The BEST episodes of Saturday Night Live
Every episode of Saturday Night Live ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Saturday Night Live!
Each week, a famous guest host appears in sketches and parodies alongside a roster of up-and-coming comedians. A popular musical guest, short films, and Weekend Update - a recurring satirical newscast - form the backbone of one of the most influential and culturally significant TV shows in history.
#1 - Dudley Moore/Al Green
Season 11 - Episode 8 - Aired 1/25/1986
Sketches include ""Monks and Football,"" ""The Pat Stevens Show,"" ""Master Thespian"", ""The Limits of the Imagination"", ""Name That Tune,"" and ""Die Foriegner Die!"" Al Green performs ""Going Away.""
#2 - Bill Russell/Chicago
Season 5 - Episode 3 - Aired 11/3/1979
Sketches include ""Kennedy in '80,"" ""Banshee,"" ""The Black Shadow,"" ""The Landers Files,"" ""Mr. Bill at Home,"" ""Nick in the Arctic,"" ""Eleanor Roosevelt,"" ""Sports Hot Line,"" and ""Big n' Tall That's All."" Chicago performs their 1970 hit ""I'm a Man"" and their then-current single ""Street Player.""
#3 - Rosie O'Donnell/James Taylor
Season 19 - Episode 6 - Aired 11/13/1993
Sketches include ""The Packwood Diaries,"" ""Frank Sinatra Duets,"" ""Daily Affirmation With Stuart Smalley,"" ""Forgetful Waiter,"" ""The Tomboy and the Sissy,"" ""Dick Clark's Receptionist,"" ""Will Work For Food,"" ""Homegirls""
#4 - Jeff Daniels/Color Me Badd
Season 17 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/5/1991
""Johnny Carson's Tonight Show: The 29th and Final Anniversary"", ""Earthies, the Bountiful Diaper Commercial (From Dell Monty)"", ""The Richmeister Vs. The Name Singing Guy"", ""The Chris Farley Show"", ""Community College Bowl"", ""Apex Novelty Guy gets fired for designing bad quality rubber vomit""
#5 - Danny DeVito/Bryan Ferry
Season 13 - Episode 6 - Aired 12/5/1987
ive from New York, it's... Danny Devito! Sketches include: "Gorbachev-Reagan," "Siskel & Ebert," "Church Chat," "Eddie Spimozo's Jungle Room," "White Trash Appraiser," "Ann Landers' Playhouse," and "Reminiscing with Doorman." Bryan Ferry performs "The Right Stuff" and "Kiss and Tell."
#6 - Justine Bateman/Terrance Trent D'Arby
Season 13 - Episode 11 - Aired 2/13/1988
""53rd. Debate of the 1988 Republican Presidential Candidates"", ""Learning to Feel with Denise Venetti, Ph.D."", ""Family Ties: If These Old Walls Could Talk (Flashback-Flashback Episode)"", ""Blocked songwriter Derek Stevens loses his Muse"", ""An older man, the bimbo girlfriend Linda and his Judgemental Friends"".
#7 - Sean Penn/L.L. Cool J., Michael Penn & the Pull
Season 13 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/24/1987
Live from New York, it's... Sean Penn! Sketches include "Fatal Attraction 2," "Wall Street Week," "Church Chat," "Pitman & Bullock," "The Teeny Cafe," "Keister Family Talk," "Discover," "The Spimozo Brothers," and "Cat Dentist" (film). LL Cool J performs "Go Cut Creator Go." Michael Penn and The Pull performs "This & That."
#8 - Richard Benjamin/Rickie Lee Jones
Season 4 - Episode 16 - Aired 4/7/1979
Sketches include "The Pepsi Syndrome," "The Nerds In Love," and "Scottish Restaurant." Jones performs his hit "Chuck E's In Love."
#9 - Conan O'Brien/Don Henley
Season 26 - Episode 14 - Aired 3/10/2001
Live from New York, it's...Will Ferrell Sketches include: Bush's Good Health, Subshack, The Boston Teens At The Liquor Store, Moleculo: The Molecular Man, Napster Testimony, Taint-less Ted, Find The Black People At The Knicks Game, VH-1 Diva-Thon, Democratic National Committee, and Sports Century: The White Boxer Don Henley performs: ""Everything is Different Now"" and ""Heart of the Matter"" (the second performance was cut on the NBC rerun and replaced with a DeMarco Bros. sketch where Chris Parnell, Chris Kattan, and Conan O'Brien audition for Don Henley)
#10 - Sigourney Weaver/Buster Poindexter
Season 12 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/11/1986
Live From New York, it's...Madonna Sketches Include: A Message From Madonna, ""General Dynamics,"" ""Tommy Flanagan,"" ""Quiz Masters,"" ""The Amazing Alexander,"" ""Church Chat,"" ""Bows and Smith Advertising,"" ""Alienses,"" ""Ten Weeks In Jail,"" ""Baby It's Cold Outside"" (musical number), ""Derek Stevens Auditions,"" and ""The Brecht Opera."" Buster Poindexter performed ""Smack Dab in the Middle"" and ""Fool For You.""
#11 - Rosie O'Donnell/Whitney Houston
Season 22 - Episode 9 - Aired 12/14/1996
Sketches include ""Bill Clinton and Bob Dole,"" ""Spartan Cheerleaders,"" ""Mary Katherine Gallagher,"" ""Delicious Dish,"" ""Goat Boy,"" ""Rita Delvecchio,"" and ""The Local News with Joe Blow.""
#12 - Alec Baldwin/Paul McCartney
Season 18 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/13/1993
Sketches include ""Dateline NBC,"" ""The Mimic,"" ""The Chris Farley Show,"" ""Soap Opera Digest,"" ""Gap Girls,"" ""Naked Woman Theater,"" ""Daily Affirmation With Stuart Smalley,"" ""The Bodyguard,"" and ""French Class"".
#13 - Mena Suvari/Lenny Kravitz
Season 26 - Episode 10 - Aired 1/20/2001
Sketches include ""Bill Clinton,"" ""Airport Metal Detector,"" ""Janet Reno's Dance Party, ""Rap Street,"" ""Veronica & Co.,"" and ""The DeMarco Brothers.""
#14 - Cameron Diaz/Jimmy Eat World
Season 27 - Episode 16 - Aired 4/6/2002
Live From New York, It's...Will Ferrell & Ana Gasteyer! Sketches include ""The Culps In Lamaze Class,"" ""17th Annual Auto Show Spokeman Awards,"" ""MTV Spring Break 2002,"" ""SNL 530,"" ""Astronaut Jones,"" ""Celine Dion on CBS,"" ""Gorgeous Living,"" ""The First Female Peepers,"" ""MTV 4"", and ""My Big, Thick Novel."" Jimmy Eat World performed ""The Middle"" and ""Sweetness.""
#15 - Eddie Murphy/The Honeydrippers
Season 10 - Episode 9 - Aired 12/15/1984
Sketches include ""Buckwheat Lives!"" ""White Like Me"" (film), ""Milestones,"" and ""Newsmakers."" Robert Plant and the Honeydrippers perform ""Santa Claus is Back in Town.""
#16 - Sinbad/Sade
Season 18 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/21/1992
Sketches include ""George Bush and Bill Clinton,"" ""Homosexuals at War,"" ""At Home with Monica,"" ""Blacula,"" ""Gilligan's Bioshpere,"" ""Superman's Funeral,"" and ""The Proud Pattersons.""
#17 - Antonio Banderas/Mary J Blige
Season 31 - Episode 15 - Aired 4/8/2006
Live from New York (for the 600th time), its... Seth Meyers! Sketches include "Anderson Cooper 360," "Basic Instinct 2: Return of the Beaver," "Deal or No Deal," "Automated-Phone Lady," "Besos y Lagrimas," "13th Annual Women's Basketball Coaches Fashion Awards," "Zorro's Body Double," "Rascals' Karoake," "Immigrants Backstage," and "Wine Snobs." Mary J. Blige performs "Be Without You" and "Enough Crying.
#18 - Sean William Scott/Sum 41
Season 27 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/6/2001
Live From New York, It's...Will Ferrell Sketches include: Bush Warns bin Laden, Law and Order: Parking Violations Movement, Snotty Department Store Guys, Emmy Awards Pre-Show, Jarrett's Room, The Patriotic Co-Worker, The ""How Do You Say? Ah, Yes"" Show, The Approval Center, and The Porn Star Blind Date Sum 41 performs: ""Fat Lip"" and ""In Too Deep""
#19 - Danny DeVito/Bon Jovi
Season 18 - Episode 10 - Aired 1/9/1993
""The Super Fans Formally Express Their Anger Via Letter: Ditka is fired"", ""BBC1 Presents Simon! - Special Guest: A Foul-Mouthed, Middle-Aged Italian American"", ""The Fourth Amy Fisher Story on Fox: Aaron and Tori Spelling's Amy Fisher, 10516 with Danny DeVito as Joey Buttafuoco"", ""Gap Girls: Buy it large. Just belt it and cinch it!"", ""Black Entertainment Television Presents: Amy Fisher, One Messed Up Bitch"", ""The Privacy-Obsessed Hitman Whose Wife Knew Everything About His Business"", ""Books on Tape: Madonna's Sex Book. Text by Charlton Heston. Photo Interpretation by Al Goldstein"".
#20 - Joe Pesci/Spin Doctors
Season 18 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/10/1992
Sketches include ""Debate '92,"" ""Pinky Ringery,"" ""Single White Person,"" ""Bullies on the Steps,"" and ""Zoriada annoys Joe Pesci."" Spin Doctors perform ""Jimmy Olson's Blues.""
#21 - Steve Martin/Sting
Season 13 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/17/1987
Sketches include ""Ronald Reagan and George Bush,"" ""Gary Hart Ad,"" ""Common Knowledge,"" ""NFL Today,"" ""Slide Whistle Sound Effects,"" ""Bullets Aren't Cheap,"" ""Permission to Speak Freely,"" ""Adventures in the Lost Realm,"" and ""Pumping Up With Hans and Franz"".
#22 - Ringo Starr/Herbie Hancock
Season 10 - Episode 8 - Aired 12/8/1984
Sketches include ""Beatles Auction,"" ""Fernando's Hideaway,"" and ""Ed Grimley Meets Ringo.""
#23 - Danny DeVito & Rhea Perlman/Eddy Grant
Season 9 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/15/1983
Sketches are ""Calvin Klein Cream Pies,"" ""Mister Robinson's Neighborhood,"" ""Crazy Edelman,"" ""Book Beat,"" ""What Would Frank Do?"" ""Amos n' Andy,"" and ""Spanish Class."" Eddy Grant performs ""I Don't Wanna Dance,"" ""Electric Avenue,"" and ""Living on the Front Line.""
#24 - Michael Sarrazin/Keith Jarrett
Season 3 - Episode 17 - Aired 4/15/1978
Live From New York, It's...Laraine Newman Sketches include--"A Message From the President of the United States", "Angora Bouquet", "Judy Miller", "E. Buzz Miller's Exercise World", "La Dolce Gilda", "Abraham Lincoln in the Audience", "Archaeologicus"
#25 - Michael Palin/Eugene Record
Season 3 - Episode 16 - Aired 4/8/1978
Live From New York, It's...Dan Aykroyd Sketches include--"Oscar Awards", "Little Chocolate Donuts", "Tax Deductions", "H&L Brock", "Great Escape", "Nerds Piano Lesson", "The Case of the Scarlet Membrane", "Good Time At Party", "Mr. Bill Pays His Taxes", "Danger Probe"