On a recent Thursday morning, the eighth floor of 30 Rock—the home of Saturday Night Live—was buzzing. Writers scrambled to create a Weekend Update about James Comey’s firing earlier that week. The costume department picked out the red tie for host Melissa McCarthy to wear as Sean Spicer. Stagehands blasted the music of guest artist Haim to ensure the acoustics of the room were just right. Amid the chaos, everyone stopped to greet set-designer Eugene Lee--the 78 year old had never heard of Haim--who stood calmly in boat shoes and a worn-out Broadway Video sweatshirt.
Lee had reason to be calm. As one of Lorne Michaels' original recruits, it wasn't his first time at the rodeo, and he seemed in little rush to start working on the boat he has to build by Saturday. (Ironically, he was on a sailboat in Rhode Island, where he still lives Sunday to Wednesday, when he was asked to do the show.)
So he took the time to give FORBES a tour of the famous studio where he’s worked for the past 42 years. "This place has a kind of craziness to it, which is kind of great," he said, as we followed him in.
One of the biggest departures since the early days, Lee says, is that writers expect more realistic sets. He still has a photo of the show's first sketch, “The Wolverines”, starring John Belushi and Michael O’Donoghue, pinned up in his office. "The most important thing never changes,” said Lee. “It happens on time, ready or not.”
Lee's drafting paper features Studio 8H's many stages and seats, which were leftovers of those built for Yankee Stadium in 1973. On Wednesday nights, Lee and his team begin to sketch out sets for the workshop. "When we started there were no cell phones and no fax machines," so a page went to the shop to ensure proper execution.
The main stage's set reflects the state of New York City. Grand Central inspired the current one. "The first was like a club in the Village. At that time, subway cars were graffitied up; Radio City had nothing happening; 42nd street was porn movie theaters—I kind of liked those, actually."
"One thing that's great in a kind of old-fashioned way, is we use cue cards," said Lee. "We could use teleprompters, but no." He likes doing things the old-fashioned way—with hand-painted sets and simple props. "You stick a bass in a blender, switch it on, have a drink, that's as funny today as the day we did it," he said of the 1976 Dan Aykroyd skit.
Michaels, the show's editor and producer, watches each episode from beneath the raised seats. He catches every rehearsal, too, and the rule is that what he says, goes. "No matter good or beautiful we make the set or how much it costs, if Lorne doesn't like it, it gets cut. We drag it out of the studio, and it's heartbreaking."
This season of SNL has been the most-watched in 24 years, in large part thanks to Alec Baldwin’s Trump (a casting advertisers may like even more than viewers). Baldwin’s 30 Rock co-star Tina Fey suggested he play Trump, but even without his imitation, Trump would make for great fodder. “He’s great for us, but ruining democracy,” says Lee.
Playing the president didn't always require so much orange makeup or a fluffy wig (nor did it require as much time for the hairstylists; an SNL wig can take 50 hours to make). "When Chevy played Ford, he didn't put makeup on," remembered Lee. "He would just fall all the time; there has been a movement to make it more realistic."
But while hair, makeup and the sets may have gotten more complex, a few things haven't changed: The show remains a cultural touchstone that, even in today's fragmented market, can regularly garner viewers by the millions. It's also still on late, Lee adds with a sigh. "It's a very funny and wonderful environment, I just get a little tired."
