The Potato Chip Effect

Finding Inspiration Within The Web's Myriad Rabbit Holes

Not sure how you’ve been self-medicating of late, but my recent morning routine has involved reading the news, then settling into a handful of Saturday Night Live skits. Turns out that a few yucks can really help calm The News’ daily assault on the senses. Of late, YouTube’s been steadily feeding me content from the 2009-15 seasons, a time in which I often worked on Saturday nights; many of these clips have been happily fresh to my eyes.

Some fine cast members appeared through those seasons and it’s easy to fall into a lazy, multi-video, binge-fest. The other morning, though, something strange and inspiring came into motion.

A skit called “Potato Chip” was offered. I hit play. You can do the same below.

The two SNL cast members featured, Jason Sudeikis and Will Forte, were plenty familiar. But thanks to dropping out of most pop culture intake a while back, the third actor was unknown to me. A few keystrokes later, I learned of Blake Lively. Her name was found in the first item that appeared via web search: an unexpected 2016 oral history of “Potato Chip,” published by Uproxx.

Here’s something we both know: there’s a deep well of information available to us at any moment. But that depth can still surprise, no? In this case, I randomly watched a video to wash down the news. I found it funny. I now wanted information on an actor from a 16-year-old television sketch. Within minutes, I knew that the skit, the last of that night’s episode, was penned by Forte and staff writer John Solomon, with some additions by Sudeikis. And that it was originally intended for a Taylor Swift-hosted episode a few weeks prior to its airing. And that the Sudeikis character morphed into the judge that he’d portray on the two, future “Maine Justice” skits. And that that piece was, randomly enough, written on my birthday.

This comprehensive history, containing thoughts from everyone involved in the skit, appeared online a full seven years after “Potato Chip” aired in 2009, by which point it had developed a cult following. As Seth Meyers, then the show’s head writer, told Uproxx: “We always say sometimes you write sketches that, to five people in America, it will always be their favorite SNL sketch. And this was the perfect example of that.”

Folks, I’m not sure the last time that an SNL skit reached out and kicked off a sense of personal mission. For me, the answer is “last Friday.”

There are a few random personal interests that’ve struck me as underrepresented on the web and I’ve got this platform to use. (Some hints.) The takeaway of reading this oral history, with Meyers’ quote standing out, is that there’s no harm in chasing a topic down the most-obscure path, if the end result’s a sense of creative satisfaction… with a vague hope that five other people in America will find it interesting, too.

Even one, extremely-enthusiastic person might be enough.

A Wholesome Video Lagniappe: If SNL clips are my morning soother, YouTube’s presence at the lunch table has recently involved another bit of niche programming. A photographer named Joshua Charow has been creating a book centered on the lives of elder artists living in New York City lofts, some of them living and working in these spaces since the 1970s. As he’s visited them, he’s created video content, as well. At first blush, this might seem a hyper-specific topic for a viewing addiction, but his pieces, ranging from 10-20 minutes, are truly lovely. Here’s a teaser.

All of Charow’s subjects are deep into lives well-lived, playing out in spaces that inspire. Binge these with a total lack of guilt, or space ‘em out over weeks. Either approach will work.

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