Recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced 1984–1985
The following is a list of recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced between October 6, 1984, and April 13, 1985, the tenth season of SNL.
Ed Grimley
Martin Short is a hyperactive nerd who originally appeared in the Canadian series, Second City Television. Debuted October 6, 1984.
Lawrence Orback
A Martin Short sketch. Debuted October 6, 1984.
Lew Goldman
Goldman was a stereotypical elderly Jewish man played by Billy Crystal. He was prone to commenting on his disrespectful family while doing various commentaries. He also coughed and cleared his throat frequently, due to an apparent excess of phlegm. One of his most memorable insults was: "I have coughed up things that were more interesting than you!" Debuted October 13, 1984.
Tippi Turtle
A Christopher Guest sketch. Debuted October 13, 1984.[1][2]
Willie & Frankie ("Don't ya hate it when...?")
A Billy Crystal and Christopher Guest sketch. In this act, two good friends have meandering discussions in a variety of settings that inevitably drift into detailed anecdotes of grotesquely painful self-abuse they have inflicted on themselves. The men each complete the other's statements, correctly providing increasingly outlandish words and phrases. Debuted October 20, 1984.
Buddy Young, Jr.
Buddy Young, Jr. was a Las Vegas lounge comedian played by Billy Crystal. This is a rare example of a little-known character spinning off into a feature film. Although Buddy Young, Jr. appeared only four times on SNL, he was the principal character in the 1992 film, Mr. Saturday Night. Debuted October 20, 1984.
Fernando's Hideaway
Billy Crystal played a parody of Fernando Lamas as the character Fernando, who would interview various celebrities, often confusing them with someone else (e.g. confusing actor Johnny Yune for football player Johnny Unitas). During each interview he would say, "You look mahvelous." and frequently the sketch would end with, "It's better to look good than to feel good." Debuted November 3, 1984.
Seňor Cosa
A Christopher Guest sketch. Debuted November 10, 1984.
Irving Cohen
Martin Short is a Tin Pan Alley songsmith. Debuted November 10, 1984.
Chi Chi & Consuela
A Mary Gross and Julia Louis-Dreyfus sketch. Debuted November 10, 1984.
Nathan Thurm
This was a character created by Martin Short while he was performing on the Canadian comedy program SCTV. A shady lawyer, Thurm was a chain-smoker (often letting his cigarette burn to the point of becoming mostly ashes), quite paranoid, and constantly in denial about his paranoia. "I'm not being defensive. You're the one who's being defensive." When questioned, his response often included, "It's so funny to me that you would think..." He would break the fourth wall, looking into the camera and expressing his puzzlement at the questioner by asking, "Is it me, or is it him? It's him, right?" Other times, he would deny an accusation, then immediately reverse his position when the accuser reaffirmed the statement. "No, it isn't!" ("Yes it is.") "I know that! Why wouldn't I know that? I'm well aware of that!" Debuted November 17, 1984.
Perhaps the best known appearance of Thurm was in a 1984 SNL sketch that was a send-up of 60 Minutes. Harry Shearer played Mike Wallace, accusing Thurm of being involved in corporate corruption. Thurm of course denied everything and nervously tried to turn the tables on Wallace.
Thurm was later reprised on Martin Short's short-lived talk show in 1999–2000.
In his book I Must Say: My Life As A Humble Comedy Legend, Short revealed that the character was based on a makeup artist who worked at SNL.
Rajeev Vindaloo
A Christopher Guest sketch. Debuted December 8, 1984.
Ricky & Phil
A Billy Crystal and Christopher Guest sketch. Debuted January 19, 1985.
That White Guy
A James Belushi sketch. Debuted February 2, 1985.
Robert Latta
A Rich Hall sketch. Debuted February 9, 1985.