Adam Sandler’s ‘The Chanukah Song’ Debuted 30 Years Ago This Season

It has been exactly 30 years since Adam Sandler made history on Saturday Night Live with his hilarious but heartwarming rendition of “The Chanukah Song.” Weekend Update host Kevin Nealon sat nearby, as Sandler strummed his guitar to a song about Jewish Hollywood celebrities in Hollywood.

It was not his first time winning viewers over with such a presentation as he did “The Thanksgiving Song,” which was a tribute to Turkeys two years earlier. Three decades later, Sandler still beams with pride about “The Chanukah” song, which quickly became a favorite of Jewish fans.

Someone hated Adam Sandler’s Hanukkah song

Sandler admitted during a past interview that not everyone loved his “Chanukah Song,” as he recalled meeting the former owner of the Seattle SuperSonics, Barry Ackerley, who took offense at being mentioned in the original song despite not being Jewish. They ran into each other in a restaurant with Rob Schneider present, and Ackerley did not hesitate to call Sandler out on his mistake.

Sandler eventually realized that the founding partners of the Seattle Supersonics, Sam Schulman and Eugene Klein, were Jewish and not Ackerley, to whom they sold the team in 1985. Sandler also called Harrison Ford quarter-Jewish mistakenly, and the actor corrected him when they met, saying he is half-Jewish. 

Adam Sandler’s ‘The Chanukah Song’ became a classic

After debuting on Saturday Night Live, “The Chanukah Song” appeared on Sandler’s 1996 comedy album What the Hell Happened to Me? and even made it to No. 80 on the Billboard Hot 100. The 58-year-old has updated the song over the years, adding new celebrity names like Natalie Portman, Adam Levine, and Jake Gyllenhaal.

“The Chanukah Song” has maintained its legacy, with artists like Haim making their own covers and adding a modern twist to it. Sandler has declared that he is happy to revise and create new versions of the song if any Jewish persons are open to a remake.