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Elon Musk's 'Saturday Night Live' appearance crashed the price of Dogecoin

The hosting gig wasn't the cryptocurrency boon you might have expected.

Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Elon Musk hosted Saturday Night Live as promised, and the show largely went without a hitch — though cryptocurrency fans weren't all that thrilled. As Protocol reports, the price of Dogecoin crashed by just under a third at the start of Musk's SNL stint and bouncing back only slightly before continuing to fall later. Trading was so frenetic that Robinhood warned of delays in order statuses that weren't resolved until early Sunday morning.

Musk didn't shy away from Dogecoin during the show. SNL devoted a Weekend Update segment to it, with Musk playing the role of a financial expert who keeps trying to explain the digital money to people who (just like in real life) don't quite get what it means. He eventually admits that "yeah, it's a hustle."

Musk also had memorable moments as Wario on trial, a cowboy inventor and, of course, himself (taking charge of a Mars colony rescue).

This was clearly a rose-tinted look at Musk that emphasized his image as an eccentric but successful genius. You weren't going to see him talk about his clash with a rescue diver, his run-ins with the SEC or other ugly sides to his life. Still, this likely went more smoothly than you might have expected for a business tycoon. The question is whether or not SNL will bring on more tech luminaries going forward. We wouldn't count on it — Mark Zuckerberg has already made a brief appearance, and few other execs are quite so outspoken and otherwise ripe for comedy.