This was a thorough, very-informative book that offered more than just a glimpse at the beginnings of what has proved to be one of the true lasting institutions of and major influences on American entertainment. Well worth the time.

I read this because of my love for Sorkin's "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" and I found it fascinating. While "Saturday Night Live" is a pretty ordinary show most of the time, understanding what goes on behind the scenes has now made SNL all that more endearing to me, despite most of the original cast and crew being horrible, egocentric people. A really insightful read!

Never did get around to reading this until now. Outstanding book.

A Great History of a Great Show

I've been a fan of SNL since it began on tv. It's certainly had its ups and downs through the years and this book is an excellent account of those years It covers all the problems of getting it on the air in the first place to keeping it up.to date and watchable. It's a good read for any SNL fan

A must for any SNL or comedy nerd. This is the starting point for what seems to be an era of looking back at the history of this show.

Seriously immersive, completely engrossing. And a reminder that we'll never see the likes of that original show again.

An in depth look at the first five years of Saturday Night Live. Very inside look and lots of funny and interesting anecdotes from behind the scenes. The book gives you a good idea of all the personalities in the show from the actors to the writers. However, the writing wasn't great. If you really love Saturday Night Live you will probably like this book a lot. Otherwise, its a good, but not great, read.

Fascinating, though perhaps a little too in-depths at times: I think "And then more drama happened" could have replaced a hundred or so pages. If you want more ammunition to support the suggestion that highly creative types in groups are occasionally become out-of-control prima donnas, this book would provide it for you.

Good writing, fun to read. A nice bit of escapist time-traveling that made me feel like a fly-on-the-wall in the '70s and '80s in the writer's room.

I couldn't put it down. Now I am watching the old episodes on Hulu. It's great watching them having all the background information.

Read this when it came out in the late eighties and had to re-read it when the Kindle edition was released.
Great book for people who remember watching Glida, Dan and John when Saturday Night Live was still finding it's feet.
Interesting time piece considering the show's place in the cultural landscape. You could almost say it became what it used to rebel against.

Though this was published after the show had only been on 10 years it provides great detail and insight into the origins, creation and Lorne's first five seasons. Then after Lorne left the next five under Jean Domainian and then Dick Ebersole, which I had watched and remember many many of those bits and cast members (besides Piscopo and Murphy) but knew nothing about the inner workings and turmoil of those years before Lorne returned in the summer of 1985.
Very comprehensive and enjoyable.