The following is a list of recurring ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

'' characters and sketches introduced between October 6, 1984, and April 13, 1985, the tenth season of ''SNL''.

Ed Grimley

Martin Short Martin Hayter Short (born March 26, 1950) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, and writer. He has received various awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. In 2019 Short became an Officer of the Order of Canada. He ...

played a hyperactive nerd. Ed originally appeared as a recurring character in the Canadian series, '' SCTV''. Debuted on SNL October 6, 1984. ;Appearances:

Rich Hall's Election Report

Rich Hall Richard Travis Hall (born June 10, 1954) is an American comedian, writer, documentary maker and musician, first coming to prominence as a sketch comedian in the 1980s. He wrote and performed for a range of American networks, in series such as ...

sketch. ;Appearances:

Lawrence Orbach

A Martin Short character, Lawrence was awkward and child-like. Lawrence also originally appeared in the Canadian series ''SCTV'', as a contestant in the game show parody "Half-Wits". Debuted on SNL October 6, 1984.

Lew Goldman

Goldman was a stereotypical elderly Jewish man played by

Billy Crystal William Edward Crystal (born March 14, 1948)On page 17 of his book ''700 Sundays'', Crystal displays his birth announcement, which gives his first two names as "William Edward", not "William Jacob" is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. ...

. He was prone to commenting on his disrespectful family while doing various commentaries. He also coughed and cleared his throat frequently, due to an apparent excess of phlegm. One of his most memorable insults was: "I have coughed up things that were more interesting than you!" Debuted October 13, 1984.

Tippi Turtle

Christopher Guest Christopher Haden-Guest, 5th Baron Haden-Guest (born February 5, 1948) is an American-British screenwriter, composer, musician, director, actor, and comedian. Guest is most widely known in Hollywood for having written, directed, and starred in ...

animated short. Debuted October 13, 1984.Tippi Turtle at SNL Archives
;Appearances:

Willie & Frankie ("Don't ya hate it when...?")

A Billy Crystal and Christopher Guest sketch. Two good friends have meandering discussions in a variety of settings that inevitably drift into detailed anecdotes of grotesquely painful self-abuse. The men each complete the other's statements, correctly assuming increasingly outlandish scenarios. The characters periodically made some version of the remark "Don't ya hate it when that happens?" as though the pain they inflicted on themselves was a matter of bad luck. Debuted October 20, 1984. ;Appearances:

Buddy Young, Jr.

Buddy Young, Jr. was a

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

lounge comedian played by

. This is a rare example of a little-known character spinning off into a feature film. Although Buddy Young, Jr. appeared only four times on SNL, he was the principal character in the 1992 film, ''

Mr. Saturday Night ''Mr. Saturday Night'' is a 1992 American comedy-drama film that marked the directorial debut of its star, Billy Crystal. It focuses on the rise and fall of Buddy Young Jr., a stand-up comedian. Crystal produced and co-wrote the screenplay with ...

''. Debuted October 20, 1984.

Fernando's Hideaway

played a parody of

Fernando Lamas Fernando Álvaro Lamas y de Santos (January 9, 1915 – October 8, 1982) was an Argentine-American actor and director, and the father of actor Lorenzo Lamas. Biography Argentina Fernando Álvaro Lamas y de Santos was born in Buenos Aires, Arg ...

as the character Fernando, who would interview various celebrities, often confusing them with someone else (e.g. confusing actor Johnny Yune for football player

Johnny Unitas John Constantine Unitas (; May 7, 1933 – September 11, 2002) was an American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Baltimore Colts. Following a career that spanned from 1956 ...

). During each interview he would say, "You look mahvelous", and frequently the sketch would end with, "It's better to look good than to feel good." Debuted November 3, 1984. ;Appearances:

The Joe Franklin Show

A parody of ''

The Joe Franklin Show Joe Franklin (March 9, 1926 – January 24, 2015), born Joseph Fortgang, was an American radio and television host personality, author and actor from New York City. Franklin is noted for having the first talk show and inventing the format. His te ...

'', with

impersonating host

Joe Franklin Joe Franklin (March 9, 1926 – January 24, 2015), born Joseph Fortgang, was an American radio and television host personality, author and actor from New York City. Franklin is noted for having the first talk show and inventing the format. His te ...

. Debuted November 10, 1984. ;Appearances:

Jackie Rogers Jr.

character. Debuted November 10, 1984.

Chi Chi & Consuela

Mary Gross Mary Martha Gross is an American voice actress, comedian, and actress known for her four-year stint on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1981 to 1985. Her credits also include minor roles on ''Animaniacs'', ''Boston Legal'', ''That's So Raven'', ''S ...

and

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Julia Scarlett Elizabeth Louis-Dreyfus ( ; born January 13, 1961) is an American actress, comedian, and producer who worked on the comedy television series ''Saturday Night Live'' (1982–1985), ''Seinfeld'' (1989–1998), ''The New Adventures ...

sketch. Debuted November 10, 1984. ;Appearances:

Nathan Thurm

A shady lawyer, Thurm was a chain-smoker (often letting his cigarette burn to the point of becoming mostly ashes), quite paranoid, and constantly in denial about his paranoia. "I'm not being defensive. You're the one who's being defensive." When questioned, his response often included, "It's so funny to me that you would think..." He would

break the fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

, looking into the camera and expressing his puzzlement at the questioner by asking, "Is it me, or is it him? It's him, right?" Other times, he would deny an accusation, then immediately reverse his position when the accuser reaffirmed the statement. "No, it isn't!" (''"Yes it is."'') "I know that! Why wouldn't I know that? I'm well aware of that!" Debuted November 17, 1984, and played by Martin Short. Perhaps the best known appearance of Thurm was in a

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

SNL sketch that was a send-up of ''

60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique styl ...

''.

Harry Shearer Harry Julius Shearer (born December 23, 1943) is an American actor, comedian, writer, musician, radio host, director and producer. Born in Los Angeles, California, Shearer began his career as a child actor. From 1969 to 1976, Shearer was a member ...

played

Mike Wallace Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. He interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade career. He was one of the original correspo ...

, accusing Thurm of being involved in corporate corruption. Thurm of course denied everything and nervously tried to turn the tables on Wallace. Thurm was later reprised in 1990's ''

The Earth Day Special ''The Earth Day Special'' is a television special revolving around Earth Day that aired on ABC on April 22, 1990. Sponsored by Time Warner, the two-hour special featured an ensemble cast addressing concerns about pollution, deforestation, and o ...

'' as well as on Martin Short's short-lived talk show in 1999–2000. In his book ''I Must Say: My Life As A Humble Comedy Legend'', Short revealed that the character was based on a makeup artist who worked at SNL. ;Appearances:

Paul Harvey

impersonates

Paul Harvey Paul Harvey Aurandt (September 4, 1918 – February 28, 2009) was an American radio broadcaster for ABC News Radio. He broadcast ''News and Comment'' on mornings and mid-days on weekdays and at noon on Saturdays and also his famous ''The Rest o ...

on Saturday Night News. ;Appearances:

Strictly From Blackwell

A Harry Shearer sketch. Debuted December 8, 1984.

Ricky & Phil

A Billy Crystal and Christopher Guest sketch. Debuted January 19, 1985.

That White Guy

James Belushi James Adam Belushi (; born June 15, 1954) is an American actor. He is best known for the role of Jim on the sitcom ''According to Jim'' (2001–2009). His other television roles include ''Saturday Night Live'' (1983–1985), '' Total Security'' ...

sketch. Debuted February 2, 1985. ;Appearances:

Robert Latta

sketch based on a man who was caught trespassing at the White House in 1985. Debuted February 2, 1985. ;Appearances:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced 1984-85 Lists of recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches

Saturday Night Live in the 1980s