‘Saturday Night Live’ #TBT: Dana Carvey Reflects on His ‘SNL’ Days

Over seven seasons on Saturday Night Live, Dana Carvey became an indispensable cast member for his wacky impressions and colorful and unique characters. This year marks the 30th anniversary of Carvey’s tenure on the late night sketch show, and the comedian sat down with Yahoo TV to reflect on his time there.

“I’d never done sketch comedy in my life,” he reveals. “And SNL, I was suddenly one of the main guys.”

Carvey reminisced about his first sketch, which featured Jan Hooks and Phil Hartman, about a game show psychic. Carvey knew all the answers before the questions were even asked.

He created many memorable characters for SNL, maybe most famously the Church Lady. She was born out of his standup routine, and he transferred that character successfully to SNL. “That character made my first two, three years on the show a lot easier.”


Watch our interview above for more of Carvey’s reflections on his SNL days, plus glimpses at his hilarious sketches, from George H.W. Bush to George Michael.


Saturday Night Live returns for its 42nd season this fall.