Sarah Palin hit the red carpet for the 'SNL' 40th anniversary event

Thousands of fans braved freezing temperatures and lined the streets around New York City's Rockefeller Center Sunday night to catch a glimpse of the stars heading into the taping of Saturday Night Live's 40th anniversary special.
Hitting the red carpet were SNL icons Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase, Jon Lovitz, Martin Short, Jim Belushi, Billy Crystal, Tina Fey, Will Ferrell, Mike Myers, Jimmy Fallon, Molly Shannon, Seth Meyers, Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Andy Samberg and Jason Sudeikis.
The NBC event also drew comedy giants like Betty White, Whoopi Goldberg, Dave Chappelle, Jim Carrey, Louis C.K., Melissa McCarthy and Sean Hayes.
Spotted as well were show creator Lorne Michaels, one-time vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin -- whom Tina Fey famously skewered on SNL -- and Alec Baldwin, a frequent guest host on the popular sketch comedy series.
Musicians Keith Richards, Justin Timberlake, Taylor Swift, Kanye West, Paul McCartney, Paul Simon and Jon Bon Jovi were also in the house.
Other luminaries who turned out to celebrate the milestone were Robert De Niro, Kerry Washington, Bradley Cooper, Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump, JB Smoove, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, Edward Norton, Sigourney Weaver, Peyton Manning, Glenn Close, Michael Douglas, Larry David, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Olivia Wilde.