Ben Affleck And David Cook To Appear On November 1 "Saturday Night Live"

October 24, 2008 11:37 a.m. EST

New York, NY (CNS) - NBC's "Saturday Night Live" has reached record-shattering ratings this fall, in addition to earning countless headlines and primetime exposure. "SNL" heads to the finish line of election season with a live show on November 1 and a two-hour election special November 3.

Celebrity News Service has learned that Oscar winner Ben Affleck will host the show on November 1. This will be Aflfeck's fourth time to host the show. Affleck recently received the 2007 Best Directorial Debut award from the National Board of Review for his critically praised debut "Gone Baby Gone." He first rose to prominence in 1997 alongside Matt Damon as the Academy Award winning writers and co-stars of "Good Will Hunting." Affleck's other credits include "Shakespeare in Love," "Pearl Harbor," "Changing Lanes," "Hollywoodland," "Armageddon," "The Sum of All Fears," "Daredevil" and "Dazed and Confused."

Joining Affleck, and making his live performance debut since winning Season 7 of "American Idol," is David Cook. Cook's debut record, produced by Grammy Award winning producer Rob Cavallo is due out November 18 and is already the No. 2 top-selling record on iTunes.

Cook's "Saturday Night Live" appearance marks the musician's first with his new band since his "Idol" win in May. Cook's latest single, "Light On" is the No. 1 added track at Hot AC Radio and is climbing the Billboard Pop 100 charts. His first post-Idol single "The Time of My Life" was the best digital single debut since the second season of "Idol." The single debuted at No. 3, making one of the highest new chart entries in 2008.

In addition, "SNL" will present a two-hour election themed special on the night before Election Day, Monday, November 3 called "Saturday Night Live Presidential Bash 2008." The taped compilation show will highlight the blockbuster current season of political satire as well as showcase the show's 33-year history of lampooning the Oval Office. In addition, there will be new material shot exclusively for the special.