Paul Simon and Sabrina Carpenter open the ‘Saturday Night Live’ 50th anniversary celebration

By Canadian Press on February 16, 2025.

NEW YORK (AP) — Paul Simon and Sabrina Carpenter opened the 50th anniversary special celebrating “Saturday Night Live” with a duet of his song “Homeward Bound.”

The 83-year-old Simon has been a constant on “SNL” since its earliest episodes in 1975, and performed on the first show after the 9/11 attack. He was joined by the 25-year-old pop sensation of the moment, carpenter.

“I sang this song with George Harrison on ‘Saturday Night Live’ in 1976,” Simon said.

“I was not born then,” Carpenter said, getting a laugh. “And neither were my parents,” she added, getting a bigger laugh.

Fifty seasons of “Saturday Night Live” sketches, songs and special guests are being celebrated for the special’s landmark anniversary.

The pop culture juggernaut has launched the careers of generations of comedians, from Bill Murray to Eddie Murphy and Tina Fey to Kristen Wiig.

Many of those stars were on hand for “SNL50: The Anniversary Celebration,” airing live from New York, of course.

“I grew up with the show, you know, and I was born in 1971 and it’s lived with me my whole life,” Amy Poehler, who was a cast member from 2001 to 2008,” said on Sunday ahead of the show’s start. “We have a show to do in just under two hours, and being back is an amazing privilege.”

The three-hour extravaganza comes after months of celebrations of “Saturday Night Live,” which premiered Oct. 11, 1975, with an original cast that included John Belushi, Chevy Chase and Gilda Radner.

“After the original cast, we were just going, Those guys just did it all for us,” Adam Sandler, a cast member from 1990-1995, said before the show. “They crushed it. We watched them at home. They made their movies. We worshiped their movies. And that’s all. What we wanted to do is just kind of continue that sort of stuff.”

It’s become appointment television over the years as the show has skewered presidents, politics and pop culture and been a platform for the biggest musical stars of the moment. As streaming has altered television viewing, “SNL” sketches, host monologues and short comedy films remain popular on social media and routinely rack up millions of views on YouTube.

While NBC has revealed some of the stars expected to appear, many of the special’s moments, cameos and music performances remain a surprise.

On Sunday, NBC announced more guest appearances including Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Leslie Jones, Billy Crystal, Cher, Mike Myers and Alec Baldwin, who holds the title of the person who’s hosted “SNL” the most times.

When does the ‘SNL’ 50th anniversary tribute show start?

NBC is airing “SNL50: The Anniversary Celebration” live across the country Sunday from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific. It will re-air immediately after on the West Coast. The anniversary show will also stream on Peacock.

Which ‘SNL’ alums are slated to appear?

NBC says in addition to Murphy, Poehler, Fey and Sandler, you can expect: Andy Samberg, Chris Rock, Fred Armisen, Jason Sudeikis, Jimmy Fallon, Kate McKinnon, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Molly Shannon, Pete Davidson, Seth Meyers, Tracy Morgan, Will Ferrell and Will Forte.

Some members of the original cast, known as the Not Ready for Prime Time Players, will appear, including Chase, Laraine Newman, Garrett Morris and Jane Curtin. A publicist for Dan Aykroyd, the other remaining surviving member, did not respond to a request for comment on whether he would attend.

Which former hosts will appear on ‘SNL50’?

Steve Martin, who has left an indelible comedic mark on “SNL” over the years, will be among the many successful hosts returning for the show’s 50th celebration.

Other prolific and returning hosts range from actors like Tom Hanks, Martin Short and Scarlett Johansson (who is married to current “SNL” cast member Colin Jost) to athletes like Peyton Manning. Former “SNL” writer John Mulaney will appear, as will Adam Driver, Ayo Edebiri, Kim Kardashian, Pedro Pascal, Quinta Brunson, Robert De Niro and Woody Harrelson.

How will ‘SNL’ honor its musical legacy?

In some ways, it already has. Radio City Music Hall on Friday hosted the star-packed “SNL50: The Homecoming Concert” with a lineup that included Cher, Miley Cyrus, Arcade Fire, David Byrne, Post Malone and Nirvana.

Sunday’s special will include appearances by Paul McCartney, Bad Bunny, Cyrus and other music stars, though the show hasn’t said whether all will perform. McCartney has used New York’s Bowery Ballroom as a warm-up spot, hosting three surprise shows this week.

The musical legacy of “SNL” is also explored in the documentary “Ladies and Gentlemen … 50 Years of SNL Music,” from the Oscar-winning Questlove. It’s currently streaming on Peacock.

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Writer John Carucci contributed to this report.

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For more coverage of the 50th anniversary of “Saturday Night Live,” visit: https://apnews.com/hub/saturday-night-live

The Associated Press