Adam Sandler's "50 Years of SNL" Song Honors Five Iconic Cast Members Who Died
The former cast member performed a tribute that was both funny and emotional on SNL50: The Anniversary Special.
February 16's SNL50: The Anniversary Special was an emotional night for members of the Saturday Night Live family — including former cast member Adam Sandler.
The Happy Gilmore 2 star first joined SNL as a writer in 1990, and was a cast member from 1991 to 1995. During his SNL tenure, Sandler was known for his celebrity impressions and original songs like the classic holiday odes "The Thanksgiving Song" and "Hanukkah Song."
So it was only fitting for Sandler to return to the Studio 8H stage to perform a new original number, "50 Years." The touching tribute to five decades of the show was written with Dan Bulla, who joined SNL's writing staff 2019 and became a writing supervisor on the show in 2024. Bulla has also worked with Sandler on a number of projects, including the comic's stand-up specials 100% Fresh and Love You.
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The song's lyrics paid tribute to creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels, influential writers like Jim Downey, and longtime crew members such as the music department's Speedy Rosenthal and "Cue Card Wally" Feresten. It also honored former cast — including five late cast members who were there in spirit: Chris Farley, Phil Hartman, Jan Hooks, Gilda Radner, and Norm Macdonald.
Adam Sandler's SNL50 song honored the late Chris Farley, Jan Hooks and more
After an introduction from Hollywood legend Jack Nicholson, Sandler stood solo onstage with his guitar, singing about situations the SNL cast and crew are all too familiar with — from sketches not being picked and Tuesday "late-night pizza" to young comedians getting hired from "standup, Groundlings, and Second City."
"50 years of cast members saying, 'I think our cast is the greatest of all time,' but we all know that the first cast was the best," he sang of the Not Ready for Prime Time Players.
"And because of them we got four years of Eddie Murphy, eight years of Will Forte, five years of Jan Hooks and Gilda [Radner]," continued Sandler, as he began listing off the names of SNL cast members and the number of years they were on.
"Six of Victoria [Jackson], 11 of [Michael] Che, three years of Melanie Hutsell, Michael McKean crushed it in two," he sang. "One of Billy Crystal's, six of Dennis Miller, eight of [Phil] Hartman, 'The Glue.'"
Sandler shouted out other former cast including Rachel Dratch, Kristen Wiig, Colin Quinn, and Fred Armisen. In addition to citing Hooks, Radner, and Hartman (a versatile performer whose nickname was indeed "the Glue"), he closed out his list by honoring two other late SNL cast members: “Six years of our boy, [Chris] Farley, five of our buddy, Norm [Macdonald]" — pausing for a brief moment to hold back tears, as clips of the beloved comics played on the screen behind him.
Bulla posted an Instagram photo of Sandler's "50 Years" performance. "This man gave me my whole career, brought me to the show in the first place, and then let me be part of this unbelievable moment. There is nobody like the Sandman," he wrote in his caption.
Grab the tissues and watch Sandler's touching tribute from SNL50: The Anniversary Special in the video above.
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When was Adam Sandler on SNL?
Adam Sandler joined SNL as a writer in 1990. He was a cast member from 1991 to 1995.
Adam Sandler's "50 Years" lyrics (written with Dan Bulla)
Everyone in this room has something in common
All of our lives were changed by this show
Everyone in this room has something else in common
None of us were allowed to use the little bathroom in Lorne's office
50 years, 50 years
Saturday Night Live's been on for 50 years
50 years of your sketch killing at read-through
Then finding out they didn't pick it
Because the host didn't want to take off his shirt
50 years of Tuesday late-night pizza
35 years of Pepto Bismol from Nurse Theresa
50 years of the cast looking straight at the cue cards
And 30 years of drunk Wally
Holding the cue cards upside down
Atta baby, Wally!
50 years of writers seeing Spielberg at Lorne's monitors
Not laughing at one of their sketches
That he obviously hated
50 years of those same writers then getting wasted at the after party
And loudly telling everybody that Jaws was overrated
50 years of prank calling some New York magazine critic
50 years of finding out your favorite musician's anti-Semitic
50 years of asking an intern
To pick up your laundry at 2:30 a.m.
Not realizing that the intern was Martin Scorsese's kid
Or Nora Ephron's kid or Randy Newman's kid
Or whoever Lorne had dinner with on Wednesday night's kid
50 years of cast members saying "I'm not getting on enough"
Their spirits are broken
And their hearts are full of malice
50 years of them storming off
To tell Lorne how they really feel
Then chickening out and saying, "Hey, Lorne I knitted this scarf for Alice"
50 years of waking up Sunday afternoon depressed
50 years of Downey not writing the cold open
Until five minutes before dress
And 50 years of wondering who's going to take over
The show when Lorne retires
But everyone knows that the answer is, of course, Speedy
Thatababy, Speedy!
50 years of young comedians getting hired for the show
From standup, Groundlings, Second City and all the rest
50 years of cast members saying "I think our cast is the greatest of all time"
But we all know that the first cast was the best
And because of them
We got four years of Eddie Murphy
Eight years of Will Forte
Five years of Jan Hooks and Gilda
Six of Victoria, 11 of Che
Three years of Melanie Hutsell
Michael McKean crushed it in two
One of Billy Crystal's, six of Dennis Miller
Eight of Hartman, The Glue
Seven years of Dratch and Wiig
Five years of Oteri and Quinn
Four of Kazurinsky and Cleghorne
11 of Armisen
14 years of Davis and Andy
Schiller and Smigel, 25
18 of Audrey Dickman and Davey Wilson
Plus Eamon and Dicso and Bobby Van Ry
30 years of Downey
45 years of Lorne
Six years of our boy Farley
Five of our buddy Norm
50 years of one of us getting to say, "Live from New York It's Saturday Night"
50 years of standing on home base
Waving good night and goodbye
50 years of the best times of our lives!
