Tina Fey made the big announcement on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno tonight. She said that she will no longer be the head writer of SNL and will leave Weekend Update in order to focus completely on her new comedy series, 30 Rock. Fey has been the head writer of SNL for six years and has been a writer for the show since 1997.What say you... is this good news or doom for Saturday Night Live?















Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-22-2006 @ 12:31AM
Don said...
I say good for SNL. Up until part of this season there was a real decline in the quality of the sketches over the last few years. Now that Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone and Andy Samberg from the Lonely Island are writers I would hope that things will only continue to get better.
I'm still laughing at the digital shorts for Lazy Sunday and Young Chuck Norris.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 12:40AM
Clint said...
Not that it guarantees better days for SNL, but certainly gives the show a chance. A major shake-up in the writing dept. has been needed, and Fey stepping aside will help make that happen.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 1:07AM
Jay said...
I think SNL has been awesome while Fey was the head writer. I will miss Boston Teens and her on Weekend Update.
Im convinced people have ALWAYS said "SNL has sucked since [blank] left," be it John Belushi, Eddie Murphy, Mike Myers, Adam Sandler, Will Ferrell. I figure it will be the same with Tina Fey. I think she will be considered the greatest female SNL alum ever due to all the projects she has lined up (more so than Gilda Radner, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Janeane Garofalo).
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 1:40AM
smashthesymbols said...
I gotta say good. The show has been stale the last few years. There were some positive moments last season, but it wasn't enough. I still want to see more changes in the writing and cast, and her leaving is a good first step. That's not to say I don't like Tina Fey, I do. It's just time for her to move on for the good of the show.
I wonder what will happen with Weekend Update now. I sure hope it doesn't involve Amy Poehler in any way. She's funny, but she doesn't belong behind that desk.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 2:06AM
Richard Lawler said...
Considering that I can't remember more than three instances where SNL was funny over the last six years, this must be good news, or at least have the potential for it.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 3:32AM
Vito said...
Tina Fey is a funny woman. But was NOT the best person to lead the writing staff of SNL. They need someone who can shake things up, and who will push the envelope. I'm just not sure Tina ever wanted to do that so much as she did want to make something that was accessible and clever. Not that there's anything wrong with that, or with Tina. But again, it's NOT what you want driving a group of people as diverse as the SNL crew.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 6:37AM
Gavin said...
This show needs to be shaken up badly. Recently a lot of the sketches seemed as if they were written for a Nickelodeon audience. Has the SNL core audience starting shifting younger recently or am I just getting older?
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 10:04AM
MrsEldubya said...
Would love to see more of a change at SNL and some new characters developed. I hope this doesn't mean the women will be pushed back to a lower status at SNL now that the head writer isn't Tina Fey.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 12:13PM
Joel Keller said...
Good for 30 Rock; it deserves Tina's full attention. It's a good show that has the potential to be really good if given the chance.
Also, good for SNL; Tina gave the show a creative shot in the arm a few years ago, but under her watch, the show's gotten a) stale and b) weirdly non-political. It's also done too many skits that make fun of gossip and MTV-style shows, issues that not too much of it's core audience cares about (unless that core audience is 12-24, which it may be at this point). Not sure how much more of a shakeup there will be, but it's always good to restructure every so often.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 3:12PM
Matthew said...
I agree with those who say it's good, but not good enough. The cast is an absolute mess with the vast majority of them needing to leave. The Tina Fey era has been the worst in the show's history, but I think she's not completely responsible. The writing wasn't very good, but the acting is horrible. Amy Poehler is terrible. Fred Armisen is terrible. Kenan Thompson was terrible. Jimmy Fallon was terrible. Need an all-new cast.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 3:40PM
Jimmy said...
SNL needs a shakeup -- BAD! I've never been a great fan of SNL under Tina Fey's stewardship (hell, I barely watch it anymore). The political bite that was a hallmark of the show in the 70s and 80s was replaced by glorified fart jokes and skits not worthy of a high school talent show. Even the once great "Weekend Update" became little more than inside jokes between Tina and Jimmy Fallon; even worse when Amy Poehler was added. Every once in awhile it's good for SNL to completely wipe the slate clean and bring in fresh blood. For years now, cast members like Horatio Sanz, Darrell Hammond (funny but wasted on the show), Rachel Dratch, and Chris Parnell have stayed long past their time. They need new blood, new blood willing to take a chance with their comedy.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 4:55PM
rocko said...
SOMEBODY GET JACK HANDEY IN THERE, STAT!!!
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 8:32PM
Gavin said...
Jimmy, I couldn't agree with you more. Look at how much topical humor The Daily Show and Colbert Report turn into TV gold on a regular basis. Now look at SNL recently and Fey seems like she's been putting out entertainment for the teen scene. SNL really has been missing the mark, and Weekend Update is just sad compared with Comedy Central's heavyweights.
Reply
7-22-2006 @ 10:33PM
Diego M said...
I think this is great, i can't believe she stayed that long, i am only 21 and i taped SNL and now i Tivo it. saw the reruns on comedy central and they made me laugh out loud and i for a while they newer episodes were good. however, these last 4 seasons were just chuckle worthy at best, except for the presidential race coverage. i would pick the comedy central one-two punch at 11 pm anytime though. SNL is a long way from the glory days...
and i agree amy poehler is horrible in weekend update
Reply
7-23-2006 @ 9:37PM
santiago said...
This past season was not all that bad. The Lonely Island Crew has shook up the show. Now that Tina is gone, we don't have to hear to much anti-Bush remarks.
Reply
7-24-2006 @ 8:08PM
Kerry_zaputz said...
Given that Ms Fey is talent-free, I would say it's a good thing for SNL. It's bad news when viewers long for the days of Jean Doumanian. But Tina Fey or no Tina Fey, put this show out of its misery.
Reply