"SNL" specials ready for primetime

By Nellie Andreeva

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - NBC will air four 90-minute "Saturday Night Live" clip shows during primetime this month, beginning Saturday.

The specials will also air December 15, December 22 and December 29, all from 9:30-11 p.m. If successful, more could be on the way.

Sources indicated that the specials have been in the works for months and are not related to the Hollywood writers strike, which has sent the late-night staple into reruns.

Saturday has become a land of repeats for the major broadcast networks, and "SNL"-branded shows are considered a good alternative to drama reruns on the other channels. They also might help original "SNLs" at 11:30 p.m. when the show returns to production after the strike.

NBC airs one or two "SNL" primetime specials each season, and they regularly do well in young viewers.

The four "SNL" clip shows scheduled so far include "The Best of Will Ferrell" (Saturday), "The Best of Chris Farley" (December 15), "The Best of 2006-07" (December 15) and "SNL Goes Commercial" (December 29).

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter