When it comes to iconic Saturday Night Live stars, fewer managed to leave their marks on pop culture than Chris Farley. The beloved comedian managed to make a major impact on SNL in just five seasons and crafted some memorable characters. Off camera, though, Farley sadly dealt with his share of personal problems and, on at least one occasion, that spilled into his work. A couple of Farley’s co-stars once tried to hide him when he was inebriated, though his boss, Lorne Michaels, had a very warm response.
Farley – who was on SNL from 1990 to 1995 – contended with alcoholism, substance abuse, mental health struggles and more during his lifetime. Co-star Melanie Hutsell spoke about a time at which the star of (the highly quotable) Tommy Boy approached her and a fellow co-star. At the time, Farley was apparently drunk and was rambling as he attempted to express remorse for his appearance. Hutsell didn’t hold back when describing the situation to Vice TV (as shared on Instagram):
He was just like, ‘I’m sorry. I’m sorry, you guys. I’m so sorry. You’re gonna be so mad at me.’ And we’re like, ‘We’re not mad at you. We’re not mad at you.’ And he fell into me. David’s looking at me, and I look at him. And he was like, ‘I don’t know what to do.’ And I was like, ‘I don’t know what to do.’ And then he was like, ‘Well, maybe if we can just get him to his office,’ as if we were going to hide him and protect him from the rest of the world, which is so insane.
Hutsell – who was on the sketch comedy series from 1991 to 1994 – didn’t specify the “David” she was referring to. It may be fair to assume that she’s referencing fellow series alum David Spade, who was good friends with Farley and found Hollywood success with him. Still, we can’t say for sure whether it was indeed the Joe Dirt star. All that aside, though, Hutsell went on to say that she and David had quite an ordeal as they sought to conceal Farley. However, as the Lady Dynamite alum further explained, they were unsuccessful:
So we’re on the elevator. We go back up to 8H, and the elevator doors open, and we look out and we see a few people, some of the other producers. And David was like, ‘Nope, let’s take him back down. The elevator doors close. We go back down, the elevator doors open, and who is standing there? None other than Lorne Michaels. So Chris sees Lorne standing there, and he’s like, ‘Lorne, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. You’re gonna fire me, Lorne? Please don’t fire me. I promise I won’t do it again.’
I can’t even imagine the feeling the trio had when coming across the SNL creator himself. Michaels, given his professional stature, can surely be an intimidating guy upon first glance regardless of whether a person works for him or not. Overall, the Canadian film and TV producer strikes me as a man who doesn’t suffer fools. However, none of that was apparently present when he encountered the inebriated Farley with his co-stars. Hutsell recalls Michaels’ reaction as follows:
Lorne just stands there. And up until this point, I had really felt like that’s my boss. I want to do right by him. I want to be validated by him. He was my boss. But, in this moment, and I’ll never forget it as long as I live, I literally saw him transition from boss to a father. And he was like, ‘Chris, Chris, stop. I love you. We’ve got to get you some help.
That certainly sounds more like a concerned parent than a stringent exec, and the former definitely tracks for Michaels. Over the years, many SNL alums have spoken about receiving guidance from Michaels or being on the receiving end of a kind gesture from him. For example, Pete Davidson has spoken about Michaels stepping in as a father-like figure after his own dad died on 9/11. Maya Rudolph also gushed about her former boss suggesting a nursery be built in her office after finding out she was pregnant.
In the case of Chris Farley, he sadly died at the age of 33 of an overdose in 1997, and his loss is still felt by so many. What still gives me comfort, though, is him having people like Lorne Michaels and Melanie Hutsell in his corner while contending with his personal challenges. Farley remains immortalized due to his work on Saturday Night Live, and anyone who has a Peacock subscription can enjoy that work by streaming those classic episodes.
