Eddie Murphy 1982. Nolte was scheduled to host the December 11, 1982, Christmas episode of "Saturday Night Live", but became too ill to host, so Murphy took over. He became the only cast member to host while still a regular. Murphy opened the show with the phrase, "Live from New York, It's the Eddie Murphy Show!" The following year, Murphy starred in "Trading Places" with fellow "SNL" alumnus Dan Aykroyd. The movie marked the first of Murphy's collaborations with director John Landis (who also directed Murphy in "Coming to America" and "Beverly Hills Cop III") and proved to be an even greater
Trading Places heavy-handed". Beginning from the premise that, in the film, the "expectations of the races also stand upon their head", Budd states that "through even a highly comedic vessel a message loudly asking for a reassessment of prejudice, and for level playing fields, is heard." "Trading Places" was released theatrically in the United States on June 10, 1983. During its opening weekend, the film earned $7.3 million from 1,375 theaters—an average of $5,334 per theater—ranking as the third highest-grossing film of the weekend, behind "Octopussy" ($8.9 million)—debuting the same weekend—and "Return of the Jedi" ($12 million). The film remained in the