A classic Saturday Night Live sketch mocking Aerosmith nearly sparked a backstage fistfight among cast members.
The incident took place in January 1995, during a season 20 episode hosted by actor Jeff Daniels. Adam Sandler, then one of SNL’s breakout stars, wrote a fake commercial for a compilation called Aerosmith’s Greatest Hits: 1990-1994. The sketch mocked the band’s early ‘90s output — specifically the songs “Crazy,” “Cryin'” and “Amazing” –as every song in the fake commercial sounded the same but with slightly altered lyrics.
Sandler starred as Steven Tyler in the scene, and he recruited castmate Jay Mohr to play Joe Perry.
“As Adam sang every song, it became clear that the guitar part never changed. The sad part was that it was true,” Mohr recalled in his book Gasping for Airtime. The comedian asked Saturday Night Live bandleader G.E. Smith if the criticism of Aerosmith was valid, only to have the guitarist show him just how accurate it was.
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“[Smith] swore he could play fifteen Aerosmith songs and never move a finger,” Mohr continued. “I didn’t believe him until he launched into“Cryin’,” then “Crazy,” without changing the position of any of his fingers on the fret. He put together a quick medley of Aerosmith songs to prove his point. He was right. Through five different hits, his hand never budged.”
At the time, Mohr — who had been struggling for airtime on SNL — was ecstatic to be in a sketch opposite Sandler. However the tone soon shifted moments before they went live.
Adam Sandler and Jay Mohr ‘Almost Came to Blows’ Over the Aerosmith Sketch
Sandler and Mohr were standing under a set of audience bleachers during a commercial break, waiting for their cue to start the Aerosmith sketch.
“I had shaved my chest to look more like Joe Perry. I was wearing leather pants and a cool wig with long curly hair, and I had a guitar slung around my neck,” Mohr recalled. “Sandler was dressed just like Steven Tyler. His wig was perfect and his clothes were right on the money—except that he was wearing a pair of sunglasses that looked like Elton John’s.”
Wanting everything to be perfect, Mohr suggested Sandler switch his eyewear, but the star declined. “With about thirty seconds left in the commercial break, I tried again, telling him that he should get a better pair of sunglasses,” Mohr explained. “He glared at me. ‘Why don’t you shut the f— up!’ Adam yelled.”
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“I was stunned,” Mohr continued. “Looking back, I realize my timing was inappropriate. Since he had written the sketch for himself and was gracious enough to include me, what the hell did I care what kind of sunglasses he had on? But I did care. For some reason I cared a lot.”
Mohr conceded that the seemingly innocuous argument was rooted in something deeper. He “resented” Sandler for the attention he had been getting from SNL fans and dreamed of getting more airtime on the show. What started as a disagreement over sunglasses “almost came to blows,” however the presence of the studio audience stopped that from happening.
‘He Didn’t Apologize and Neither Did I’
“I wanted to hit him or at least shout back, but I couldn’t help but feel forty eyes on me—twenty people who if they saw Adam Sandler and a guy in a curly wig in a fistfight would dive out of the bleachers and kick the s— out of me,” Mohr noted. “The worst part for me was that they all saw the entire exchange. I must have looked like a real ass—- telling Adam Sandler to change his sunglasses. There wasn’t time to think of a response because we were soon whisked onto the stage for the sketch.”
Despite the backstage drama, Sandler and Mohr delivered the Aerosmith sketch without any problems. The gag got a solid laugh from the audience, and after two and a half minutes, they were onto the next skit.
“As we walked off the stage, Sandler came up to me,” Mohr recalled. “‘We’re good,’ he said. ‘Respect.’ He didn’t apologize and neither did I.”
At the end of that season, Saturday Night Live went through an overhaul. Ten cast members were either fired or quit, including Sandler and Mohr. Others who exited included Chris Farley, Ellen Cleghorne, Chris Elliott, Al Franken and Kevin Nealon.