Live From New York - James H. Miller [213]
DANA CARVEY:
Keith Richards I remember. There was a horse backstage that week, and I was in my dressing area and I saw Keith Richards go up, hold the horse’s face in his hands, and go, “You’re a fine horse, aren’t you?” I’ll never forget that. Working with the athletes was great, like playing catch with Joe Montana, because I had a “Church Chat” where he threw a football to me — playing catch and running patterns with Joe Montana. With Wayne Gretzky we did a “Wayne’s World” thing. I had never been on skates or played hockey, so Wayne Gretzky kneeled down and put on my shin guards. Wayne Gretzky showed me how to hold a hockey stick. I mean, that’s like unbelievable. He was the most humble superstar I guess I had ever met.
TOM HANKS, Host:
The second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth times I did the show were just a blast. It’s a one-week performance camp where everybody’s operating from a sense of just incredible amounts of glee and manic energy as well as vast amounts of fear and flop sweat. That’s Saturday Night Live, and there is absolutely nothing else like it.
KEVIN NEALON:
Musicwise, it was just a dream come true, because I grew up with the Beatles and James Taylor and Paul Simon, and those are people who came through a lot. You know, sitting next to Paul McCartney as he’s playing “Hey Jude” during rehearsal. And Mick Jagger came on the show. And Eddie Vedder from Pearl Jam, he’s doing three songs and he’s not sure which three to do, so he’s asking during rehearsal, “So, what do you think I should do?” So that’s why I loved the show and the only reason I stayed so long, is because I loved doing it, I loved living in New York City, and I loved being able to work with all of these talented people who came through every week. A lot of people just wanted to use that show as a stepping-stone to get out and move on. But I just loved being there.
AL FRANKEN:
Paul McCartney was the musical guest. The musical guest usually rehearses on Thursday afternoon, and if we had someone like Clapton or Paul McCartney, 8H would just fill up with people from 30 Rock to see the rehearsal. The place was just jammed.
Paul does two songs, and Lorne comes up to him and says to him, “Paul, could you do ‘Hey Jude’?” And Paul goes like, “Huh. I’m not sure if I remember it really.” And I go like, “Hey Jude, don’t be afraid —” and he goes, “No, stop! Stop! You’ll get it wrong.” And then he thinks about it for a second and he goes, “Okay, okay, okay,” and he goes to this guy and talks to him and then sits down and they do “Hey Jude.” And “Hey Jude” was like the song that when you were sixteen and you were driving and got to your destination and “Hey Jude” was on the radio, you just sat there and listened to it.
He’s playing “Hey Jude” and I’m beginning to tear up and think about what’s happened to my life since I’ve been sixteen, where’d my life go, and everybody else in the place is beginning to cry. So Saturday, the music rehearses after dinner or during dinner and we stop blocking and they do the music rehearsal. So again it’s McCartney and again the place is jam-packed with people. He plays “Hey Jude” and the same thing happens. People start crying and I get kind of misty. And then I see a set. We’re doing the Gap Girls that week, and every time we do the Gap Girls we have the set that has thousands and thousands of dollars’ worth of Gap clothes in it, including a shelving of jeans, and they always put a guard in front of it so nobody would take any of the clothes. And I’m looking at the guard and the guard is crying. And, you know, I haven’t had any time to shop. So we get to dress and “Hey Jude,” and the audience is going like, “Unbelievable! He’s