"Wayne's World" was originally a recurring sketch from the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

television series ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves ...

''. It evolved from a segment titled "Wayne's Power Minute" (1987) on the

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French- ...

series '' It's Only Rock & Roll'', as the main character first appeared in that show. A prototype of the Wayne character had appeared several years prior on

CITY-TV CITY-DT (channel 57) is a television station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, serving as the flagship station of the Citytv network. It is owned and operated by network parent Rogers Sports & Media alongside Omni Television outlets CFMT-DT (chan ...

in Toronto's overnight show ''

City Limits City limits or city boundaries refer to the defined boundary or border of a city. The area within the city limit can be called the city proper. Town limit/boundary and village limit/boundary apply to towns and villages. Similarly, corporate li ...

''. The ''Saturday Night Live'' sketch spawned a hit

1992 film Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 ''Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since the ...

, its 1993 sequel, and several catchphrases which have since entered the pop-culture lexicon. The sketch centered on a local

public-access television Public-access television is traditionally a form of non-commercial mass media where the general public can create content television programming which is narrowcast through cable television specialty channels. Public-access television was creat ...

program in

Aurora, Illinois Aurora is a city in the Chicago metropolitan area located partially in DuPage, Kane, Kendall, and Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Located primarily in DuPage and Kane counties, it is the second most populous city in Illinois, a ...

, hosted by Wayne Campbell (

Mike Myers Michael John Myers OC (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. His accolades include seven MTV Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2002, he was awarded a star on the Hollywoo ...

, the same actor from "Wayne's Power Minute"), an enthusiastic long-haired metalhead, and his timid and sometimes high-strung, yet equally metal-loving sidekick and best friend, Garth Algar (

Dana Carvey Dana Thomas Carvey (born June 2, 1955) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, impressionist, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for his seven seasons as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1986 to 1993, which earned him fiv ...

). Wayne lives with his parents and broadcasts his show "live" from the basement of their house every Friday evening at 10:30. The first "Wayne's World" sketch appeared in the 13th ''Saturday Night Live'' episode of the 1988/1989 season.

Format of sketches

The show would open with Wayne and Garth singing the opening theme, accompanied by Wayne's frenetic strumming of his guitar, and Garth drumming on his lap with drum sticks. The two would introduce themselves (Garth: "Party on, Wayne." Wayne: "Party on, Garth.") and then proceed into their various exploits, including discussions of their love of hard rock bands and "babes", as well as juvenile antics, such as the "Extreme Close-Up" (where a camera would zoom in on Wayne and Garth as they screamed) and tricking their unsuspecting guests into saying vulgar words. Garth would frequently get overexcited and lose control, upon which Wayne would have to tell him, "Take your

Ritalin Methylphenidate, sold under the brand names Ritalin and Concerta among others, is the most widely prescribed central nervous system (CNS) stimulant medication used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and, to a lesser extent ...

." Sketches also often included dream sequences where Wayne and Garth imagine themselves in fantasy settings. The sequences were introduced with Wayne and Garth imitating a

fade-out In audio engineering, a fade is a gradual increase or decrease in the level of an audio signal. The term can also be used for film cinematography or theatre lighting in much the same way (see fade (filmmaking) and fade (lighting)). A reco ...

by waving their arms in front of them and imitating a commonly used fade-out sound effect accompanied by an excerpt from

Gary Wright Gary Malcolm Wright (born April 26, 1943) is an American musician and composer best known for his 1976 hit songs "Dream Weaver" and " Love Is Alive", and for his role in helping establish the synthesizer as a leading instrument in rock and pop ...

's "

Dream Weaver "Dream Weaver" is a song by the American singer Gary Wright, released as the first single from his third studio album ''The Dream Weaver'' in December 1975. Origins and instrumentation The track features Wright on vocals and keyboards and Jim ...

". Notable dream sequences include Wayne defeating

Wayne Gretzky Wayne Douglas Gretzky ( ; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999. Nicknamed "the Great One ...

in a one-on-one hockey game, upon which

Janet Jones Janet may refer to: Names * Janet (given name) * Janet (French singer) (1939–2011) Surname * Charles Janet (1849–1932), French engineer, inventor and biologist, known for the Left Step periodic table * Jules Janet (1861–1945), French psych ...

runs to kiss Wayne, and Wayne and Garth meeting

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

in a spoof of her '' Madonna: Truth or Dare'' film and controversial music video for " Justify My Love". Wayne dares Madonna to make out with him while Garth is seen dancing in a parody of the video. In the early sketches, Wayne and Garth are high school students, and their guests on the show included their teachers (including one played by Ed O'Neill, who would later play a very similar character in both films), and other students from school (such as Nancy, a "babe" played by

Jan Hooks Janet Vivian HooksJan Hooks obituary
liteseyfh.com; accesse ...

). Other frequent guests included Garth's father, "Beev" (played by

Phil Hartman Philip Edward Hartman (; September 24, 1948 – May 28, 1998) was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter and graphic designer. Hartman was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, and his family moved to the United States w ...

), so named because of his teeth. He was often ridiculed by Wayne despite the fact that he was married to Hillary Algar (

Candice Bergen Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an American actress. She won five Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal of the title character on the CBS sitcom ''Murphy Brown'' (1988–1998, 2018). She is also kno ...

), whom Wayne considers a babe. In later appearances Wayne and Garth appear to be young adults (although Wayne still lives with his parents—a theme which would carry over to the first

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

), and their discussions shifted more towards current events and pop-culture phenomena, with the show featuring actual celebrity guests. A notable sketch featured Wayne and Garth in a

jam session A jam session is a relatively informal musical event, process, or activity where musicians, typically instrumentalists, play improvised solos and vamp over tunes, drones, songs, and chord progressions. To "jam" is to improvise music without ...

with their idols, the rock band

Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of Steven Tyler (lead vocals), Joe Perry (guitar), Tom Hamilton (bass), Joey Kramer (drums) and Brad Whitford (guitar). Their style, which is rooted in blues ...

, performing an extended, hard rock version of the "Wayne's World" theme song, written by Myers and SNL music director G.E. Smith.

Tom Hanks Thomas Jeffrey Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. Known for both his comedic and dramatic roles, he is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide, and is regarded as an American cultural icon. Ha ...

played Garth's cousin, Barry, who was an Aerosmith roadie who checked the microphone and set up the performance. This sketch was listed as moment #1 in the TV special 'Saturday Night Live: 101 Most Unforgettable Moments.'

Other formats

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in mor ...

released a ''Wayne's World'' VCR Board Game in 1992. The game featured a videotape with approximately 30 minutes of new footage recorded of Myers & Carvey as Wayne & Garth. A video game loosely based on the first film was released in 1993 for NES,

SNES The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in Eu ...

, Nintendo

Game Boy The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on April 21, 1989, in North America later the same year, and in Europe in late 1990. It was designed by the same t ...

, and

Sega Genesis The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Syst ...

. There was also a PC

point and click Point and click are the actions of a computer user moving a pointer to a certain location on a screen (''pointing'') and then pressing a button on a mouse, usually the left button (''click''), or other pointing device. An example of point and cl ...

adventure. A "Wayne's World" sketchbook was also sold around the time of the premiere of the first film. It included a mail-in-offer for Wayne's trademark ballcap and showed various celebrities such as

Elvira Elvira is a female given name. First recorded in medieval Spain, it is likely of Germanic (Gothic) origin. Elvira may refer to: People Nobility * Elvira Menéndez (died 921), daughter of Hermenegildo Gutiérrez and wife of Ordoño II of Leó ...

and

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...

modeling the same hat Wayne wore. " Gawain's Word", a regular segment on the children's educational show ''

Between the Lions ''Between the Lions'' is an American animated/live-action/puppet children's television series designed to promote reading. The show was a co-production between WGBH in Boston and Sirius Thinking, Ltd., in New York City, in association with Mis ...

'', takes inspiration from both the "Wayne's World" sketch and its theme song. It was also spoofed in the film '' Stay Tuned'' with the sketch "Duane's Underworld" (Myers and Carvey were offered the chance to cameo as their characters but were filming ''Wayne's World'' at the time). An episode of the sitcom '' Step by Step'' also featured character J.T. ( Brandon Call) hosting his own show, appropriately titled "J.T.'s World", in which J.T. (with sidekick Cody) singing the theme song, which sounds similar to Wayne's theme. On a 1995 episode of ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000 ...

'',

Telly Monster The Muppets are a group of puppet characters created by Jim Henson, many for the purpose of appearing on the children's television program '' Sesame Street''. Some of the best known Muppets on ''Sesame Street'' include Big Bird, Oscar the Gr ...

and

Big Bird Big Bird is a Muppet character designed by Jim Henson and built by Kermit Love for the long-running children's television show ''Sesame Street''. An eight-foot two-inch (249 cm) tall bright yellow anthropomorphic bird, he can roller skat ...

hosted "Telly's Town", which featured Myers guest starring as Wayne, though portrayed as a delivery man. The "Wayne's World" soundtrack contained the extra-long hard rock version of the theme song that was performed by Aerosmith in the famous sketch. As the song is winding down, an

easter egg Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are decorated for the Christian feast of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are common during the season of Eastertide (Easter season). The oldest tr ...

can be heard where Myers and Carvey are peppering the guitar riffs with quips from their other SNL characters such as "Isn't that special?" (

Church Lady Enid Strict, better known as The Church Lady, is a recurring character from a series of sketches on the American television show, ''Saturday Night Live'', that appeared from 1986 to 1990, and again in 1996, 2000, 2011, and 2016. She also appeared o ...

), "Don't look at my bum!" (Simon), "Not gonna do it! Not gonna do it!" ( George H. W. Bush).

List of ''SNL'' episodes featured

#February 18, 1989 (

Leslie Nielsen Leslie William Nielsen (11 February 192628 November 2010) was a Canadian actor and comedian. With a career spanning 60 years, he appeared in more than 100 films and 150 television programs, portraying more than 220 characters. Nielsen was bo ...

) #March 25, 1989 (

Mary Tyler Moore Mary Tyler Moore (December 29, 1936 – January 25, 2017) was an American actress, producer, and social advocate. She is best known for her roles on '' The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (1961–1966) and '' The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (1970–1977), whi ...

) #May 13, 1989 (

) #September 30, 1989 (

Bruce Willis Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is a retired American actor. He achieved fame with a leading role on the comedy-drama series ''Moonlighting'' (1985–1989) and appeared in over a hundred films, gaining recognition as an action hero a ...

) #December 2, 1989 (

John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, ...

) #January 13, 1990 ( Ed O'Neill) #February 17, 1990 (

) (

guest star in this skit) #March 24, 1990 (

Debra Winger Debra Lynn Wingerhttps://www.pressreader.com/usa/closer-weekly/20200511/282084868951188https://www.discountmags.com/magazine/closer-weekly-may-11-2020-digital/in-this-issue/99961 (born May 16, 1955)https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Inter ...

) #May 19, 1990 (

) #December 1, 1990 (John Goodman) #January 19, 1991 (

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-earth ...

) #March 23, 1991 (

Jeremy Irons Jeremy John Irons (; born 19 September 1948) is an English actor and activist. After receiving classical training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Irons began his acting career on stage in 1969 and has appeared in many West End theatre ...

) #May 11, 1991 (

Delta Burke Delta Ramona Leah Burke (born July 30, 1956) is an American actress, producer, and author. From 1986 to 1991, she starred as Suzanne Sugarbaker in the CBS sitcom ''Designing Women'', for which she was nominated for two Emmy Awards for Outstan ...

) (Madonna guest stars in this skit) #September 28, 1991 (

) #January 18, 1992 (

Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor and writer. He became a key cast member in the first season of '' Saturday Night Live'', where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment became a staple of the ...

) #April 11, 1992 (

Sharon Stone Sharon Vonne Stone (born March 10, 1958) is an American actress. Known for primarily playing femme fatales and women of mystery on film and television, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1990s. She is the recipient of various ...

) #December 5, 1992 (

Tom Arnold Tom Arnold may refer to: * Tom Arnold (actor) (born 1959), American actor * Tom Arnold (economist) (born 1948), Irish CEO of Concern Worldwide * Tom Arnold (footballer) (1878–?), English footballer * Tom Arnold (literary scholar) (1823–1900), B ...

) #November 20, 1993 (

Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...

) #May 14, 1994 ( Heather Locklear) (Wayne fantasizes he's in ''

Melrose Place ''Melrose Place'' is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on Fox from July 8, 1992, to May 24, 1999, for seven seasons. The show follows the lives of a group of young adults living in an apartment complex on Melrose Place, i ...

'') #February 5, 2011 (

) #February 15, 2015 (

Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special "''Saturday Night Live'' 40th Anniversary Special" (also billed as "SNL40") is a three-and-a-half-hour prime-time special that aired on February 15, 2015, on NBC, celebrating ''Saturday Night Live''s 40th year on the air, having premiered on Oc ...

)

The films

The sketch was adapted into a film, ''

Wayne's World "Wayne's World" was originally a recurring sketch from the NBC television series ''Saturday Night Live''. It evolved from a segment titled "Wayne's Power Minute" (1987) on the CBC Television series '' It's Only Rock & Roll'', as the main charact ...

'', in 1992, and a sequel, ''

Wayne's World 2 ''Wayne's World 2'' is a 1993 American comedy film directed by Stephen Surjik and starring Mike Myers and Dana Carvey as hosts of a public-access television cable television show in Aurora, Illinois. The film is the sequel to ''Wayne's World'' ( ...

'', in 1993.

Overseas

In the United Kingdom, where ''Saturday Night Live'' is rarely shown, ''Wayne's World'' sketches were extracted from ''SNL'' broadcasts and individually packaged as 10-minute episodes which aired on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream a ...

as part of the ''

DEF II DEF II was a programming strand on BBC2, which aired at 6 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays from 9 May 1988 to 23 May 1994, to serve the teenage market. It was produced by Janet Street-Porter, and followed on from her influential youth TV show '' N ...

'' programming strand, simply as a tie-in with both ''Wayne's World'' movies.

2008 MTV Movie Awards

Mike Myers and Dana Carvey reprised their roles as Wayne and Garth for the first time since 1994 at the

2008 MTV Movie Awards The 2008 MTV Movie Awards was the 17th annual movie awards show and was broadcast live on Sunday, June 1, at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, California. The ceremonies were hosted by Mike Myers. Performers *Coldplay — "Viva la Vida" * ...

. Nothing about the two seems to have changed, except both are now in their late-forties/early-fifties, and Garth has gotten pubes he named "Fred" and "Tony." The sketch features them discussing

Tila Tequila Nguyễn Thị Thiên Thanh (born October 24, 1981), better known by her stage names Tila Tequila, Tila Nguyen, Miss Tila and Tornado Thien, is an American television and social media personality. She first gained recognition for her active p ...

and making a list about the best

porn Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,

movie names based on films from 2007 and 2008, which is reminiscent of the sketches during Myers and Carvey's years at ''Saturday Night Live''.

2011 SNL reprise

In 2011, Myers and Carvey once again reprised their roles on the February 5 edition of ''Saturday Night Live'', which Carvey hosted. ''Wayne's World'' appeared as a

cold open A cold open (also called a teaser sequence) is a narrative technique used in television and films. It is the practice of jumping directly into a story at the beginning of the show before the title sequence or opening credits are shown. In Amer ...

, in which the two discuss their picks for the upcoming

Oscars The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

. They favor the movie ''

Winter's Bone ''Winter's Bone'' is a 2010 American coming-of-age mystery drama film directed by Debra Granik. It was adapted by Granik and Anne Rosellini from the 2006 novel of the same name by Daniel Woodrell. The film stars Jennifer Lawrence as a povert ...

'' because its name lends itself to double entendres, and also joke about the Oscar hosts,

James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. For his role in '' 127 Hours'' (2010), he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Franco is known for his roles in films, such as Sam Raimi's ''Spider-M ...

and

Anne Hathaway Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American actress. The recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award, she was among the world's highest-paid actresses in 2 ...

's "Cable 10 Public Access" introduction preceded the segment, in tradition with other reprised sketches ( Church Chat,

The Continental The Continental may refer to: * ''The Continental'' (1952 TV series), a 1952–53 television series on CBS * ''The Continental'' (miniseries), an upcoming television series on Peacock * "The Continental" (''Saturday Night Live''), a recurring sk ...

, etc.)

2015 SNL reprise

In 2015, Myers and Carvey again reprised their roles for the ''

''. In their ''Wayne's World'' segment, the two gave a Top 10 list of the things they love about ''SNL''. The sketch also featured a cameo appearance by musical guest

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

who made the Top 5 and the duo humorously referencing Kanye's various interruptions of Myers,

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bo ...

and

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his experimental and lo-fi style, and became known for creating musical colla ...

. Hartman's "Cable 10" introduction again preceded the segment.

2021 Super Bowl advertisements

For

Super Bowl LV Super Bowl LV was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2020 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the American Football Confere ...

, Myers and Carvey reprised their roles for several

Uber Eats Uber Eats is an online food ordering and delivery platform launched by Uber in 2014. Meals are delivered by couriers using cars, scooters, bikes, or on foot. It is operational in over 6,000 cities across 45 countries as of 2021. The process of ...

advertisements, with the message of supporting local businesses;

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar Cephus (, ; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper and songwriter. She first gained popularity as an influencer on Vine (service), Vine and Instagram. From 2015 to early 2017, ...

makes an appearance in a couple of the ads.

References

{{Wayne's World Mass media franchises introduced in 1988 Fictional television shows Heavy metal mass media Saturday Night Live sketches Saturday Night Live in the 1980s Wayne's World