Only Murders In The Building Reunion As Steve Martin Invents The Whoopie Cushion On SNL
Back in the day, you could get whoopee cushions or hand buzzers or fake vomit from mail-away ads in the back of comic books or your local novelty store. Now, you're more likely to find that stuff in a dollar store or a hidden corner of the toy section of a big box store since many specialty shops have unfortunately gone the way of the dodo. Thanks, capitalism. But have you ever wondered where some of those classic joke shop gags really came from? Selena Gomez and "Saturday Night Live" recently took the time to shine the spotlight on the people that brought these comedic staples to life, in a fictional (and hilarious) documentary.
While hosting the long-running late night sketch show alongside musical guest Post Malone, the multi-hyphenated performer appeared in a segment called "Inventor Documentary" where she was joined by her "Only Murders in the Building" co-star Steve Martin as he portrayed Archie Gizmo, the creator of the whoopee cushion, the hand buzzer, and a number of other silly amusements.
A real gas
As if hosting "SNL" for the first time wasn't nerve-wracking enough, Gomez was tasked with hosting "American Inventors" as well. Playing the part of host Taylor Gosh, she tells the tale of one of the most prolific inventors in history. Luckily, she had the help of legendary comedian and former "SNL" cast member Martin, who appeared as a surprise to the audience during the award-winning actress and singer's hosting debut in a pre-taped skit. Together, they told the story of Gizmo and the muse behind his greatest gadgets: Dina Beans.
We learn that the inspiration for Gizmo's gizmos came from the life of Beans (played by Aidy Bryant) and the crazy things that happened to her. The whoopee cushion was born when the inventor notice her frequent farts whenever she sat down. The various shockers from the stick of gum to the pen to the classic hand buzzer came to be after the many times that Beans was struck by lightning while shaking someone's hand. And the snakes popping out of a peanuts can were the result of a snake attack due to a factory mishap.
You know what? None of that sounds particularly funny when you lay it out like that. Despite sounding like a series of unfortunate events, the goofy and fairly wholesome (by "SNL" standards) bit that stemmed from a good, old-fashioned fart joke is a fun time. And by the end, we learn that Dina Beans and Archie Gizmo fell in love and stayed happily married for many years. Who doesn't love a happily ever after, right?
For more shenanigans featuring Selena Gomez and Steve Martin (along with their co-star and comedy legend Martin Short), you can catch the second season of "Only Murders in the Building" when it premieres on Hulu on June 28, 2022.