Recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced 1987–88

The following is a list of recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced between October 17, 1987, and February 27, 1988, the thirteenth season of SNL.

Pumping Up with Hans and Franz

Dana Carvey and Kevin Nealon play two Austrian jocks, inspired by Arnold Schwarzenegger. Debuted October 17, 1987.

Appearances

Season	Episode	Host	Notes
13	October 17, 1987	Steve Martin
13	November 21, 1987	Candice Bergen
13	December 19, 1987	Paul Simon
13	January 23, 1988	Robin Williams
13	February 27, 1988	Judge Reinhold
14	October 8, 1988	Tom Hanks
14	November 12, 1988	Demi Moore
14	December 3, 1988	Danny DeVito
14	February 25, 1989	Glenn Close
14	May 20, 1989	Steve Martin
15	October 7, 1989	Rick Moranis
15	November 18, 1989	Woody Harrelson
15	February 10, 1990	Quincy Jones
16	October 27, 1990	Patrick Swayze
16	March 23, 1991	Jeremy Irons
16	April 20, 1991	Steven Seagal
17	October 26, 1991	Christian Slater
18	October 31, 1992	Catherine O'Hara
20	October 22, 1994	Dana Carvey	Weekend Update
25	October 16, 1999	Heather Graham	Where Are They Now?

Dennis Miller

Dana Carvey impersonates the Weekend Update anchor beside him.

Appearances

Season	Episode	Host	Notes
13	December 19, 1987	Paul Simon
14	October 22, 1988	John Larroquette
14	December 17, 1988	Melanie Griffith
15	October 28, 1989	James Woods
16	December 8, 1990	Tom Hanks	with "Dennis Miller" (Tom Hanks)
17	May 16, 1992	Woody Harrelson	during Johnny Carson final show spoof cold open (solo, not with Dennis Miller)

Tonto, Tarzan and Frankenstein's Monster

This trio showcased three popular film characters who were probably least likely to get together and sing because they are all known for their inability to speak proper English. Tonto (played by Jon Lovitz) and Tarzan (played by Kevin Nealon) mostly spoke the lyrics in broken English, leaving out certain verbs and pronouns, while Frankenstein's Monster (played by Phil Hartman) usually just growled and moaned, rarely forming any semblance of the actual words, though he could opine that "bread good" and "fire bad". They came together to sing "We Are the World", and during the holidays they would usually sing Christmas carols. On one occasion, they recited Edgar Allan Poe's classic poem "The Raven". For Easter, the trio were joined by Frankenstein's Monster's evil twin (Mel Gibson), who spoke whole sentences; they sang "Here Comes Peter Cottontail". All four, plus Tarzan's own Jane, starred in their own sporadic soap opera, "As World Turn" (taken from the long-running As the World Turns). Debuted December 19, 1987 and appeared in the early 1990s.

Appearances

Season	Episode	Host	Notes
13	December 19, 1987	Paul Simon
14	December 17, 1988	Melanie Griffith
14	January 28, 1989	Tony Danza
14	April 1, 1989	Mel Gibson
14	May 20, 1989	Steve Martin
15	October 28, 1989	James Woods
15	November 18, 1989	Woody Harrelson
15	December 16, 1989	Andie MacDowell
15	February 10, 1990	Quincy Jones
17	December 14, 1991	Steve Martin	with Chris Farley replacing Tonto

Appearances

Tarzan:

November 19, 1988

Frankenstein's Monster:

January 19, 1991
April 17, 1993
March 23, 1996

Learning To Feel

A Nora Dunn sketch. Debuted January 23, 1988.

Appearances

Season	Episode	Host
13	January 23, 1988	Robin Williams
13	February 13, 1988	Justine Bateman
14	October 15, 1988	Matthew Broderick

Girl Watchers

A Tom Hanks and Jon Lovitz sketch. Two men comment to each other as they leer at passing women. Their cocksure tone of voice never changes, even as they acknowledge that no woman would ever find them attractive. Debuted February 20, 1988.

Appearances

Season	Episode	Host
13	February 20, 1988	Tom Hanks
14	October 8, 1988	Tom Hanks
15	February 17, 1990	Tom Hanks

References

Preceded by Recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced 1986-87	Recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches (listed chronologically)	Succeeded by Recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced 1988-89