LateNighter Chronicles Two-Time Host Susan Saint James' Role in Saturday Night Live's 1981-85 Era

Following Saturday Night Live's silent memorial card before the goodnights on November 7, 2026 honoring actress Susan Saint James—who died October 24, 2026—LateNighter veteran television journalist Bill Carter published a November 9, 2026 retrospective examining her pivotal connection to the show's 1981-85 Dick Ebersol era.

Best known for starring in McMillan & Wife and opposite original Saturday Night Live cast member Jane Curtin in the sitcom Kate & Allie, Saint James was booked by NBC producer Dick Ebersol to host the Season 7 premiere on October 10, 1981 after Ebersol took over the program from Jean Doumanian and rebuilt the cast around Eddie Murphy, Joe Piscopo, Billy Crystal, and Martin Short.

Although Ebersol and Saint James had never met prior to her October 1981 hosting week, they married six weeks later, and Saint James returned to host Saturday Night Live a second time on April 16, 1983. Carter also detailed the decades-long personal bond between Lorne Michaels, Paul Simon, Ebersol, and Saint James following the 1981-85 transitional era.