What Is ‘SNL’s 5-Timers Club and Who Is Part of It?

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If you’ve hosted New York’s trendiest spot, Saturday Night Live (SNL), at least five times, then you become a member of the “Five-Timers Club.” This exclusive group has been around for 35 years and is known through a popular joke. Now that SNL is celebrating its 50th anniversary, we’re delving into one of its most persistent yet challenging to achieve inside jokes or accolades – The Five-Timers Club. Aside from the pride of being a regular on late-night television, what comes with this comedic membership? And who are some other entertainment legends that have earned this distinction?

The Five Timers Club: Explained

The Five-Timers Club is an exclusive association with roots traced back to December 8, 1990, when Tom Hanks hosted Saturday Night Live for the fifth time. In this episode, the show aired a skit welcoming him as a member of the “club.” Interestingly, although he was the first inductee on screen, Tom Hanks became the seventh host overall to reach the five-show milestone. During his opening monologue, Tom Hanks playfully quipped that reaching the fifth hosting spot on SNL earns you a membership card for the prestigious “Five-Timers Club.”

Later on, Hanks moved to a special room at 30 Rock, where he received a distinguished smoking jacket. He was joined by some of the hosts who preceded him, including Steve Martin, Paul Simon, and Elliott Gould. They lit cigars and joked about the perks that come with their prestigious positions, such as having a “swimming pool filled with delightfully warm 80-degree water.”

The Five-Timers Club is also known to include Conan O’Brien. Writers and cast members play the roles of waiters and doormen in this sketch, which has endured over time. With that monologue, the Five-Timers Club officially came into being.

In 1999, I found myself watching Saturday Night Live for the fifth time hosting, and that was Danny DeVito. The Five-Timers Club sketch, with its distinctive set, smoking jackets, and jokes about fellow cast members as staff, made another appearance on our screens that night. Over the years, this iconic skit has been mentioned in monologues and sketches, but it’s only graced the airwaves a select few times. Each time, the same elements are brought back, like an old friend reminding us of simpler times. There’s even a running gag where lesser-known cast members engage in mock battles to entertain the Five-Timers Club, such as the memorable faceoff between Bobby Moynihan and Taran Killam.

Saturday Night Live often humorously references the Five-Timers Club, an exclusive group for hosts who’ve appeared on the show five times or more. For instance, Emma Stone joked about joining the “Four-Timers Club” during a monologue, and Steve Martin, John Goodman, and Alec Baldwin were depicted accessing the “Platinum Lounge,” a space reserved only for those who’ve hosted the show twelve times. Without question, the Five-Timers Club is an integral part of Saturday Night Live’s history, and it seems likely that we’ll continue to see it grow and evolve as long as this iconic comedy institution remains active.

Who’s in the Club?

Over half a century on Saturday Night Live has amassed an extremely prestigious roster of stars. With 27 members in total, The Five-Timers Club is nothing short of star-studded. Let me present the esteemed guests who have been invited.

Host Number of Times Hosting Notes
Alec Baldwin 17 Over 50 appearances as special guest
Steve Martin 16
John Goodman 13 All of the above have earned “Platinum Status”
Tom Hanks 10
Buck Henry 10
Chevy Chase 8
Christopher Walken 7
Elliott Gould 6
Tina Fey 6
Danny DeVito 6
Drew Barrymore 6 Youngest ever host
Scarlett Johansson 6
Paul Simon 5
Justin Timberlake 5 7 times musical guest
Kristen Wiig 5
John Mulaney 5
Melissa McCarthy 5
Candace Bergen 5
Bill Murray 5
Ben Affleck 5
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson 5
Jonah Hill 5
Will Ferrell 5
Paul Rudd 5
Emma Stone 5
Woody Harrelson 5
Martin Short 5

There’s a bit of ambiguity when it comes to the Five-Timers club, particularly for musical guests. For instance, Jack White, Harry Styles, and others who have appeared more than five times. However, the regulations of the Five-Timers club are quite stringent, and it appears that one must don the host’s mantle frequently to reap the rewards. It’s possible that there exists a luxurious 80-degree swimming pool hidden behind the scenes at SNL, available only to stars such as Steve Martin and Emma Stone. It’s reasonable to assume that they have worked hard to earn this privilege.

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2025-02-23 02:35