While I am grateful for Saturday Night Live at least thinking about signing Betty White to host an episode of the show, I think they are doing a great disservice to her and to seniors in general when they say they don't think she is capable of hosting the entire 90 minutes solo. According to Michael Ausiello, Betty is very close to signing on to hosting SNL, but the executives over there (read Lorne Michaels) want her to have some help. Namely they want to add in to the mix Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. I love both of them, but I think Betty can manage to host a 90 minute show. First of all there are about 30 minutes of commercials. Second of all there are about ten minutes of music and ten minutes of the news so that leaves us with about 40 minutes. Are you telling me that Betty can't handle 40 minutes of skits? She does movies and television. She does the press work for each of those and so much more. She fights for animal rights and I think it sucks that after all this grass root level work that they won't let her have her minute in the sun. It isn't like SNL is killing it in the ratings. What are they going to do? Let her have one or two skits? That sucks.
Hell, they could give the rest of the cast a week off and let her do it all herself and it would still kick ass!
ReplyDeleteI thought this was strange. She could handle the 40 minutes. The older she gets the funnier she gets.
ReplyDeleteSNL sucks. I haven't watched it in years and really dislike Lorne Michaels and his misogynist attitudes.
ReplyDeleteBetty White should kick him in the shin with her orthopaedic shoe.
LOVE LOVE LOVE Betty.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting, because my husband was saying the other night what a long week it would be for Betty White if she hosted SNL and wondered if there would be the possibility of a co-host. Yes,
ReplyDeletethere are a lot of rehearsals and she is up there in age, but honestly - if she feels she can do it, let her! To me she has endless energy and will be a million times better than the "stars" they have been parading around there the last few years. But if Lorne feels someone should be somewhat of a co-host, might I request Sandra Bullock? I just love those two together.
Enty, she won't be hosting for just the on-air show, but also the dress run-through of the whole show the same evening. That being said, let Betty decide what she can do.
ReplyDeleteIf she can do movies and commercials why can't she do SNL???
ReplyDeleteTheir reasoning is stupid as far as I see it. For her age she looks good and healthy.
If this were Berle, Benny, Dangerfield, or Burns, there would be absolutely no question about them doing the show solo.
ReplyDelete(And probably just 90 minutes uninterrupted of them onstage with a microphone) - however, since it's Betty White, they're having doubts?
The woman is TV history in and of herself. Given her career, think if she ever decided to do a tell all.
Get *her* a comfortable chair, give the cast the night off, and let her sit there and entertain.
Shit, if she's anything like some older relatives I've known, get 'em tipsy and then they'll start telling all - and wouldn't we die to hear it?
Ageist sexism, pure & simple.
ReplyDeleteSNL's treatment of wimmins has always irked me. Betty White hosting would be such a ratings boost for this shitfest. Everytime I watch, it instantly puts me in a coma. They should be shitting themselves that the goddess who is Betty White would grace them with her awesomeness.
ReplyDeleteIf I had a dick, this is where I'd tell you to suck it.
ReplyDeleteBetty White in Lake Placid.
i'm sorry i disagree. the women is 88 and had NO DESIRE to do SNL b4 she was pressured by everyone's demands.
ReplyDeleteit's LIVE tv for god's sake!
we bitch about women not getting a fair shake and then Lorne does a whole show about women in comedy..and that's not good enough either?
it's an ensemble...no host does all 90 mins alone. maybe she is not comfortable doing it and Lorne is being a nice guy and taking the fall.
I thought it would be interesting to have Betty White as the host and Justin Bieber the musical guest. It would be the oldest host and the youngest musical guest, I think.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see Betty host if SHE feels that she is up to it. C'mon they let Charles Barkley host and not a comedy legend. I would never underestimate this Golden Girl.
I so heart Betty White.
Anybody see her on the new Password? She was awesome.
ReplyDeleteI agree that she probably could be a solo host, but I heard she doesn't want to. I also think Tina Fey and Amy Poehler would be very respectful and not try to steal Betty's thunder!
ReplyDeletePerhaps she requested the additional help. My grandma is 90 and needs a few naps a day. I'm with Jax on the whole women of comedy thing. What is sad about that, though, is that SNL's actresses are so weak (sans Kristin Wiig), that they need to bring in outside help.
ReplyDeleteWhat makes you think this idea didn't come from Betty or her management? I'm thinking it did.
ReplyDeleteFrom E!:
ReplyDeleteBut what does she think about the recent online campaign launched to convince Lorne Michaels to have White host SNL? As of Monday afternoon, nearly 330,000 people have signed on as fans of the "Betty White to Host SNL (please?)!" page on Facebook.
Well, I just spoke to the Golden Girls legend…
"I'm just amazed," White said from Las Vegas, where she was honored earlier today by the Morris Animal Foundation at the P&G Pet Care luncheon. "I would think by now that they've had such an overdose of Betty White that they'd be throwing rocks instead."
So, if SNL does come calling, would the 88-year-old comedy icon do it?
"That would depend on scheduling and all that," she said. "But who knows? You can't ever say yes or no or never—you just wait to see what happens."
White, for the record, is not officially attached to the online campaign. "I don't know where it came from," she said. "I have no idea where it started, but it just keeps growing."
SNL is so out of touch, it's not even funny (no pun intended). They're clearly of the school of thinking that the audience that they're trying to target (young viewers) wouldn't be interested in seeing an 88-year old TV legend host an episode but that they'd tune in to see boring old Tom Cruise 2.0. (Taylor Lautner).
ReplyDeleteHow hard would it be for SNL to include more pre-taped/shorts sketches so Betty can have time between live skits?
ReplyDeleteEh, SNL sucks anyways. Seth Myers is the worst head writer in show history. Thankfully, I live in Chicago, and get to spend Saturday nights at Second City.
For SNL, they are not skits, they are sketches.
ReplyDeleteThe Milton Berle episode went down as one of their worst (according to Lorne Michaels) and was never played in reruns.
She's 88. SNL is a long week with a lot of work and a lot of long hours. I think she's cute and all but as a host? We'd just need one sketch of her being vulgar and rude and that'd be enough.
why not let her host with Cloris Leachman? That would be awesome!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cloris.com/
Great idea @bluestocking! I can see it.
ReplyDeleteRobert De Niro was another horrible host.
ReplyDeleteThey little films are sometimes good. Betty should do a video with Justin Timberlake and Sanberg
Lorne Michaels has no balls. Betty would kill with Andy and Justin. OMG, that would be perfect. LMAO!
ReplyDeleteI think it's a matter of it being so late at night. At 88, I'm sure Betty isn't staying up late at night.
ReplyDeleteWaking up early, sure. Staying up late, not likely
They would never do this an older male performer. This smacks of sexism just as much as it does ageism.
ReplyDelete