We're going to hear a lot this month about the 40th anniversary of Saturday Night Live, including a special that airs February 15. I'm not sure why they're commemorating then because the show debuted on October 11, 1975 but maybe they just can't wait. Or maybe the idea here is to get two anniversary celebrations out of the deal — one this month, one in October.
That show has sure changed over the years and so has the way some of us watch it. In '75, it was a must-see and I remember actually arranging Saturday evening dates with the requirement that we be home — hers or mine — and in front of a TV at 11:30. Neither I nor any lady I went out with then wanted to miss the show because it was live and it so often did things that all your friends would be talking about the next day. Sex, if any, could wait 'til 1 AM. (One girl I dated then suggested it could wait 'til 1 AM on a honeymoon.)
When we all got VCRs, it became possible to watch the show without being home by 11:30. It also became possible to fast-forward through commercials or weaker segments. Today, it's simple to TiVo the show and watch it later, often at a rapid sprint…but I don't even do that. I just assume that if anything wonderful happens on it, I'll hear about it the next day on the Internet and there will be a dozen places to watch that wonderful thing online. I'm afraid I don't see much of it lately.
Hollywood Reporter has a lot of interesting features online about SNL. Here's an interview with Lorne Michaels and if you're over there, you might want to browse around and check out some of the other goodies.