ALL HAIL SNL

Before Jon, there was Chevy and Dan

Comments (0) By Eudie Pak Wednesday, Sep 3 2008

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In 1956, Democratic candidate Adlai Stevenson wasn’t too crazy about selling his mug on the tube, exclaiming: “The idea that you can merchandise candidates for high office like breakfast cereal is the ultimate indignity to the democratic process.” Well, he was right—but thankfully, for the rest of us, there’s always the political satire on shows like Saturday Night Live. Elaborating on the long-running comedy show’s influential role over the course of many, many elections, the Museum of the Moving Image hosts Saturday Night Live and Presidential Politics, a discussion with co-creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels, “Weekend Update” co-anchors Seth Myers and Amy Poehler, and veteran writer James Downey. The event is being held in conjunction with the museum’s 2008 exhibition “The Living Room Candidate,” which explores the historic relationship between television and the marketing of presidential candidates, from the Eisenhower/Stevenson contest to the Bush/Kerry run.
Mon., Sept. 15, 7 p.m., 2008