November 19, 1977
Out of several thousand applicants, Connie Crawford ’81 was one of six finalists appearing on Saturday Night Live, in a contest to host the Christmas show. Other finalists included the governor of South Dakota, an ex-interior decorator at a turkey farm and a homemaker from Peoria, Illinois.
Buck Henry: …what year are you in at, uh, Vassar, Connie?
Connie Crawford: I’m just a freshman.
Buck Henry: Just a freshman, and yet you had the nerve to come down here and expose yourself, so to speak, to this depraved audience.
Exactly why do you think that you’re better qualified, or best qualified, to host the ‘Saturday Night’ show?
Connie Crawford: I’ve been a groupie for two years!
The winner of the contest was an 80-year-old grandmother from New Orleans whose introduction—“I’m Miskel Spillman. I’m old.”—immediately won over the audience.