The Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas now holds an important part of Saturday Night Live history and the arc of TV in general. Creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels has donated his personal archive to the organization, including rehearsal notes, scripts, photographs, and other artifacts from his career from Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In through SNL.

According to a press release, the collection "provides insight into the creative and production processes behind “Saturday Night Live." Cataloging is still ongoing, and the contents of the collection are as yet vague; however, the release promises the contents of the collection document both the work and the cultural impact of the famous show.

Since 1975, SNL has won the most Emmy Awards of any show in history; launched the careers of actors like Gilda Radner, John Belushi, Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Bill Murray (plus UT Austin alum Andrew Dismukes); and aired skits that became part of Americans' daily vocabularies.

The public will be able to see some of the collection from September 20 to March 15, in an exhibition called Live From New York! The Making of Lorne Michaels. It includes rehearsal notes for SNL, dailies (unedited clips) from Coneheads sketches, annotated scripts for Mean Girls, plus "drafts, correspondence, audiovisual materials, photographs, artifacts, and more."

“Lorne Michaels has kept us up late and laughing for 50 years,” said Ransom Center Director Stephen Enniss in the release, “and I’m confident for years to come his archive will be studied by students and researchers looking for insight into the social, political and cultural history of our time. We are deeply grateful to him for entrusting this rich legacy to us.”

The release adds that the collection will be available for research in January 2026, inviting "researchers, students and anyone interested in learning more about Michaels’ career" to connect with the material. The Ransom Center will also use it in teaching and public programming.

“Live from New York and now home in Austin has a great ring to it,” said UT President Jay Hartzell. “Having five decades of “Saturday Night Live” on our campus creates unique learning and research opportunities for future generations, and especially our students."