Charlene Tilton Remembers Chatting with Prince About Shoes Before Seeing Him Transform as “SNL”’s Musical Guest that Night
Charlene Tilton Remembers Chatting with Prince About Shoes Before Seeing Him Transform as “SNL”’s Musical Guest that Night
Angela AndaloroTue, August 4, 2026 at 3:46 PM UTC
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Charlene Tilton hosting ‘Saturday Night Live’ (left), Prince performing in his ‘Saturday Night Live’ debutCredit: Alan Singer/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty(2) -
Charlene Tilton appeared on the Aug. 2 episode of Nostalgia Tonight with Joe Sibilia
The Dallas actress, 67, looked back on memorable moments in her career, including her one and only time hosting Saturday Night Live
The February 1981 episode ended up being an unforgettable one, with two profane slip-ups airing to the audience live and an unbilled musical performance from Prince
Charlene Tilton will never forget her encounters with Prince.
During the Sunday, Aug. 2 episode of Nostalgia Tonight with Joe Sibilia, the Dallas actress, 67, looked back on hosting Saturday Night Live the night Prince took over as a surprise musical guest. The Feb. 21, 1981 episode was the only time Tilton ever hosted, making the night’s events that much more memorable for her.
Tilton recalled staying at the Plaza Hotel when she saw the artist and approached him over his shoes: “I said, ‘Oh, my gosh, where did you get those shoes? I’m doing a TV show and I need some really big platform high heel shoes,’ ” she recalled. “And we started talking. And he said, ‘Well, I’m gonna be on the show.’ ”
The actress had no idea who the singer was at the time, with Prince just building on the success of his second album, Dirty Mind. Still, he took time to reassure her she’d be great in her hosting duties.
The night’s official musical guest was Todd Rundgren, which made it extra surprising when Prince took the stage to perform “Partyup” to an electrified audience.
Tilton remembered, “We go on to do the show. It’s time for me to introduce him live on the show. I go, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, Prince.’ The world changed, history changed. He became Prince. And the show was iconic.”
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“That episode was iconic for several reasons. That was the main one: You knew immediately, when Prince performed, that music had changed,” she continued, noting the other iconic moment of the night, when Charles Rocket cursed during their shared sketch, mimicking Dallas’ dramatic “Who shot J.R.?” moment.
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Gail Matthius, Denny Dillon, Ann Risley, Charles Rocket, Charlene Tilton, Eddie Murphy, Gilbert Gottfried, Don King during ‘Saturday Night Live’ goodbyes, Feb. 1981Credit: Alan Singer/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty
“I was standing next to Charles Rocket when he said the F-word, and I thought, ‘I didn’t know you could do that on TV,’” she shared. “Sadly, he was let go, I think before he even reached the stage door.”
It wasn’t the first use of the profanity that night, however. Prince mistakenly sang the uncensored lyrics to “Partyup,” which include the line, “fighting war is such a f---ing bore.”
While it would have stood out on its own, the moment was largely overshadowed by Rocket’s more deliberate use, which came at the show’s end.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
