The end of the hottest night clubs in New York. (NBC(

Perhaps Semisonic said it best: "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."

This weekend marked the 38th season finale of Saturday Night Live, arguably one of the best runs the NBC variety show has seen in recent years. This is thanks in large part to fresh featured members like Cecily Strong and Kate McKinnon as well as the new repertory cast of Taran Killam, Vanessa Bayer, Bobby Moynihan, and Nasim Pedrad. These relatively young comedians were able to fill the hole made last season by the departures of heavy-hitters Kristen Wiig, Andy Samberg and Abby Elliott, and gave the show, in the words of Bill Hader, "a new sensibility."

"There’s a joy in seeing a new move from somebody and going, ‘Oh, she can do that,'" Mr. Hader told The New York Times last week.

But the Ben Affleck/Kanye West-hosted finale was also bittersweet, with several major players--including Fred Armisen, Weekend Update's Seth Meyers (who was also the show's head writer) and Bill Hader--taking their final bows, leaving the cast virtually unrecognizable from two years ago. (This will especially be true if Jason Sudeikis just makes up his mind already and leaves during the summer.)

Despite the fact that SNL doesn't usually make a big deal about a player leaving the cast, last year's tribute to Wiig seems to have upped the ante for their own farewells. Here is how each member said goodbye.

Seth Meyers and Bill Hader: Stefon and Seth Get Married

Fred Armisen: Top of the Pops

Though the sketch wasn't the funniest of the night, it was, like Wiig's, a heartfelt goodbye in song, with Armisen ending on the lines, "It’s been all right / I’ve had a lovely night with you."

Amber Tamblyn and David Cross.

– Lindsay Lohan and her mom got into a limo fight on Long Island that was so bad the cops needed to be called. Which means it must have been really bad, because limo fights on Long Island is like traffic on the FDR: pretty routine on the weekdays.

– Amber Tamblyn and David Cross got married, and if that thought doesn't creep you out, you should check out their adorable Instagrammed wedding photos from the upstate ceremony.

– Samantha Geimer, the woman who at 13 was at the center of Polanski rape scandal, is now writing a tell-all book. That will not be making Lena Dunham money, even.

– Did you ever want to know what sex with Olivia Wilde and Jason Sudeikis was like? Okay, it's like having sex with Kenyan marathon runners. How delightful!

– Monica Lewinsky is just out and about these days, eating cake in the rain.

Jason Sudeikis as Mitt Romney

Good news for anyone who loves Mitt Romney impressions! Saturday Night Live cast member Jason Sudeikis--who was long rumored to be the third person exiting NBC's late night show after last season, but was then beaten to the punch by Abby Elliott--will be returning for the 38th season.


This news comes on the heels of an announcement about the three new cast members, including the first-ever plus-sized actress on SNL, Aidy Bryant.

According to Lorne Michaels, Mr. Sudeikis isn't guaranteed to stay on SNL all season, but will be there "at least until January," giving the actor enough time to perfect his Romney concession speech before gracefully exiting, stage left.

Abby Elliott (Getty Images)

In a surprising off-season announcement, comedy heiress Abby Elliott announced she won't be returning to Saturday Night Live on September 15th. In 2008, Elliott—whose grandfather is comedy legend Bob Elliott and whose father, Chris Elliott, is an SNL alum—became one of the youngest cast members in the show's history at age 21. She is the fourth performer to leave after last season's finale, following Kristen Wiig, Andy Samberg and possibly Jason Sudeikis.

The news of Ms. Elliott's departure was given as an exclusive to Splitsider.com, the comedy website spun off of the Awl.com ... which makes sense, as Splitsider's editor in chief Adam Frucci (who also wrote the post about Ms. Elliott) is dating SNL writer Sarah Schnieder. Ms. Elliott and Ms. Schneider shared an office and collaborated on sketches including the famously funny 'Bein Quirky with Zooey Deschanel.'

No word yet on how this will affect the cast for the show's 39th season, or if Lorne Michaels will be auditioning any more women to join the ensemble.

Are these three leaving SNL? (Getty Images)

Okay, before anyone has a heart-attack, consider the source of the information that three major players on Saturday Night Live--Kristen Wiig, Jason Sudeikis, and Andy Samberg--might be leaving the show. Especially since the source is an anonymous one, and they are giving away Lorne Michaels' secrets to Us Weekly.

"Exclusive: Kristen Wiig, Andy Samberg Jason Sudeikis to Leave Saturday Night Live?" Reads the explosive headline this afternoon. (We love how unconfirmed rumors that warrant a question mark at the end of the title count as exclusives.)

"Kristen Wiig, Andy Samberg and Jason Sudeikis are all leaving after the end of the season," says one insider. "It will be a huge blow to the show. Without Andy's video shorts and Kristen saving every skit, they'll need help!"

Now, the next sentence involves Ms. Wiig and Mr. Sudeikis' reps denying that any decision has been made, but it's the Bridesmaids star's exit is the most logical to actually happen. (Why else would SNL be looking for another female comedian?) Her career could stand by its own, and people have left the show for worse reasons. (People have also stayed on the show for worse reasons...Bill Hader, you need to get yourself a starring lead in something!)

Mr. Sudeikis? Meh: He's been doing fine in some secondary parts in films like Terrible Bosses and Hall Pass, but if he's leaving SNL, he better have something really great lined up. Like another show. Which reminds us...if Fred Armisen can stay on while doing Portlandia, it's probably not a conflict of schedules holding the Mitt Romney impersonator back.

As for Andy Samberg? It's true the show would be crippled by the loss of both him and Lonely Island, but he's also the least likely to leave. He's been given his own hall pass on the show: only performing in a couple sketches (sometimes as little as two a night) and doing the digital shorts. Unless it's his way of playing chicken with contract negotiations coming up, in which case, anything can happen.

So that's a possibly, one maybe, and one wild card. Keep your inhalers nearby as we near the season finale!

Handlebar and all, Axl Rose preaches the rock gospel. (Paul Bruinooge/ PatrickMcMullan)

In celebration of the long desired end of Fashion Week, DeLeon Tequila and Nur Khan hosted what would be the last of their fabled Electric Sessions last night at the Hiro Ballroom (which, for the record, is still open) with Guns n’ Roses.

The Observer plays the waiting game.

• Doors at 9 p.m., we pop in around 10:30 hoping to dodge most of the wait for what was rumored to be an 11 p.m. start time. Seems like a decent idea, right?
• 11:15 hits and we bump into a few friends who had just left the temporary palatial penthouse home of Axl Rose at The SoHo Grand Hotel: “Yeah man, we were just over there and literally 10 minutes ago they ordered a ton of room service.” This did not bode well for a packed house hungry for high school rock.
• We spot a glowing Sienna Miller holding court with boyfriend and baby daddy Tom Sturridge, and can’t help but think that dude should lock it down.
• Olivia Wilde and Jason Sudeikis host an impeccably attractive table in the slightly grungy Hiro.
• Even Jared Leto seemed a bit confused as to where the rock band was hiding.
• Checking in with Tyler Winklevoss. We both immediately realize how bratty we feel when we grumble about waiting around for a free GnR show.
• Wanting to get the real school, we shoot Nur a text, who is quick to inform The Observer that Axl is in fact slated to go on at 12:15, and relief washes over us like an awesome wave.

Damon and a homeless dude people were freaking out about. (Paul Bruinooge/ PatrickMcMullan)

A bit more mulling about, and we see Nur take the stage.

• “Yo, shit, that’s Nur dude! They’re totally about to come on!” remarks a hyper observant party-goer.
• In the corner of our eye we spot Justin Timberlake and Matt Damon stopping to strike a pose in front of the camera. Both card-carrying members of the way-more-famous-than-you club.
• Ok, wait. Something’s happening – the lights are dimming, cigarettes ritualistically lighting up, the slow rolling “unnnghhhhhhhhhh” of a bass guitar being flicked on.
• There he is. Axl Rose himself. Handlebar moustache in full effect: “How are you tonight, fucktards!?!” he asks politely before launching into his first song, ‘You’re Crazy.’
• We notice a tweet from a colleague a few hordes of people away: “Holy shit, Axl Rose still has it.” And he did, in fact, still have it.
• Warm up out of the way, Axl takes the microphone to his lips, stares deep into each and everyone’s soul, and posits the question: “Do you know where you are?” We were in the jungle, baby.

Spacey.

It’s official: I’ve lost my mojo (temporarily, I hope) and I’m ready for the cracker factory. How else to explain the fact that I actually had a very good time laughing myself silly at a rude romp called Horrible Bosses? Crudely contrived, filled with the kind of sexual gags, filthy dialogue, homophobic jibes, misogynistic insults and racial slurs that bring new meaning to political incorrectness, it’s one of those revolting, raunch-fueled movies churned out in their sleep by the Farrelly brothers and Judd Apatow that I usually hate, but with real cleverness, off-center wit and edgy imagination. Imagine an X-rated Three Stooges farce, and you get the picture.

The plot is simple: Three upscale slacker buddies in suits are so abused in their jobs they want to kill their bosses. Nick, played by the appealing, immensely talented and criminally underrated Jason Bateman, is a wage slave to a big management corporation who is so overworked he hasn’t had sex in six months with anyone other  than himself. After eight years of sacrifice, working 12-hour days and sucking up to  one of the most evil bosses on the planet (Kevin Spacey, hilarious in the toxic mendacity department), Nick deserves a raise. Instead, he gets a wrist watch and a pink slip. Dale (Charlie Day, from  It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) is a dental assistant who works for a crazy, self-centered, sexually obsessed predator who grabs his crotch in a hammerlock hold while she drills root canals (Jennifer Aniston, in the funniest role—maybe only funny role?—of her career). Kurt (Jason Sudeikis) is the account manager at a chemical company where his beloved boss (Donald Sutherland) dies and leaves everything to his sleazy, oversexed cokehead son (an unrecognizable Colin Farrell with a bald head and rolling eyes like targets on a rifle range). These are bosses from hell. Foaming at the mouth with the malignant villainy of Richard III, Mr. Spacey snarls at Mr. Bateman, “I own you. You are my bitch. So get used to it.  You’re in for the long haul.”

Fed up with sexual  harassment, slimy office  politics and no possibility of parole, these spineless losers take stock and decide their only options are misery or murder. So they spend the majority of the movie plotting ways to rid themselves of their albatrosses, opening up a string of possibilities for mirth and mayhem that end in myriad surprises. After getting the plot of Strangers on a Train mixed up with Throw Momma From the Train, they give up the idea of killing each other’s bosses and settle on hiring a hit man. The first one is an S&M master who thinks they’ve ordered a kink job to pee on them. Mortified, they end up in a dangerous black neighborhood and ante up their last $5,000 to hire a professional killer with a name you can’t print in a newspaper (Jamie Foxx). After taking their money, this terrifying thug turns out to  have done some time, all right—for nothing more serious than video piracy.

And on it goes, spiraling into one wild, spontaneous comic situation after another. Accidentally, bodies fall, corpses mount, fate plays the trump card and nothing wraps up as expected. In the zaniest scenes, inspiration comes from great movie references, and these modern Marx Brothers are always one step ahead of both the killers and the cops. The psycho humor in Horrible Bosses literally smokes, thanks to balanced direction by Seth Gordon, a cockeyed script by Michael Markowitz, John Francis Daley and  Jonathan Goldstein and truly creative work by the entire cast. Mr. Bateman is perfect as the brains of the trio and Mr. Day is delightful as the lunatic who does everything wrong. As much as I hated Mr. Sudeikis in the nauseating Hall Pass (he’s also one of the worst things that ever happened to Saturday Night Live), he makes a believable group lover boy, all cleaned up, close-shaved and hair neatly parted. Mr. Farrell’s creepy comb-over and trashy office full of hot and cold running prostitutes (if I’m not mistaken, one was a dude) are twisted comic profiles close to legendary status. They all left me in stitches, in spite of myself. Jennifer Aniston simulating fellatio with a banana?  What are you waiting for?

rreed@observer.com

HORRIBLE BOSSES

Running time 100 minutes

Written by Michael Markowitz, John Francis Daley, Jonathan  Goldstein

Directed by Seth Gordon

Starring Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Kevin Spacey

3/4

Since no thought has been wasted on plot, narrative coherence, character development, direction, acting, technical artistry or anything that might pass for intelligence, I don't see much point in discussing any aspect of this stinker in depth. The basics are simple-mindedly simple. Rick (gap-toothed, broken-nosed Owen Wilson) and his best friend, Fred (Jason Sudeikis, another in a stampede of Saturday Night Live refugees dementedly suffering from Will Ferrell envy), are two aging dweebs who never quite mastered toilet training. If the kingdom of marriage is ruled by betrayal, deception, anxiety and the seven-year itch, these two knobs are crown princes. When they say, "I may be committed but I'm not dead," they mean it. A ball game in the park is a "buffet of ass." Their lives are so deadly that a big evening out is Kathy Griffin tickets. So along comes expert relationship counselor Joy Behar (say what?), who advises the wives to give their husbands a "hall pass"--in normal Webster's grammar, a week's vacation from marriage vows with no strings attached. For these sex-obsessed "horny bobble heads," this is like giving a miniature chihuahua a 5-pound box of fudge--which would undoubtedly be more fun and less homicidal than anything in Hall Pass.

At first it seems like Horny Dog Heaven. But whereas the wives (Jenna Fischer and Christina Applegate) head for Cape Cod, the guys turn out to be such losers they don't do anything but play video games. (They're so hopeless at sex that they think the place to go to meet sluts is Applebee's.) After moving to the sleazy Comfy Nite Inn, Rick tries to pick up bimbos with lines like "You must be from Ireland, because when I look at you, my penis is Dublin"; Fred spends most of his time masturbating in parked cars. The Farrellys' continuing obsession with defecation runs amok; so many scenes literally focus on close-ups of the S-word that if you don't close your eyes to keep from retching, you're a tougher man than I, Gunga Din. When Fred brings home a trashy date with diarrhea that explodes all over the white walls, Hall Pass breaks the Disgust Meter. While Rick races to Cape Cod to rescue his wife, who has been humping a baseball player years younger than she is, Fred ends up with Rick's baby sitter's aunt, who turns out to be the mother of a gun-wielding mentally defective disc jockey.

But enough. Full-frontal nudity, homophobia, rampant put-downs of women, endless toilet scenes and dialogue you wouldn't find even in back issues of the old Screw magazine make Hall Pass not only disgusting and unendurable, but filthy and boring, too. While I don't believe there are any grown men, living or dead, who resemble the idiots in this movie, I'm told, to my horror, that there is still an audience that loves to laugh at flatulence, body functions, fluid eliminations and dirt you wouldn't hear on a tramp steamer headed for Devil's Island. Next time you fly, collect some of those barf bags they give away. They come in handy watching movies like Hall Pass. 

rreed@observer.com

Hall Pass

Running time 98 minutes

Written by Peter and Bobby Farrelly with Pete Jones and Kevin Barnett

Directed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly

Starring Owen Wilson, Jason Sudeikis, Christina Applegate, Jenna Fischer

0/4