Gail Matthius


Gail Matthius is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member of NBC's Saturday Night Live during its critical and ratings low point at the time, and co-anchored the Weekend Update segment with Charles Rocket in 1981.

Early life and career

A native of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College, Matthius had performed at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles prior to successfully auditioning for Doumanian's cast. Matthius's time on the show occurred only a year after her move to Los Angeles, a move that was funded by performing jingles and visiting farms on behalf of Allis-Chalmers tractors across the Great Plains.

''Saturday Night Live''

In 2015, the magazine Rolling Stone ranked Matthius at, out of 141 cast members, the 74th best of Saturday Night Live, calling her, "A flicker of hope in the Saturday Night Live 1980 debacle, with a sharp valley girl mall-chick character named Vickie. Matthius and Vickie both deserved better." During her audition, she performed opposite Joe Piscopo as well as Paul Reubens.

Recurring characters

  • Vickie, a valley girl who, along with her friend, Debbie, annoy people with their persistent questions and shallow statements.
  • Roweena, a Midwestern-accented hairdresser who often has a neurotic, middle-aged woman named Nadine as a frequent customer.
  • Frances Lively, wife to Charles Rocket's Phil Lively, a fellow game show host who lives life at home as if it were just another game show.

Celebrity impersonations

Post-''SNL''

Following her stint on SNL, Matthius appeared in the short-lived British/American sketch show Assaulted Nuts and the syndicated sketch comedy series Laugh Trax. She auditioned for the Kathleen Turner role in Body Heat, though she was turned down.
She had some voice acting work for animated shows from the late 1980s into the 1990s, including Bobby's World, Tiny Toon Adventures, Snorks, Animaniacs, The Ren & Stimpy Show, Bump in the Night and The Tick, often using the voice of her valley girl and Roweena characters from Saturday Night Live.
Matthius is a member of the Spolin Players Improv comedy troupe and works as a drama coach for various acting studios, including Theatre Palisades in Pacific Palisades, California. In 2016, Matthius appeared in the play For Piano and Harpo by Dan Castellaneta. Today, she performs in a rock band, The Shambles LA.