One of the most radically original TV shows in recent memory is
Louie. It's written, directed, edited, and produced by comedian
Louis C.K., who stars as a (thinly) fictionalized version of himself.
The A.V. Club recently sat down with Louis C.K. to talk through the show's second season, episode by episode. He sheds light on many aspects of the show, including the much-discussed
Dane Cook episode.
Part 1,
Part 2,
Part 3,
Part 4. (Louis C.K. previously:
1 2 3 4)
posted by naju
on Sep 22, 2011 -
85 comments
Two and a half years ago, we explored
the early history of Cartoon Network... but it wasn't the only player in the youth television game.
As a matter of fact,
Fred Seibert -- the man responsible for the most inventive projects discussed in that post -- first stretched his creative legs at the network's
truly venerable forerunner:
Nickelodeon.
Founded as Pinwheel, a six-hour block on Warner Cable's innovative
QUBE system, this humble channel struggled for years before Seibert's innovative branding work transformed it into a national icon and capstone of a media empire.
Much has changed since then, from the mascots and game shows to
the versatile orange "splat." But starting tonight in response to popular demand, the network is
looking back with
a summer programming block dedicated to the greatest hits of the 1990s, including
Hey Arnold!, Rocko's Modern Life, The Adventures of Pete & Pete, The Ren & Stimpy Show, Double Dare, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Legends of the Hidden Temple, and
All That.
To celebrate, look inside for the complete story of the early days of the network that incensed the religious right, brought doo-wop to television, and slimed a million fans -- the golden age of Nickelodeon.
(warning: monster post inside) [more inside]
posted by Rhaomi
on Jul 25, 2011 -
116 comments
After Kad & Olivier sign off and the Satisfaction production logo fades, viewing audiences are oftentimes treated to a cold open of an empty talk show set... one that quickly becomes the impromptu dance floor for a shameless Frenchman making an absolute giddy fool of himself while lip-syncing pop songs alongside a menagerie of...
wait, *what*?! That's right.
The Late Late Show's Craig Ferguson appears to have
a not-so-secret French admirer -- one who's not above ripping off both his opening titles and
his signature dance sequences (including
the iconic animal puppets):
"ABC" by The Jackson 5,
"Flashdance" by Irene Cara,
"On the Floor" by Jennifer Lopez and Pitbull,
"Waka Waka" by Shakira,
"Men in Black" by Will Smith,
"Let's All Chant" by the Michael Zager Band,
"Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" by Wham!,
"It's Raining Men" by The Weather Girls, and
"Vive Le Vent (Jingle Bells)" by Tino Rossi.
Luckily, Ferguson's sense of showmanship is
more prodigious than litigious -- he responded to Arthur's "
homáge" by booking a pair of translatlantic crossover shows, with Arthur visiting LA that week and Ferguson flying out to Paris just last month. Video of both shows (plus lots more) inside!
[more inside]
posted by Rhaomi
on Jul 11, 2011 -
12 comments
The much-beloved
Arrested Development was characterized by its complex, multilayered narrative jokes;
here the A. V. Club analyzed a 50-second-long clip and tried to map out all its references (including one very subtle three-part joke about eggs). Luckily for you, there’s a very exhaustive web site,
The Balboa Observer-Picayune, which documents the show’s obscurest jokes (
H. Maddas,
Blackstool,
GOB’s ice obsession), its cleverest callbacks (
Hello’s revenge,
”Mom says”,
pilot/
finale callbacks), its visual gags (
yearbooks,
newspapers,
cartoons,
Amazon), and its longest-running gags (
I’ve made a huge mistake”,
“Her?”,
Cloud Mir,
”Hey, brother!”, and the
chicken dance). Complete index of references at the
Bluthcyclopedia.
Complete transcripts of every episode. Bonus songs!
All You Need Is Smiles.
Yellow Boat.
Big Yellow Joint.
Hot Cops.
It Ain’t Easy Being White.
Discipline Daddy.
Motherboy.
Balls in the Air.
You Here With Me.
I Get Up. Finally,
Fonzie jumps the shark again.
[more inside]
posted by Rory Marinich
on Jun 16, 2011 -
301 comments
Years after its final broadcast, the award-winning, pond-hopping, cult comedy hit
Whose Line is it Anyway? is returning to television! Sort of! Tonight in just a few minutes,
Drew Carey's Improv-A-Ganza (
promo,
sample segment) makes its debut on GSN, reuniting Carey with popular "Whosers" Ryan Stiles, Colin Mochrie, Greg Proops, Brad Sherwood, Wayne Brady, and
many more. Though the show will air every weekday, you don't have to wait around for new episodes to get your improv fix -- in spite of the lack of DVD box sets, there's a veritable treasure trove of past content available free from multiple online sources, including
the complete run of the American Whose Line on both YouTube and
fansite WatchWLIIA along with
every episode of the original UK run from Channel4's official YouTube channel and
their streaming video site 4oD. Too much content? Look inside for selections of the show's most hilarious moments as sampled from
the show's burgeoning TVTropes entry. See also:
Fan guide -
American episode guide (
UK version) -
List of game types [more inside]
posted by Rhaomi
on Apr 11, 2011 -
49 comments
In the wake of increasingly prominent appearances by South Asians in American television (Mindy Kaling, Aziz Ansari, Danny Pudi), NBC has launched
Outsourced (
preview) (
full pilot on Hulu), a comedy about an American who moves to Mumbai to manage a call center. Featuring a mostly South Asian cast, the show is a potential high-water mark for Indians in popular American media. But is the show's portrayal of Indians progressive, or does it get bogged down in stereotypes and clichéd jokes about spicy food and funny names? Himanshu Suri of art rap trio Das Racist
weighs in.
[more inside]
posted by naju
on Sep 24, 2010 -
89 comments
"
The TV Wheel was a television experiment created by and starring
Joel Hodgson, of
Mystery Science Theater 3000 fame. Cable network HBO ordered a pilot, but ultimately passed on picking up the show. The pilot episode eventually aired once on Comedy Central as a special presentation following the last new episode of MST3K to be broadcast on that network."
*
The pilot, bookended by introduction segments, is right through this door:
[more inside]
posted by item
on Aug 11, 2010 -
41 comments
In 1967, before
"Monty Python", before
"The Goodies", and before
"Marty",
John Cleese,
Graham Chapman,
Tim Brooke-Taylor and
Marty Feldman teamed up to create a groundbreaking show that influenced (and provided sketch material and dialog for) much of what we know today as
British Comedy. Most of the material was erased when its owner,
Rediffusion London, disappeared in England's
1967 TV franchise reshuffle. Here is almost all of what survives of
"At Last, the 1948 Show".
posted by ubiquity
on Oct 10, 2007 -
17 comments
HBO: Flight of the Conchords follows the trials and tribulations of a two man, digi-folk band from New Zealand as they try to make a name for themselves in their adopted home of New York City. The band is made up of Bret McKenzie on guitar and vocals, and Jemaine Clement on guitar and vocals. Episode 1 is available free online. [flash video]
posted by srboisvert
on Jun 14, 2007 -
27 comments
Judd Apatow's Family Values A look inside the comedic mind that brought us "Freaks and Geeks", "Undeclared", and "The 40 Year Old Virgin".
Apatow’s childhood hero was Steve Martin. On a summer trip to L.A., Apatow persuaded his grandparents to drive by Martin’s home until Apatow spied his hero in the driveway. Martin wouldn’t give him an autograph, so Apatow wrote him an angry letter saying it was his patronage of Martin’s projects that allowed him to live the high life. A few weeks later, Martin sent Apatow a copy of his book “Cruel Shoes” with an apology: “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I was speaking to the Judd Apatow.”
Also:
Judd and Seth Rogen at play.
posted by ColdChef
on May 27, 2007 -
33 comments
Steve Carell may be hilarious in
the office, but how much would his jackass behavior
cost in real-life?
clips (youtube)
posted by tylerfulltilt
on Feb 13, 2007 -
47 comments
