Laraine [Newman]<\/strong> went on the stage there, I was curious as to why I didn\u2019t. No one asked me to. Why was I left aside?\u201d<\/p>\nChase \u2014 who famously served as the show\u2019s first-ever \u201cWeekend Update\u201d anchor \u2014 also questioned his absence during one of the night\u2019s most iconic segments. \u201cWhy was Bill Murray there and why was I not?\u201d he asked. \u201cI don\u2019t have an answer for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Chase, he briefly raised the issue with SNL creator Lorne Michaels<\/strong> before second-guessing himself. \u201cI did bring it up once in a text to Lorne and then took it back,\u201d he explained. \u201cI said, \u2018Okay, I take it back, silly.\u2019 But it\u2019s not that silly. Somebody\u2019s made a bad mistake there. I don\u2019t know who it was, but somebody made a mistake. They should\u2019ve had me on that stage. It hurt.\u201d<\/p>\nThe documentary also suggests that Chase\u2019s involvement may have been in flux until the very last minute. His wife, Jayni Chase<\/strong>, recalled being told that he was going to be part of multiple planned segments.<\/p>\n\u201cPeople told Chevy up until that day that there were two bits, they were going back and forth,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd then, all of the sudden, \u2018No, there\u2019s no bit.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Michaels addressed the situation as well, explaining that several versions of \u201cWeekend Update\u201d were considered. \u201cThere were a couple versions of [\u2018Weekend Update\u2019] and we went back and forth on that,\u201d he said, adding that there was \u201ca caution from somebody that I don\u2019t want to name that Chevy, you know, wasn\u2019t as focused.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Martin Short<\/strong> noted that even longtime SNL favorites like Billy Crystal didn\u2019t receive speaking roles. After \u201c50 years of casts,\u201d he explained, there were simply \u201ctoo many people to fill.\u201d<\/p>\nChase starred on SNL from its 1975 debut through the middle of season two in 1976, quickly becoming one of the show\u2019s breakout stars. The new CNN Films documentary traces his \u201crise from breakout Saturday Night Live phenomenon to box-office royalty and his equally spectacular fall from grace.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n