You’ve seen him as the bumbling Oliver Konny in Only Murders in the Building, or maybe you know him as the guy who makes Steve Martin break character every five seconds. But long before the Hulu era, Martin Short saved a show that was practically on its deathbed. Honestly, people forget how weird things were for Saturday Night Live in the mid-80s. Eddie Murphy was gone. The ratings were cratering. The vibes? Not great.
Then came the "ringers." In 1984, producer Dick Ebersol did something radical: he hired established stars instead of unknowns. Short arrived alongside Billy Crystal and Christopher Guest, and he didn't just join the cast—he brought an entire universe of weirdos with him. If you were watching back then, you knew that when a Martin Short SNL character hit the screen, the show was about to shift into a higher, stranger gear.
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The Man With the Triangle: Why Ed Grimley Mattered
It’s hard to explain the Ed Grimley phenomenon to someone who didn't live through it. Basically, he’s a hyperactive nerd with a vertical cowlick and high-waisted pants. He’s obsessed with Wheel of Fortune. He plays the triangle. He says things like, "I must say," and "it makes me completely mental."
It sounds like a one-note joke, doesn't it? It wasn't.
Short had actually created Grimley during his days at SCTV, the Canadian sketch powerhouse. But on SNL, the character exploded. It was pure physical comedy mixed with a strange, sweet vulnerability. Grimley wasn't just a nerd; he was a man living in a state of perpetual, frantic excitement. He was so popular he eventually got his own Saturday morning cartoon, The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley.
He’s arguably the most iconic Martin Short SNL character because he represented a shift in the show’s DNA. Before Short, SNL characters were often biting or satirical. Grimley was just... joyful. He was a breath of fresh, albeit very anxious, air.
Nathan Thurm: The Lawyer Who Could Never Be Wrong
If Ed Grimley was the heart of Short’s tenure, Nathan Thurm was the acidic brain. You know the type. The guy who, when caught in a blatant lie, just stares at you and says, "I know that! You think I don't know that?"
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Short based Thurm on a real person. Specifically, a chain-smoking makeup artist on the SNL set who would get defensive the second anyone asked a question. In the sketches, Thurm would sit in a swivel chair, a cigarette burning down to a long, precarious ash that never fell.
"I’m not defensive! You’re the one who’s being defensive! Why would I be defensive?"
Watching Thurm sweat through a fake 60 Minutes-style interview is a masterclass in tension. It’s funny because we’ve all met a Nathan Thurm. He’s the corporate executive who messed up the quarterly report. He’s the politician caught in a scandal. Short’s ability to capture that specific "deny and deflect" energy is why the character still feels relevant today. In fact, Short brought him back recently to comment on modern politics, and the character hadn't aged a day—he was still sweating, still smoking, and still refusing to admit he was wrong.
The Weirdness of Jackie Rogers Jr.
Then there’s Jackie Rogers Jr. If you want to see Martin Short at his most bizarre, this is it. Jackie is an albino lounge singer with a blinding white pompadour and a habit of laughing through his teeth. He’s desperate for fame, riding the coattails of his (fictional) famous father, Jackie Rogers Sr.
Jackie usually appeared in game show parodies like Jackie Rogers Jr.’s $100,000 Jackpot Wad. These sketches were chaotic. They were loud. They were frequently uncomfortable. But they showcased Short’s range. He wasn't just playing a character; he was building a whole backstory of show-business desperation.
The 1984-1985 "All-Star" Season
Short only stayed at SNL for one season. Just one.
It was a grueling year. He’s talked openly about how the schedule nearly broke him. He was a "writer-performer," meaning he wasn't just acting; he was in the room until 6:00 AM every Tuesday trying to get a script under the door. He had a newborn baby at home he barely saw. By the time the season ended, Lorne Michaels was returning to take the show back over, and he offered Short a spot.
Short said no. He wanted to do movies. He wanted to go home.
But look at the legacy of that single year. In just 17 episodes, Short cemented himself as an all-time great. He helped bridge the gap between the Murphy era and the mid-80s revival. Without his energy, it’s possible SNL wouldn't have survived the transition.
Other Faces You Might Remember
- Irving Cohen: The elderly, wheezing vaudevillian who can't finish a sentence without a coughing fit. "Give me a C, a bouncy C!"
- Jiminy Glick: While Glick became a star on his own series (Primetime Glick), the character’s DNA is rooted in Short’s love for celebrity parody. Glick is the ultimate "un-interviewer"—fat, sweaty, and completely ignorant of who he’s talking to.
- Lawrence Orbach: A less famous but equally sharp character, usually found in sketches that leaned into 1940s noir tropes.
Why He Keeps Coming Back
Even though he was only a cast member for a year, Martin Short is essentially SNL royalty. He joined the Five-Timers Club in December 2024 during the show's massive 50th-anniversary season. That episode was a fever dream of nostalgia, featuring cameos from Tom Hanks and Melissa McCarthy, but Short remained the center of gravity.
He has this specific "live" energy that most actors lack. When he’s on stage, you feel like anything could happen. He might fall. He might scream. He might start dancing. It’s that vaudevillian training—the idea that the audience is the most important person in the room.
How to Watch the Best of Martin Short
If you’re looking to dive into the archives, don’t just stick to the "Best of" specials. Look for the "Syncopated Lady" sketch with Christopher Guest. It’s a synchronized swimming parody that is widely considered one of the greatest things ever aired on the show.
You should also check out:
- The Joe Franklin Show: Watch Jackie Rogers Jr. try to maintain his cool.
- The Hotline Bling Parody: A later cameo where he brought back Ed Grimley to dance like Drake. It’s as ridiculous as it sounds.
- The 40th Anniversary Special: His musical tribute with Maya Rudolph is a high-speed masterclass in timing.
Martin Short didn't just play characters; he created icons. He took the "nervous guy" trope and turned it into art. Whether he’s playing a sweaty lawyer or a triangle-obsessed man-child, he reminds us that the best comedy comes from a place of total, uninhibited commitment.
To truly appreciate the work, look for the sketches where he’s forced to be still. The humor in a Martin Short SNL character often lies in the eyes—that panicked, searching look that says, "I have no idea what I’m doing, but I’m doing it with 100% of my soul."
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Practical Next Steps for Fans:
- Track Down SCTV: To see the origin of characters like Ed Grimley and Jackie Rogers Jr., you need to find old SCTV clips. The humor is drier and more experimental than SNL.
- Watch the 50th Anniversary Inductions: Short's induction into the Five-Timers Club is a great look at how his peers view his legacy.
- Observe the Physicality: If you're a student of comedy, watch Short's feet. His movement is just as funny as his dialogue, a trait he shares with legends like Buster Keaton.