Fifteen years ago today, fictional singers Garth and Kat got their big break when they made their first appearance on Saturday Night Live’s “Weekend Update.”
Season 35 “Update” anchor Seth Meyers primed the December 19, 2009 audience for “a very special treat” when he introduced Garth and Kat (played by Fred Armisen and Kristen Wiig) as “one of [his] favorite musical duos.”
With their matching blonde hairdos, white turtlenecks, and red tartan vests, Garth and Kat certainly looked ready to spread wholesome Christmas cheer that night, but as we quickly learned, nothing could have been further from the truth.
“We forgot we were coming here,” Kat said as the duo breathlessly settled in behind the news desk. “We thought it was next week,” said Garth before assuring Meyers that they were “totally, totally ready” to perform some of their original holiday songs.
As would come to be expected, the pair then launched into a made-up-on-the-spot song which ultimately devolved into a repetition of the lyric, “Shovel that snow.”
After letting them go for almost half a minute, Meyers said, “I’ve got to stop you guys… Was that an actual song? I mean, do you know the words of what you’re singing?”
“We’re kidding, Seth,” Kat responded before setting up a supposedly “real song about the stockings and the tree.” They then stumbled their way through lyrics like “Don’t salute unless they say Merry Christmas,” making it clear that they were in no way prepared for the gig.
In response to Meyers telling them they could return to the show at a later date, Garth said, “No, Seth. Come on, man. This is serious. We want to get our music out there.”
“We spent a very long time writing and arranging these songs,” added Kat before successfully convincing Meyers to give them another shot. “This one’s for real,” she said, to which Meyers responded, “They should have all been.”
At first, it seemed like Kat might be telling the truth, as their third song began with piano accompaniment and coherent lyrics. However, about 10 seconds in, the music stopped and the improvisation began, leading Meyers to pull the plug on the whole performance.
In an unsual break from custom, the show posted two versions of Garth and Kat’s “Weekend Update” debut to YouTube: the live as-aired version (above), and a second dress rehearsal version (below), which features totally different improvised songs and more noticeable character breaks.
The duo would guest on “Weekend Update” nine more times over the next five years, including once after Wiig left the cast and another time after Armisen did the same. Although each appearance coincided with a different holiday (including Thanksgiving, Mother’s Day, and Hanukkah), their routine of performing three improvised songs (with the last starting out as scripted) remained consistent.
Over the years, the pair’s supposed resume grew to include at least five albums, a Grammy win, and a distinction as “Mick Jagger’s favorite singing duo.”
Garth and Kat were last seen on the SNL 40th anniversary special, which aired on February 15, 2015. As part of a tribute to the show’s greatest musical sketches, they got to share a snippet of their song “What a Wonderful Amazing Thing But I Would Say So to Everybody Uh-huh” but were cut off before getting to perform “It’s a Fun Thing to Do to Put on a Couple of Shoes, But If You Drop One of Them, Well, Then You Hear About It in a Letter All the Way Over in Pennsylvania.”
