | Office/Occupation | Number of episodes |
First hosted | Last hosted |
| Al Gore | Vice-President (Democrat), Democratic nominee for President (2000) | 1 | December 14, 2002 | |
| George McGovern | U.S. Senator (Democrat), Democratic nominee for President (1972) | 1 | April 14, 1984 | |
| John McCain | U.S. Senator (Republican), Republican nominee for President (2008) | 1 | October 19, 2002 | |
| Ed Koch | Mayor of New York City (Democrat) | 2 | May 14, 1983 | May 12, 1984 |
| Rudy Giuliani | Mayor of New York City (Republican) | 1 | November 22, 1997 | |
| Jesse Jackson | Former Presidential candidate (Democrat)/ ordained minister | 1 | October 20, 1984 | |
| Al Sharpton | Former Presidential candidate (Democrat)/ ordained minister | 1 | December 6, 2003 | |
| Steve Forbes | Former Presidential candidate (Republican) | 1 | April 13, 1996 | |
| Ralph Nader | Former Presidential candidate (Green Party)/consumer activist | 1 | January 15, 1977 | |
| Ron Nessen | Press Secretary for U.S. President Gerald Ford (Republican) | 1 | April 17, 1976 | |
| Julian Bond | Civil rights leader/Georgia Representative and Senator (Democrat) | 1 | April 9, 1977 | |
[edit] Other backgrounds
NBC News anchor Brian Williams hosted the November 3, 2007 episode, marking the only episode hosted by a journalist.
[edit] Oldest hosts
This is a list of the oldest people to host the show. In order to make this list, a person must be over the age of 65 when he/she hosted the show at any given time.
| Host | Date | Age |
| Betty White | May 8, 2010 | 88 years, 111 days |
| Miskel Spillman | December 17, 1977 | 80 years, 100 days |
| Ruth Gordon | January 22, 1977 | 80 years, 84 days |
| Milton Berle | April 14, 1979 | 70 years, 276 days |
| Charlton Heston | December 4, 1993 | 70 years, 61 days |
| Robert De Niro | December 4, 2010 | 67 years, 109 days |
| Howard Cosell | April 13, 1985 | 67 years, 19 days |
| John McCain | October 19, 2002 | 66 years, 51 days |
| Helen Mirren | April 9, 2011 | 65 years, 257 days |
| Bob Newhart | February 11, 1995 | 65 years, 159 days |
| Broderick Crawford | March 19, 1977 | 65 years, 100 days |
| Christopher Walken | April 5, 2008 | 65 years, 5 days |
[edit] Youngest hosts
This is a list of the youngest people to host the show. In order to make this list, a person must be under the age of 18 when he/she hosted the show at any given time.
| Host | Date | Age |
| Drew Barrymore | November 20, 1982 | 7 years, 271 days |
| Macaulay Culkin | November 23, 1991 | 11 years, 89 days |
| Fred Savage | February 24, 1990 | 13 years, 230 days |
| Jodie Foster | November 27, 1976 | 14 years, 8 days |
| Malcolm-Jamal Warner | October 18, 1986 | 16 years, 61 days |
| Lindsay Lohan | May 1, 2004 | 17 years, 304 days |
| Taylor Lautner | December 12, 2009 | 17 years, 304 days |
| Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen | May 15, 2004 | 17 years, 337 days |
[edit] SNL affiliation
The following are lists of hosts based on their prior affiliation with Saturday Night Live, including those who had been cast members, those who auditioned or were offered the opportunity to join the cast, and those who hosted after having had a previous appearance canceled.
[edit] Cast members
As of December 2011, there have been 27 performers who have hosted SNL who, at one point in their careers, were either a repertory or featured member of the SNL cast. The following performers have hosted SNL either before, during, or after their tenure as a member of the SNL cast.
| Host | Number of episodes |
First hosted | Last hosted |
| Chevy Chase | 8[1] | February 18, 1978 | February 15, 1997 |
| Bill Murray | 5 | March 7, 1981 | February 20, 1999 |
| Dana Carvey | 4 | October 22, 1994 | February 5, 2011 |
| Tina Fey | 3 | February 23, 2008 | May 7, 2011 |
| Don Novello | 2 | January 14, 1984 | May 12, 1984 |
| Eddie Murphy | 2 | December 11, 1982 | December 15, 1984 |
| Julia Louis-Dreyfus | 2 | May 13, 2006 | March 17, 2007 |
| Billy Crystal | 2 | March 17, 1984 | May 12, 1984 |
| Martin Short | 2 | December 6, 1986 | December 7, 1996 |
| Phil Hartman | 2 | March 23, 1996 | November 23, 1996 |
| David Spade | 2 | November 7, 1998 | March 12, 2005 |
| Will Ferrell | 2 | May 14, 2005 | May 16, 2009 |
| Ben Stiller | 2 | October 24, 1998 | October 8, 2011 |
| Dan Aykroyd | 1 | May 17, 2003 | |
| Paul Shaffer | 1 | January 31, 1987 | |
| Michael McKean | 1 | November 3, 1984 | |
| Robert Downey, Jr. | 1 | November 16, 1996 | |
| Jon Lovitz | 1 | November 8, 1997 | |
| Damon Wayans | 1 | April 8, 1995 | |
| Chris Rock | 1 | November 2, 1996 | |
| Mike Myers | 1 | March 22, 1997 | |
| Chris Farley | 1 | October 25, 1997 | |
| Norm Macdonald | 1 | October 23, 1999 | |
| Molly Shannon | 1 | May 12, 2007 | |
| Tracy Morgan | 1 | March 14, 2009 | |
| Amy Poehler | 1 | September 25, 2010 | |
| Jimmy Fallon | 1 | December 17, 2011 | |
[edit] Potential cast members
The following is a list of guest hosts who had either unsuccessfully auditioned for the show earlier in their careers, or had turned down offers to join the cast. This list does not include the names of hosts, such as Billy Crystal, who were rejected but eventually joined the cast at a later date. The list of the hosts and dates of their auditions are as follows:
| Host | SNL season of audition |
First hosted | Last hosted | Notes |
| John Goodman | 6th (1980–1981) | December 2, 1989 | November 3, 2001 | |
| Jim Carrey | 6th (1980–1981) | May 18, 1996 | January 8, 2011 | [2] |
| Catherine O'Hara | 6th (1980–1981) | April 13, 1991 | October 31, 1992 | O'Hara was hired to replace Ann Risley, but quit at the last minute after Michael O'Donoghue yelled at the cast and writers of season six for mismanaging the show. Robin Duke, O'Hara's friend and a feature player on SCTV, was hired instead.[3] |
| Geena Davis | 8th (1982–1983) | April 22, 1989 | ||
| Paul Reubens | 10th (1984–1985) | November 23, 1985 | ||
| Lisa Kudrow | 16th (1990–1991) | October 5, 1996 | Kudrow lost to Julia Sweeney.[4] | |
| Jennifer Aniston | November 20, 1999 | January 10, 2004 | Turned down the show for Friends.[5] | |
| Steve Carell | 21st (1995–1996) | October 1, 2005 | May 17, 2008 | Carell lost to Will Ferrell.[6] |
| Johnny Knoxville | 21st (1995–1996) | May 7, 2005 | Knoxville turned down the show.[7] | |
| Dane Cook | 28th (2002–2003) | December 3, 2005 | September 30, 2006 | Lost to Will Forte. |
[edit] Hosts with canceled appearances
The following list does not include the hosts with canceled appearances that returned to host, or hosts who have already hosted.
