Product Details

• Actors: Don Pardo, Lenny Pickett, Darrell Hammond, Seth Meyers, G.E. Smith
• Directors: Christopher Guest, Mike de Seve, Robert Smigel
• Writers: Andrew Hill Newman, Barry W. Blaustein, Beth Cahill, Brad Hall, Chris Cluess
• Format: Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Universal Studios
• DVD Release Date: August 26, 2008
• Run Time: 90 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000H5U6HK
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,688 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Saturday Night Live - The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Sometimes controversial but always hilarious, Robert Smigel's "TV Funhouse" cartoons have contained some of Saturday Night Live's most memorable material in recent years. Ace and Gary, "The Ambiguously Gay Duo" (voiced by Steve Carell and Stephen Colbert), host this critically acclaimed collection, which features hits like "X-Presidents," "Saddam and Osama," "The Narrator That Ruined Christmas," "Smurfette," "The New Adventures of Mr. T," "Fun With Real Audio" and more, with appearances by the full cast of SNL. No subject is off limits. Learn what's really inside the Disney vault, what Jewish folks do on Christmas Eve, and what makes Michael Jackson float. As Mr. T would say, "If you believe in yourself, drink your school, stay in drugs, and don't do milk, you can get work!"

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better Than Your Average SNL Special., January 17, 2007

By 

tvtv3 "tvtv3" (Sorento, IL United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Saturday Night Live - The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse (DVD)

The comedy at Saturday Night Live comes and goes in spurts and currently (Jan. 2007) it is rare for an episode, let alone an entire season, to be all that funny. However, for over a decade there is one portion of the show that has remained consistently funny and that is when one of Robert Smigel's Saturday TV Funhouse cartoons air. The Saturday TV Funhouse cartoon first began showing up on SNL in the mid-1990s. The cartoons have always been a welcome break in the usual format of the show and when first seen brought a new dimension of comedy to the famed sketch-comedy series, the type of witty satire that first made SNL a staple of American culture.

THE BEST OF SATURDAY TV FUNHOUSE was a special that aired on SNL in spring of 2006. The special was a collection of some of the best Saturday TV Funhouse cartoons ever. From the Award-winning (I think it was even nominated for an Emmy) "Saddam and Osama" to the Ambiguously Gay Due and X-Presidents cartoon, THE BEST OF SATURDAY TV FUNHOUSE DVD is filled with hilarious, short snippets of satirical animation that both critique and comment on our society and culture. Some of the cartoons are nothing more than teasing nostalgia, such as the "Globetrotters Christmas" episode (found on the special features) or "The New Adventures of Mr. T." Others are clearly aimed at ridiculing powerful corporations in attempt to awaken public awareness, such as the many Disney parodies found on the disc--"Inside the Disney Vault" and "Titey" are the best of these--and the Schoolhouse Rock spoof, "Conspiracy Theory Rock" that shows the corruption of powerful media companies such as NBC. Other gems on the disc include "Smurfette" and "The Narrator That Ruined Christmas" and the delightful "Santa and the States" found on the special features.

There are many, many, many funny cartoons found on this disc. It's something that anyone whom is a fan of good SNL or satirical animation, e.g. THE SIMPSONS, SOUTH PARK, or ROBOT CHICKEN, will probably enjoy. I enjoyed almost all of the cartoons on the disc. However, I only purchased the disc because of one cartoon that is contained: "Fun With Real Audio Christmas". As Robert Smigel points out on the commentary, this is the most popular Saturday TV Funhouse cartoon of them all. The cartoon involves Jesus and the Peanuts, but its message is universal and isn't just limited to Christians are Charles Schultz fans. I remember watching the cartoon the first time it aired. Watching SNL was a rare occurrence for me then, but for whatever reason I saw the "Fun With Real Audio Christmas" and it stuck to me. Like the images from certain television specials, lines from popular movies, are snippets of overplayed songs, the cartoon has always remained with me. This DVD is worth owning for that one little cartoon alone and everything else is just bonus.

The DVD includes over an hour of extra cartoons, some of which are even better than the ones in the main feature. The entire main feature has a commentary mostly with Smigel and his chief animators. However, other guests, such as Steve Carell and Stephen Colbert, also comment at parts. Surprisingly, most of the extra cartoons also include commentary.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Really, the best of SNL over the past few years, October 17, 2006

By 

Adam Dukovich "colts_19" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Saturday Night Live - The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse (DVD)

Robert Smigel was one of the new writers brought on board when SNL was retaken-over by Lorne Michaels in the mid-80s. Even though he left for Conan a few years afterward, he continued to write cartoons for the show, and in recent years, these cartoons have often been the funniest part of the show. This disc is definitely worth buying since it contains a pretty good sampling of the various cartoons Smigel created: the X-Presidents has the four former presidents as wisecracking superheroes; Mr. T is back, and he's looking for work; Fun with Real Audio takes shots at not-so-beloved celebrities; and, of course, there's the Ambiguously Gay Duo (voiced by Daily Show alums Steve Carrell and Stephen Colbert), who fight crime while spreading innuendo as regards the nature of their real relationship. All in all, if The Best of Jimmy Fallon isn't up your alley, it's worth checking out.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars lots of variety, but could use more ace and gary . . ., December 19, 2009

By 

trebe - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Saturday Night Live - The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse (DVD)

The Best of TV Funhouse consists of a main feature, and a number of bonus clips. In the main feature Ace and Gary, the Ambiguously Gay Duo (AGD), are hosting SNL. It's a good idea, but the show features just a couple of episodes of the AGD. The rest consists of a few Fun with Real Audio (FRA) cartoons, an assortment of TV Funhouse clips, miscellaneous sketches, and some bits featuring Ace and Gary, interacting with various members of the SNL cast. These bits are mostly based on Ace and Gary's affection for Jimmy Fallon (who at this time is no longer with SNL), and unfortunately, are not too funny. As Ace and Gray are the co-hosts, a lot more of the AGD would have been nice, but this 83 minute production is mainly concerned with providing a nice variety.

The bonus materials really upgrades this collection, with additional episodes of AGD (3), FRA (3), and The X-Presidents (6). There are also uncut versions of some of the cartoons that appear in the main feature, as well as nearly a dozen other assorted TV Funhouse cartoons. Commentary is provided for almost everything, by Robert Smigel and those who worked on the cartoon or sketch. The comments range from somewhat informative, to slightly amusing, to completely inane.

Any 'best of' compilation of SNL material is typically open to debate. Robert Smigel, is a creative man, with a biting, irreverent sense of humor. Focusing on political, pop culture, and social satire, few will find everything he does funny, or even tasteful. The enjoyment of this collection may be hit and miss, but Smigel's work, for good or bad, has probably been an influence on contemporary animation. This is a pretty good representation of his various works, through those seeking more of Ace and Gary may be disappointed.