Saturday Night Live paid tribute to Bob Weir with an on-screen In Memoriam card at the end of this week’s Finn Wolfhard–hosted episode.
A founding member of The Grateful Dead, Weir died last week at age 78. According to a statement posted to his website and social media accounts, he died from underlying lung issues after recently beating cancer.
Weir appeared twice on SNL with The Grateful Dead during the show’s first five seasons, performing on the Buck Henry-hosted November 11, 1978 and the Richard Benjamin and Paula Prentiss-hosted April 5, 1980 episodes. It was during that second appearance that Weir memorably wore bunny ears onstage—an image that has endured as a bit of SNL and Deadhead lore.
The Grateful Dead were scheduled to make a third appearance the following year, but the episode was canceled after Dick Ebersol took over the show from Jean Doumanian at the conclusion of the show’s disastrous sixth season.
A member of The Grateful Dead for its first three decades and a longtime steward of the band’s legacy, Weir helped shape a model for American rock music that emphasized touring, fan communities, and musical improvisation. The band’s practices—encouraging live taping, cultivating a devoted following, and prioritizing the concert experience—would forever influence the jam-band scene and generations of artists.
