LIVE FROM NEW YORK, DONALD TRUMP WILL SOON BE HOSTING 'SNL'
Nov 7, 12:31 PM EST
BY FRAZIER MOORE
NEW YORK (AP) -- Amid high anticipation and sharp criticism, Donald Trump is set to step onstage in Studio 8H to host "Saturday Night Live."
Despite a 40-year history of lampooning politicians while inviting some to mock themselves as on-air guests, booking a presidential candidate to host the NBC sketch-comedy show is almost unprecedented.
Previously, only eight politicians served as guest hosts. Only one of those - the Rev. Al Sharpton, in 2003 - was actively involved in a presidential bid at the time. (Hillary Clinton appeared in last month's season premiere, but not as the host.)
This won't be Trump's first turn as guest host. The billionaire developer and media celebrity presided in April 2004, a few weeks after NBC's "The Apprentice" debuted.
This time, "SNL" will serve as a campaign stop on Trump's drive for the Republican presidential nomination.
Meanwhile, the TV platform granted him has fanned the flames of outrage sparked in June when he announced his candidacy and described some Mexicans who are in the United States illegally as criminals and rapists. Those immigration comments spurred NBC to sever its Miss Universe ties with Trump while declaring he would never return to his "Apprentice" role.
This week, NBC faced mounting pressure from a coalition of advocacy groups calling for Trump to be dropped from "SNL" for what one spokesman termed his "racist demagoguery."
NBC has not responded to the outcry, and Trump's 90 minutes in the "SNL" spotlight seemed certain.
Typically outspoken, Trump has welcomed the controversy, predicting it would only boost his audience.
For candidate Trump, whose many interview and debate appearances are drawing large viewerships, a spike in this week's "SNL" ratings seems assured.
"Saturday Night Live" airs at 11:30 p.m. EST Saturday.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...11-07-09-08-47
Donald Trump heckled as ‘racist’ in ‘Saturday Night Live’ joke
By S.A. Miller - The Washington Times - Sunday, November 8, 2015
In his opening monologue as the host of NBC's "Saturday Night Live," Donald Trump was mockingly heckled for being a "racist."
"You're a racist!" a voice yelled from off stage, interrupting Mr. Trump's monologue.
"Ay yi yi — I knew this was going to happen," said Mr. Trump, the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. "Who is that?"
"Trump's a racist!" continued comedian Larry David. "I heard if I yelled that, they'd give me $5,000."
Mr. David was referencing the $5,000 reward promised by the Latino activist group DeportRacism.com that had joined the protest over Mr. Trump appearing on the show.
"As a businessman, I can fully respect that," the real estate mogul jokingly responded.
The laughs drew attention to protesters who took Mr. Trump's hosting gig much more seriously.
During the show, as many as 300 demonstrators outside "SNL" studio at Rockefeller Plaza in New York City protested Mr. Trump's appearance over his pledge to deport most of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States and build a wall on the border with Mexico.
The movement to ban the candidate from the show dubbed itself "Dump Trump."
In the days leading up to the show Saturday, Colombian-born actor John Leguizamo vowed to never again watch "Saturday Night Live" because it gave a platform to what he called Mr. Trump's "hate mongering."
Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez, an Illinois Democrat and leading proponent of expanding immigration and offering citizenship to illegal immigrants, joined the Hispanic Caucus in opposing Mr. Trump's appearance on the show.
Mr. Trump previously hosted the show in 2004.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...urday-night-l/
