WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Saturday Night.Jason Reitman’s 2024 Saturday Night movie depicts the unusual marriage and workplace dynamic between SNL creator Lorne Michaels and his ex-wife Rosie Shuster. Saturday Night portrays a civil and nearly platonic relationship between Michaels and Shuster even though they were legally married when the first episode of Saturday Night Live premiered on October 11, 1975. Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle) and Shuster (Rachel Sennott) were childhood friends who shared a love for comedy. This mutual interest formed a close bond that led to the formation of Saturday Night Live. If Shuster and Michaels had never met, SNL might never have been created.
Saturday Night portrays Shuster having an open affair with cast member Dan Aykroyd, which appears to not affect Michaels too deeply despite being Shuster’s husband. Michaels was well aware of the affair, as were most, if not all, of the SNL season 1 cast members. Saturday Night depicts Aykroyd’s revolving interest in other women besides Shuster, which plays into the reckless vibe of the original SNL set and the general nature of the 1970s. While the on-set situation could have been tense, Michaels’ determination to accomplish his vision of SNL was his main focus throughout the film and in reality.
How Rosie Shuster & Lorne Michaels Met & Why They Got Married So Young
They Grew Up Together & Attended The University Of Toronto
Michaels and Shuster were both from Toronto, where they first met and attended the same junior high school. Their love of comedy and writing made them virtually inseparable after a young Michaels asked to meet Shuster’s famous dad, Frank Shuster, one-half of the well-known comedy duo Wayne and Shuster. Michaels and Shuster remained a тιԍнт pair through high school and college at the University of Toronto, where they continued to write comedy sketches until they graduated in 1966. Michaels moved to Los Angeles to begin his comedy writing career before creating Saturday Night Live in New York in 1975.
Michaels and Shuster officially tied the knot in 1967, just one year out of college. After Michaels worked on sketch comedy shows such as Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In and The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show in the late 1960s, he and Shuster worked together on The Hart and Lorne Terrific Hour, which aired on Canadian broadcast television. Michaels and Shuster got another opportunity to collaborate on The Lily Tomlin Show in the early 1970s. Their marriage was advantageous to their comedy writing careers, which appeared to be a key motivation behind their early partnership. Saturday Night highlights how their professional worlds overlap.
Why Rosie Tells Lorne They’re Married But She’s “Not His Wife”
Rosie ᴀsserts Her Autonomy & Reflects The Disharmony Of Her Marriage With Michaels
Shuster telling Michaels that she’s “not his wife” despite being married in Saturday Night reveals a lot about their relationship. After knowing each other for so many years, Michaels and Shuster have a rare type of relationship that often comes off more like siblings than spouses in Saturday Night. When Michaels looks to Shuster for an ounce of emotional support, calling her his wife while referring to her end-show credit, Shuster corrects him and instructs him to use her given name. Michaels demonstrates feelings for Shuster in the scene, searching for an earnest connection, but his “wife” does not reciprocate.
Although Shuster stands by her decision to use her given name in Saturday Night, she appears as “Rosie Michaels” in the real-life credits.
Shuster disowning the label of being Michaels’ wife in Saturday Night gives her character an individual sense of autonomy. It also accurately depicts their disharmonious arrangement at the time, which appeared to be held together by professional implications and their joint image as television writers and producers. Having gotten married at a relatively young age when Shuster was just 17, the circumstances of their marriage appear to have shifted as their careers took off. Although Shuster stands by her decision to use her given name in Saturday Night, she appears as “Rosie Michaels” in the real Saturday Night Live credits.
How Long Rosie Shuster & Lorne Michaels Were Married
They Got Married In 1967 & Divorced In 1980
Even though Michaels and Shuster’s marriage was in a less-than-typical state during the Saturday Night Live premiere, it lasted another five years until they officially divorced in 1980. While Shuster would not remarry, Michaels got married to actress Susan Forristal in 1981 after the couple started dating in 1980. All signs point to Forristal being the main reason why Shuster and Michaels legally separated in 1980. Shuster and Michaels did not parent any kids. Michaels has three children with his third and current wife, Alice Barry. He and Barry married in 1991, 26 years after the events of Saturday Night.
