Since leaving Saturday Night Live after the 2005-2006 season, Tina Fey has done nothing of note. The end. Actually, that’s not totally true: she returned to host the show in 2008, 2010, and 2011. This weekend, she’ll get that much closer to joining the likes of Candice Bergen and Buck Henry in the illustrious Five-Timers Club, when she and Arcade Fire, as well as a whole bunch of new cast members, kick off SNL for season 39.
What should we expect from Mrs. Fey, other than a baffling cold open where Sarah Palin comments on this Ted Cruz fella while wearing a Trayvon Martin hoodie and Paula Deen wig, probably? That’s what I was curious to find out, so I took a look at every SNL episode hosted by a former cast member since 2000-2001 (minus Ben Stiller’s; he was only on the show for four episodes, so he barely counts) to see what old characters and new impressions they dusted off, as well as the special guests that joined them. I stick by my Tedvon Deen idea, though. #kony2012
Dana Carvey (October 21, 2000)
Old Characters: The Church Lady and Ching Change
Impressions: George Bush
Special Cameos: Baha Men and Robert DeNiro
Dan Aykroyd (May 17, 2003)
Old Characters: N/A
Impressions: Andrew Card and Sam Elliott
Special Cameos: Jim Belushi, Kip King, and John Goodman
David Spade (March 12, 2005)
Old Characters: N/A
Impressions: Martha Stewart and Owen Wilson
Special Cameos: Fred Willard
Will Ferrell (May 14, 2005)
Old Characters: Blue Öyster Cult’s Gene Frenkle
Impressions: Alex Trebek and Robert Goulet
Special Cameos: N/A
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (May 13, 2006)
Old Characters: N/A
Impressions: N/A
Special Cameos: Al Gore, Jason Alexander, and Jerry Seinfeld
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (March 17, 2007)
Old Characters: N/A
Impressions: Robin Antin
Special Cameos: Chris Rock
Molly Shannon (May 12, 2007)
Old Characters: Mary Katherine Gallagher, Sally O’Malley, and Jeannie Darcy
Impressions: Melania Knauss
Special Cameos: N/A
Tina Fey (February 23, 2008)
Old Characters: N/A
Impressions: Daisy De La Hoya and Mary Jo Buttafuoco
Special Cameos: Amber Lee Ettinger, Mike Huckabee, and Steve Martin
Tracy Morgan (March 14, 2009)
Old Characters: Brian Fellow and Astronaut Jones
Impressions: Sherri Shepherd
Special Cameos: John Cena
Will Ferrell (May 16, 2009)
Old Characters: N/A
Impressions: George W. Bush, Alex Trebek, and Harry Caray
Special Cameos: Tom Hanks, Anne Hathaway, Artie Lange, Norm MacDonald, Elisabeth Moss, Amy Poehler, Paul Rudd, and Maya Rudolph
Tina Fey (April 10, 2010)
Old Characters: Bedelia’s Mother
Impressions: Sarah Palin and Dina Lohan
Special Cameos: Steve Martin and Mark Sanchez
Amy Poehler (September 25, 2010)
Old Characters: Betty Caruso and Amber
Impressions: Kim Jong Il
Special Cameos: Jimmy Fallon, Justin Timberlake, Rachel Dratch, Tina Fey, Maya Rudolph, David Paterson, and Peter Sarsgaard.
Dana Carvey (February 5, 2011)
Old Characters: Garth Algar and Church Lady
Impressions: Mickey Rooney and Regis Philbin
Special Cameos: Mike Myers, Jon Lovitz, Justin Bieber, and Jesse Eisenberg.
Tina Fey (May 7, 2011)
Old Characters: Bedelia’s Mother
Impressions: Sarah Palin
Special Cameos: Maya Rudolph, Darrell Hammond, Michael Bolton, and Robin Wright
Jimmy Fallon (December 17, 2011)
Old Characters: Pat Sullivan
Impressions: Regis Philbin, Justin Bieber, Russell Brand, and Sting
Special Cameos: Amy Poehler, Rachel Dratch, Chris Kattan, Horatio Sanz, Tracy Morgan, Jude Law, Amy Poehler, and Tina Fey
Maya Rudolph (February 18, 2012)
Old Characters: Jodi Deitz
Impressions: Maya Angelou, Beyonce Knowles, and Michelle Obama
Special Cameos: Paul Simon, Amy Poehler, Justin Timberlake, Kate Upton, and Bill O’Reilly
Will Ferrell (May 12, 2012)
Old Characters: Marty Culp
Impressions: George W. Bush
Special Cameos: Will Forte, Ana Gasteyer, Liam Neeson, Justin Bieber, Michael Bolton, Julian Casablancas, Jon Hamm, Natalie Portman, and Justin Timberlake
Martin Short (December 15, 2012)
Old Characters: Jackie Rogers Jr.
Impressions: Larry David
Special Cameos: Alec Baldwin, Carrie Brownstein, Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Dave Grohl, Tom Hanks, Samuel L. Jackson, and Kristen Wiig
Kristen Wiig (May 11, 2013)
Old Characters: Gilly, Karina, Dooneese, Kat, and Target Lady
Impressions: N/A
Special Cameos: Jonah Hill and Maya Rudolph
So, what to expect? Well, Fey never developed any characters, so we don’t have to worry about. It wouldn’t be surprising if Amy Poehler dropped by, and probably Jimmy Fallon, too. It’s unlikely Seth Meyers and Cecily Strong will fully secede the Weekend Update desk, considering how little time he has left behind it and how new she is to it, but maybe they’ll share it. Here’s hoping for an appearance from Space Lesbian, though.
(via Getty Image)
