8 somber ‘SNL’ cold opens that brought tears instead of laughs

nypost.com:

“Saturday Night Live” normally sets up big laughs in its traditional cold opens, but occasionally it faces tragedy head-on.Amid 50 years of gut-busting comedy, Lorne Michaels’ iconic sketch show has replaced humor with heartache during tear-inducing tributes to 9/11, mass shootings, wars and more, offering somber reflections to stir its Studio 8H audience and home viewers.Here are some of the most memorable cold open moments when jokes were jettisoned and heartstrings were pulled.

A post shared by Saturday Night Network (@thesnlnetwork)When original cast member Gilda Radner died from ovarian cancer on Saturday, May 20, 1989, it shocked many — as well as oft-scene mate Steve Martin, who was set to host that night’s episode when he learned of her passing at age 42.“You know, I’ve been coming here to do ‘Saturday Night Live’ since 1976, and the thing … that brings me back to the show is the people you get to work with,” said an emotional Martin, fighting back tears, as he kicked off the episode.

Tossing aside a standard comedic monologue, he instead introduced a 1978 clip of a popular sketch he and Radner did that lampooned famed dancers Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse. “When I look at that tape, I can’t help but think how great she was and how young I looked,” he quipped before hitting a more serious tone. “Gilda, we miss you.”Radner was known for such memorable characters as “Weekend Update” busybodies Emily Litella and Roseanne Roseannadanna, high school nerd Lisa Loopner and Baba Wawa, the latter a hilarious take on news anchor Barbara Walters.

Surrounded by more than two dozen first responders, then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani kicked off Season 27 with a somber salute to the “heroes” of the Sept.