The comedian tells PEOPLE why he and Spade grew closer decades after starring on ‘Saturday Night Live’ Although Jon Lovitz and David Spade have known each other for decades, it wasn’t until recently that the two comedians became close friends.

Jon Lovitz and David Spade bonded over their personal tragedies. Although the 'Saturday Night Live' alums have known each other for decades, Jon admitted it was only after they both went through loss - with the murder of his best friend Phil Hartman and the accidental drug overdose of Spade's close pal Chris Farley in 1998 - that they became close.

Lovitz, who first came on the cast of SNL in 1985, looked back at his first years on the show while conducting a panel at "The Groundlings" 50th anniversary. He described the companionship relations among the cast when he was working with them.