SNL's Five Timer's Club
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SNL's Five Timer's Club is a status give to any performer who has either hosted or appeared as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live at least five times.
Origins
The first public reference of the club came on December 8, 1990, when Tom Hanks made his fifth appearance as a host on SNL. Hanks described the eligibility process in detail (and with humor) in his SNL monolouge:"Believe it or not, this is the fifth "Saturday Night Live" I have been lucky enough to host. Now, the first time you do the show, you can't believe you're here. You just can't believe it. Your head buzzes with excitement. The second time you do the show, it means you were funny enough to be asked back - and you're pushing a movie. The third time you do the show, the second time didn't go so well, and you have something to prove to yourself. The fourth time you do the show, you're just blatantly pushing a movie. But the fifth time you do the show is the most special time of all, because you get this.. [ holds up a card ] ..a membership card in the Five-Timers Club. Come with me.. [ walks off the stage ] I'm gonna give you a chance to look in on one of the most exclusive clubs in the world." http://snltranscripts.jt.org/90/90hmono.phtml
After Hanks gave his monolouge, he participated in the now famous "Five Timer's Club" sketch. In addition to Hanks, the sketch starred five (and/or more) time hosts Steve Martin, Elliot Gould and five time musical guest Paul Simon, with guest appearances by Ralph Nader, Jon Lovitz (as a waiter) and Conan O'Brien as Sean the door man. Since the December 8, 1990 show, the Five Timer's Club has been a "running gag" on SNL. Danny Devito reference the club on his fifth show in 1993, as did Alec Baldwin (1994), John Goodman (1994) and Christopher Walken (2001).
Current members
As of June 2006, there has been a total of "18" members of the Five Timer's Club. From this number, nine have been celebrity hosts, two have been SNL alumni hosts and seven have been musical guests. Some of these "Five Timer" hosts (such as Steve Martin, Christopher Walken, Tom Hanks, and Alec Baldwin) have hosted so many times that special episodes of SNL have been compiled and aired as "Best of ..." episodes. Hosts who have been the subject of a Best of SNL videotape, DVD, or compilation special are marked with a (•) by their name on the list below. The following people are members of the Five Timer's Club:
Notes/Trivia
- John Goodman hosted once a season for 11 straight seasons.
- As of June 2006, Sting remains the only British member of the Five Timers Club. In addition to his five appearances as a musical guest, Sting has also hosted two shows.
- Chevy Chase was the first former SNL cast member to host five or more times. Bill Murray is the second former SNL cast member to host five or more times.
- As of June 2006, Candice Bergen is the only woman to host five times; hosted twice in one season in 1975.
- Dave Grohl appeared as a musical for a total of seven times, but with different bands. He was the drummer for Nirvana in their two performances, was a drummer for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers on one performance, and performed with his most recent band, Foo Fighters four times.
- In addition to being a musical guest seven times, Paul Simon also hosted or co-hosted three shows. He co-hosted the second episode with Art Garfunkel on October 18, 1975, and co-hosted with Catherine Oxenberg on May 10, 1986, during the 11th season. He solely hosted on November 20, 1976, where he was one of two musical guests.
Potential members
The following is a list of potential members of the Five Timer's Club. To be considered a potential member, the performer must have hosted or appeared as a musical guest on SNL at least three times.Four timers
| Performer | Type of Guest | Number of Episodes | First Hosted/Musical Appearance | Last Hosting/Musical Appearance | Other Notes |
| Billy Joel | Musical Guest | 4 | February 18, 1978 | October 23, 1993 | |
| Michael Palin | Host | 4 | April 8, 1978 | January 21, 1984 | He co-hosted the January 21, 1984 SNL show with his mother. |
| Drew Barrymore | Host | 4 | November 20, 1982 | February 14, 2004 | |
| Gwen Stefani | Musical Guest | 4 | December 7, 1996 | March 19, 2005 | She appeared as a musical guest twice with No Doubt, once with Eve and once as a solo act. |
| Eminem | Musical Guest | 4 | October 23, 1999 | October 30, 2004 | |
Three timers
Notes
- Madeline Kahn was also a potential Five Timer's Member until her death in 1999.
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