Mike Walker in the National Enquirer gets a lot of insider entertainment scoops. He was the first to report that a Wall St. sequel was in the works, for example. So this story could be true or it could be wishful thinking. Either way, it could work out well for Saturday Night Live. The lovely and talented Tina Fey is supposedly being courted to take over for SNL head Lorne Michaels whenever it is that Michaels retires. They would be incredibly lucky to have her:
NBC bigs are wooing “Rock” star/creator/Bossypants Tina Fey, former “Saturday Night Live” head writer, to take over the whole “SNL” shebang whenever exec producer Lorne Michaels, 66, retires from the show he created in 1975. (Let’s stand up and shout, America, “Yay!”) Said an NBC source: “The execs feel no one’s better qualified to take over the reins than Tina. Having her onboard guarantees the show’s success after Lorne leaves.” Insiders say Tina, who’s pregnant with her second child, loves the idea of helming “SNL” – and because the show takes many breaks throughout the season, it fits her mommy schedule perfectly.
[From The National Enquirer, print edition, Mike Walker’s column, May 2, 2011]
SNL sucks lately. The few times I’ve watched it recently I’ve wondered why the jokes didn’t have proper punchlines and why the skits went on about twice as long as they should have. (There have been some funny bits where they rip on celebrities, but they’re few and far between.) Of course Tina would do a great job at making the show both entertaining and topical again. She won a lot of Emmys for her work on the show and she brought it to new heights in the early 2000s. She may have too many other things going on to consider it, though.
We recently heard Alec Baldwin say that next year would be the last one for 30 Rock, because the contracts were ending. Kaiser thinks Alec was just trying to negotiate for a better contract. She also told me that last night was the 100th episode of 30 Rock and that it was really good. You know, I’d rather see Tina branch off into her other endeavors than come back and save SNL. I feel like that show has run itself into the ground and doesn’t deserve saving. It needs to fade out when Michaels leaves.
Tina is shown on 4/11/11. Credit: Fame. Lorne Michaels is shown on 2/28/11. Credit: WENN.com
I think that would be awesome.
I want those shoes!!
Pregnancy looks really good on her.
I can’t believe that NBC would attempt to line up a successor so early, when Michaels hasn’t announced any plans at all to retire. The guy has no desire to do anything in life except produce that show. It is his baby, and there’s no reason to think he’s going anywhere any time soon. By lining up the next guy this early on NBC is setting themselves up for exactly the same kind of debacle they had with Letterman and Leno, and then Conan O’Brien and Leno. Those execs could seriously not have their heads any further up their asses. They seriously do not learn from their past mistakes AT ALL.
@tripmom he is in his sixties and Tina is a class act and good friends with Lorne. It may very well be that he’s now looking down the road 5 to 10 years and may feel ready to let the work he’s been doing since 1975 (with the exception of that forgetable season) go.
Based on the quotes though, this sounds like it’s coming from execs, not Lorne. And Johnny Carson clearly wanted Letterman as his successor, but the NBC execs ignored it and named Leno anyway. So if Michaels wants to line up Tina Fey to take over, it’s certainly not a sure thing for her, either.
The 100th of 30 Rock was so good!!!
I think she’d be great for SNL someday, but I also think she can pretty much do whatever she wants at this point, so it will be up to her if she wants that job.
i think tina fey is too smart to go back to SNL, which hasn’t been funny in years. i think i need to start watching 30 rock, as everyone says it is fab.
I haven’t watched SNL in eons, but this sounds like a great idea. I’m most of the way through Bossypants, and it’s hilarious. Tina is fantastic, and yes, she does pregnancy really well. I love this dress, especially the neckline/shoulder bit.
Why would anyone want to climb down the ladder of success?
UGH! That would be the worst! She is NOT funny. I hated SNL when she was writing for it as did everyone else i know. Esp when she did the news portion of SNL – terrible!
READ BOSSYPANTS!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am Tina Fey’s shill. Period. Love her.
@Kim:
Are you saying you think SNL has been funny at any point since the early 90s?
30 Rock is 100 times funnier than SNL has ever been.
I have to agree with you Kim – I don’t believe she’s as funny as she thinks Come on – mocking Sarah Palin – those jokes write themselves. She’s not a political satirist for the obvious reason, and she’s too far up the hollywood celeb butthole to write humor on a broad scale that could appeal to a wide range of people. Just my opinion.
SHE LOOKS FANTASTIC!!!! Love the bump and that shaggy cut!!!
She looks great. I am totally envious. When I was preggy, my doctor told me that I could not wear heels. Grrrr…..
And Tina should totally take Lorne’s job. Heck somebody has to!
I just started watching 30 Rock on Netflix and it is GREAT. IMO, Tina is too good for SNL. She’s been there, done that. I think she’ll move on to movies.
Yes please! Anything Tina Fey touches, in my opinion, is gold. She could write a sitcom starring Charlie Sheen and Lindsey Lohan, and I would watch it happily.
She pairs goofy humor with quick wit and intelligence like no one else can. I think she has the capability of making SNL as funny as it was back in the days of Chris Farley and Will Ferrel.
This makes perfect sense. NBC is a sink hole of…..creativity or business ethics. 30 Rock and SLN are its ONLY redeeming features, so it makes good sense that they would preserve, and elevate, those properties as best they can….which means paying Tiny Fey whatever she wants and throwing all the comedic responsibility on her capable shoulders. I love her, and have always supported SNL — through thick and thin. BUT MAKE NO MISTAKE: NBC SUCKS.