Chevy Chase - Saturday Night Live

Chase was one of the original cast members of Saturday Night Live (SNL), NBC's late-night comedy television show, beginning in October, 1975. During the full first season, he introduced every show except one by saying, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!" The remark was often preceded by a pratfall, known as "The Fall of the Week." Chase has since become known for his skill at physical comedy. In one comedy sketch, he mimicked a real-life incident in which President Gerald Ford accidentally tripped while disembarking from Air Force One in Salzburg, Austria. This portrayal of President Ford as a bumbling klutz became a favorite device of Chase and helped form the popular concept of Ford as being a clumsy man. In later years, Chase met and became friendly with President Ford. Chase's physical stunts led to at least one self-injury.

Chase was the original anchor for the Weekend Update segment of SNL, and his catchphrase introduction—"I'm Chevy Chase... and you're not"—became well known. His trademark conclusion—"Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow"—was later resurrected by Jane Curtin and Tina Fey, respectively. Chase also wrote comedy material for Weekend Update. For example, he wrote and performed "The News For The Hard Of Hearing." In this skit, Chase would read the top story of the day, aided by Garrett Morris, who would repeat the story by loudly shouting it. Chase claimed that his version of Weekend Update would later be the inspiration for other mock-news shows such as The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. (Weekend Update was later revived as a segment on The Chevy Chase Show, a short-lived late-night talk-show produced by Chase and broadcast by Fox Broadcasting Company.)

Chase also performed in other skits on SNL including a recurring role as the Land Shark, a parody of the blockbuster movie Jaws. His racially-charged "word association" skit opposite Richard Pryor from SNL's first season is frequently cited by television critics as one of the funniest (and most daring) skits in the show's history.

Chase became the first breakout star of SNL. He was committed contractually to Saturday Night Live for only one year as a writer, not an SNL cast member. He had signed a one year writing contract and became a cast member during rehearsals just before the show's premiere. Nonetheless, he received two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award for his comedy writing and live comic acting.

In a 1975 New York magazine cover story which called him "The funniest man in America", NBC executives referred to Chase as "The first real potential successor to Johnny Carson" and claimed he would begin guest-hosting The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson within six months of the article. Chase actually never did guest host the Tonight Show during his early peak years of success, and in fact did not even appear on the program until 1978, when he was promoting a prime time special for NBC. Carson later said of Chase after guest-hosting the Tonight Show; "He couldn't ad lib a fart after a baked bean dinner".

Chase acknowledged Ernie Kovacs' influence on his work in Saturday Night Live, and he thanked Kovacs during his acceptance speech for his Emmy award for Saturday Night Live. In addition, Chase spoke of Kovacs' influence on his work in an appearance in the 1982 documentary called Ernie Kovacs: Television's Original Genius.