Tina Fey’s now famous impersonations of Sarah Palin first appeared on Saturday Night Live (SNL) on September 13th of last year. Fey had left the show the previous year and was returning as a guest star. The appearance was affectionately mocking, with Fey - a dead ringer for Palin.
The next month, Fey appeared on another Palin sketch on SNL. It earned the highest ratings for the show in 14 years and also helped boost the viewers for her current project, the critically acclaimed sitcom, 30 Rock.
The venue was an ideal launching pad for the Pennsylvanian writer as it capitalised on her sketch-writing skills and gave her an opportunity to act in front of a live audience. It remains a Petri dish of budding comic talent, with a list of alumni that any theatre would be proud.
Bill Murray, Dan Akroyd, Alan Arkin, Joan Rivers, Mike Myers and Steve Carrell all started off there. It was in Second City that Fey met numerous future co-stars of Saturday Night Live and a writer that would give her the biggest break of her career.