The Contestant - SNL 

I wasn't expecting this. That's like... a real character. It's not just a goof off, just a high concept weirdness. It's a whole character. You get the feeling he has an inner life, that he's a real person for how weird as he is.

I've always found this character to be really wholesome, he finds near bliss through the simplest human endeavors.

It's great to see that they're actually acting and not just staring blankly at cue cards.

Martin Short is brilliant. He always has been brilliant and remains forever brilliant to this day.

Fun fact: Martin Short's Ed Grimley character is the only character from both Saturday Night Live and SCTV to have his own Saturday morning cartoon.

Ed is the sweetest of all SNL characters.

I like how it had such a surprisingly sweet and wholesome ending.

38 years later, still hilariously funny and dear and sweet. Ed Grimley is going to be on Wheel of Fortune, I must say! It’s going to make me mental!

This world needs more Ed Grimleys.

Man, nobody has had this kind of energy on SNL in a looong time.

0:20 BOOM!!!! mic

Ed Grimley was Martin Short's best character, ever!

That's a very decent sketch I must say!

One of my favorite characters ever. He even plays the triangle.

I just love Martin Short, he just seems to be such a very decent kind of guy. You know?

I finally realised that Ed Grimley is just Robin Williams on sedatives and Canadian.

Jaleel White said he got the inspiration for Steve Urkel from Ed Grimley. Facts

The microphone being in the way was the funniest part of the bit lol

As a big SCTV fan in the early 80s, I was excited when Martin Short was added to the SNL cast, and it was great when he brought Ed Grimley with him! I was bummed that he only stuck around for one season; the man was made for sketch comedy.

I loved SNL back in the 80s and 90s and Martin Short is hilarious (I must say). He's mental!

That stand up and head hitting the mic tho 🤣

I must say. I love Martin short, you know

This is probably one of my favorite snl skits I must saaayyy.

This was wholesome.

The hand on the hip and that skip crack me up....every single thing Ed says and does cracks me up actually😂

Fantastic! It's amazing how memorizing your lines can make a significant difference in a performance on SNL.

Ed Grimley, in his own way, finding pure joy in the simplest of pleasures. Very poignant sketch.

It wasn’t the best year for SNL but the three actors in this seen are brilliant and went on to so many wonderful projects that showed off their talents. Martin short, christopher guest and Julia Louis Dreyfus went on to have amazing careers and do hysterically funny projects.

Hope, no easy axe to grind, and humor... a tall order, well served. Beautiful.

It's weird how good this is it's so strange

Did anyone else cry at the end? Humanity has lost all meaning. Be kind, you never know what another is going thru.

Martin Short is super funny😂😂😂😂

Pat Sajak is a fairly decent guy, I must say.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus was a secretary in this sketch. WOW

For any new writers, this is the epitome of a great SNL skit: memorable/relatable characters, a "beginning - middle - and end" - and just enough over-the-top weirdness without going overboard.

What a beautiful ending. Also, Martin Short is such a great actor: Ed Grimley, Jiminy Glick.

He's hysterical. And those pants.....THOSE PANTS!!!!! I love it.

Pure comedic genius and originality. Beyond genius, I must say...

Imagine if Christian Bale had been hosting and he hit a boom mic like that...

One of my all time favorite characters..... Ed Grimley got his own Saturday cartoon because of how beloved he was!

Didn't look like Martin Short looked at his cue cards once

Ed Grimly is the best character ever on SNL for me .

I miss Ed Grimley, I must say

Ed Grimley is my all-time favourite character. Just cracks me up every time.

This sketch is hilarious, I must say

These Vintage sketches.......THEY'RE MAKING ME MENTAL!

They had cue cards back then, they just knew how to read better than the new casts of today. They would memorize lines better. Martin Short talks about how the directors demanded cue cards, so he would take out his contact lenses so he couldn't see them. You can hear him say this on a Howard Stern clip towards the end of it.

Christopher Guest looking up after the boom mike came into shot. He's a master at subtlety.

Love vintage SNL 😂

"Just not enjoying my work, anymore. Plus these damn boom mikes hanging over my head!"

Just incredible Martin Short.

So good to see SNL scenes from the 80s. I prefer these over anything from the past 20 years.

I have loved this sketch since it first aired. Nice to come across it again, I must say. 😃

The picture of Pat Sajak🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

This is a heartwarming sketch...I love it! There are mixed emotions, I laughed and feeling concerned at the same time...glad the dude changed his mind on his "way down". I love how old casts didn't rely on cue cards too much like the recent ones. And I love Martin Short character's sincerity. 👍😊❤

I can't believe there was never an Ed Grimley movie.

what a treasure martin short is! gotta love ed grimley,,,,i must say!

I videotaped this episode (on Beta!) and watched this skit many, many times. Ed Grimley even made my parents laugh, which was nice since we didn't agree on much in those days.

One of my favorite Martin Short skits. I'll do my Ed Grimly a little sometimes just to blow peoples minds. Pretty good stuff Marty.

him hitting his head against the boom mic they spaced on moving, made the sketch

A pretty decent skit, I must say.

Oh God that boom mic - you had one job. A handle on a pivot. LOL

He was as doomed as doomed could be until he landed on Ed Grimley. A very decent ending I must say.

I don't know if this ever happened, but if Wheel of Fortune had a celebrity night and Martin Short was one of them it would have been great to see him dressed as Ed Grimley, I must say.

Elaine's early years, before buying socks for that guy and all that. I must say.

He was best when he played his triangle while running around his room.

My favorite part is how he's talking about Jeopardy, not Wheel of Fortune.

The boom mic guy had ONE JOB!

*On the way down I was thinking about what you said* Surprisingly, this is an accurate description of the experience of jumpers. People who have survived things like jumping from bridges almost all say that as soon as they jumped, they thought something like "oh, Ive made a horrible mistake!" For most suicidal people, the actual suicidal crisis is very brief and healthcare intervention works. For example, according to the research of Dr. Richard Seiden, Among people who tried to jump off the Golden Gate bridge but were stopped by police, over 90% never went on to kill themselves. The statistics for people who survived a suicide attempt are usually the same or even better. Research done since his work has produced very similar results. A very small percent of people keep trying until they finally do pass away, but for the VAST majority of people, if they can just be prevented and recieve some care, the crisis ends!

I love martin short he is really funny ,he kills my ribs with laughing so much

laughed harder during this one sketch than like the past 10 years of snl

I love Ed Grimley. I didn't miss the cartoons. I love how he dances.

"So often high ceilings may be effective".

I loved to Ed grimley dancing with the triangle.

Okay so like...I'm autistic, and honestly, I relate to Ed Grimley so much. I mean, his passion is Wheel of Fortune and mine is music production and vocal synthesis, but GOD he mirrors my internal monologue really well whenever I get to do any sort of work with someone I admire. I get overcome by this like...manic energy, my mind races through all the possibilities in the future, I fantasize about things like befriending my inspirations, working on long-term collaborations... I'm not gonna lie, autistic characters played for laughs tend to suck REALLY bad (see: Sheldon Cooper), but Ed...doesn't? Like yes, he's an overeager socially awkward obsessive nerd, but...you can't help but relate to him. He's just so clearly a well-meaning guy who's passionate about Wheel of Fortune and makes the effort to get to where he is. I'm almost entirely certain that many Jeopardy contestants are a similar type. Also, the awkward body motions. God, that is TOTALLY a thing. I've been in this very excitable state myself and then had to go "oh crap, what the hell are my arms doing?" And that elevator bit, OOF. Yeah, we autistics call that an "infodump". I've...done that more times than I'd like to admit. And...this comment is four paragraphs long already so CASE IN POINT...

-"What if I freeze - FREEZE BAD - on the simplest of famous names?" -"...and found an entire FORT, y'know?" - When he moves his arm out of the way at 5:08 My favorite moments from this sketch, I must say. Plus the blooper at the beginning which is hilarious.

Now, that's what I call, a great actor.

Ed Grimley is the man of my dreams!

I must have watched this over a dozen times. Love Ed Grimley's excitement. His excitement is so funny. So optimistic about everything!😄😄😄 Love it!!

Ed Grimley reminds me of Mr. Rogers with his huge grin.

After I first saw this, I couldn't keep a straight face even looking at Sajak. Pretty decent guy.

Thumbnail got me thinking it was Steve Rogers before he juiced up

Damn, how talented Martin Short is

I seemed to be on fire with knowledge. LOL

Is that Christopher Guest?

Wow! Christopher Guest bounces back quite well from an awful long fall!

The thing abt this sketch is that it starts out w some darkness some thick dark clouds I must say, but it ends w what makes us human, compassion and the ability to connect w one another. This was back when SNL was worth watching huh?

This character will forever endear Martin Short to me. And he's even Jiminy Glick. I would throw myself in front of a train to keep Martin Short here and healthy.

I totally did not expect that at the end and laughed til my stomach hurt

You have so little to live for, oh wait!😂😂😂

"I would be collapsing from my own joy, I must say..."

I must say, this never gets old ...

That was brilliant! Funny AND poignant.

The ending of that actually brought a tear to my eye.

comedic genius.

This was great I must say!

There's another Ed Grimley sketch where for some reason Tina Turner comes to his apartment and he has nothing to offer her but onions.

Martin Short is a fucking comedic genius!!!!

*A SNL Classic*

Absolutely adore Martin Short