Saturday Night Live: Conan O’Brien on why Tom Hanks is one of the best hosts

Conan O’Brien knew right away that Tom Hanks was made for Saturday Night Live

The experience behind-the-scenes at Saturday Night Live doesn’t always match up with what the audience sees when the show goes live. Sometimes the cast and writers have to compensate for a host or just try to tolerate their presence. Then there are hosts like Tom Hanks whose dedication encouraged everyone at Studio 8H.

Hanks has hosted Saturday Night Live nine times and that doesn’t include his surprise appearance at the top of Saturday Night Live at Home earlier this year. The first turn came in 1985 and the most recent was in 2016. It’s another indication of how impressive Hanks’ career has been as well as a testament to his talents as an SNL host.

Conan O’Brien invited Hanks to his podcast “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend” this week and the two reminisced about SNL in the late 1980s. O’Brien was just starting out his career in comedy and Hanks was a decade into his at that point with movies like Dragnet, Big, and Punchline on his resume.

Both O’Brien and Hanks could recall the first time they met when Hanks hosted the season 14 premiere of Saturday Night Live in 1988. It was during that week that O’Brien saw first hand what made Hanks such a fantastic host and why his career longevity is no surprise.

Conan O’Brien and Tom Hanks both felt the magnitude of being at Saturday Night Live

There is no denying Saturday Night Live‘s impact on comedy, television, and popular culture. For many, it is a sacred institution. Past performers, writers, and hosts have described the range of emotions from fear and intimidation to awe and reverence. It sounds as if Conan O’Brien and Tom Hanks experienced all of these emotions during their times at Saturday Night Live.

For Hanks, the thrill was to be in SNL’s world for the week. Yes, he has the work ethic and dedication that O’Brien saw in the form of Hanks laid out on a conference room table in the early hours. But Hanks was just as much there to be around hilarious people and get up close and personal with the creative process. O’Brien applauds this approach from Hanks and considers the actor among SNL’s best hosts.

For O’Brien, life as a writer was a little more stressful. Even though he and the fellow “Boiler Room Boys,” Robert Smigel, Bob Odenkirk, and Greg Daniels, would go on to become incredibly successful, there wasn’t always a feeling of confidence. O’Brien’s story of writing behind Dave Letterman’s Late Night desk was a nice bit of foreshadowing for what was to come. But in the moment, O’Brien was burdened by dread much more than with sights set on late night fame.

This segment of the podcast finished up with O’Brien recalling that Hanks’ 1988 hosting gig was also Conan’s first on-screen appearance. Watch for yourself and see if you can tell how nervous O’Brien is or if he was on the verge of telling Keith Richards to f-off:

Where does Tom Hanks rank on your list of the best Saturday Night Live hosts? Let us know in the comment section. Keep checking Last Night On for more from Conan O’Brien and the rest of late night television.