Credit: Far Out / NBC
Sun 16 August 2026 18:15, UK
While Saturday Night Live has remained one of the most popular shows on US television for over 50 years, it’s not as though the show has managed to get there without its share of bust-ups, controversies, and moments where it could almost have completely fallen apart.
Created in 1975 by producer Lorne Michaels, there have been a number of features of the show that were present from the start, from musical guests, celebrity hosts, and a cast of comedians who write, perform and occasionally improvise skits that reference popular culture and current affairs. Being part of the SNL cast over the years has proven to be an incredible jumping platform for performers to go on to greater things, either establishing themselves in the world of stand-up comedy or acting.
Initially, there were seven members of the cast when the first broadcast aired, with Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, Garrett Morris, Gilda Radner, Jane Curtin, John Belushi and Laraine Newman making up the famous ensemble. Several people would drop out over time, with others coming in to replace them. However, while the number of cast members in the history of the show has grown to be as large as 172, the position is still just as coveted by wannabe comedy stars.
However, to have been part of the original ensemble would arguably have been the most desired position, and it wasn’t just a case of the seven recruits being asked and there never having been other contenders; one comedian continued to hold a grudge against the show, incensed at the fact that he was never able to be part of the original cast.
Richard Belzer, a long-time friend of Michaels, was originally considered to be part of the cast when the show first entered production, but rather than be officially included in the show, he was instead used as the warm-up comedian who would perform for the live audience before the tape started rolling. Belzer did this for five years, thinking that his chance to ascend to the main cast would eventually arrive, but Michaels didn’t seem to want to budge.
According to Belzer, he believed that Michaels had explicitly promised him that he would be involved in the main cast, and that he would do him a favour. However, this never came to fruition, and while circumstances may have changed over time, Belzer has always believed that his friend betrayed him and went against his word.
In a 1993 interview with People, Belzer continued his tirade against Michaels and the show, proclaiming that he’d been unfairly ousted from the picture and that he still hadn’t gotten over the fact that he was deceived.
Further reading: Cutting Room Floor
“John, Bill Murray and Gilda got on the show and became big stars and millionaires,” he proclaimed, gesticulating in a noticeably aggrieved manner. “Lorne betrayed me and lied to me, which he denies, but I give you my word he said, ‘I’ll work you into the show.’”
Whether Michaels had simply meant that he would give him the chance to perform in front of a live audience as the warm-up act or whether he meant that he’d be an official part of the cast is another matter, but as far as Belzer was concerned, he’d been stabbed in the back.
