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Live from New York, its Saturday Night! The complete history, on stage and behind the scenes On October 11, 1975 at 1130 p.m., NBC viewers who tuned in to the networks new late night show saw a sketch featuring John Belushi repeating, in a thick foreign accent, nonsensical phrases about wolverines being read to him by head writer Michael ODonohue. Abruptly, ODonohue clutched his heart and collapsed onto the floor. Belushi paused, raised his eyebrow, and then did the same. Posing as the stage manager, Chevy Chase entered the set and feigned confusion before breaking character and announcing to the camera Live from New York, its Saturday Night! In that instant, television, which had long been out of touch with the young and hip, experienced the first seismic tremors of a major paradigm shift.