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David and Dana Preview Their Conversation with Alan Zweibel I Fly on the Wall

September 06, 2023 / 02:47

This episode features Alan Zweibel, a notable writer from Saturday Night Live, discussing the early days of the show, his experiences with Gilda Radner, and the unpredictability of Hollywood.

Zweibel reflects on the innocence of the original SNL cast, known as the Not Ready for Prime Time Players, and how the culture shifted when cast members like John Belushi became movie stars.

He shares fond memories of working with Gilda Radner, describing her as an American sweetheart and a brilliant talent.

The conversation also touches on the challenges of the film industry, including the failure of Zweibel's movie North, and the unpredictability of what makes a successful film.

Zweibel humorously comments on the obscurity of some streaming platforms, likening Pluto TV to a dwarf planet due to its low viewership.

TLDR

Alan Zweibel discusses SNL's early days, Gilda Radner, and Hollywood's unpredictability.

Episode

2:47
00:00:00
let me just say something about Alan's Weibel he is like a famous writer from Saturday
00:00:05
Night Live and he was a huge part of the First cast and the First cast is always
00:00:11
going to be the First cast there'll always be the greatest right and what happened and he really breaks it down
00:00:18
another thing I like to say stay in your lane break it down he breaks down that when they got in the show it was kind of
00:00:23
innocent no one knew they weren't rock stars they that's why they call them not ready for Prime Time Players and then at
00:00:29
a given point I think it was John Belushi did Animal House and became a movie star and so the entire culture of
00:00:37
the show changes because of this which is a fascinating thing and goes in detail the picture he come back to the
00:00:43
set and then those little tiny he's on as now he's like so much bigger than everyone and now he's back to doing
00:00:50
sketches and there had to be attitudes in this and you know some people were on drugs some people weren't but I think
00:00:55
once that hit he said it changed the dynamic yeah and it's also uh Alan worked very closely with Gila Radner and
00:01:02
that's fun to hear because she's somewhat American sweetheart yeah maybe the most likable I don't know she's just
00:01:09
brilliant and he he really talks fondly about her in great details he did a movie that he wrote which was such a
00:01:16
hyped movie with a hive cast called North and it [ __ ] bombed and uh was John Lovitz in it it's so brutal because
00:01:24
I'm kidding the interesting thing about Showbiz out here is that no one knows jack [ __ ] you can't there's almost no
00:01:32
for sure hits and so smartest people directors writers cast and you just can't say this movie will be great and
00:01:38
people just say pass and it's unbelievable I can't believe they don't have to crack the code yet I actually
00:01:43
started a movie right after that 1995. nobody knows Jack's [ __ ] and that even bombed that movie didn't do nobody knows
00:01:50
Jack shouldn't it even bombed no you played Jack [ __ ] Show Business yeah I post her yeah I was Jack [ __ ] I looked I
00:01:57
like Joe Dirt I was kind of like jack [ __ ] and Joker hey man and jack [ __ ] are you Clueless yeah I
00:02:05
don't know even jack [ __ ] I don't know myself that was the cold open of the movie it was on a mountain Retreat there
00:02:11
were Cowboys anyway doesn't matter it's on live streaming I think it's on Pluto maybe Pluto is that a Planet channel it
00:02:20
doesn't even know it's a network that's how obscure it doesn't even qualify to be straight it's like the real Pluto
00:02:24
which is called a dwarf planet because it's so tiny Pluto doesn't count as even a streaming site because it's only 3 200
00:02:31
people watch it 3200 does the latest globally all right most of them in Czechoslovakia I digress more on that
00:02:38
later um here's Alan zweibel

Episode Highlights

  • Alan Zweibel's Influence
    Alan Zweibel, a key figure from the first cast of SNL, reflects on his experiences.
    “He really breaks it down.”
    @ 00m 16s
    September 06, 2023
  • The Unpredictability of Showbiz
    Zweibel discusses the harsh realities of Hollywood and the unpredictability of hits.
    “No one knows jack [ __ ] you can't say this movie will be great.”
    @ 01m 27s
    September 06, 2023

Episode Quotes

  • No one knows jack [ __ ] in showbiz.
    David and Dana Preview Their Conversation with Alan Zweibel I Fly on the Wall
  • Pluto doesn't count as even a streaming site.
    David and Dana Preview Their Conversation with Alan Zweibel I Fly on the Wall

Key Moments

  • Cultural Shift00:34
  • Showbiz Realities01:27
  • Streaming Obscurity02:25

Tension Over Time

Words per Minute Over Time

Vibes Breakdown