Actors - Saturday Night Live cast

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	Actors - Saturday Night Live cast

Cast members of Saturday Night Live
.

Writers

All cast members on Saturday Night Live
are expected to write as well as perform. Those that don't write end up with fewer parts and face-time and often eventually leave the show. Three groups serve as “farm clubs” for the cast and writing staff: The improvisational comedy troupes The Groundlings and The Second City, Harvard Lampoon, and recently the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre.

Each of the three brings a different perspective:

performers from the Groundlings often end up creating the vivid recurring characters which are one hallmark of the show;
writer-performers from Second City are known for “aesthetic perfectionism”; they tinker obsessively with the wording and inflections of a punch line or the behavioral details of a character;
writers from the Lampoon emphasize the conceptual premise of a sketch, taking a boyhood fantasy to an extreme, for example.

List of cast members

The following list of cast members includes both featured and repertory players, but omits SNL writers and others who weren't listed as cast members during the show's credits. The dates given are the dates of the season in which they first appeared as a player and the season when they left. For example, Bill Murray first appeared on the show in 1977. However, the season began in 1976. Therefore, the date given on the listing will specify 1976.

Cast members who have left a memorable legacy on the show often have been the subject of a Best of SNL videotape, DVD, or compilation special. Cast members where this applies are marked with a (•) on the list below. In addition, some hosts have had such compilation videos made for their performances even though they were never members of the cast of Saturday Night Live: Steve Martin, Christopher Walken, Tom Hanks and Alec Baldwin. Cast members who were only featured (never promoted to contract player) are marked with an (F).

The original "Not Ready For Prime Time Players" (1975)

In alphabetical order:

Dan Aykroyd
(October 11, 1975–1979) (•)
John Belushi
(October 11, 1975–1979) (•)
Chevy Chase
(October 11, 1975–1977) (•)
George Coe
(October 11, 1975 – October 25, 1975 .) Thereafter, through the first season Coe was an occasional uncredited featured player
Jane Curtin
(October 11, 1975–1980)
Garrett Morris
(October 11, 1975–1980)
Laraine Newman
(October 11, 1975–1980)
Michael O'Donoghue
(October 11, 1975 – October 25, 1975 .) Thereafter and through 1978, O'Donoghue was a frequent featured player, usually credited. He also made uncredited appearances in 1981.
Gilda Radner
(October 11, 1975–1980) (•)

Started 1975–1979

Note that beginning with the 1978-79 season, SNL no longer referred to its cast as "The Not Ready For Prime Time Players".

Tom Davis (1975–1980) (F)
Al Franken
(1975–1980) & (1985–1995) (F)
Bill Murray
(1976–1980)
Don Novello
(1978–1980) & (1985–1986) (F)
Peter Aykroyd (1979–1980) (F)
Jim Downey (1979–1980) (F)
Paul Shaffer
(1979–1980) (F)
Tom Schiller (1979–1980) (F)
Alan Zweibel (1979–1980) (F)
Brian Doyle-Murray
(1979–1980) & (1981–1982) (F)
Harry Shearer
(1979–1980) & (1984–1985)

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Saturday Night Live cast ]

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