Happy 50th 'SNL!' Here's a look back at the show's very first cast

NEW YORK (AP) — Live from New York! It’s 50 seasons later for “SNL.”

The landmark NBC sketch comedy show “Saturday Night Live” premiered Oct. 11, 1975, with drop-dead dark humor and pratfalls, George Carlin as host and not one but two musical guests: Billy Preston and Janis Ian.

On Saturday nights, in those early years, young people gathered around TVs to watch the Lorne Michaels production that served up counterculture to the mass market via the Not Ready for Prime Time Players.

Fast forward to this year, Sept. 28, when the first episode of “SNL’s” half-century season is set to air in a lead-up to a three-hour live primetime special Feb. 16 on, gasp, a Sunday. Jean Smart will host to open the season.

Over the decades, some seasons were better than others, with breakout stars like Eddie Murphy, Adam Sandler, Tina Fey, Will Ferrell and more. So what became of the freshman “SNL” class?

“National Lampoon’s Animal House,” “Continental Divide,” “Neighbors” and all things The Blues Brothers. Belushi left “SNL” in 1979 to pursue music and film projects.

Following years of drug use, he died March 5, 1982, at 33 after overdosing at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles. Belushi’s death stunned friends and fans and symbolized the end of the hard-living ’70s.

Belushi birthed his “Joliet” Jake Blues, joining fellow “SNL” cast member Dan Aykroyd as brother Elwood. Their TV debut as the brothers blue came on “SNL” in 1978.

The sunglass-wearing, dark-suited Blues Brothers took on a fame of their own with the self-titled 1980 movie. After Belushi’s death, “Blues Brothers 2000” was released in 1998 in tribute with most of the first film’s original cast.

Nasally Roseanne Roseannadanna. Weird teen Lisa Loopner. Weekend Update’s “never mind” complainer Emily Litella. Radner contributed an endearing sweetness to the inaugural season of “SNL.” She stayed for five years.

In 1979, the Emmy and Grammy winner took to Broadway to perform a one-woman show, “Gilda Live.” Included were some of her most beloved “SNL” characters, including Baba Wawa, a spoof of Barbara Walters. The show was filmed and released as a movie.

Radner died in 1989 at 42 after a long battle with ovarian cancer. A documentary about her, “Love Gilda,” was released in 2018.

Chase was the first to utter the words: “Live from New York, it’s Saturday night!” The first cast member to leave the show, he has a long list of post-“SNL” credits.

Initially hired as a writer, he was known on “SNL” for “Weekend Update,” his bumbling President Gerald Ford and his feuds with cast members. Bill Murray replaced Chase in the middle of season two.

In his post-“SNL” years, there were two “Fletch” movies. There was “Caddyshack,” “The Three Amigos!” and five “Vacation” movies, though his appearance in the 2015 one was a cameo.

Now 80, Chase has taken in recent years to hosting screenings with audience Q&As for the enduring "Christmas Vacation.”

She left “SNL” in 1980 after portraying Connie Conehead, Valley Girl stewardess Sherry and ditzy public access TV co-host Christie Christina.

Newman, 72, has spoken openly about her struggles with depression and drug addiction during that time. She got sober in 1987.

Steady film, TV and voice work followed. She was the antagonist in the 1991 comedy “Problem Child 2,” appeared in 1993’s “Coneheads” as Connie’s Aunt Laarta and performed in episodes of “Friends” and “3rd Rock from the Sun.” She lent her voice to several animated hit films, including “Wall-E,” “Up,” “Toy Story 3″ and “Tangled.”

In 2017, with the rest of “SNL’s” original cast, she was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.

When he wasn’t bleeding out as Julia Child or declaring, “Jane, you ignorant slut!” on “Weekend Update,” Aykroyd swagged with Steve Martin as one of two wild and crazy guys, and led the Conehead family as patriarch Beldar.

He lent so much more to “SNL” before leaving in 1979, including his half of The Blues Brothers and impersonations of talk show host Tom Snyder, Rod Serling and two presidents: Nixon and Carter.

With Belushi, his close friend, and backed by legit players, the bluesy and soulful brothers caught on as a band. They played gigs and released a multimillion-selling album, “Briefcase Full of Blues.”

His post-“SNL” work took him even higher. Hit after hit followed “The Blues Brothers”: “Neighbors” in 1981, “Trading Places” in 1983 and 1984's “Ghostbusters.” Aykroyd earned a supporting actor Oscar nomination for 1989’s “Driving Miss Daisy.”

With Hard Rock Cafe co-founder Isaac Tigrett, Aykroyd co-founded House of Blues, a chain of live music halls and restaurants.

Curtin left “SNL,” in 1980, after five seasons. She was a master of deadpan, often playing the straight woman off such outsized performers as Belushi and Radner. A regular on “Weekend Update,” she was also known for the Coneheads sketches as matriarch Prymaat and as Enid Loopner with fellow nerds Radner and Murray.

Curtin, 76, has spoken about being bothered by the drug-fueled lifestyles of some of her castmates. She won two Emmys for her 1980s sitcom “Kate & Allie.” She later starred as Dr. Mary Albright in the hit series “3rd Rock from the Sun.”

Initially hired as a writer, he was the oldest on “SNL’s” first cast at 37. He came to the show after 17 years as a singer and arranger with Harry Belafonte, as a stage actor, as a playwright and as a civil rights activist who helped desegregate Actor’s Equity.

He remained on “SNL” until 1980. He was known for his character Chico Escuela, the Dominican baseball player whose catchphrase, “Baseball has been berry, berry good to me,” caught on in pop culture. He also performed as the shouting interpreter in the “News for the Hard of Hearing” segments and did impersonations of James Brown, Sammy Davis, Jr., Bob Marley and Muhammad Ali.

In 1994, Morris was shot and seriously wounded in an attempted holdup in Los Angeles.

In the ’80s, Morris appeared in a string of horror films. Later, he was a regular on the series “2 Broke Girls” and performed on TV comedies “Martin,” “The Jamie Foxx Show” and “The Wayans Brothers.”

FILE - Civil Rights activist and politician Julian Bond, left, appears with "Saturday Night Live" cast member Garrett Morris during a rehearsal for the sketch comedy series on April 7, 1977, in New York. (AP Photo/Dave Pickoff, File)

FILE - Dan Aykroyd poses for a photo in Los Angeles on Dec. 4, 2010. (AP Photo/Sarah Hummert, File)

FILE - Emmy winners, from left, Jane Curtin, John Ritter, and Tyne Daly pose backstage at the Emmy Awards presentation at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, Ca., Sept. 23, 1984. Curtin won for best actress in a comedy series for "Kate and Allie"; Ritter was named outstanding actor in a comedy series for his role in "Three's Company"; and Daly won for best actress in a dramatic series for "Cagney and Lacey." (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Laraine Newman arrives at the premiere "Live from New York!" in Los Angeles on June 10, 2015. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Dan Aykroyd poses for a portrait in West Hollywood, Calif., Tuesday, May 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

FILE - Dan Aykroyd attends the world premiere of "Get On Up" in New York on July 21, 2014. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Actor Garrett Morris attends a ceremony honoring him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Actor Chevy Chase, center, sits on the front row during the second half of an NBA basketball game between the Atlanta Hawks and Dallas Mavericks in Dallas on April 4, 2024. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)

FILE - Chevy Chase gets his ear licked from co-star Benji the dog, during a news conference in Los Angeles announcing their movie "Oh Heavenly Dog" on Sept. 6, 1979. (AP Photo/Nick Ut, file)

FILE - Steve Martin, from left, Chevy Chase, and Martin Short appear at the premiere of their film "Three Amigos!" in New York on Dec. 9, 1986. (AP Photo/Frankie Ziths, File)

FILE - Chevy Chase, a cast member on "Saturday Night Live," holds his Emmy Award as he watches a monitor showing producer Lorne Michaels accepting another Emmy for the show, while writers Alan Zweibel, left, and Tom Davis, right, look on, during the 28th Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles on May 17, 1976. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)

FILE - Actor John Belushi appears at the opening night party for "Animal House" at the Village Gate in New York on July 27, 1978. Belushi died March 5, 1982, at 33 after overdosing at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - The coffin for actor John Belushi is carried out of the Congregational Church by pallbearers Dan Aykroyd, left, and Belushi's brother Jim Belushi, right, following funeral services in West Tinsbury, Mass., on March 9, 1982. Belushi died March 5, at 33 after overdosing at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Dave Tenenbaum, File)

FILE - Castmember Gilda Radner appears on the set of "Saturday Night Live," in New York on Dec. 1, 1977. Radner died May 20, 1989, at age 42 after a long battle with ovarian cancer. (AP Photo/Ron Frehm, File)

FILE - Actor Burt Reynolds, second right, appears on the set with cast members of NBC's "Saturday Night Live," from left, Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman, Gilda Radner, and Bill Murray, right, in New York, April 12, 1980. (AP Photo/Suzanne Vlamis, File)

FILE - Comedian Chevy Chase, second from left, joins the cast of NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Laraine Newman, from right, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray and Jane Curtain, left, on Feb. 16, 1978 in New York. (AP Photo/Marty Lederhandler, File)

FILE - White House Press Secretary Ron Nessen, left, appears on the "Saturday Night Live" set with producer Lorne Michaels, right, and cast members Chevy Chase, foreground center, Laraine Newman, background left, Dan Aykroyd, background right, Jane Curtain, second row from left, Gilda Radner, John Belushi and Garret Morris, partially obscured, on April 17, 1976, in New York. (AP Photo)

SAO PAULO (AP) — Neymar's justification for missing a semifinal with Santos was criticized because he was seen at Carnival last week.

Santos lost to archrival Corinthians 2-1 on Sunday in the semifinals of the Sao Paulo state championship, and Neymar sat on the bench for all 90 minutes. On Monday, he said he had a minor injury without elaborating.

Days earlier, the striker was photographed at Rio de Janeiro's Sambadrome, the venue for the glitzy Carnival parade.

Neymar, who rejoined his boyhood club Santos in January, attended the Carnival parade only hours after being substituted in the second half of another Sao Paulo state championship match on March 2 because of an apparent left thigh injury.

He recently recovered from an ACL tear that sidelined him for more than one year.

Santos did not reveal Neymar had any injuries before Sunday's semifinal.

“All I wanted was to be on the pitch and help my teammates in some way,” Neymar said on Instagram. “But last Thursday I felt a discomfort that prevented me from being on the pitch. We took a test this morning and I ended up feeling it again.”

Santos coach Pedro Caixinha said he asked Neymar to stay on the bench despite the injury.

“It was just a discomfort, but it meant he couldn’t participate. It was my request and he agreed to be with the squad,” Caixinha said in a news conference after his team’s elimination. “He’s a different player, he is enlightened and has fantastic energy. Neymar suffered a lot for not being able to participate in the game.”

Still, many pundits accused Neymar of not focusing on his career, which he is trying to revive at the Brazilian club following spells at Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Al-Hilal.

“He chose Carnival over the semifinal,” popular pundit Walter Casagrande Jr. said on his social media channels. “Neymar's behavior of the last five, six years has come back. He switches the professional side for pleasure and fun.”

Santos president Marcelo Texeira told local media that Neymar was examined several times from Friday to Sunday and all of them showed he was unfit to play against Corinthians.

“It is a precaution, we understood we shouldn't (play him)," Teixeira said. "It is not about the national team, it is because he had not conditions (to play). He is in a process of recovery. We need to understand that.”

Spanish newspaper Marca described the Brazilian player’s week as “Neymar’s saddest Carnival after being tossed by Barcelona; on the bench and knocked out.”

Later, amid the heavy criticism against its star player, Santos published a video of a tearful Neymar talking to his teammates in the dressing room before the semifinal.

“It is very hard to be out in moments like this. I am trying to control myself in every way, not show the sadness I am feeling,” the striker said. “If you can, run for me. I wish I could be with you, running for each of you. You don’t know how desperate I am in my heart.”

The 33-year-old striker has three goals and three assists in seven matches for Santos since his return. Those stats convinced Brazil coach Dorival Jr. to recall him for World Cup qualifiers this month against Colombia and Argentina.

Neymar's next match for Santos is likely on March 29, after the international window, in the opening round of the Brazilian league against Vasco da Gama. Santos was promoted to the country's top league after its 2023 relegation.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

FILE - Brazilian soccer player Neymar gives a news conference in Santos, Brazil, Jan. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Andre Penner, File)