Posted on 10/18/2022 6:49:58 PM PDT by nickcarraway
On Oct. 17, 1987, Saturday Night Live cast members Dana Carvey and Kevin Nealon debuted their bodybuilding duo Hans and Franz. Even though the characters were ostensibly from Austria, they were born in a far more unlikely place.
Carvey and Nealon both joined the SNL lineup in 1986, part of an influx of new, younger talent to uplift the series’ sagging ratings. Both comedians became popular cast members, thanks to such memorable characters as the Church Lady (Carvey) and Mr. Subliminal (Nealon).
The men were also close friends and embarked on a comedy tour together during the break between SNL’s 12th and 13th seasons. It was while on the road that Hans and Franz started taking shape.
“When Dana Carvey and I did our first tour in 1987 after our first year on Saturday Night Live , we were staying at some hotel in Des Moines,” Nealon recalled in 2013. “I was watching Arnold Schwarzenegger on Showtime, they were doing an interview, ‘Up close and personal,’ and were asking him about his routine of the day.” Nealon found himself intrigued by the action star’s description of his routine.
“He said, ‘I check into the hotel and I slip into a nice light cotton shirt then I go out on the town, and I come back to the hotel and I slip into the nice white cotton sheets,’” Nealon explained. “I was watching this and called Dana and said ‘You gotta watch this.’ So we both watched it and for the rest of the tour, we were talking like Arnold. We said we had to come up with a character for next season, and we came up with Hans and Franz watching that in Des Moines.”
From their accents to their muscular physique to their overly macho attitudes, every part of Hans and Franz was an exaggerated characteristic of Schwarzenegger.
The initial sketch had just a simple structure: Speaking directly to the camera, Hans and Franz discussed the importance of a proper warm-up routine and how to pose in the Mr. Universe contest, and they continually voiced their desire to “pump [clap!] you up.”
Watch the First Hans & Franz Sketch on 'SNL'
Pumpin' Up with Hans & Franz - SNL Subscribe to Ultimate Classic Rock on
Hans and Franz would go on to become some of the most popular SNL characters of their era. Schwarzenegger himself was a fan of the duo and even appeared in a sketch with them in 1991.
Carvey left Saturday Night Live in 1993, at which point the bodybuilder characters were retired, though they did return to the SNL stage again in 1994 when Carvey served as the show’s host. At one point, a Hans and Franz film was also in the early stages of production, with Schwarzenegger set to produce and costar. The actor eventually backed out, leaving the movie unmade.
“I think Hans and Franz made Dana and me laugh more than any other characters when we were writing them. It’s funny how something like that will permeate the culture and become pop culture,” Nealon reflected in the book Live From New York. “People need that occasional catchphrase in their life. The coolest thing for Dana and me is that on the space shuttle they were doing Hans and Franz, which was fun.”
When SNL was funny, or when I had a sense of humor.
Or just when it was new. It’s tired out now.
Jon Lovitz playing Satan, getting sued in "The People's Court" were among the best ever.
SNL was always funniest for the years you were in high school and college.
—Lorne Michaels.
20 years...geez.
I still use “Pomp [clap] YOU up” in my head at the gym...
They were great, girlie men!
Jon Lovitz playing Satan, getting sued in “The People’s Court”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sz-Yw0c7cF0
Really enjoyed this. Funny.
Thanks for putting up :)
I loved The Sweeney Sisters. Jan Hooks was always my favorite female on the show, next to Gilda Radner.
I remember when Rick Moranis was the guest host on SNL, the skit “Honey I Shrunk Hand and Franz”. In that Swartzenegger accent “we will crawl up your pant leg and pummel your private parts until you really sound like a girly man!” 😀😀 So long ago and far away when SNL was funny
Excuse me, but who didn't know that ‘Hans and Franz’ were a take-off of Arnold saying "I pump you up?" How is that unlikely?
The last time SNL was funny was the early to mid 90s. They had a great cast including those two, Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, Chris Farley, Phil Hartman, Norm MacDonald, Mike Myers and David Spade.
Look how many of those had major success outside of SNL. No cast they have had since they got rid of most of them around 94-95 remotely compares.
I wonder why Ahnold didn’t make the movie.
A buddy and I were doing Hans und Franz at a ski area. Another skier came up to us and wanted to know if we were on the Austrian ski team.
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