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Saturday Night: A Backstage History of Saturday Night Live Hardcover – January 1, 1989
Purchase options and add-ons
- Print length510 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherWilliam Morrow & Co
- Publication dateJanuary 1, 1989
- ISBN-100688050999
- ISBN-13978-0688050993
Frequently bought together
![Saturday Night: A Backstage History of Saturday Night Live](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81ytU3yvj2L._AC_UL116_SR116,116_.jpg)
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Product details
- Publisher : William Morrow & Co; First Edition (January 1, 1989)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 510 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0688050999
- ISBN-13 : 978-0688050993
- Item Weight : 1.95 pounds
- Best Sellers Rank: #2,035,661 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #5,912 in Rock Music (Books)
- #15,738 in Actor & Entertainer Biographies
- #21,198 in Performing Arts (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
![Doug Hill](https://cdn.statically.io/img/m.media-amazon.com/images/I/A11tr3h1DJL._SY600_.jpg)
Doug Hill has studied the history and philosophy of technology for more than twenty years, and it is that study that informs "Not So Fast: Thinking Twice About Technology." He blogs at The Question Concerning Technology (http://thequestionconcerningtechnology.blogspot.com/) and can be followed on Twitter @DougHill25 and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NotSoFastBook.
Here are some of the endorsements "Not So Fast" has received:
"It's crucial – even as we sink ever deeper into our mediated world – that we pay attention to the technology engulfing us. This book helps draw the baseline that we're leaving behind, and perhaps will slow down the flight from reality."
– Bill McKibben, activist and author, Enough, The Age of Missing Information and The End of Nature.
"Lively, fast moving, always entertaining, Not So Fast offers a grand overview of the extravagant hopes and dire warnings that accompany the arrival of powerful new technologies. Blending the key ideas of classic and contemporary thinkers, Doug Hill explores the aspirations of those who strive for the heavens of artifice and those who find the whole enterprise a fool's errand. This is the most engaging, readable work on the great debates in technology criticism now available and a solid contribution to that crucial yet unsettling tradition."
- Langdon Winner, author of Autonomous Technology: Technics-out-of-Control as a Theme in Political Thought and The Whale and the Reactor: A Search for Limits in an Age of High Technology
"This book is the most comprehensive, provocative, and entertaining review of technological thought, expression, impact and controversy that I have yet seen. Written in a remarkably straightforward and open style, and seemingly without personal axes to grind, Doug Hill provides details and insight into the evolution of technology over the last millennium, while focusing on the debates, pro and con, that shaped many stages of recent development. The book is more than just a discourse; it's an informal encyclopedia of perspectives, predictions, debates and consequences of our society's technologic evolution; the upsides, and perhaps more-so, the downsides; and is more comprehensive and efficient in these explorations than anything that has preceded it. And yet it is easy reading, personable, and charming. An extraordinary achievement."
– Jerry Mander, Founder and Chair of the International Forum on Globalization and author of Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television; In the Absence of the Sacred; and The Capitalism Papers – Fatal Flaws in an Obsolete System
“Not So Fast is a really fine piece of work. I wish I’d written it. Anyone who might want to reflect on the implications of more than three generations of scholarly criticism of technology should read the book. The same goes for any scholars who have been thinking about technology and who desire to see how their work may have been more publicly appropriated – or, indeed, who may wish to deepen their own understanding of what they have been doing. Doug Hill is a solid independent scholar in the best sense: A Lewis Mumford for our time.”
– Carl Mitcham, author, co-author, or editor of Thinking through Technology: The Path Between Engineering and Philosophy; Bibliography of the Philosophy of Technology; The Encyclopedia of Science, Technology, and Ethics; and Research in Philosophy and Technology
"This is the technology criticism I've been waiting for - aware of the history of technology criticism and the history of changing attitudes toward technology, and at the same time attuned to contemporary developments. Not So Fast is readable, meticulously sourced, and, above all - nuanced. I recommend it for technology critics and enthusiasts alike."
- Howard Rheingold, author of Tools for Thought, The Virtual Community, Smart Mobs and Net Smart
"Doug Hill's Not So Fast has to be one of the five best books on technology I've read over the past decade. Hill has a remarkable command of the technology creators, analysts, and critics, such as Ellul, Heidegger, Kurzweil, Gates, Jobs, Mumford, Borgmann, and McLuhan. He approaches technology from several helpful angles. His prose is clear, convincing, and often droll! Not So Fast must be part of any reflection on our culture and future."
- David W. Gill, Professor of Workplace Theology & Business Ethics, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, President, International Jacques Ellul Society
"Not So Fast addresses the primary questions of the day: how can we construct a coherent story about what is happening to us? And what can we do about it? Anyone interested in the future of the human project will benefit hugely from Doug Hill's lucid performance."
- James Howard Kunstler, author of Too Much Magic, The Long Emergency and The Geography of Nowhere
"Not So Fast reflects, in addition to Doug Hill's consummate skill as a writer, his deep knowledge of the history and the philosophy of technology. His reflections are grounded in that knowledge and at the same time are original and profound. I've worked and traveled in the highest reaches of the tech world for more than twenty years and I still learned much from this book."
- Allen Noren, Vice President, Online, O'Reilly Media
“Technology is a troubling and confusing force in contemporary culture, and it’s good to see Doug Hill discuss it so calmly and clearly. His book is special in avoiding the rigorous and severe arguments of philosophers and other academics and in being both firm in its views but relaxed in its attitude. The reader hears the voice of a very well-informed writer without being bullied with all that knowledge. There's good reason to believe the book will reach an audience that has been neglected and that it will help to advance the public conversation on technology that is so necessary and so lacking.”
– Albert Borgmann, Regents Professor of Philosophy at the University of Montana, author of Crossing the Postmodern Divide, Technology and the Character of Contemporary Life, and Holding on to Reality
"Never have I experienced such a probing, in-depth analysis of the push-and-pull of technology as a driver, determining force, savior or disease of our species."
- Roger Cubicciotti, former chair, Center of Innovation for Nanobiotechnology, North Carolina Biotechnology Center; Visiting Scholar, Department of Physics, Wake Forest University
Hill has led a peripatetic personal and professional life. He was born and raised in Wichita, Kansas, went to high school in Carmel and Burlingame, California, undergraduate school in Oregon and graduate school in New York City. After living for 20 years in Montclair, New Jersey, he now resides in Philadelphia.
Hill spent the first half of his journalism career writing about television for a wide variety of popular and professional publications. He co-authored the book "Saturday Night: A Backstage History of Saturday Night Live," widely praised (Associated Press: "It may be the best book ever written about television") and widely stolen from. Tiring of celebrities and especially celebrity publicists, Hill has since written mainly about health and public policy.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book offers great insight into how the SNL machine ran in its first seasons. They also describe it as a great read, full of amusing, shocking, and interesting backstage view. Opinions are mixed on the writing quality, with some finding it wonderful and readable, while others say it's a little too wordy.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book offers great insight into how the SNL machine ran in its first seasons. They also enjoy the stories and anecdotes, and say it provides good background on SNL. Readers also mention that the book is very detailed and a valuable piece of the cultural landscape.
"...This is not only a terrific SNL history, it is a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at some of the vicious wars that go on in show biz and how..." Read more
"...The book is well researched and full of amusing, shocking, and sometimes unbelievable anecdotes...." Read more
"The content seems unorganized, but it's been interesting...." Read more
"...The author makes it interesting and easy to understand.On another level we get a good long look the founding cast of Saturday Night Live...." Read more
Customers find the book very insightful, compelling, and entertaining. They also say it's a good find and a great read about show business.
"...The book is well researched and full of amusing, shocking, and sometimes unbelievable anecdotes...." Read more
"...Meanwhile, this 'backstage history' is the best of the best, and VERY well written. Don't let any ONE tell you otherwise." Read more
"...This is a great book about show business and the inner workings of network television...." Read more
"...For those reasons, this book was well worth reading." Read more
Customers find the book's content interesting and thorough. They also mention that it provides a backstage view and a thorough view of SNL's start and first years.
"...This is not only a terrific SNL history, it is a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at some of the vicious wars that go on in show biz and how..." Read more
"...The book is a fascinating look at the early history and formation of what is now a taken-for-granted TV staple...." Read more
"Very interesting and thorough view of SNL's start and first years...." Read more
"I loved this book for a few reasons:It was a fascinating look at how one of my favorite shows got its start...." Read more
Customers find the book funny to read.
"...I laughed very hard with this book, recalling the early skits was hilarious!" Read more
"...But maybe some parts could be a little shorter. Funny reading!" Read more
"Great and funny read.." Read more
"For the HARDCORE fan of SNL, subversive comedy, and corporate drama..." Read more
Customers are mixed about the writing quality. Some find the book wonderfully readable, brisk, and easy to understand. They also say the narrative flows easy and quick, making it interesting and easy for them to understand how Saturday Night Live got started. However, some customers feel the book is too wordy, riddled with typos, and unorganized.
"...Despite that, I'm thankful to have read this. It was a quick read and thoroughly insightful." Read more
"...Meanwhile, this 'backstage history' is the best of the best, and VERY well written. Don't let any ONE tell you otherwise." Read more
"The content seems unorganized, but it's been interesting...." Read more
"...The author makes it interesting and easy to understand.On another level we get a good long look the founding cast of Saturday Night Live...." Read more
Reviews with images
![Riddled with typos, but a great in-depth peek at early SNL](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/G/01/x-locale/common/transparent-pixel._V192234675_.gif)
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Top reviews from the United States
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This is not only a terrific SNL history, it is a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at some of the vicious wars that go on in show biz and how sudden fame affects people. (Not well). It's also very much about the generational and culture clash between the counterculture and the "establishment." Lorne Michaels in particular deserves credit for having a vision of what the show could be and for having the stones to fight (and wear down) the censors. Having read about the Letterman/Leno fiasco extensively, this seemed to fit neatly into that genre. Note - this book ends in 1985. So I think there may be other books if you're interested in what transpired since then.
That said, the book suffers from two problems: non-linearity and variety. The book is told in terms of theme or subject, rather than an evolving linear history. Bill Carter's "The War for Late Night" is probably the most riveting example of a narrative interwoven with tangents and asides that build to a cohesive whole. "Saturday Night" suffered from too much doubling back and repetition. Also, if I had to read the phrase "not a few" one more time, as in "Not a few executives hated the show..." It's used roughly a billion times in the book.
Despite that, I'm thankful to have read this. It was a quick read and thoroughly insightful.
2nd best is Tom Shales's book. Tom Davis's(of Franken & Davis) is least effective, sorry but it is. Tom is a good guy but it is too steeped in his personal matters, too loose and not focused. And I guess some people find Al Franken amusing but he just was never, ever ... even when the show begin ... someone I liked or ever rooted for. Al, good luck there in the US Senate but you just alienated millions by trying to show everyone you were too smart and above it all from the get-go. We're all college graduates. We thought you were too ... well ... mugging and snarky. Put that to good use for America, will you?
Meanwhile, this 'backstage history' is the best of the best, and VERY well written. Don't let any ONE tell you otherwise.
On another level we get a good long look the founding cast of Saturday Night Live. I, like many Americans tend to idealize celebrities. We forget that in many cases, especially in the entertainment business these people are often self centered, egotistical, selfish, petty and mean. Add in a super dose of drugs to this mix and you have the original Saturday Night Live cast. The author names names, but always allows the accused a say in his/her own defense.
One of the many interesting things about the book is the detail it gives to the extensive drug use among the cast and writers of Saturday Night Live. I couldn’t help but wonder why, with all the drug use going on in the Saturday Night offices in NY, no arrests were ever made. Plenty of kids all over America have been booked for infinitesimal amounts of marijuana, but these great maharajas of TV seemed untouchable. Who paid off whom?
Ample time is given to some of the more famous skits done on Saturday Night Live, that the reader will remember with a smile or a chuckle. The book traces the rise and sometimes fall of the principal cast members, as well as those who came on board later.
Being the nation of TV watchers that we are, this is an important book for all of us because it brings us beyond the TV screen to the reality. It might make us a little more critical of how we evaluate the TV shows we like, and the people who put them in our homes.
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Full of things you didn't know, no matter how much you thought you knew.
A history of the first 10 of the astounding 40 years the show has been on American television.
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