Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks appeared before the cameras on Saturday Night Live’s fourth episode for its 42nd season. The sixty-year-old actor intervened on almost every sketch and delivered a monolog concerning the upcoming November election.
Tom Hanks’ appearance on this SNL episode marks its ninth participation on the show. His first SNL hosting took place on December 14, 1985. He is also famous for introducing the Five-Timers Club for the first time on December 8, 1990.
Saturday Night Live is an American late-night sketch comedy show created by Lorne Michaels. It has been on the air since 1975. It features a celebrity host every Saturday and its cast includes Kenan Thompson, Alec Baldwin, and Amy Poehler.
The episode featured Lady Gaga as a musical guest and Alec Baldwin’s Donald Trump impersonation, which garnered it the biggest audience so far in the 42nd season and largest audience overall in eight years.
Tom Hanks SNL monologue
Hanks then introduced himself again on the main stage, recalling that this is his ninth appearance, and proceeded to recount how Esquire magazine recently named him ‘America’s Dad,’ and followed with a dad-like monolog to the nation.
He talked about the very important changes the US has been through, including a mention of immigration, gay rights, the Great Depression, and the moon landing. He defended the notion that no matter the results of the upcoming election, the country would do just fine.
Tom Hanks SNL jeopardy sketch
Hank’s second highlighted appearance came from his performance as a Trump supporter on the fictional ‘Black Jeopardy’ show. The idea was to portray the conventional notions shared by white working-class conservatives and working-class African Americans.
The sketch is a recurrent parody of the popular game show ‘Jeopardy’ and it has appeared in previous episodes of SNL. In the game of Jeopardy, the host gives three contestants an ‘answer’ and they have to match them with a group of questions.
The game divides its questions into sets of categories. In ‘Black Jeopardy,’ the options represent stereotypical elements or phrases associated with African Americans in the United States.
Trump-supporter Hanks manages to answer most of the questions correctly on topics like government surveillance and ‘skinny girls,’ which comically portrays the shared preoccupations of both demographics.
He also portrayed moderator Chris Wallace in the latest presidential debate sketch with Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) and Hillary Clinton (Kate McKinnon).
Source: Rolling Stone
