‘Saturday Night Live’'s Dana Carvey Talks About the “Explosive” Genius of Chris Farley, Living in Lorne Michaels’ Guest Room, and His Terrifying ...

Dana Carvey’s time on Saturday Night Live lasted from 1986 to 1993. His run feels memorable not just because he created a head-spinning number of standout characters—from “Wayne’s World” foil Garth Algar to the Church Lady to George Bush Sr.—but also because he bridged two beloved eras of the show, working alongside legends like Phil Hartman and Jan Hooks and then with a squad of younger players that included the likes of Adam Sandler and Chris Rock. His post-SNL credits include The Dana Carvey Show (a short-lived but cult-beloved variety series whose writers' room featured Steven Colbert, Steve Carrell, and Charlie Kaufman); last year, he began appearing regularly on SNL again for the first time since the ‘90s, playing characters like Joe Biden and Elon Musk.

In this interview, conducted during the reporting for the GQ feature “Saturday Night Forever,” Carvey talks about living with Lorne Michaels after his audition and his most “powerful” Chris Farley memory—and couldn’t help pulling out a few of his classic impressions in the process.

Who was your favorite cast member when you first started watching the show?

When I first started? Well, that would mean in the seventies. I kind of related to Dan Aykroyd because he was doing Jimmy Carter on SNL. I had some type of tape recorder, so I would record him. I was in college and starting to try to do stand-up basically. So I tried to learn Jimmy Carter by taping Danny Aykroyd, and I just liked all the different characters that he did. And then he was in Lorne Michaels’ office spontaneously maybe in 1988 or ‘89 after I got on the show. And he said he really liked my George Bush Sr. I go, Wow, we've come full circle. I loved your Jimmy Carter and you love my George Bush Sr.

Also love Roseanne Roseannadana. I also loved Eddie Murphy on the show too, but that was after that.

Which era do you think had the all time greatest cast and why?

The era I was in, because—no…

It’s okay. You can say that.

No— I would only say what everyone else would say. The first cast. They were just rock stars and badass pirates. When I got the show, I didn't really feel I belonged. I'd seen Martin Short [do the show] for one season, but I just felt like—they [the original SNL cast] were all over six feet tall. Belushi obviously could beat you up or hit you. Bill Murray. And Chevy was six four. I just felt like they could make you laugh or beat you up. So when I came in with Phil Hartman, God rest his soul, and Jan Hooks and everybody, I didn't really have any sense of thinking we could do anything like that. I pretty much thought the plug would be pulled on the show when I was on it.

I mean, I so love the Will Ferrell era and Amy [Poehler] and Kristen Wiig and all that. We asked Kenan Thompson on our podcast about who he thought the best [cast member] was, and he says it’s just all the women.

But from ‘90 to ‘93, we still had Phil Hartman and Mike Myers and that era. And then we added in [what] we used to call the junior varsity—Chris Rock, Adam Sandler, Chris Farley, David Spade, Tim Meadows, Ellen Cleghorne. And so I felt like for a period of time there, the show could do “Sprockets” or “Hans and Franz” or Jack Handey or “Toonces the Driving Cat,” or Farley would do something where he flies across the room or Sandler would sing a song. I felt like the show had an inordinate amount of firepower, if it's a military analogy. So I look at that, and I was just part of that. But it did feel like, when those guys were coming into their own and we still had the other team who'd been there a while, it was pretty magic to be there.

Okay. If you had to name the single funniest cast member who’s been on the show…

The funniest? And that's on the show, not backstage.

Yeah, on the show.

Let me just think for a minute. That's like, then you make like 200 people mad, right?

It's only like 150 people.

That kind of opinion just changes all the time. I think that Farley was the most uniquely explosive. It wasn't like he had an eight year run with tons of multiple characters, but Farley doing “In a van down by the river…” was the most explosively funny thing. You would never want your sketch to come on after that. Full Farley in the moment was an unstoppable force physically, verbally. Pulling up his pants. When Chris was in that sketch, I thought, This is one of the funniest and most powerful things ever done in 8H.

What was your favorite sketch that you were in?

My favorite, for me personally, was when I was doing Johnny Carson with Phil Hartman as Ed McMahon. And the reason it's my favorite is because I truly love the character that I was able to create out of Johnny Carson. I did not care if the audience laughed. I wanted them to laugh. But I knew that Johnny in that moment, and then being with Phil as the release button as Ed McMahon—it was just a favorite. And I run into people who are heroes of mine or I admire so much, like Martin Short—that's his favorite thing maybe ever on the show. I have a bunch that I did really, really like, but that was probably my favorite. It also is Phil, I'd be sentimental about that, but working with Phil was always so much fun.

What about the best sketch that you worked on that didn’t make it to air?

Usually they were cut for a reason. I felt like they just didn't work well enough to be on air. But there were probably some esoteric ones, some Jack Handey ones or things like that that were like a “comedian's comedian” kind of comedy, that were cut.

What do you remember about your audition, and how did you celebrate once you were cast?

It was a process. In the eighties I was doing standup, and I was doing these goofy TV shows, and I was starting to do sketch or characters as a standup, and it was very difficult for me. But I auditioned three times, usually at cattle calls. And then when it came around again in ‘86, they were looking for new cast members. And my manager knew Lorne Michaels. Lorne was in town, so Lorne was going to come see me, and I knew I wouldn't want to do it at the Comedy Store or The Improv.

So there was a little club on the West Side where Rosie O'Donnell was headlining, and I knew the owner—a hundred seater called Igby’s. I said, “Can I come in there and do a little set for Lorne Michaels?” And they asked Rosie and Rosie's like, “Sure.” I'd never met her. But she was super confident. I said, well, I'll just go on first. But Lorne Michaels came in right as I was about to go up, standing next to the little stage. And then the head of the network, Brandon Tartikoff [came in], and then Cher. Then I went up.

But then I had to audition again in the studio out in Burbank with Phil, with Jim Carrey. And I thought it hadn't gone well. I think Lorne kind of sometimes tests you. “Have you got anything else?” Tests your nerves. I found out that I got the show and then Lorne said, Come to Long Island. So then I lived with Lorne for a month out on Long Island.

No way.

So I was just living in Lorne’s house and he said, “You can have Jack's room.” That's where Jack Nicholson would normally stay. And then Paul McCartney came over every night for a week with Linda, and that's a whole other thing. It'll be in my book. But the short answer is it happened in slow motion. And then by the time I got it, I mostly felt fear. Like, “Oh shit, now I have to go do it. And not hopefully destroy the show.” The show was in a bad place. I was told if we don't hit the ground running, they'll pull the plug at Christmas. So I was mostly just fearful and nervous.

What’s your best story about a guest host?

There was an attitude early on about William Shatner that was so loose and fun and it was just really a thrill. I'd only been on the show a few episodes and we did a Star Trek parody and I got to play Ricardo Montalban in the movie The Wrath of Khan. So I had a chest plate and the accent, and I'm doing it to William Shatner. And then he was so loose throughout the whole process. He was just having fun. I go, “You're so relaxed!” He goes, “Well, how else can you take this? There's no rehearsal. I mean, we are not ready to go on. I mean, how would you take this so seriously?”

So he stood out early on. And Robert Mitchum, Charlton Heston—things like that were very, very sort of surreal. But I would just say William Shatner because it was early on and it was just really fun to be out there with Captain Kirk.

The culture is constantly changing, and what people find funny is constantly evolving—why do you think SNL has managed to last as an institution for 50 years?

I think you seriously have to put it on the shoulders of Lorne Michaels, because he was the guy who hatched the idea and got all those people and then he never bent. I mean, there were many times there was talk of, “The show should be taped. It should be on at 10. It should be an hour [long]. They should change the theme. And even the goodnight music”— which I find kind of melancholy.

I talked to Lorne about this recently, and I thought if there was a compelling secret to it, it’s that it is a reality show in two forms. One is you're getting people that are complete unknowns coming from the clubs or The Groundlings, and then you're watching them in real time try to do live sketch comedy in New York in this institution, Saturday Night Live. And the other thing is, once in a while you'll have a football player be the host or movie star or someone who's never done sketch comedy. So there's a compelling aspect to SNL. But even if the show's not working, you get to see a show not work. They're bombing, and you get to watch that.

So Lorne kept all these things in place. It's extraordinary. You can't wrap your mind around this show. Now it's 50 years in. I don't even know what to think about it, but Lorne’s at the parties, he's nocturnal, he stays, he talks. Where's Waldo? There’s Lorne, and he's sitting there in his office on the couch and he has his popcorn. It's unsalted and he'll just slowly, casually produce the show. [Lorne Michaels voice] “Wayne’s World Top 10 might be nice. Maybe we'll do a Biden.”

He's such a character. You'd have to write a novel about it. [Lorne Michaels voice] “You buy your suits in London. In the winter, you go ski Buttermilk in Aspen. You go to St. Bart's in maybe February and you always go to Wimbledon.” He's just had a really interesting life and he's still there, still passionate about it. You can see that he really wants his show to be good every week.

Well, thanks for taking the time.

No, it was very enjoyable. [George Bush Sr. voice] Now shrink it down. Want to keep it down. Basic. I'm sorry. I'm doing George Bush Sr. [George Bush Sr. voice] Don't go too long. Got to get a lot of people. Got to squeeze them in there. Get their questions, keep it basic. Listen back to the tape. Edit. But bring the core…sorry.

I’m just going to think of that when I have to edit a piece now.

I use it for myself to calm down. I just make lists. [George Bush Sr. voice] GQ, been around. Gentleman's Magazine, nice. SNL, 50 years, kind of comprehensive.

SNL50: The Anniversary Special airs at 8:00 PMET/5:00 PMPT on Sunday, Feb. 16 on NBC and Peacock.