NYT: March 13, 2008
Pro-Clinton? ‘SNL’ Says You’re Joking
By BILL CARTER
Lorne Michaels has an answer to the political columns, cartoons and comments that have accused his show, “Saturday Night Live,” of favoring Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton during her primary showdown with Senator Barack Obama: Nope....
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Mr. Michaels, who has been the executive producer of “SNL” off and on (mostly on) since its inception in 1975, said that he was happy the show had benefited from the attention — the Feb. 23 show attracted 7.5 million viewers, the biggest audience for the show in a year — but that he still worried about the perception. “I’m sensitive to the suggestion that we’re in the service of Hillary Clinton this year,” he said. “That obviously is not the case.” He added, “We don’t lay down for anybody.”...But he defended his depiction of the press’s relationship to Mr. Obama, as did Mr. Michaels. Mr. Michaels said he knew there was truth in the (Democratic debate) first sketch on Feb. 23 because “it got laughs.”
Immediately after that show (veteran writer James) Downey said he started hearing from Obama supporters that he was trying to undermine their candidate. Those complaints have only increased in subsequent weeks after two more election sketches have appeared, with Mr. Obama being played by Fred Armisen....Both men suggested that Mrs. Clinton benefited from being portrayed by Amy Poehler, whom Mr. Downey called “our charm machine.” But Ms. Poehler resisted one aspect of the portrayal in the first sketch on Feb. 23. Mr. Downey had written a moment when a tear was supposed to come to Mrs. Clinton’s eye, and the debate hosts were going to hammer her for “turning on the water works again.” Mr. Downey acknowledged, “Amy wasn’t crazy about that. She said that was not fair.” The tear was cut from the live show.
Both men said that most members of the cast and writing staff favored Mr. Obama as a presidential candidate, and Mr. Downey said that he would definitely vote for him if he were nominated. (Mr. Downey said he was a registered Democrat.) “I would imagine that most of the comedy world is for Obama,” he said. The show’s head writer, Seth Meyers, has contributed to Mr. Obama’s campaign. Mr. Michaels gave money to Senator John McCain’s campaign earlier in the race. He said he had mainly supported Democrats and had also contributed this year to Senator Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut on the Democratic side....Mr. Michaels noted that Mr. McCain had been a host on the show and acknowledged, “I have real affection for him.” But he predicted that the show would be tough on the Republican candidate and that he would not give more money to Mr. McCain’s campaign now that he is the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party....
Mrs. Clinton had already called both Ms. Fey and Ms. Poehler after the first week, Mr. Michaels said. Mrs. Clinton was scheduled to be a guest on the first “SNL” of the season back in September but canceled. Mr. Obama appeared in November. But after the Feb. 23 sketch Mrs. Clinton volunteered to come on again. Mr. Downey wrote another debate sketch, one he said he had been sure was so rough on Mrs. Clinton that he did not want to be anywhere near her when she viewed it. Others on the staff, including Mr. Michaels, hatched an “editorial response” for Mrs. Clinton to deliver. She turned up so late on the night of March 1 that she missed the dress rehearsal and had to go over the bit in her dressing room with Ms. Poehler. By most accounts, she handled the self-mocking material well. Mr. Michaels agreed she had come off positively, saying, “I think we lit her well.”
The show did ask Mr. Obama to appear this week , and Mr. Downey wrote an editorial response for him to deliver, but the senator declined. “I hope it was scheduling and not because he hates us,” Mr. Downey said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/13/arts/television/13snl.html
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