Eddie Murphy Recalls ‘SNL’ After-Party With Johnny Cash
That was probably a wild night ...
Comedian extraordinaire Eddie Murphy made a widely-applauded return to Saturday Night Live just before Christmas, reviving some of his best-known characters 35 years after leaving the famous sketch show. But before that, he recalled a brief moment in the ’80s when worlds collided, and he partied with Johnny Cash.
Sitting down for an interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Murphy first opened up about what it felt like to rejoin SNL, admitting that almost nothing has changed about the way the classic show is made. Then he shared the story of how he got hired as a 19-year-old comic in the first place, but when Fallon asked if he ever went to the show’s infamous after parties, Murphy said there was only one, very special time.
“I only went to the after party once ’cause I was 19 and it was 1980 – 81, and I was the only black person up there … So I was like ‘I don’t want to party with them,'” he said with a chuckle. “I went to the after party once because Johnny Cash hosted, and Johnny Cash said ‘You comin’ to the party Eddie?’ I said ‘I don’t know,’ and he said ‘Because June and I sure do love you.'”
It seems the Man in Black was an early fan, and Murphy’s spot-on impression has to be heard to fully appreciate the story. Check it out above!
