TOP 40 FAVORITE TV COMEDIES

[Soxy]

I'm kinda surprised Fraser was so low. I also see a trend for current, which always happens with these.

Frasier wasn't funny. That's probably why it's so low.

[Steve9347]

I'm kinda surprised Fraser was so low. I also see a trend for current, which always happens with these.

Well yeah, the Dick Van Dyke show only showed up on two lists (mine was one of them). However, what can ya do?

[BigSqwert]

Frasier wasn't funny. That's probably why it's so low.

^^^^^^

[Texsox]

Well yeah, the Dick Van Dyke show only showed up on two lists (mine was one of them). However, what can ya do?

 

I would have swore it was on my list as well. Which would have made three.

[Texsox]

Frasier wasn't funny. That's probably why it's so low.

 

37 Emmys for Comedy Series just doesn't buy you any respect anymore.

[Soxy]

37 Emmys for Comedy Series just doesn't buy you any respect anymore.

37 Emmys can hardly buy you a cheeseburger from Burger King.

[Texsox]

37 Emmys can hardly buy you a cheeseburger from Burger King.

 

Great analogy. Most comedies on TV are very analogous to fast food. I think Fraser and possibly shows like M*A*S*H are similar to movies like The Graduate. Not quit dramas, but not quite common denominator comedy either.

[Soxy]

Great analogy. Most comedies on TV are very analogous to fast food. I think Fraser and possibly shows like M*A*S*H are similar to movies like The Graduate. Not quit dramas, but not quite common denominator comedy either.

Fair point. I'm not saying Frasier wasn't a good show, I just didn't think it was super funny. My top 3 were all laugh out loud at least once each episode kind of funny.

[Texsox]

Fair point. I'm not saying Frasier wasn't a good show, I just didn't think it was super funny. My top 3 were all laugh out loud at least once each episode kind of funny.

 

Another way would be the guilty pleasure kind of comedy (South Park, etc.) versus more (any word here sounds snobbish) shows like Frasier and perhaps Dennis Miller. I also realized in my addled mind I mixed together two shows. I voted for Mary Tyler Moore, but was mixing it with Dick Van Dyke. I probably would have added Dick and dropped my #20 pick.

 

And yes, Jim, looking over my list, none are currently running. Although Scrubs is pretty fresh.

[Steve9347]

And yes, Jim, looking over my list, none are currently running. Although Scrubs is pretty fresh.

Scrubs is still running. The final season will be on ABC this fall I believe.

 

I put both new and old and just went with what I enjoyed. As a kid growing up, Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore were great, so they got honorable nod. The Lucy Show got nod from me for just being a pioneer (and still rather damn funny). But trust me, some currently running shows most definitely got up there, and one within the last 5 years got #1 for me.

[Texsox]

Scrubs is still running. The final season will be on ABC this fall I believe.

 

I put both new and old and just went with what I enjoyed. As a kid growing up, Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore were great, so they got honorable nod. The Lucy Show got nod from me for just being a pioneer (and still rather damn funny). But trust me, some currently running shows most definitely got up there, and one within the last 5 years got #1 for me.

 

I thought Scrubs was done with this last episode?

 

There were more great comedies then I thought when I started the list. My top three were easy, after that it was a mix of about 30 more. Then I would remember shows and have to look over the list again. Coach is the one I wondered about. Being a sports web site, it seemed the #1 sports comedy, but finished around 21 or 22 on my list.

[knightni]

I got behind today. I'll do 30-26 tonight at 10:30pm-ish CT.

[SleepyWhiteSox]

Great analogy. Most comedies on TV are very analogous to fast food. I think Fraser and possibly shows like M*A*S*H are similar to movies like The Graduate. Not quit dramas, but not quite common denominator comedy either.

 

I think M*A*S*H was wayyyyyy funnier than frasier, and I don't even consider the graduate a comedy at all...

 

 

 

I completely dropped the ball on making a list, but The Wayans Bros. would have been in my top 10.

[Texsox]

I think M*A*S*H was wayyyyyy funnier than frasier, and I don't even consider the graduate a comedy at all...

 

 

 

I completely dropped the ball on making a list, but The Wayans Bros. would have been in my top 10.

 

If you look at most critics lists of the top 10 comedy films, The Graduate is almost always there. It really isn't a drama, horror, etc. I have M*A*S*H at the top of my list as well, up until a couple years ago it would have been #1.

[BigSqwert]

If you look at most critics lists of the top 10 comedy films, The Graduate is almost always there. It really isn't a drama, horror, etc. I have M*A*S*H at the top of my list as well, up until a couple years ago it would have been #1.

Big fan of Becker?

[knightni]

30. My Name Is Earl (2005-present)

 

 

(3 of 18 lists - 34 points - highest ranking #6 Brian)

 

My Name Is Earl is an Emmy Award-winning American sitcom created by Greg Garcia. It is produced by 20th Century Fox Television. It is currently in its third season and in the United States is broadcast on the NBC television network Thursdays at 8:00 PM Eastern time. On March 3, My Name Is Earl started airing on TBS.

 

The Writers' Guild strike caused production to end after only 13 of the 25 episodes originally planned for the third season were filmed. [1] When the strike ended, production resumed. A further nine episodes were filmed for Season 3, and new episodes began airing April 3rd. It has been renewed by NBC for a fourth season.

 

Overview

 

The series stars Jason Lee, Ethan Suplee, Jaime Pressly, Eddie Steeples, and Nadine Velazquez. Lee stars in the title role as Earl J. Hickey, a petty crook with occasional run-ins with the law, whose newly won $100,000 lottery ticket is lost when he is hit by a car. While lying in his hospital bed after the accident, he develops a belief in the concept of karma when he hears about it during an episode of Last Call with Carson Daly. He decides he wants to turn his life around and makes a list of all the bad things he's ever done. After doing his first good deed, he finds his $100,000 lottery ticket. He sees this as a sign and, with his new lucky money, he proceeds to cross items off that list, one-by-one, by doing good deeds to atone for them.[3]

 

Critics have claimed that the series has a Scientologist basis, with creator Greg Garcia and actors Jason Lee and Ethan Suplee being Scientologists.[4]

 

Conception

 

Creator Greg Garcia wrote the pilot while working on another sitcom, Yes, Dear. He initially pitched the series to Fox, which passed on the series. He then approached NBC, which optioned the pilot on a cast-contingent basis, meaning they would order the pilot provided a suitable cast could be assembled.

 

Jason Lee was approached for the lead role, but was uninterested in working in television and passed on the series twice before finally agreeing to read the pilot script. Though he liked the pilot, he was hesitant to commit until after meeting with Garcia.

 

Characters

 

Main characters

 

* Earl J. Hickey (Jason Lee) - The protagonist and narrator of the show, he is Joy's ex-husband. who is later married to Billie in the episode Love Octogon and then divorces her.

* Randy Hickey (Ethan Suplee) - Earl's younger brother, former husband to Catalina.

* Joy Turner (née Darville, previously Hickey) (Jaime Pressly) - Earl's sexy ex-wife, now married to Crabman.

* Catalina Aruca (Nadine Velazquez) - Mexican immigrant who works as Earl and Randy's hotel's housekeeper and is a stripper at Club Chubby. Randy married her to allow her to come to the USA (he had a brief crush on her) after Earl 'ratted' her out.

* Darnell "Crabman" Turner (Eddie Steeples) - Joy's current husband. Works at the Crab Shack. His real name is Harry Monroe and he graduated from college at age 14, but he hides the truth about himself as he is part of the Witness Protection Program. Joy is suspicious about his identity. He keeps a pet turtle who is called Mr Turtle.

 

The Cast of 'My name is Earl' is slated to appear on Celebrity Family Feud on NBC said local sources.

 

Recurring characters

 

Major recurring characters are:

 

* Carl Hickey (Beau Bridges) — Earl and Randy's father.

* Kay Hickey (Nancy Lenehan) — Earl and Randy's mother.

* Dodge Hickey (Louis T. Moyle) — Joy's oldest son.

* Earl Hickey Jr. (Trey Carlisle) — Joy and Darnell's son.

* Kenny James (Adult - Gregg Binkley, child - Andy Pessoa) — Kenny is a childhood victim of Earl's bullying and a suppressed homosexual.

* Patty the Daytime Hooker (Dale Dickey).

* Ralph Mariano (Giovanni Ribisi) — Earl's childhood friend.

* Willie the One-Eyed Mailman (Bill Suplee).

* Billie Cunningham (Alyssa Milano) — Earl's most recent wife, married in "Love Octagon", divorce papers presented in "Camdenites Part 2".

* Liberty Washington (Tamala Jones) — Joy's half-sister.

 

Other recurring characters include Electrolarynx Guy, Nescobar Aloplop, Didi, Doug, Jasper, Donny Jones, and Bob Smiley.

 

Awards and nominations

 

* Nominated for 2006 Golden Globe for Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy.

* Jason Lee nominated for 2006 Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy.

* Jason Lee nominated for 2005/06 Screen Actors Guild award for best actor in a comedy series.

* Cast nominated for 2005/06 Screen Actors Guild award for best ensemble in a comedy series.

* Jaime Pressly nominated for a 2005/06 Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

* Marc Buckland won the 2005/06 Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series (episode: "Pilot").

* Gregory Thomas Garcia won the 2005/06 Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series (episode: "Pilot").

* Jason Lee nominated for 2007 Kid's Choice Award for Best Actor.

* Nominated for 2007 BAFTA TV Awards for International Programme of the Year [1].

* Jaime Pressly won the 2007 Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

* Nominated for the 2008 People's Choice Award for "Favorite TV Comedy".[13]

* Nominated for 2008 BAFTA TV Awards for International Programme of the Year

 

. . .

 

 

 

 

[knightni]

29. Fawlty Towers (1975-79)

 

 

(3 of 18 lists - 39 points - highest ranking #2 Soxy, RibbieRubarb)

 

Fawlty Towers was a British sitcom made by the BBC and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975. Only twelve episodes were ever produced, but the series has had a lasting and powerful influence on later shows.

 

The show is set in a fictional hotel called Fawlty Towers in the Devon town of Torquay on the "English Riviera". The series was written by John Cleese and Connie Booth, both of whom played main characters, and was broadcast in two series: the first, in 1975, was produced and directed by John Howard Davies, and the second, in 1979, was produced by Douglas Argent and directed by Bob Spiers.

 

The writers, Cleese and Booth, were married to each other at the time of the first series (1975). By the second series (1979), Cleese and Booth had divorced after ten years (1968–78).[1]

 

In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, Fawlty Towers was placed first.[2] It was also voted fifth in the BBC's "Britain's Best Sitcom" poll in 2004.

Origins

 

Fawlty Towers was inspired by the Monty Python team's stay in the Gleneagles Hotel in Torquay in May 1970. Cleese and Booth stayed on at the hotel after filming for the Python show had finished. The owner, Donald Sinclair, was very rude, throwing a bus timetable at a guest who asked when the next bus to town would arrive, and placing Eric Idle's suitcase behind a wall in the garden on the suspicion that it contained a bomb (it actually contained a ticking alarm clock). He also criticised the American-born Terry Gilliam's table manners for being too American (he had the fork in "the wrong hand" while eating), possibly inspiring Basil's treatment of an American visitor in the episode "Waldorf Salad".[4]

 

John Cleese was a writer on the 1970s British TV Sitcom series Doctor in the House and Doctor at Large for London Weekend Television. The character was developed in an episode of Doctor at Large entitled "No Ill Feeling" about an aggressive and incompetent manager of a small town hotel. The show was broadcast on 30 May 1971.[5]

 

Cleese had parodied the contrast between organisational dogma and sensitive customer service in many personnel training videotapes issued with a serious purpose by his company, Video Arts.

 

Bill Cotton, the BBC's Head of Light Entertainment in the mid-1970s, said after the first series was produced that the show was a prime example of the BBC's relaxed attitude to trying new entertainment formats and encouraging new ideas. He said that when he read the first scripts he could see nothing funny in them, but trusting that Cleese knew what he was doing, he gave the go-ahead. He said that the commercial channels, with their emphasis on audience ratings, would never have let the show get to the production stage on the basis of the scripts.

 

Plot directions and examples

 

The series focuses on the exploits and misadventures of Torquay hotelier Basil Fawlty, his wife Sybil and their employees Manuel and Polly. The episodes typically revolve around Basil's efforts to succeed in 'raising the tone' of his hotel and his frustration at the numerous complications and mistakes, both his own and those of others, which prevent him from doing so. Much of the humour comes from Basil's insulting and sometimes aggressive manner, engaging in angry but witty arguments with guests, staff and in particular his formidable wife, whom he addresses with insults such as "that golfing puff adder", "my little piranha fish", and "my little nest of vipers". Despite this, he frequently feels intimidated, as she is able to insult him with equal venom. At the end of some episodes, Basil succeeds in annoying the guests and frequently gets his comeuppance.

 

The plots are intricate and farcical, involving coincidences, misunderstandings, cross-purposes, missed meetings, and accidental meetings. The sex of the bedroom farce is sometimes present, often to the disgust of conservative Basil Fawlty, but it is his eccentricity, not his lust, that drives the plots. The events that take place in each episode happen in such a way that they negatively affect Basil's personality, and test what little patience he has to breaking point, causing his mental state to deteriorate to the point where he all but suffers a total breakdown by the end of the episode.

 

The guests at the hotel are typically comic foils to Basil's anger and outbursts, with requests both reasonable and impossible testing Basil's temper. In an episode entitled "Communication Problems", there is an homage to the banter of Abbott and Costello's comedy routine "Who's on First" when Mrs. Richards gets the impression from Manuel that the manager's name is Mr. Watt. The show also uses mild black humour at times, notably when Basil is forced to hide a dead body, and in some of the comments made by Basil both about Sybil ("Did you ever see that film, How to Murder Your Wife? ... Awfully good; I saw it six times") and the guests ("May I suggest that you consider moving to a hotel closer to the sea? Or preferably in it.").

 

Basil behaves violently towards Manuel (an emotional and largely inept Spanish waiter who does not understand much English) for innocent mistakes, exacting on some occasions physical violence, including beating Manuel with a frying pan and hitting him over the head, despite Manuel's piteous pleading echoing the antics of the Three Stooges. The violence directed at Manuel has been one of the few reasons for negative criticisms levelled at Fawlty Towers over the years. In this, and in other exaggerated physical mannerisms of Basil, Fawlty Towers employs physical comedy reminiscent of the Marx Brothers' fast-paced slapstick humour.

 

Basil displays blatant snobbishness in order to climb the social ladder, expressing disdain for the "riff-raff" that he believes currently stay at the hotel. His desperation is apparent, as he makes increasingly hopeless manoeuvres and painful faux pas in trying to gain favour with the wealthy, yet finds himself forced to serve and help people he sees as beneath him. As such, Basil's efforts tend to be counter-productive, with guests leaving the hotel in disgust and his marriage stretching further and further towards breaking point.

 

Characters

 

Basil Fawlty

 

Basil Fawlty, played by John Cleese, is a snobbish and miserly misanthrope who is desperate to belong to a higher social class. He sees the successful running of the hotel as a means of achieving this ("turn it into an establishment of class..."), yet his job forces him to be pleasant to people he despises or aspires to be above socially.

 

While he is terrified of his wife's sharp tongue, he wishes to stand up to her, and his plans often conflict with her wishes. She is often verbally abusive towards him (describing him as "an aging, brilliantined stick insect") and though he is larger physically than Sybil, he often finds himself on the receiving end of Sybil's temper, expressed verbally or physically. Basil usually turns to Manuel or Polly to help him with whatever scheme he has planned, while trying his best to prevent Sybil from finding out. However, Basil does show genuine concern for Sybil, asking her often in "The Germans" if she is going to be all right from an operation and laments about the times when there was passion in their relationship.

 

Basil served in the Catering Corps of the British Army, possibly as part of his National Service, but makes it seem as if he was a soldier. He claims: "I fought in the Korean War, you know; I killed four men." To which his wife jokingly replies to the threat: "He was in the Catering Corps; he used to poison them." He is often seen wearing a military tie and a military-type moustache. He also claims to have sustained an injury to his leg in the Korean War caused by shrapnel, although this tends to flare up at surprisingly convenient times. Basil shows unexpected patience and decent manners towards the old and senile Major Gowen, World War II veteran officer, who is a permanent resident at the hotel.

 

Cleese himself described Basil as thinking that "he could run a first-rate hotel if he didn't have all the guests getting in the way," and "an absolutely awful human being", but says that in comedy, if an awful person makes people laugh, people unaccountably feel affectionate toward him.[6]

 

Sybil Fawlty

 

Sybil Fawlty, played by Prunella Scales, is Basil's wife. She is often seen to be a more effective manager of the hotel, making sure Basil either gets certain jobs done or stays out of the way when she is handling difficult customers. Despite this, she rarely participates directly in the running of the hotel; during busy check-in sessions or meal-times, while everyone else is busy working, she is frequently talking on the phone to one of her friends (usually Audrey, who makes her sole on-camera appearance in "The Anniversary") with her memorable "Oohhh, I knoooooooow," or chatting to customers. She has a distinctive conversational tone and braying laugh, which her husband compares to "someone machine-gunning a seal". Being his wife, she is the only one who refers to him by his first name, and when (frequently) she barks this at him, he is generally stopped in his tracks, often flinching. In addition to those mentioned above, Basil also refers to her by a number of epithets, occasionally to her face, including "the dragon", "toxic midget", "the sabre-toothed tart", "my little kommandant", and "a rancorous, coiffured old sow". Despite these less than complimentary nicknames, Basil is terrified of her. Sybil and Basil Fawlty married on the 17th April 1958 and started their infamous Hotel Fawlty Towers in 1960.

 

Polly Sherman

 

Polly Sherman, played by Connie Booth, is employed as a waitress, although she is often stuck doing many other jobs in the hotel. She often stands as the voice of sanity during chaotic moments in the hotel, but is frequently embroiled in ridiculous masquerades as she loyally attempts to aid Basil in trying to cover a mistake he's made, or to keep something from Sybil.

 

Polly is apparently employed part-time (during meal times), and is an art student whom Basil refers to as spending three years at university. Despite her part-time employment, as the most competent of the hotel staff, she is frequently saddled with many other duties. In one episode, she is seen to draw a sketch (presumably an impressionistic caricature) of Basil, which everyone but Basil immediately recognises. Polly is also a student of languages, displaying ability with both Spanish and German; in the episode entitled "The Germans" Basil alludes to Polly's polyglot inclination by saying that she does her work "while learning two oriental languages". Like Manuel, she has a room of her own at the hotel.

 

Manuel

 

Manuel, a waiter played by Andrew Sachs, is a well-meaning but disorganised and constantly confused Spaniard from Barcelona with a poor grasp of the English language and customs. He is constantly verbally and physically abused by his boss. When told by either Basil, Sybil, or Polly what to do, he answers, "¿Qué?", which means "What?", and "Sí", which means "Yes". Manuel's character was used to demonstrate Basil's instinctive lack of sensitivity and tolerance. Every episode would involve Basil becoming enraged by not only Manuel's confusion at his boss's bizarre and complicated demands, but also with basic demands. Manuel is afraid of Mr. Fawlty's quick temper and violent assaults, yet often expresses his appreciation for being given the position.

 

During the making of the series, Sachs twice suffered serious injury while playing Manuel. Cleese describes using a real metal pan to knock him unconscious in "The Wedding Party" episode, although he would have preferred to use a rubber one. The original producer/director, John Howard Davies, explains in the director's commentary that he made Basil use a metal one and that he was responsible for most of the violence on the show, which he felt was essential and intrinsic to the type of comical farce that they were trying to create. Later, when his clothes were treated in order to make them give off smoke after he had been let out of the burning kitchen in "The Germans", the corrosive chemicals used went through them and gave Sachs severe burns.[7]

 

Sachs' Spanish accent when in character is an integral part of the show, although the actor's native language is actually German.[8] When the series was dubbed for broadcast in Germany, he voiced the German translation of Manuel, with a Spanish accent.

 

The character's nationality was switched to an Italian called Paolo for the Spanish dub of the show broadcast, while in Catalonia he is a Mexican called Manuel. [9]

 

Other regular characters and themes

 

Terry the Chef, played by Brian Hall, is the chef at Fawlty Towers. Terry's cooking style is quite relaxed, and Basil occasionally gets frustrated with his "It's all right" attitude. Terry appears in only the second series of episodes. During the first series, there was no regular chef character seen in the show. The only first series chef was "new" chef Kurt, only seen in "Gourmet Night", who quickly proved himself incapable of holding the job due to a fondness for large volumes of wine, and a baffling passion for Manuel. Terry used to work in Dorchester (not at The Dorchester). In "The Anniversary" he and Manuel come to blows as he shows offense of someone else cooking in his kitchen, and proceeds to sabotage Manuel's attempt to make paella for Sybil, leading to fisticuffs between them at the end of the episode.

 

Major Gowen, played by Ballard Berkeley, is a slightly senile old soldier who holds a permanent residence in the hotel, but is one of the few that Basil likes. He is often introduced as their "oldest resident". He enjoys talking about the world outside (especially the cricket scores and bemoaning workers' strikes) and is always on the lookout for the newspaper. He seems to have trouble forgiving the Germans due to the World Wars (but somehow still likes German women). He has outdated mannerisms towards race, calling black people golliwogs and n*****s in an innocent manner. Major Gowen, despite his good intentions, can cause Basil's devious plans to go catastrophically awry, notably in "Communication Problems" when Basil tried his best to keep his secret (albeit successful) betting from Sybil.

 

Miss Tibbs & Miss Gatsby, played by Gilly Flower and Renee Roberts respectively, are the other two (often inseparable) permanent residents, who are slightly scatty spinsters. They seem to take a fancy to Basil, and feel as though they need to take care of him, although he switches from being overly kind to utterly rude during various talks with the two.

 

Audrey, a mostly unseen character, had one onscreen appearance in "The Anniversary". Audrey is Sybil's lifelong best friend, and mostly appears in the form of gossiping, trivial telephone calls to Sybil. Audrey is used as a source of refuge for Sybil from the hotel and from Basil's ludicrous situations. When times get tough for Audrey (she has a dysfunctional relationship with her husband George), Sybil will offer solutions and guidance, often resulting in the infamous catchphrase Ooh, I know... when Mrs. Fawlty tries to commiserate with her problems.

 

The Paperboy, though only seen in one episode, is responsible for changing the "Fawlty Towers" sign to read various (sometimes crude) phrases. The shot of the sign with the hotel appears at the beginning of every episode but one, "The Germans", when a shot of a hospital is used, as Sybil is having an operation on her ingrown toenail.

 

The Sign, although not a person, is in its own way a character unique to the series. During the 1975 series, it slowly deteriorated throughout the season until almost no letters were left. In the second 1978 series, the first episode starts again with the sign spelling "Fawlty Towers" with a few letters slightly askew, and changes in each episode, from the correct spelling to various semi-anagrams (only "Flowery Twats" from the 11th episode, "The Anniversary", is a proper anagram using all original letters.) The changes progress as follows:

 

1. Episode 7: "Fawlty Towers" (the "w" and "s" are askew)

2. Episode 8: "Watery Fowls"

3. Episode 9: "Flay Otters"

4. Episode 10: "Fatty Owls"

5. Episode 11: "Flowery Twats" ("The Anniversary")

6. Episode 12: "Farty Towels"

 

Episode guide

 

Main article: List of Fawlty Towers episodes

 

Fawlty Towers was first broadcast on BBC2 from 19 September 1975 to 25 October 1979. The first series was directed by John Howard Davies, the second by Bob Spiers.

 

Production of the last two episodes was disrupted by a strike of BBC technical staff, which resulted in the recasting of the actor who had originally been cast as Reg in "The Anniversary", and delayed the episode's transmission date by one week. The episode "Basil the Rat" was also delayed, and was not screened until the end of a repeat showing six months later, due to the tape going missing.

 

Not the Nine O'Clock News was originally scheduled to debut after an episode of Fawlty Towers and Cleese was to have introduced Not the Nine O'Clock News in a sketch referring to the technicians' strike, explaining (in character as Basil Fawlty) that there was no show ready that week, so a "tatty revue" would be broadcast instead. However, the 1979 general election intervened, and Not the Nine O'Clock News was pulled as being too political. Later that year, Cleese's sketch was broadcast, but its original significance was lost.

 

When originally transmitted, the individual episodes had no on-screen titles. The ones in common currency were first used for the VHS release of the series in the 1980s. There were working titles, such as "USA" for "Waldorf Salad", "Death" for "The Kipper and the Corpse", and "Rat" for "Basil the Rat", which have been printed in some programme guides. In addition, some of the early BBC audio releases of episodes on vinyl and cassette included other variations, such as "Mrs Richards" and "The Rat" for "Communication Problems" and "Basil the Rat" respectively.

 

It has long been rumoured that a thirteenth episode of the series was written and filmed, but never progressed further than a rough cut [10]. Though Lars Holger Holm, author of the book Fawlty Towers: A Worshipper's Companion, has made detailed claims about the episode's content, little further evidence has been unearthed to prove its existence. Holm dedicates a chapter to the story of his opportunity to watch a finished thirteenth episode called "The Robbers".

 

According to Holm, a former BBC employee allowed him to view the complete episode at his flat one night in London. After viewing the 45 minute episode, Holm ran the entire script through the copy facility on a fax machine. He reproduces the script in his book. The episode was supposedly scheduled for broadcast on 9 January 1980, but never aired. Neither BBC officials nor John Cleese have ever confirmed or denied the existence of this episode.

 

Some people dismiss this as deliberate fiction on Holm's part, pointing to his work as a fiction writer, his penchant for making deliberately absurd comments [1], and the far-fetched scenario which supposedly allowed him to photocopy the script. However, in Michael Palin's published diaries of the period he states that the second series of Fawlty Towers was to be seven episodes and that the final episode was cancelled due to an industrial dispute, which lends credence to Holm's claim.

 

Critical reaction

 

The series was not held in as high esteem on its original broadcast as it is today. The Daily Mirror review of the show in 1975 had the headline "Long John Short On Jokes". [11] Eventually though, as the series began to gain popularity, critical acclaim soon followed. Clive James writing in The Observer said the second episode had him "retching with laughter".[12] By the time the series had ended, it was an overwhelming critical success. This did not stop the critic from Television Today from condemning such praise in an article on 14th September 1976, who wrote:

“ "devoid of everything that makes good modern comedy. The programme is reminiscent of the post-war university drama society production.....The idea behind Fawlty Towers had the makings of one good sketch for John Cleese, who has in the past been shown to such good effect in original sketch material. The series, however, has over-acting and exaggeration on his part which is embarrassing to watch, writing that has no vestige of wit or skill about it and set pieces that are protracted and neither funny nor slapstick; the whole is pervaded by ill-humour. There is no warmth, no vulnerability of characters, no pathos, no visual cleverness, no funny lines. It is an amalgam of everything that does not reach out to an audience and is the epitome of self indulgence by those concerned. One funny walk and a shouting, bullying tone do not make a comedy series; it is twenty-five years too late for that.....Mr Cleese has to learn (if he has not already done so) not to be deluded by applauding critics just as he must observe those who do not applaud. Fawlty Towers is a try and there have to be many in comedy. But when the try has been made it is time to move on, to change and adapt, bearing the lessons in mind: the most important being a growing awareness of what one is good at doing and what is out of reach of one's ability and personal attributes"[13] ”

 

Another critic of the show was Richard Ingrams, then television reviewer for The Spectator. Cleese got his revenge by naming one of the guests in the second series "Mr Ingrams", who is caught in his room with a blow up doll.[11]

 

Awards

 

Three BAFTAs were awarded to people for their involvement with the series. Each of the two series were awarded the BAFTA in the category for "Best Situation Comedy", the first won by John Howard Davies in 1976, and the second by Douglas Argent and Bob Spiers in 1980. John Cleese won the BAFTA for "Best Light Entertainment Performance" in 1976.[14]

 

More recently, in a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, Fawlty Towers was placed first. It was also voted fifth in the BBC's "Britain's Best Sitcom" poll in 2004[3] and second only to Frasier in The Ultimate Sitcom poll of comedy writers in January 2006. Basil Fawlty came top of the Britain's Funniest Comedy Character poll, held by Five on 14 May 2006.

 

Remakes and inspiration

 

Three attempted remakes of Fawlty Towers were started for the American market, with two making it into production. The first, Chateau Snavely, was produced by ABC for a pilot in 1978, but the transfer from coastal hotel to highway motel proved too much and the series was never produced. The second, also by ABC, was Amanda's, notable for switching the genders of Basil and Sybil. It also failed to pick up a major audience and was dropped.[15] A third remake called Payne (produced by and starring John Larroquette) was also produced, but was cancelled shortly after. There also was a German sitcom based on Fawlty Towers and Guest House on Pakistan's PTV, also resembling the series.

 

The popular sitcoms 3rd Rock From The Sun and Cheers (both of which Cleese has appeared in) have cited Fawlty Towers as an inspiration, especially regarding its depiction of a dysfunctional "family" in the workplace, and Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan have cited Fawlty Towers as a major influence on their sitcom Father Ted.

 

Several of the characters have made other appearances, as spin-offs or in small cameo roles. In 1981, in character as Manuel, Andrew Sachs recorded a comic version of the Joe Dolce song "Shaddap You Face" (with an equally amusing B-side "Waiter There's a Flea in My Soup"). However, the record was not released because Joe Dolce took out an injunction to halt its release as he was about to issue his version in Britain.[16] Gilly Flower and Renee Roberts, who played Miss Tibbs and Miss Gatsby in the series, reprised the roles in a 1983 episode of Only Fools and Horses.[17] In 2006, Cleese played Basil Fawlty for the first time in 27 years, for the FIFA World Cup in Germany song "Don't Mention the War", named after the phrase Basil used in "The Germans".[18] In 2007, Cleese and Sachs reprised their roles for a six-episode corporate video for Norwegian oil company Statoil. In the video, Fawlty is running a restaurant called "Basil's Brasserie", while Manuel owns a Michelin Star restaurant in London.[19]

 

In November 2007, Scales returned to the role of Sybil Fawlty in a series of sketches for the BBC's annual Children in Need charity telethon. The character was seen taking over the management of the eponymous hotel from the BBC drama series Hotel Babylon, interacting with characters from that programme as well as other sitcom characters. The character of Sybil was used by permission of John Cleese.[20]

 

A Lonely Planet Tourist Guide of London summarised its critique of the bad state of London hotels by stating that "Fawlty Towers was really a documentary".

 

Filming locations

 

Although the series is set in Torquay, none of it was shot there. For the exterior filming, instead of an actual hotel, the Wooburn Grange Country Club in Buckinghamshire was used. It later served as a nightclub named "Basil's" for a short time after the series ended until it was destroyed by fire in March 1991. The remnants of the building were demolished and the site was bought by developers.[21] Other location filming was done mostly around the Harrow area of north London: In the episode "The Germans", the opening shot is of Northwick Park Hospital. In the episode "Gourmet Night", the exterior of Andre's restaurant was filmed on Preston Road in the Harrow area. The launderette next door to the restaurant still exists today and Andre's is now a Chinese restaurant called "Wings". The famous sequence where Basil beats his car with a branch after it stalls was filmed on the corner of Mentmore Close and Lapstone Gardens in Kenton, just east of Harrow.

 

Potential film adaptation

 

With only 12 episodes made of Fawlty Towers, the BBC was keen to prolong the show. But both Cleese and Booth had felt that series two had been far better than series one and trying to make a third that would be even better was near impossible. However, according to John Cleese in the extras section of the Fawlty Towers three-disc DVD set, and in the book Fawlty Towers Fully Booked, a plot had been developed for a 90-minute feature-length film in which the hotel would be removed and the characters used in a broader, more ambitious landscape. Cleese says:

“ We had an idea for a plot which I loved. Basil was finally invited to Spain to meet Manuel's family. He gets to Heathrow and then spends about 14 frustrating hours waiting for the flight. Finally, on the plane, a terrorist pulls a gun and tries to hijack the thing. Basil is so angry he overcomes the terrorist and when the pilot says, "We have to fly back to Heathrow", Basil says, "No, fly us to Spain or I'll shoot you". He arrives in Spain, immediately arrested and spends the entire holiday in a Spanish jail. He is released just in time to go back on the plane with Sybil.

 

It was very funny, but I couldn't do it at the time. Making Fawlty Towers work at 90 minutes was a very difficult proposition. You can build up the comedy for 30 minutes, but at that length there has to be a trough and another peak. It doesn't interest me. I don't want to do it.

 

. . .

 

[knightni]

28. The Colbert Report (2005-present)

 

 

(3 of 18 lists - 40 points - highest ranking #2 Balta1701)

 

The Colbert Report (/koʊlbe:ɹ ɹəpo:ɹ/—the T's are silent in "Colbert" and "Report") is an American satirical television program that airs from 11:30 p.m. to 12:00 midnight Eastern Time Zone (North America) each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central in the United States and on both The Comedy Network and CTV in Canada. In the United Kingdom it airs at 11.00 p.m on FX (UK) each Tuesday through Friday. It stars political humorist Stephen Colbert, a former correspondent for The Daily Show.

 

The Colbert Report is a spin-off and counterpart of The Daily Show which, like The Daily Show, critiques politics and the media. It satirizes personality-driven political pundit programs, particularly Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor.[1][2] The show focuses on Stephen Colbert, a fictional anchorman character played by Colbert. The character, described by Colbert as a "well-intentioned, poorly informed, high-status idiot", is a caricature of televised political pundits.[3][4]

 

The Colbert Report was nominated for four Emmys each in 2006 and 2007, two Television Critics Association Awards, and two Satellite Awards. It received a Special Recognition award at the 2007 GLAAD Media Awards. It has been presented as non-satirical journalism in several instances, by the Tom DeLay Legal Defense Trust, and following Robert Wexler's interview on the program. The Report received considerable media coverage following its debut on October 17, 2005, for Colbert's popularizing of the term "truthiness", which dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster named its 2006 "Word of the Year."[5]

 

The Report has had cultural influence in a number of ways. In 2006, after Colbert encouraged viewers to vote online to name a Hungarian bridge after him, he won the first round of voting with 17,231,724 votes.[6] The Ambassador of the Republic of Hungary presented Mr. Colbert with a declaration certifying him as the winner of the second and final round of voting, though it was later announced that the bridge would be named the Megyeri Bridge. In 2007, the Democratic Caucus chair instructed freshmen not to appear on the show's 'Better Know a District' segment.[7] The Report has also coined several neologisms, such as "freem" and "truthiness".

 

Production

 

In 2004, The Daily Show won Emmy Awards, and Comedy Central wanted to expand the franchise.[8] Stephen Colbert had been a correspondent on, and co-writer for, The Daily Show for six seasons. Jon Stewart and Ben Karlin (The Daily Show's executive producer) supposedly came up with the idea for The Colbert Report after watching coverage of the sexual harassment lawsuit filed against Bill O'Reilly. Jon Stewart's production company, Busboy Productions, developed The Report. Colbert, Stewart, and Karlin pitched the idea of the show (reportedly with one phrase: "our version of The O'Reilly Factor with Stephen Colbert") to Comedy Central chief Doug Herzog, who agreed to run the show for eight weeks without creating a pilot.[9]

 

The Colbert Report first appeared in the form of three commercials for itself which aired several times on The Daily Show, although the themes that form the basis for The Report can be seen in the reports of Colbert's correspondent character on The Daily Show. The show debuted October 17, 2005, with an initial contract for an eight-week run. On November 2, 2005 based on the strong ratings for the show's first two weeks, Comedy Central and Colbert announced they had signed for an additional year, through the end of 2006.[10]

 

Program format

 

Typically, Colbert starts each episode with teasers regarding the show's topics and guest, followed by a verbal metaphor that promotes the show — for example, "Go out ten yards and button-hook to the left. I'm going to hit you with a perfect spiral of the truth. This is The Colbert Report." The show's opening title sequence begins with images of flag waving, Colbert striking poses and words describing Colbert flying by. Originally, the last word was grippy, but it has changed to megamerican, Lincolnish, superstantial, freem, eneagled, flagaphile, good, gutly, warrior-poet, President Bush have a hotdog with me, and Self-Evident (for the week of April 14, 2008, in honor of the show's broadcast from Philadelphia, returning to President Bush have a hotdog with me afterwards). The sequence ends with a computer-generated shrieking eagle swooping toward the foreground.

 

Following the opening sequence, Colbert proceeds a run-through of the day's headlines, similar to that of The Daily Show but with a pseudo-right-wing spin. The program proper then begins with Colbert addressing a specific topic. That topic will usually lead into a "The Wørd" segment, which juxtaposes Colbert's commentary with satirical bullet points on-screen, a parody on The O'Reilly Factor's "Talking Points Memo;"[11] though on occasion he will conduct a short interview with someone having to do with the topic. The format of the middle segment varies, but it is normally a visual presentation or skit. Often, these skits are parts of recurring segments, which include:

 

* "The Wørd" is a section that occurs in nearly every episode besides those that occurred during the Writer's Strike. It consists of a word or phrase that is linked to his current monologue, and proceeds with Colbert speaking on the subject in the left half of the screen, and a completely different entity commenting on the right half of the screen. The comments are often witty phrases and one-liners that lie in juxtaposition to Colbert's right-wing act.

* "Better Know a District", where Colbert interviews a U.S. Representative from a certain district of the United States. There are various spin-offs of the segment.

* "Tip of the Hat / Wag of the Finger", where Colbert "tips his hat" to things he approves of and "wags his finger" at things he disapproves of.

* "Stephen Colbert's Formidable Opponent", where Colbert debates with the only person he thinks is worthy: himself. Usually one of the Colberts takes a more liberal stance and the other a right-wing fundamentalist one, with the latter usually winning.

* "People Destroying America," a segment where Colbert interviews a certain person who is (usually ridiculously) "destroying America."

* "Cheating Death with Dr. Stephen T. Colbert, D.F.A.", a health segment presented by Colbert ever since he was given an honorary doctorate, despite the fact it was in fine arts. All of the products he advertises are from "Prescott Pharmaceuticals", and have horrible side effects--occasionally, a more severe version of what the product supposedly cures.

* "The Threatdown", where he lists the five biggest threats to America, although the number one threat normally tends to be bears or robots, as Colbert purports to have a phobia of both.

* "Colbert Platinum", covering stories relating to expensive, high-profile items. Colbert often reminds his viewers that this segment is for "Platinum Members of Colbert Nation Only", and instructs poorer people not to watch the segment.

* "Alpha Dog of the Week", reviewing the story of someone that displayed leadership over the week. Ironically, the person Colbert normally praises has fallen from grace due to their actions which Colbert approves of. Despite the name of the segment, it does not happen every week.

* "Monkey on the Lam", a report of an escaped monkey. Noted because of its introduction, which features a monkey riding on the back of a lamb while firing a hand gun, which Colbert finds amusing.

* "Stephen Colbert presents Stephen Colbert's Alpha Squad 7: A Tek Jansen Adventure", a short cartoon, whose main character is an idealized space-hero version of Colbert. The cartoon character is voiced by Colbert. The first seven episodes were designed and produced by J.J. Sedelmaier Productions, Inc., the same studio that designed and animated the SPARTINA title card at the end of every Colbert Report show. Reported to be a parody of Bill O'Reilly's novel Those Who Trespass.[12]

* "Stephen Colbert's Sport Report" (silent "t" in "Sport"), The Report's segment that talks about sports.

* "Bears and Balls", in which Stephen talks about business news. In this segment, he uses a large red button which gives out advice when pressed. However, most of time the advice it gives is nonsense, resulting in Colbert having to press the button two or three times before he gets the advice he wants to give. The button is a direct parody of a similar device used by CNBC's Jim Cramer on his show Mad Money.

* "On Notice", The On Notice segment features a large notice board with a list of people, places, things, ideas, or actions that are "on notice" by Colbert. This segment usually ends another segment that involves the new item for the On Notice Board. Some notable things that have been on the board include bears, Canada, Public Broadcasting and Jon Stewart. When Colbert intends to put an item on notice, but finds it already to be on notice, he places it on the separate Dead To Me board.

 

Sometimes, there is a "Colbert Report Special Repor-t" (final "t" pronounced with special emphasis), in which Colbert devotes a section of an episode, and sometimes the entire episode to a special subject. The third segment is almost always an interview with a celebrity guest, often an author or government official.[13] The interview is, unlike The Daily Show, conducted at a different table on the set. Viewers applaud as Colbert hammily jogs from his desk to the interview area, where his guest awaits. This is different from the traditional format, in which the guest enters to applause and joins the already seated host. Afterwards, Colbert ends the show by giving some parting words to the audience.

Set

 

The studio in which The Colbert Report is taped was used for The Daily Show until July 2005. The set for The Colbert Report is called "The Eagle's Nest" and reflects and facilitates Colbert's self-aggrandizing style.[14] The set has two main areas: the desk, from which Colbert hosts most of the show, and the guest interview area to camera right, where his guest for the evening is interviewed. On one wall, above an artificial fireplace, is a portrait of Colbert; it originally showed Colbert standing in front of the same mantel with another portrait of himself. On the show's first anniversary, the portrait was replaced by one of Colbert standing in front of the mantel with the first portrait above it; the original was auctioned off at a charity event[15] and currently hangs in the Sticky Fingers restaurant in Colbert's native Charleston.[16] Colbert claimed that the portrait will be changed every year to add another level of depth. On October 17, 2007, the portrait was removed and replaced with a new one that followed an identical pattern, but changed Colbert's placement in the foreground.

 

On January 16, 2008, the current "3-deep" Colbert portrait was placed on display "right between the bathrooms near the 'America's Presidents' exhibit" at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC. [17] After first being rejected by the National Museum of American History, Colbert petitioned the Smithsonian to display his portrait, who agreed to "go along with the joke," though they stress that it is only temporary. Colbert said "I don't mean to brag, but as it contains three portraits, my portrait has more portraits than any other portrait in the National Portrait Gallery!" The portrait was then put on display at the Smithsonian until April 13.

 

The graphics used throughout the show and the studio itself are saturated with American flags, Bald Eagles, Captain America's shield, and other patriotic imagery.[18] The set contains many references to Colbert, and on the show's first episode he pointed out several examples: his name, initials and the name of the show appear on the desk's plasma screen, on the rafters above the desk, and the desk itself is shaped like a giant "C".[14] In an interview with The A.V. Club, Colbert explained that much of the design for the set was inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper. "All the architecture of that room points at Jesus' head, the entire room is a halo", Colbert said. "On the set, I'd like the lines of the set to converge on my head. And so if you look at the design, it all does, it all points at my head...there's a sort of sun-god burst quality about the set around me."[19] On the floor to the front stage right of his desk there is an Eagle's nest, and a tape outline of where he injured his wrist, akin to those seen at murder scenes.

 

For the week of April 14 through April 17 2008, the program was taped at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Pennsylvania campus, in advance of the Democratic Party primary in that state on April 22. This is the first time the program has been taped outside its regular New York City studios.[20]

Writers' strike

 

Production of new episodes was suspended on November 5, 2007 due to the Writers Guild of America strike, although a live untaped performance called The Colbert Report - On Strike! took place on December 3, 2007, with proceeds going towards show staffers.[21] The show returned on January 7, 2008, without the writing staff. Upon the show's return, Colbert modified the pronunciation of the show's name, using hard Ts (/koʊlbɵɹt ɹəpɔɹt/); a similar move was made by The Daily Show which returned to air as A Daily Show. On February 13, in honor of the end of the strike, the original names of both shows were restored.

 

During the strike, Colbert stopped performing the customary "table of contents" that usually precedes the opening titles, as well as other regular written segments such as The Wørd. As a member of the Writers Guild of America, Colbert was barred from writing any material for the show himself which his writers would ordinarily write.[22] As a result, Colbert conducted more guest interviews, although several people turned down invitations to cross the picket line to appear on the show, including Katrina van den Heuvel and Naomi Klein.[23] At one stage, Colbert lashed out at fellow late night host Conan O'Brien, who had also recently returned to air without his writers, for claiming to have made presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. In response, Jon Stewart, Colbert's former Daily Show colleague, claimed that he had introduced O'Brien to the public on his earlier show, and thus, by his logic, Stewart was responsible for Huckabee's success. This sparked a briefly recurring mock feud between Colbert, O'Brien and Stewart — during which they appeared on each other's shows — which culminated in a three-way brawl on Late Night with Conan O'Brien on February 4, 2008.[24]

Stephen Colbert (character)

 

The Stephen Colbert character is a semi-fictional character portrayed by comedian and actor Stephen Colbert. The character is a caricature of news pundits such as Stone Phillips, Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity, and Geraldo Rivera, whose shows focus on "bluster and personality".[9][4] Colbert's character, a "well-intentioned, poorly informed, high-status idiot", is right-wing, egomaniacal, fact-averse, God-fearing, and super-patriotic. He claims to be an independent who is often mistaken for a Republican, but uniformly despises liberals and generally agrees with the actions and decisions of George W. Bush and the Republican Party. This is evidenced by one of the questions that he asks of many of his guests: "George W. Bush: great President, or the greatest President?"[25]

 

The character's self-aggrandizing style includes frequent promotion of an extensive range of fictional merchandising and products, including perfumes, sci-fi novels, medications, his own "man seed", and other products, all of which are either produced or endorsed by Colbert. He has also convinced his viewers, whom he addresses as "the Colbert Nation", to vote for him in various public naming polls: the mascot of the Saginaw Spirit, an Ontario Hockey League team has been named after him.[26]

 

Colbert's character has been described as a "caustic right-wing bully".[8] On the interview segment of the show, Colbert frequently attempts to "nail" his guest by using various rhetorical devices, and often logical fallacies, to prove them wrong.[27] Despite his bluster, Colbert's character suffers from arctophobia, the fear of bears, which he refers to as "giant, marauding, godless killing machines."[28] This bear phobia was inspired by Colbert's real-life fear of bears as a child.[27] Colbert refers to Bill O'Reilly as "Papa Bear", a title with a double meaning, considering Colbert's hatred of bears.[29] Colbert displays fear and suspicion of nearly any animal and is quick to declare they are "training" to attack humanity. He is also highly distrustful of technology, particularly robots.[30] Over the months of May and July in 2007, Colbert begged Apple to give him a free iPhone, and finally received one in July. Once he received it, however, he claimed the phone knew so much about him that he had become virtually dependent on it, and that the iPhone itself was a threat.[30] Colbert also despises the "liberal media," the New York Times in particular, but applauds conservative media such as Fox News on a regular basis.[31]

 

Recurring themes

 

Truthiness

 

In "The Wørd" segment of the first episode of the Report, Colbert featured the term truthiness, defined as "the quality by which one purports to know something emotionally or instinctively, without regard to evidence or intellectual examination." Colbert said that, "I don't trust books, they're all fact, no heart. And that's exactly what's pulling our country apart today. Let's face it folks, we are a divided nation… between those who think with their head and those who know with their heart."[32] In December 2005, the New York Times selected truthiness as one of nine words that captured the zeitgeist of the year, and in January 2006, the American Dialect Society announced that truthiness was selected as its 2005 Word of the Year.[33]

 

Colbert has made frequent reference to the spread of the word truthiness since he introduced it, while carping on media accounts of truthiness that neglect to identify him as its source.[31] Truthiness has since been discussed, sometimes repeatedly, in the New York Times, the Washington Post, USA Today, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Chicago Tribune, Newsweek, MSNBC, National Public Radio, the Associated Press, Editor & Publisher, Salon, The Huffington Post, ABC NewsRadio's Word Watch with Kel Richards and Chicago Reader, and on ABC's Nightline, CBS' 60 Minutes, and The Oprah Winfrey Show. In January 2006, truthiness was featured as a Word of the Week by the website of the Macmillan English Dictionary.[34] In December of the same year, Merriam-Webster announced that "truthiness" had been voted by visitors to its website to be the #1 Word of the Year for 2006.[35] On August 27, 2006, the Global Language Monitor named truthiness and wikiality — both coined by Colbert on The Colbert Report — as the top television buzzwords of 2006.[36][37] It was used in the New York Times crossword puzzle in June 2008.

 

Relation to The O'Reilly Factor

 

The Stephen Colbert character and The Colbert Report are generally parodies of Bill O'Reilly and The O'Reilly Factor. New episodes of The Colbert Report are scheduled in the same time slot as rebroadcasts of The O'Reilly Factor, while Colbert rebroadcasts are scheduled during new O'Reilly shows.[38] When O'Reilly appeared on The Daily Show before the second episode of The Colbert Report aired, he commented, "Before we get started, somebody told me walking in here, you got some French guy on after you making fun of me?", and made several references in the following interview to 'the French Guy'.[39][40] In a subsequent Newsweek interview, O'Reilly said that he "feels it's a compliment" to have Colbert parody him because Colbert "isn't mean-spirited" and does not "use [his] platform to injure people." Later, Colbert replied on-air, "I like you too. In fact, if it wasn't for you, this show wouldn't exist."[4]

 

The Colbert Report features a commentary segment called "The Wørd", similar to O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo". Like the "Memo", "The Wørd" features the commentator asserting a political point of view with a text screen graphic next to him. However, while O'Reilly's text serves to emphasize his points, Colbert's text generally serves as an ironic counterpoint to his character's position. Other segments that can be juxtaposed with The O'Reilly Factor are The Colbert Report's Inbox (compared to O'Reilly's "Factor Mail"); Stephen Colbert's Balls for Kidz which, unlike The Factor's "Children at Risk", tends to portray messages and lessons typically considered unsuitable for children; and That's The Craziest F#?king Thing I've Ever Heard, which is comparable to O'Reilly's "The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day". Additionally, Colbert parodies O'Reilly's references to his program as the "no spin zone" by inviting viewers of his show to "take a spin in the no fact zone."[41] O'Reilly and Colbert each appeared as a guest on the other's show on January 18, 2007. O'Reilly seemed to regret this "crossover" before his time on The Colbert Report was through, stating as the audience reacted badly to him that it was "a huge mistake, me coming on here."[28] (As a souvenir, Colbert "stole" a microwave from the O'Reilly green room—in fact, he informed O'Reilly of his intention to take the microwave beforehand—later displaying it on his own show. He later sent over a replacement microwave, emblazoned with The Colbert Report logo.)

 

Greenscreen challenges

 

On the August 10, 2006 episode, Stephen Colbert was shown wielding a lightsaber in front of a green screen, a parody of the Star Wars Kid internet phenomenon.[42] This was done as part of the "Better Know A District" segment, when Colbert visited California's 6th congressional district, the home of Star Wars creator George Lucas. The greenscreen footage was subsequently edited by fans and their results were posted on the Internet, primarily the website YouTube.[43] Colbert featured some of these clips on the August 21 episode and issued the "Greenscreen Challenge" to the public — a contest to create the best video from footage shown in the August 10 episode. Lucas himself made an appearance on the October 11 episode to showcase his entry.[15]

 

When indie rock band The Decemberists shot a music video for their single "O Valencia!" in front of a green screen and asked fans to complete the video, Colbert accused them of copying his idea, and started his second green screen challenge, which called for fans to edit Stephen Colbert into The Decemberists unfinished music video. In response, The Decemberists challenged Colbert to a guitar solo challenge.[44] For a few weeks, the upcoming contest, which Colbert titled "Rock and Awe: Countdown to Guitarmageddon" ("The I-Rock War: Cut and Strum" and "The Axeman Cometh: Mourning Becomes Electric" were announced as alternate titles; Colbert added that he would find and fire the English major on his staff who created the latter title), became a focus of the show. On December 20, 2006, Chris Funk, lead guitarist for The Decemberists, came on the show for the guitar solo challenge. Once Funk finished playing, Colbert arrived on stage with a five-necked guitar belonging to Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick. Colbert played two notes, pretended to cut his hand, and insisted that he could no longer play, so Peter Frampton played a solo in Colbert's place. A panel of three judges, former New York governor Eliot Spitzer, Rock critic Anthony DeCurtis, and chairman of the Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music at New York University, Jim Anderson, voted to determine the best solo. DeCurtis voted for the Colbert/Frampton team, Anderson voted for Funk, and Spitzer withdrew himself from judging as Colbert tried to bribe him during the commercial break. The deciding vote was given to Henry Kissinger, who had briefly appeared earlier in the show. Kissinger said that the American people had won, at which point Colbert declared himself the winner.[45] As a prize, Colbert received The Crane Wife, The Decemberists' new album, saying "The Crane Wife by the Decemberists? I love the Decemberists, they rock. In your face, Funk!"

 

On June 12, 2008, Stephen announced his third green screen challenge, "Stephen Colbert's Make McCain Exciting Challenge!," in which he invited viewers to replace the green screen behind John McCain during one of his speeches with something more exciting.

 

Wrist violence and fictional addiction

 

On July 26, 2007, Colbert broke his left wrist while performing his warm-up for the show.[46] Following the accident Colbert launched a new section of the show entitled "Wrist Watch", featuring news stories about wrists during which Colbert attacks what he sees as Hollywood's glamorization of "wrist violence". Colbert wants to see all violent actions against wrists removed from Hollywood films, and also attacks actors who glamorize it, for example, Steven Seagal.[47] On August 8, Colbert created the "Wriststrong" wrist band, based on Lance Armstrong's "Livestrong" wrist band, in a hope to increase awareness of wrist violence.[48] Colbert also orders those wearing the wrist bands to give them to anyone they see who is more famous than themselves. Colbert made the wristbands available to buy on colbertnation.com, and announced that all proceeds raised by the sales of the wrist bands would be given to the Yellow Ribbon Fund.[49]

 

Colbert has given bracelets to Katie Couric who promised to wear it on The CBS Evening News. Colbert accused Couric as a "betrayer" when she appeared on air without the wristband. Colbert then gave a bracelet to news anchor Brian Williams, who was expected to pass it to news anchor Matt Lauer. However, after a substitute appeared in place for Lauer on The Today Show, Colbert quickly launched a segment entitled "Where in the World is Matt Lauer's Wriststrong Bracelet?" Colbert asked any fan that sees Lauer wearing the bracelet to take a picture and send it in. On September 14, 2007, The Colbert Report aired footage of Lauer wearing the "Wriststrong" bracelet on The Today Show.

 

Besides his attempts to increase wrist awareness, Colbert had also started taking (and subsequently become addicted to) painkillers (which were revealed to be SweeTarts on a close up) to deal with his injury, taking an absurd amount nearly every episode since the accident. Colbert stated "I'm supposed to take these, 'take one once a'...my vision's blurring, I can't read [the bottle]...oh, I'm gonna say once a minute". On August 13, Colbert ran out of pills and experienced withdrawal symptoms of irritability and hallucinations, which were only quelled once he found and eagerly consumed two pills on the floor behind his desk. Colbert's addiction is apparently a reference to either right-wing AM radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh's addiction to the prescription opioid analgesics oxycodone and hydrocodone[50] or Dr. Gregory House, one of Colbert's heroes.

 

Colbert convinced a number of well-known figures to autograph his cast, including Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City; CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric; Bill O'Reilly, host of FOX's The O'Reilly Factor; Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of U.S. House of Representatives; Tim Russert, host of NBC's Meet The Press; Tony Snow, former White House Press Secretary; and NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams. On August 23 Colbert had his cast removed on the show.[51] It was announced that Colbert would auction off his cast for the Yellow Ribbon Fund on eBay. The auction began after Colbert's show on August 23.[52] Within minutes of the auction's start, bidding quickly rose to over $71,000. However, many bids were canceled because bidders failed to get pre-approved by the seller (which is required in the auction). It was sold for $17,200.[53] The buyer was revealed to be johncdmiller, but because they had no picture of him, a picture of a superhero-type character (a combination of Robin Hood, Captain America, and Jesus) was used instead. Following the broadcast, the show went on a brief break, and following its return on September 10, Colbert claimed that, with help from a court order and rehab over the break, he had kicked his addiction.[54] However, on September 13, Colbert, fearing a similar loss to Tony Bennett at the 2007 Emmys as he did to Barry Manilow in 2006, hinted he may experience a relapse as a ploy to garner votes. He did indeed lose to Bennett. However, on the January 16, 2008 edition of the show, during an interview, he stated "Yeah, and I'm not addicted to pills; I just like the taste of Vicodin," most likely referring to his "addiction."

 

On January 23, 2008, Colbert encouraged his viewers to buy WristStrong bracelets to send to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Although Brady had actually injured his ankle, Colbert claimed, "that the ankle is just the wrist of the foot."[55] He then talked to the head of the Yellow Ribbon Fund, Marie Wood. He presented her a check for the money raised by WristStrong bracelet sales, totaling $171,525. He also said that as of that date, over 30,000 bracelets had been sold.[56]

 

On May 8, 2008 Colbert interviewed United States astronaut Garrett Reisman, who was on the International Space Station. Colbert asked Reisman to do "that astronaut spinny thing" with his WristStrong bracelet to prove that he was actually in space. Colbert encouraged Reisman to, while on a spacewalk, give the WristStrong braclet to God, since one must pass the bracelet onto someone more famous than oneself.

 

Recurring characters

 

* P.K. Winsome has had multiple appearances on The Colbert Report as a political commentator, entrepreneur, and black Republican[57] (the "P" and "K" believed to stand for "Percy Kittens", which was the name of Tim Meadow's character on Strangers With Candy, which also starred Stephen Colbert). He is played by former Saturday Night Live cast member Tim Meadows.[58]

* Luis is Colbert's Nicaraguan bookie, whom he has mentioned several times. On the April 26, 2007 episode, Colbert laments the loss of his turtle, Stephanie Colbertle the Turtle, in the Great Turtle Race. He says, "Of course I'm upset, as is my Nicaraguan bookie, Luis. Te voy a dar tu dinero Luis. I just need a week, amigo. And I need my thumbs."[59]

* Russ Lieber is a satirical liberal radio talk show host from Madison, Wisconsin and nemesis of Colbert. He is ultra-sensitive to political correctness, and often worries that his own words might be misconstrued as offensive. Lieber, played by David Cross, has often appeared on the show to debate. As he is a liberal Jewish radio host from the Upper Midwest, Lieber appears to be a satirical take on Al Franken.[60]

* Tad is the building manager, portrayed by Paul Dinello. Generally, he has hosted special segments, such as the building's fire drill. Other segments include his visit to a bank auction for Randy "Duke" Cunningham's assets and his trip to Colbert County, Alabama, to open The Stephen Colbert Museum and Gift Shop.[61]

* Bobby is a stage manager, played by writer Eric Drysdale. He frequently is called upon to do degrading things or to answer questions from Colbert. Bobby is also responsible for keeping track of the whereabouts of Colbert's "son", Stephen Jr.[62]. On the April 21 2008 show, it was insinuated that Stephen had eaten Bobby during a commercial break.

* Killer is a member of Colbert's staff, a large man who never speaks. Due to his constant scowl, threatening stare, and probable criminal history, he is the only staff member that Colbert is afraid to abuse. He has also been described by Colbert as a "Demolitions Expert".

* Jimmy is often heard but rarely seen on the show, though Colbert frequently asks him to put up videos and graphics, a reference to the show's director, Jim Hoskinson.

* Meg is a female intern. When the Democratic Party swept the House and Senate elections of 2006, Colbert characterized the result as a victory for the terrorists, and showed Meg wearing a burqa. Earlier in that same episode, to prove that the show was indeed live, Colbert demanded Meg have sex with him or be fired. Meg later appeared during Colbert's homage to legendary Swedish Director Ingmar Bergman, during which her mysterious appearance leaves Colbert concerned and distraught. In a later episode, when Stephen asks her to count pencils, she mentions that she has filed more than five complaints against him.

* Wilford Brimley is Colbert's "Spiritual Advisor" with whom he frequently has phone conversations. These conversations usually take place in the middle of the night, with Colbert only half-awake, and end up with Brimley (voiced by Colbert) going off on angry go-nowhere tangents that he usually blames on his bout with "The Diabeetus".

* Esteban Colberto is a Cuban version of Colbert. He can be seen with two beautiful girls dancing around him whom he refers to only as "Chicas", and whom he summons and dismisses frequently. He has been featured in an exhibit of "The Wørd" (whereas it is referred to as "La Palabra") and on Colbert's coverage of President George W. Bush's visit to Latin America.[63]

* Alan is Colbert's ex-"black friend." Colbert demoted him to "black acquaintance" after seeing him march in an anti-war demonstration. Since Alan's demotion, Colbert has been searching for a new Black Friend but has been unsuccessful thus far. Alan is played by comedian Jordan Carlos.[64]

* Professor Fingers is a homeless man who is mentioned as Colbert's "protégé" from time to time. This mention is usually accompanied by a picture of 'The Professor' howling madly.

* Eliza is a poor, apparently English orphan who acts as Colbert's camera person on occasion. She is typically referenced by Colbert as "practically being a slave."

* Dr. Jerald Vizzone is Stephen Colbert's doctor who appeared on the show shortly after Colbert's wrist breaking. He showed X-rays of Colbert's wrist and explained its (non)seriousness, and, in a later appearance, removed Colbert's cast on the air. Whenever Dr. Vizzone appears, he is accompanied by music and dancing medical interns, and is allowed to greet the crowd in a fashion that only Colbert himself is normally allowed to do.[65]

* Gorlock is an alien who is only seen on the side bar. He is Colbert's attorney, financial advisor, and stock broker. Colbert thinks he might be a Scientologist because he "talks about spaceships a lot" and came "highly recommended by Tom Cruise". Gorlock supposedly comes from the future and Colbert was not happy when he did not alert Colbert of the large fall in the Nasdaq because he was supposed to have remembered a large slide like that. Colbert also joked that following losing money on the Bear Sterns collapse he was trying to get hold of Gorlock to voice his concerns but Gorlock "wasn't picking up his E-Meter."

* Benjamin Franklin makes occasional appearances in the show and is played by actor Ralph Archbold. He first appeared in a "Better Know a District" spin-off called "Better Know a Founder". He appeared again as a recurring character when The Colbert Report did four special shows live from Philadelphia's University of Pennsylvania in the run-up to the Democratic Party's 2008 Pennsylvania primary.

 

Reception

 

The Colbert Report drew an unusual amount of media attention prior to its premiere. It was featured in articles in The New Yorker, NPR's All Things Considered and Fresh Air, CNN, and The Washington Post. The New York Times alone ran three articles on the Report before its debut, and has made repeated references to The Colbert Report since then.[66] Maureen Dowd, for instance, referred to Colbert's "Dead To Me" board as a metaphor in her column, saying that Oprah Winfrey "should take a page from Stephen Colbert and put the slippery James Frey on her 'Dead to me' list".[67]

 

The Colbert Report drew 1.13 million viewers for its premiere episode, 47% greater than the average for that time slot over the previous four weeks, and 98% of the viewership of The Daily Show, which has Comedy Central's second-largest viewership.[68] Averaged over its opening week, The Report had 1.2 million viewers per episode, more than double the average for the same time the previous year, when the time slot was occupied by Too Late with Adam Carolla. The premiere week of The Colbert Report also coincided with the second-highest-rated week of The Daily Show, behind the week leading up to the 2004 U.S. presidential election.[69]

 

The Colbert Report rapidly became an internet phenomenon, with a vast number of clips from the show being posted onto YouTube by fans. Subsequently references to YouTube were made in jokes on the show, which also launched the first "green screen challenge". On October 27, 2006, however, Comedy Central asserted its copyright over The Colbert Report clips, and YouTube removed all clips over 5 minutes in length. In February 2007, at Viacom's request, they removed all remaining Colbert Report clips.

 

Legal issues

 

Cenk Uygur, host of The Young Turks on Air America Radio, is attempting to sue Colbert for allegedly stealing one of his jokes. On September 7, 2007, he made a joke comparing Republicans to Klingons. On September 11, 2007, Colbert presented "The Wørd", where he compared Republican Rudolph Giuliani to a Klingon.[70]

 

Presented as non-satirical journalism

 

Tom DeLay Legal Defense Trust

 

In May 2006, the Tom DeLay Legal Defense Trust posted a video of The Colbert Report on its website and sent out a mass email urging DeLay supporters to watch how "Hollywood liberal" Robert Greenwald "crashed and burned . . . when promoting his new attack on Tom DeLay."[71] The video featured Colbert asking questions such as, "Who hates America more, you or Michael Moore?"[72] The Trust's email describes its content as "the truth behind Liberal Hollywood's" film about DeLay, and characterizes the Colbert Report clip with the headline, "Colbert Cracks the Story on Real Motivations Behind the Movie." On June 8, 2006, Colbert responded by conducting an "Exclusive Fake Interview" on his show with DeLay. Three different interviews with DeLay on different networks were spliced for humorous effect, and Colbert ended the "interview" by saying "I do hope you enjoyed my manipulation of your words." DeLay has since appeared as a guest on the program.

 

Robert Wexler

 

On July 25, 2006, Colbert responded to television networks — specifically Fox News, NBC's The Today Show and ABC's Good Morning America — which took comments made by Florida Congressman Robert Wexler on The Colbert Report out of context (e.g.: "I enjoy cocaine and the company of prostitutes because they are a fun thing to do."). Wexler, who ran unopposed in the then-upcoming election, made the comments in response to urging by Colbert that he "say some things that would really lose the election for [Wexler] if [Wexler] were contested."[73]

 

Staff and writers

 

The Colbert Report writing staff, as of February 2008:

 

* Stephen Colbert (also executive producer)

* Allison Silverman (also executive producer)

* Rich Dahm (also co-executive producer)

* Tom Purcell (head writer; also supervising producer)

* Frank Lesser

* Michael Galosi

 

 

 

* Rob Dubbin

* Laura Krafft

* Peter Gwinn

* Peter Grosz

* Bryan Adams

* Chuck Harasty

 

 

 

* Barry Julien

* Jay Katsir

* Michael Brumm

* Glenn Eichler

* Meredith Scardino

 

Awards

 

In 2006, The Colbert Report was nominated for four Emmys, one more than its parent, The Daily Show.[74] However, The Colbert Report lost two of its Emmy opportunities to The Daily Show — Colbert received one as a then-member of The Daily Show's writing staff. Colbert also lost Outstanding Individual Performance In A Variety Or Music Program to Barry Manilow, who was nominated for a one-time PBS special, as Colbert jokingly noted while presenting an Emmy later that night. Manilow later appeared on the show to sign a peace treaty with Colbert, in which they agreed to joint custody of the award. The two then sang a duet of Manilow's classic "I Write the Songs". It was nominated for:

 

* Outstanding Directing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Program, Episode #110

* Outstanding Individual Performance In A Variety Or Music Program, Stephen Colbert

* Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Series

* Outstanding Writing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Program

 

Additionally, the show was nominated for two Television Critics Association Awards:[75] Outstanding Individual Achievement in Comedy (Stephen Colbert), and Outstanding New Program of the Year The Colbert Report was also nominated for Satellite Awards in two categories in 2005 and 2006:[75] Actor in a Series, Comedy or Musical (Stephen Colbert), and Television Series, Comedy or Musical. It was also given a Special Recognition award at the 2007 GLAAD Media Awards.[76]

 

In 2007, The Colbert Report was nominated for four Emmys for the second consecutive year, in the same categories as in 2006.[77] Not only did none of the nominations result in an award for the second straight year, that year's winner for Outstanding Individual Performance was another singer, Tony Bennett.[78] Likewise, Bennett eventually sung with Colbert on the program. In 2008, The Colbert Report won the Producers Guild of America Award for "Best Live Entertainment/Competition Show".[79]

 

In April 2008 The Colbert Report received a George F. Peabody Award recognizing its excellence in news and entertainment.[80]

 

Other honors

 

Colbert has received several other honors and distinctions. Colbert announced on his March 29, 2006 show that he had been contacted by San Francisco Zoo officials seeking his permission to name an unhatched bald eagle after him.[81] The eagle, affectionately dubbed "Stephen Jr." on The Report, was bred to be reintroduced into the wild, as a part of the zoo's California Bald Eagle Breeding Program. Colbert celebrated the chick's birth on the April 17, 2006, program, and has since given updates on the bird's development. He has criticized the bird for migrating to Canada, and has attempted to lure him back to the U.S., but as of June 2007, Colbert claims the two are still estranged. Colbert received an honorary doctorate in fine arts from Knox College, Illinois on June 3, 2006;[82] his credit as producer has been listed since that time as "Dr. Stephen T. Colbert, D.F.A."[83]

 

On September 30, 2006, the Saginaw Spirit, an OHL hockey team in Saginaw, Michigan, named its co-mascot "Steagle Colbeagle the Eagle" in honor of Colbert (despite the fact that it was spotted holding a Canadian flag during the anthem).[84] Before the introduction of the mascot, the team record was 0-3-0-1, but once the "Steagle" was introduced, the team improved their record to 44-21-0-3 by the season's end,[85] before losing in the first round of the playoffs.[86] On January 27, 2007, Oshawa, Ontario declared March 20 of that year "Stephen Colbert Day" after mayor John Gray bet Colbert that the Oshawa Generals would beat the Spirit, and Saginaw won 5-4.[87]

 

In 2007, the ice cream company Ben and Jerry's announced a new flavor of ice cream, "Stephen Colbert's Americone Dream" (available only in the United States). The flavor is described as "a decadent melting pot of vanilla ice cream with fudge-covered waffle cone pieces and a caramel swirl."[88] The company's founders appeared on the show on March 5, 2007 to discuss the ice cream and to plug their "grassroots education and advocacy project", TrueMajority.

 

On March 12, 2007, the Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics, Joe Quesada, awarded Stephen Colbert the shield of the recently deceased superhero Captain America.[89] The letter to Colbert accompanying the shield stated that "the Star-Spangled Avenger has bequeathed... his indestructible shield to the only man he believed to have the red, white and blue balls to carry the mantle." Colbert promised to use the shield "only to fight for justice... and to impress girls." It was, in fact, one of only two full-sized prop shields which had previously been kept in the Marvel offices.[90] In the latter part of March 2007, Drexel University named a leatherback turtle in honor of Colbert in their Great Turtle Race.[91] "Stephanie Colburtle the Leatherback Turtle" came in second place, losing to a turtle named Billie.[92]

 

On August 22, 2007, Richard Branson, who was being interviewed as a guest, announced that one of his Virgin America aeroplanes would be named, "Air Colbert". Colbert announced on April 2, 2008, during a ThreatDown segment, that the plane had been grounded after one of its engines was damaged by a bird strike.

 

Time magazine's James Poniewozik named it one of the Top 10 Returning Series of 2007, ranking it at #7.[93]

 

Cultural impact

 

Hungarian bridge campaign

 

In 2006, the Ministry of Transport of Hungary launched an online call for public suggestions to name a future motorway bridge over the Danube, just north of Budapest. Ministry officials said the Hungarian Geographical Name Committee would choose from among the three submitted candidates with the most votes, guided by suggestions submitted by "local governments, cartographers, linguists, and other experts".[94] Users offered hundreds of suggestions, among them the "'You Can Go To Bratislava But Not Over This Bridge' Bridge" and the "Chuck Norris Bridge", which led in votes for some time.[95] Colbert noted the effort in his "Tip of the hat, wag of the finger" segment on August 9,[96] and in the following weeks, he continued to ask viewers to vote for him. On August 22, Hungarian news sites reported Colbert had won the first round of voting, with 17,231,724 votes.[6] Hungary changed the voting rules after the members of the Colbert Nation Forums developed a bot to stuff the ballot box, requiring registration to vote in the second phase. That night, Colbert asked his viewers to cease their efforts,[97] and offered apologies,[97] spending a segment honoring Hungary, its history and its contributions to the world.[98]

 

On September 24, 2006 Colbert introduced his guest András Simonyi, Ambassador of the Republic of Hungary to the United States. The ambassador presented Mr. Colbert with a declaration certifying him as the winner of the second and final round of voting. The document bore the signatures of Hungarian government officials and the country's official seal.[99] Included in the text, as read by the ambassador, were two important conditions required for the name of the bridge to be made official. First, Colbert must be fluent in Hungarian. Colbert responded by pronouncing the Hungarian name Nicholas Zrinyi (incorrectly referring to Miklós Zrínyi) and híd (meaning 'bridge' in Hungarian); Simonyi quickly certified him as fluent.[100] Colbert protested, but the ambassador presented him with a Hungarian passport and 10,000 Hungarian Forint (HUF), noting that this would allow Colbert to enter Hungary at any time, without restriction. He also brought attention to the portrait of King St. Stephen, the first King of Hungary, on the 10,000 HUF bill. Finally Simonyi implied that the question of Colbert's ineligibility by virtue of being alive might be resolved if Colbert were to accept an invitation to visit the bridge site in Budapest; Colbert responded by trying to bribe the ambassador with the 10,000 HUF bill.[100] On September 28, 2006, it was announced that the bridge will be named "Megyeri Bridge", although the name did not make it to the second round. According to the Geographical Name Committee, the name was selected because the bridge connects Káposztásmegyer with Békásmegyer.[101]

 

Congressional response

 

In response to the 'Better Know a District' segment, Rahm Emanuel, the Democratic Caucus chair, instructed incoming freshmen not to do appearances on the show.[7] Colbert responded by issuing an "Editing Challenge" on his March 26, 2007 broadcast. The challenge directs viewers to the Colbert Nation website to obtain an extended interview with Colbert, conducted by Gwen Ifill, which viewers may then edit to make him look as ridiculous as the representatives.[102] However, The Colbert Report has never followed through on the contest, with not one entry being aired and no further reference to the contest ever being made on the show. This is despite dozens, if not hundreds, of entries posted on YouTube.

Neologisms

 

The Colbert Report has created new words. Besides "Truthiness", Colbert has coined other terms including "Freem", which is "Freedom without the do, because I do it all for you."[103] Other words include: "Eneagled", a blend of "enabled" and "eagle", thus meaning "to be given the characteristics of an eagle" and "Mantasy", meaning male fantasies, such as running away from the wife to become free, a word to which Colbert claims to hold a trademark.[104]

 

2006 White House Correspondents' Association Dinner

 

Colbert made a speech during the 2006 White House Correspondents Association Dinner, performing as his character. His speech "praised" George W. Bush and the media in general. Bush and his wife Laura were sitting a few yards away from him.[105] During his speech, Colbert made several comments about Bush, including:

 

"I stand by this man. I stand by this man because he stands for things. Not only for things, he stands on things. Things like aircraft carriers, and rubble, and recently flooded city squares. And that sends a strong message: that no matter what happens to America, she will always rebound — with the most powerfully staged photo ops in the world."[106]

 

"I believe the government that governs best is the government that governs least. And by these standards, we have set up a fabulous government in Iraq."[107]

 

During the speech, several of Bush's supporters and aides walked out in protest, with one aide saying of the president that he had "that look that he's ready to blow."[108]

 

Running for President in 2008

 

On October 16, 2007, Colbert announced on The Report that he would be running for president. He had chosen no vice-president, though he was considering choosing Vladimir Putin, Mike Huckabee, or himself as his running mate.[109] Also, he was only running in South Carolina, his home state. Another oddity of his campaign is the fact that he was contemplating running for both the Republican and Democratic parties as "a favorite son".[110][111] Colbert covered his story in the segment "The Hail to the Cheese Stephen Colbert NachoCheese Doritos 2008 Presidential Campaign Coverage", and promoted his campaign on special election website, colbert08.org, as under law he cannot use colbertnation.com.[112]

 

On October 21, 2007, Colbert appeared on NBC's Meet The Press where he was interviewed by the host, Tim Russert. The highlights included Colbert explaining why he changed the pronunciation of his name (from "Cole-Bert" to "Cole-Bear"), his demanding to know whether Russert believes that God supports our enemies in Iraq, and his revealing that he had no interest in winning the Presidency (he just wanted to run).

 

On November 1, 2007, the executive council of the South Carolina Democratic Party voted 13-3 to keep his name off the ballot, and refunded his $2500 filing fee.[113]

 

. . .

 

[knightni]

27. Taxi (1978-83)

 

 

(4 of 18 lists - 42 points - highest ranking #3 RibbieRubarb)

 

Taxi is an American sitcom that originally aired from 1978 to 1982 on ABC, and from 1982 to 1983 on NBC. The series, which won 18 Emmy Awards including three for Outstanding Comedy Series, focuses on the everyday lives of a handful of New York City taxi drivers and their abusive dispatcher at the fictional Sunshine Cab Company. The series was produced by the John Charles Walters Company in association with Paramount Television (now CBS Paramount Television).

 

Taxi was inspired by the non-fiction article "Hip-Shifting for the Night Fleet" by Mark Jacobson, which appeared in the September 22, 1975 issue of New York magazine. This article helped suggest the idea for the show to James L. Brooks and David Davis, though nothing from it was used directly.[1] The article was a profile of several drivers who worked the night shift for a New York cab company.

 

Taxi was ranked 48th in TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.

 

Premise and themes

 

Much of the show focuses on attempts to "make it out of the garage" by achieving enough success in their external careers that they no longer need to supplement their income by driving. Only Alex, who is older than his colleagues and disillusioned with life, considers driving a cab his profession. The others, despite being unable to make a living via their outside careers, do not consider taxi driving their true calling. Elaine is a receptionist at an art gallery, Tony is a boxer with a losing record, and Bobby is a struggling actor. John Burns, who was written out of the show after the first season, is working his way through college. The rest of the drivers take pity on "Reverend Jim" Ignatowski, an aging hippie minister burnt out from drugs, and help him become a cabbie. Many episodes involve one of the characters having an opportunity to realize his or her dream and move up in the world, only to see it yanked away.

 

Despite the zany humor regularly featured on the show, Taxi often tackled such dramatic issues as drug addiction, single parenthood, blindness, bisexuality, teenage runaways, failed marriages, sexual harassment, pre-menstrual mood disorders, and the loss of a loved one.

 

Characters

 

* Alex Rieger (Judd Hirsch) - Alex is the sensible, compassionate core of the show, the one everyone else turns to for advice. At one point, he reveals his frustration with this unwanted burden. He once worked in an office, with a good chance of advancement, but lost his job due to his refusal to follow the company line. He was married to Phyllis Bornstein (Louise Lasser). When his wife divorced him because of his lack of ambition, she sought sole custody of their baby daughter, Cathy; he gave in rather than fight. He is also estranged from his philandering father, Joe (Jack Gilford). Alex is a recovered compulsive gambler, although he relapses in one episode. A pessimist, he has resigned himself to driving a cab for the rest of his life.

 

* Louie De Palma (Danny DeVito) - The dispatcher for the Sunshine Cab Company. He not only has no morals to speak of, he positively revels in his misdeeds. Nothing is beneath him, from taking advantage of a drunken friend of his sometime-girlfriend Zena Sherman (played by real-life wife Rhea Perlman) to gambling with a young boy to stealing from the company. He lives with his mother (DeVito's real mother, Julia, in two episodes). Under the amoral exterior beats a heart of pure lead. That said, he has (on very rare occasions) helped his workers, as in the episode in which an arrogant hairstylist (played by Ted Danson) gives Elaine a garish makeover just before a very important event and further humiliates her by stating he "didn't know how to do taxi drivers." It is Louie who bolsters her confidence to confront him. TV Guide ranked De Palma first on its list of the 50 greatest TV characters of all time.

 

* Elaine O'Connor-Nardo (Marilu Henner) - Elaine is a divorced mother of two struggling to cope, while trying to realize her ambitions in the field of fine art. The object of lust of Louie, she is attracted to characters played by actors ranging from Tom Selleck to Wallace Shawn.

 

* Tony Banta (Tony Danza) - The sweet-natured, if somewhat dimwitted boxer has little success in the sport. In fact, Louie makes a lot of money betting against him. Finally, the boxing commission takes away his license because he has been knocked out one too many times. Danza actually was a professional boxer.

 

* Bobby Wheeler (Jeff Conaway) (1978-1982) - Bobby is a shallow, conceited actor whose pretensions are Louie's favorite target. Success eludes Bobby. Once, he is signed up by a famous manager, but it turns out she does not want to represent him; she only wants him as a lover. Another time, he is cast in a pilot for a soap opera called Boise. The show goes into production, but his part is recast.

 

* Reverend Jim Ignatowski (Christopher Lloyd) (1979-1983) - A burned-out relic of the '60s, Jim lives in a world of his own. He was once a hard-working, serious student at Harvard University, with an extremely wealthy father (Victor Buono), but one bite of a drug-laden brownie was enough to get him hooked and send him into a downward spiral. The cabbies help him pass a written exam to become one of them, in a particularly memorable episode (see Quotes section below). He occasionally exhibits unexpected talents, such as the ability to play the piano masterfully. TV Guide placed Ignatowski 32nd on its list of the 50 greatest TV characters of all time.

 

* Latka Gravas (Andy Kaufman) - Latka is an immigrant from a very strange land, often speaking in his invented foreign tongue ("ibi da", "nik nik"). He works as a mechanic, fixing the taxis. Latka was an adaptation of the "Foreign Man" character Kaufman originated in his stand-up comedy act. He eventually grew tired of the gag, so the writers gave Latka multiple personality disorder, allowing Kaufman to play other characters, the most frequent one being a repellent, smooth-talking lounge-lizard persona calling itself Vic Ferrari. In one episode however, he becomes Alex, with profound insights into "his" life. Just when he is about to reveal to the real Alex the perfect solution for all his problems, he reverts back to Latka.

 

* Simka Dahblitz-Gravas (Carol Kane) (1980-1983) - She is from the same country as Latka. They belong to different ethnic groups which traditionally detest each other, but they fall in love and eventually get married. She is much more assertive than her husband, often standing up to Louie for him.

 

* John Burns (Randall Carver) (1978-1979) - The naive young man works as a cabbie to pay for college. According to Carver, "...the characters of John Burns and Tony Banta were too similar...Some of the lines were almost interchangeable..."[2], so he was dropped after the first season without explanation.

 

* Jeff Bennett (J. Alan Thomas) - Sunshine Cab's assistant dispatcher, he shares the "cage" with Louie but rarely speaks or interacts with the other characters. One exception is the Season 5 episode "Crime and Punishment", wherein Louie turns Jeff in for stealing car parts from the company and selling them on the black market (a crime which Louie himself committed).

 

Awards and nominations

 

Taxi is one of television's most lauded shows. During its run, the sitcom was nominated for 31 Emmy Awards and won 18, including three for Outstanding Comedy Series. It was also nominated for 25 Golden Globes, with four wins (three for Best TV Series - Musical/Comedy). In 1979, it received the Humanitas Prize in the 30 minute category.

 

Awards

 

Emmy Awards:

 

* Comedy Series (1979-1981)

* Lead Actor in a Comedy Series - Judd Hirsch (1981, 1983)

* Guest Actress in a Comedy Series - Ruth Gordon (1979)

* Lead Actress in a Comedy Series - Carol Kane (1982)

* Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series - Carol Kane (1983)

* Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series - Danny DeVito (1981)

* Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series - Christopher Lloyd (1982, 1983)

* Directing in a Comedy Series - James Burrows (1980, 1981)

* Writing in a Comedy Series - Michael Leeson (1981)

* Writing in a Comedy Series - Ken Estin (1982)

* Film Editing for a Series - M. Pam Blumenthal (1979-81), Jack Michon (1981)

 

Golden Globe Awards:

 

* Best Television Series-Comedy (1979-1981), tied in 1980 with Alice

* Best TV Supporting Actor - Danny DeVito (1980), tied with Vic Tayback in Alice

 

Nominations

 

Emmy Awards:

 

* Comedy Series (1982, 1983)

* Lead Actor in a Comedy Series - Judd Hirsch (1979, 1980, 1982)

* Lead Actress in a Comedy Series - Eileen Brennan (1981)

* Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series - Danny DeVito (1979, 1982, 1983)

* Directing in a Comedy Series - James Burrows (1982)

* Writing in a Comedy Series - Michael Leeson (1979)

* Writing in a Comedy Series - Glen Charles and Les Charles (1980, 1981)

* Writing in a Comedy Series - David Lloyd (1981)

* Writing in a Comedy Series - Barry Kemp and Holly Holmberg Brooks (1982)

* Writing in a Comedy Series - Ken Estin (1983)

Golden Globe Awards:

 

* Television Series-Comedy (1982-1984)

* Actor in a TV Series-Comedy - Judd Hirsch (1979-1983)

* TV Supporting Actress - Marilu Henner (1979-1983)

* TV Supporting Actress - Carol Kane (1983)

* TV Supporting Actor - Tony Danza (1980)

* TV Supporting Actor - Danny DeVito (1979, 1981, 1982)

* TV Supporting Actor - Jeff Conaway (1979, 1980)

* TV Supporting Actor - Andy Kaufman (1979, 1981)

 

Production

 

The series was produced on Stage 23, at Paramount Television, in Los Angeles, California, from July 5, 1978, to February 18, 1983.

 

Opening sequence

 

The opening titles show a cab driving across the Queensboro Bridge. The footage originally was intended as a "bridge" between scenes and is only about fifteen seconds long; parts of it are subtly repeated a few times to fill the opening. Tony Danza drove the cab in the sequence; he was in New York to shoot a scene that would air in the first season finale. It ended up being the whole series's only scene filmed in New York.

 

The external shot of the Sunshine Cab Company was of a garage in New York's West Village. The building has since been demolished, the site now containing an apartment building and a Rite Aid.[citation needed]

 

Theme music

 

Bob James wrote the theme music for Taxi throughout its entire run, including the main theme, "Angela", which was written for a sequence in episode 3 of the first season ("Blind Date", see below). The producers liked the slower, more melancholy tune better than the original, more up-tempo original opening theme chosen, which was the title cut of James's 1978 album, Touchdown, on which "Angela" also appears.

 

 

[knightni]

26. The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-77)

 

 

(3 of 18 lists - 44 points - highest ranking #5 Steve9347)

 

The Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns that aired on CBS from September 19, 1970 to March 19, 1977. The program was a television breakthrough, with the first independent career woman as the central character:

 

As Mary Richards, a single woman in her thirties, Moore presented a character different from other single TV women of the time. She was not widowed or divorced or seeking a man to support her.[1]

 

It has also been cited as "one of the most acclaimed television programs ever produced" in US television history.[1] Over a seven year period, it received high praise from critics and Emmy Awards for Outstanding Comedy Series three years in a row (1975, 1976, and 1977).[1] The show continued to be honored long after the final episode aired. In 2003, USA Today called it "one of the best shows ever to air on TV".[2] In 1997, TV Guide selected a Mary Tyler Moore Show episode as the best TV episode ever, and, in 1999, Entertainment Weekly picked Mary's hat toss in the opening credits as television's second greatest moment.

 

Overview

 

Mary Richards (Moore) is a single woman who, at age 30, moves to Minneapolis, Minnesota after breaking off a relationship with her boyfriend of two years. She applies for a secretarial job at TV station WJM-TV, only to find it has already been filled. To her surprise, she is offered the position of associate producer for the Six O'Clock News (which pays $10 a week less than the job she originally sought).

 

At work, she befriends her tough-but-likeable boss Lou Grant (played by Edward Asner), sympathetic, long-suffering newswriter Murray Slaughter (Gavin MacLeod), and buffoonish anchorman Ted Baxter (Ted Knight). Mary's other acquaintances and friends include upstairs neighbor Rhoda Morgenstern (Valerie Harper), a self-deprecating, ex-New Yorker who becomes her best friend, their self-involved landlady Phyllis Lindstrom (Cloris Leachman) and her precocious daughter Bess (Lisa Gerritsen). Characters introduced later are the acerbic, man-hungry host of WJM's cooking program, The Happy Homemaker, Sue Ann Nivens (Betty White), and sweet-natured, soft-spoken Georgette Franklin (Georgia Engel), Ted Baxter's girlfriend and then wife.

 

Cast

 

Main characters

 

* Mary Richards (Mary Tyler Moore) When Moore was first approached about the show, she "was unsure and unwilling to commit, fearing any new role might suffer in comparison with her Laura character in The Dick Van Dyke Show, already cemented as one of the most popular parts in US TV history."[5] It was originally planned for Mary to be a divorcée, but because the network was afraid viewers might think that Mary had divorced Rob Petrie, her character's husband on The Dick Van Dyke Show, the premise was changed to that of simply a broken engagement.[6]

 

* Lou Grant (Edward Asner) Following the end of the series, Asner continued to play the same character in the long-running dramatic series Lou Grant. This is one of the few times in TV history that a situation comedy spun off a dramatic series.[7] In 2005, Asner reprised his character, though never identified as Lou Grant, in commercials for Minneapolis/St. Paul ABC affiliate KSTP's Eyewitness News.[8]

 

* Murray Slaughter (Gavin MacLeod), the head copy writer, who saves his quips for Ted Baxter's mangling of his news reports, and Sue Ann Nivens' aggressive, man-hungry attitude.

 

* Ted Baxter (Ted Knight), the vain, pompous, dim-witted news anchor.

 

* Rhoda Morgenstern (Valerie Harper) (1970 - 74), Mary's best friend and upstairs neighbor. Harper eventually got her own spinoff series, Rhoda, which was also a success.

 

* Phyllis Lindstrom (Cloris Leachman) (1970 - 75), Mary's snobbish landlady; wife (and later widow) of Dr. Lars Lindstrom and mother of Bess. She also starred in her own (short-lived) spinoff series, Phyllis.

 

* Georgette Franklin Baxter (Georgia Engel) (1972 - 77), Ted's sweet-natured girlfriend and eventual wife.

 

* Sue Ann Nivens (Betty White) (1973 - 77), host of The Happy Homemaker show. Her superficially ever-cheerful demeanor belies her true, man-chasing nature. She is particularly attracted to Lou Grant (who in no way returns her interest).

 

Recurring characters

 

* Gordy Howard (John Amos) (1970 - 73), The station's weather forecaster.

* Bess Lindstrom (Lisa Gerritsen) (1970 - 75), Phyllis' precocious daughter.

* Ida Morgenstern (Nancy Walker) (1970 - 73), Rhoda's meddling, domineering mother

* Martin Morgenstern (Harold Gould) (1972 - 73), Rhoda's father

* Marie Slaughter (Joyce Bulifant) (1971 - 77), Murray's wife

* Dottie Richards (Nanette Fabray) (1972), Mary's mother

* Walter Richards (Bill Quinn) (1972), Mary's father

* Edie Grant (Priscilla Morrill) (1973 - 75), Lou's wife. They eventually get divorced.

* Andy Rivers (John Gabriel) (1973 - 75), The station's sports reporter, and occasional romantic interest of Mary's.

* Flo Meredith (Eileen Heckart) (1975 - 76), Mary's famous journalist aunt. She and Lou are attracted to each other, but they are not willing to compromise their separate careers to build a serious relationship.

* David Baxter (Robbie Rist) (1976 - 77), the Baxters' adopted son

 

Awards and honors

 

Emmys

 

By earning 29 Emmy Awards, the Mary Tyler Moore Show set a new record that was not broken until 2002, when Frasier earned its 30th Emmy.[9]

 

1971

 

* Edward Asner, Outstanding Performance by Supporting Actor/Comedy

* Valerie Harper, Outstanding Performance by Supporting Actress/Comedy

* James L. Brooks and Allan Burns, Outstanding Writing Achievement/Comedy, for episode "Support Your Local Mother"

* Jay Sandrich, Outstanding Directorial Achievement/Comedy, for episode "Toulouse Lautrec is One of My Favorite Artists"

 

1972

 

* Edward Asner, Outstanding Performance by Supporting Actor/Comedy

* Valerie Harper, Outstanding Performance by Supporting Actress/Comedy

 

1973

 

* Mary Tyler Moore, Outstanding Continued Performance by Leading Actress/comedy

* Ted Knight, Outstanding Continued Performance by Supporting Actor/comedy

* Valerie Harper, Outstanding Continued Performance by Supporting Actress/comedy

* Jay Sandrich, Outstanding Directorial Achievement/Comedy, for episode "It's Whether You Win or Lose"

 

1974

 

* Mary Tyler Moore, Actress of the Year/Series

* Mary Tyler Moore, Best Lead Actress/comedy

* Cloris Leachman, Best Supporting Actress/comedy, Single Performance for episode "The Lars Affair"

* Treva Silverman, Best Comedy Writing in a Single Program of a Series with Continuing Characters and/or Theme, for episode "The Lou and Edie Story"

* Treva Silverman, Writer of the Year/TV Series

 

1975

 

* James L. Brooks, Allan Burns, Stan Daniels, Ed Weinberger, Outstanding Comedy Series

* Edward Asner, Outstanding Continuing Performance by Supporting Actor/comedy

* Betty White, Outstanding Continuing Performance by Supporting Actress/comedy

* Cloris Leachman, Best Supporting Actress/comedy, Single Performance for episode "Phyllis Whips Inflation" (award shared with Zohra Lampert, Kojak)

* Ed Weinberger and Stan Daniels, Outstanding Writing/Comedy for a Single Episode of Regular or Limited Series with Continuing Characters and/or Theme, for episode "Will Mary Richards Go to Jail?"

* Douglas Hines, Outstanding Film Editing for Entertainment Programming

 

1976

 

* James L. Brooks, Allan Burns, Stan Daniels, Ed Weinberger, Outstanding Comedy Series

* Mary Tyler Moore, Outstanding Lead Actress/Comedy

* Ted Knight, Outstanding Continuing Performance by Supporting Actor/Comedy

* Betty White, Outstanding Continuing Performance by Supporting Actress/Comedy

* David Lloyd, Outstanding Writing in Comedy Series for Single Episode of Regular/Limited Series with Continuing Characters/Theme, for episode "Chuckles Bites the Dust"

 

1977

 

* James L. Brooks, Allan Burns, Stan Daniels, Ed Weinberger, Outstanding Comedy Series

* Allan Burns, James L. Brooks, Ed Weinberger, Stan Daniels, David Lloyd, Bob Ellison, for episode "The Last Show"

* Douglas Hines, Outstanding Film Editing/Comedy Series, for episode "Murray Can't Lose"

 

Golden Globe Awards

 

* 1971: Mary Tyler Moore, Best Actress/Comedy

 

* 1972: Edward Asner, Best Supporting Actor/Comedy

 

* 1976: Edward Asner, Best Supporting Actor/Comedy (tied with Tim Conway for The Carol Burnett Show)

 

Honors

 

* In 1997, TV Guide ranked "Chuckles Bites The Dust" 1st on their list of The Greatest Episodes of All Time. "The Lars Affair" made the list at 27th.[3]

 

* In 1998, Entertainment Weekly placed "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" first in its list of the 100 Greatest TV Shows of all Time.[10]

 

* In 1999, the TV Guide list of the 50 Greatest TV Characters of All Time ranked Mary Richards 21st and Ted Baxter 29th. Only three other shows placed two characters on the list (Taxi, The Honeymooners and Seinfeld).[citation needed]

 

* In 1999, Entertainment Weekly ranked the opening credits image of Mary tossing her hat into the air as #2 on their list of The 100 Greatest Moments In Television.[4]

 

* In 2002, The Mary Tyler Moore Show was 11th on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.[11]

 

* In 2007, Time magazine placed the Mary Tyler Moore Show on its unranked list of "100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME".[12]

 

* Bravo ranked Mary Richards 8th, Lou Grant 35th, Ted Baxter 48th, and Rhoda Morgenstern 57th on their list of the 100 greatest TV characters [1].

 

Memorable episodes

 

* "Love Is All Around" (September 19, 1970) - In the premiere episode, thirty-year-old Mary Richards moves to Minneapolis after rebounding from a broken romance. She finds an apartment in the same large house as her old friend Phyllis Lindstrom and becomes friends with her upstairs neighbor, native New Yorker Rhoda Morgenstern. She applies for a secretarial position at WJM-TV, but gets a job as associate producer for The Six O'Clock News instead (for less pay).

 

* "Support Your Local Mother" (October 24, 1970) - Mary finds herself caught between Rhoda and her mother, when Mrs. Morgenstern, a member of the keep-them-feeling-guilty school of child rearing, comes to Minneapolis for a visit and Rhoda refuses to see her.

 

* "Rhoda the Beautiful" (October 21, 1972) - After dropping twenty pounds, Rhoda reluctantly enters a beauty pageant at work. Though she looks great (even Phyllis compliments her), she still can't get used to thinking of herself as beautiful. The episode won Valerie Harper her third Best Supporting Actress Emmy.

 

* "My Brother's Keeper" (January 13, 1973) - Phyllis wants to set up her visiting brother with Mary, but instead he hits it off with Rhoda and begins spending time with her, to Phyllis's dismay. Rhoda informs Phyllis that he is gay. Though surprised, Phyllis could not care less that her brother is gay, and is simply relieved that there are are no romantic feelings between him and Rhoda.

 

* "The Lars Affair" (September 15, 1973) - Phyllis makes a desperate bid to win back her husband Lars when she finds out that he's having an affair with Sue Ann Nivens. Sue Ann was introduced in this episode. This episode was ranked #27 on TV Guides The Greatest Episodes of All Time.

 

* "Chuckles Bites the Dust" (October 25, 1975) - The ludicrous death of WJM's Chuckles the Clown, crushed by an elephant while dressed as Peter Peanut, provokes a torrent of black humor which has everyone in the newsroom but Mary convulsed in laughter. Mary's suppressed laughter comes out at an inopportune moment: at Chuckles' funeral. This episode was ranked #1 on TV Guides The Greatest Episodes of All Time.

 

* "The Seminar" (January 10, 1976) Mary accompanies Lou to a convention in Washington, DC, where Lou attempts to impress Mary with all the connections that he still has there from his newsapaper days. When none of them pan out, Mary begins to feel sorry for Lou, until he receives a call from First Lady Betty Ford (who appears as herself).

 

* "The Last Show" (March 19, 1977) The new owner of WJM re-evaluates the news operation and, unable to determine the reason for the low ratings, arbitrarily fires everyone in the newsroom except for the supremely incompetent Ted. The curtain call of this episode shows Mary Tyler Moore introducing the other seven regular cast members to the audience as "the best cast ever."

 

Opening title sequence

 

The opening title sequence begins with the title of the series repeated vertically across the screen, followed by a montage of brief shots of Mary, mostly engaging in everyday activities around the city, as the theme song plays. In the final shot, she cheerfully tosses her tam o'shanter in the air in the middle of the street; a freeze frame shot captures her smiling face and the hat in mid-air.

 

The sequence was created by Reza Badiyi who also did the one for Hawaii Five-O. Badiyi came up with the idea for the final shot, which Entertainment Weekly ranked as the second greatest moment in television.[4] An older woman can be seen in the background, obviously puzzled by the sight of a young woman tossing her hat in the air. This unwitting "extra" was Hazel Frederick, a lifelong Minnesota resident who happened to be out shopping the day the sequence was shot.[13]

 

From 1973 to the series' conclusion, Mary is shown washing her car while wearing the #10 home jersey of Minnesota Vikings' quarterback Fran Tarkenton. Tarkenton and the Vikings had played in three Super Bowls around this time, the last in the 1976 season.

 

Some of the scenes show Mary Tyler Moore interacting with crew members. In one, the camera pans over a shot of Mary Richards eating at a restaurant with an older man, the actress' then-husband, Grant Tinker, who served as president of MTM Enterprises until 1981. Another scene shows Mary walking in the park, where she is passed by two joggers: creators James L. Brooks and Allan Burns.

 

In later seasons, Mary is shown looking at a package of meat at a supermarket, then rolling her eyes as she throws it into her shopping cart. This is a reference to the skyrocketing prices of meat during the mid-70's.

 

Scenes showing Mary driving a white 1970 Ford Mustang toward Minneapolis in the first-season sequence were supposedly filmed on Interstate 494 (the Sheraton Bloomington, back then a Radisson, can be seen in the background) and what is now Hennepin County Road 122 (at its interchange with Cedar Ave).

 

Theme song

 

The theme song, "Love Is All Around", was written and performed by Sonny Curtis. The lyrics are words of encouragement directed to the character and the first season featured the first verse of the song, which refers to the ending of her relationship and making a fresh start, concluding "You might just make it after all". The more familiar second verse of the song was used in subsequent seasons, with the lyrics affirming her optimistic character, concluding "You're gonna make it after all". The song has been covered by artists such as Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Christie Front Drive, Sammy Davis Jr., and Hüsker Dü.

 

Parodies

 

At the end of the opening sequence of the spin-off Rhoda, the title character flings her hat in the air, but the camera keeps running and the hat falls to the ground in a humorous anti-climax.

 

In The Simpsons episode "And Maggie Makes Three", while working at the bowling alley, Homer Simpson spins around singing, "I'm gonna make it after all!", and tosses a bowling ball in the air. It, of course, lands straight on the ground.

 

The winning musical selection that Peter Griffin plays at the piano competition in the Family Guy episode "Wasted Talent" is the Mary Tyler Moore Show theme. Afterwards, a girl throws her hat in the air and freezes, while those around her look perplexed as to why she is not moving.

 

UK sketch show The All New Alexei Sayle Show parodies the opening credits in its opening sequence, with Alexei Sayle dancing through the streets of London to the theme song 'Life's a Big Banana Sandwich'.

[Felix]

I'm glad to see Fawlty Towers here, even if it's much too low. I can't complain though, I didn't put together a list. I just haven't seen enough comedies on a regular basis to put together a real list of 20 or so.

Edited June 25, 2008 by Felix

[FlaSoxxJim]

I'm glad to see Fawlty Towers here, even if it's much too low. I can't complain though, I didn't put together a list. I just haven't seen enough comedies on a regular basis to put together a real list of 20 or so.

 

Fawlty made my list. I'm surprised it was on only three lists, but I guess there's a lot of teevee out there.

[Texsox]

Fawlty made my list. I'm surprised it was on only three lists, but I guess there's a lot of teevee out there.

 

It just missed mine. Actually there was a lot more TV than I thought when I started putting together my list. I could have gone to 40 shows easily and still left something off I like. I also kept my list to sit coms, so left off variety, skit comedy shows, Colbert, Dennis Miller, etc.

[FlaSoxxJim]

It just missed mine. Actually there was a lot more TV than I thought when I started putting together my list. I could have gone to 40 shows easily and still left something off I like. I also kept my list to sit coms, so left off variety, skit comedy shows, Colbert, Dennis Miller, etc.

 

For both lists I participated in (I skipped the Chisports list because I honestly couln't see how most of us would have pretty much the same top 10 or so), I made a point of NOT looking at prior lists before putting mine together and just went off my head. It made for a few D'oh! moments once I realized I had skipped this or that, but it kept the listmaking fast and somewhat insured that most of the items were ones I carried around in me head.

[knightni]

25. I Love Lucy (1951-57)

(5 of 18 lists - 45 points - highest ranking #3 Steve9347)

 

I Love Lucy is a popular American situation comedy, starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951 to May 6, 1957 on CBS. The show continued on for three more seasons with 13 one-hour specials, running from 1957 to 1960, known first as The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show and later in reruns as The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour.

 

"I Love Lucy" was the first television show whose main star was a woman. It was the most-watched show in the United States in four of its six seasons, and was the first to end its run at the top of the ratings (to be matched only by The Andy Griffith Show and Seinfeld), although it did not have a formal series finale episode. I Love Lucy is still syndicated in dozens of languages across the world.

 

The show won five Emmy Awards and received numerous nominations. In 2002, it was ranked second on TV Guide's top-50 greatest shows, behind Seinfeld and ahead of The Honeymooners[1]. In 2007, it was placed on Time magazine's unranked list of the 100 best TV shows.[2] The same year, the Washington Post named it the second best TV rerun, attesting to its longevity and sustained popularity.

 

Premise

 

Set mostly in New York City, I Love Lucy centers on Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball), and her singer/bandleader husband Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz), along with their friends and landlords Fred Mertz (William Frawley) and Ethel Mertz (Vivian Vance). In later seasons, Lucy and Ricky had a son named Little Ricky.

 

Lucy is somewhat naïve and ambitious, with an overactive imagination and a knack for getting herself into trouble. Primarily she is obsessed with joining her husband in show business. Fred and Ethel are former vaudevillians and this only strengthens her resolve to prove herself as a performer. Unfortunately, she cannot carry a tune or play anything other than an off-key rendition of "Glow Worm" (or "Sweet Sue") on the saxophone and has little other discernible ability(although to say she completely without any sort of talent would be untrue as she has on occasion proven to be a good dancer and a competent singer in some cases). The show provided Ball ample opportunity to display her considerable skill at clowning and physical comedy, with Lucy's determination to get into the act in any way possible, resulting in numerous wacky situations. Character development was not a major focus of early sitcoms, so not much was ever learned about her life prior to the show. A few episodes mentioned that she was born in Jamestown, New York, (later corrected to West Jamestown), and that she met Ricky on a blind date. Besides occasional appearances by her mother (Kathryn Card), who annoyed Ricky to no end by constantly mispronouncing his name as "Mickey" and mistaking him for fellow bandleader Xavier Cugat, hardly any mention was ever made of any other family members.

 

Lucy's husband, Ricky Ricardo (the character initially was named Larry Lopez), is an up-and-coming Cuban American singer and bandleader with an excitable personality. His patience is frequently tested, sometimes to the breaking point, by his wife's antics. When exasperated, he often reverts to speaking rapidly in Spanish. As with Lucy, not much was ever learned about his past or family. Ricky's mother appeared in two episodes and in another Lucy mentioned that he had five brothers. He also mentioned that he'd been "practically raised" by his uncle Alberto (who was seen during a family visit to Cuba) and that he'd attended Havana University.

 

Lucy's best friend, confidant and accomplice in her crazy schemes is Ethel Mertz. A former model from Albuquerque, New Mexico, Ethel tries to relive her glory days in vaudeville. She usually gets more chances to perform at Ricky's nightclub, because, unlike Lucy, she can actually sing and dance. Ethel, although she is Lucy's ally, often tries to reason with her, providing common sense advice.

 

Ethel's husband Fred served in World War I and lived through the Great Depression. He is very stingy with money and a very no-nonsense type of guy. However, he also shows that he can be a soft touch, especially when it comes to Little Ricky, the Ricardos' son. Fred performed in vaudeville, so like his wife Ethel, he can also sing and dance.

 

Lucy and Ricky often play tricks on each other; for example, when Lucy tricked Ricky into thinking she was a compulsive thief; or when Ricky tricked Lucy into thinking she was not legally married to him, based on a mistake in their license. Although they may disagree at times, and despite their age differences (not only the Mertzes' and Ricardos', but Lucy and Desi's, with Lucy six years Desi's senior), the four main characters are very close and loving.

 

The Manhattan building they all lived in before their move to Connecticut was addressed at 623 E. 68th Street, which in reality would be located in the East River.

 

Cast

 

Regular cast

 

* Lucille Ball as Lucille "Lucy" Esmeralda McGillicuddy Ricardo (in "The Marriage License" and "Fred and Ethel Fight")

* Desi Arnaz as Enrique 'Ricky' Alberto Ricardo y de Acha III (in "Lucy Raises Tulips")[4]

* Vivian Vance as Ethel May Potter (maiden name), Ethel Roberta Mertz (in "Million Dollar Idea"), Ethel Louise Mertz (in "Lucy and Ethel Buy the Same Dress"), Ethel Mae Mertz in ("Ethel's Hometown" and subsequent episodes)

* William Frawley as Frederick 'Fred' Hobart Mertz[4]

* Keith Thibodeaux (billed as Richard Keith) as Ricky Ricardo, Jr., "Little Ricky" (1956-1957)

 

Gale Gordon and Bea Benaderet, supporting cast members on My Favorite Husband, were originally approached for the roles of Fred and Ethel, but neither could accept due to previous commitments. Gordon did appear as a guest star in three episodes, playing Ricky's boss, Mr. Littlefield, in two episodes, and later in an hourlong episode as a civil court judge. Gordon was a veteran from the classic radio days in which he perfected the role of the exasperated character, as in Fibber McGee and Molly. He would go on to co-star with Ball in most of her post–I Love Lucy series. Benaderet was a guest star in one episode as the Ricardos' neighbor, the elderly Miss Lewis.

 

Barbara Pepper (later featured as Doris Ziffel in the series Green Acres) was also considered to play Ethel, but Pepper had been drinking very heavily after the death of her husband, Craig W. Reynolds. Her friendship with Ball dated back to the film Roman Scandals, in which both appeared as Goldwyn Girls. She turned up regularly in bit parts.

 

Supporting cast

 

* Kathryn Card as Mrs. McGillicuddy, Lucy's mother (1955–1956) (also earlier appearance as "Minnie Finch" in 1954)

* Mary Jane Croft as Betty Ramsey (1957) (earlier appearances in various roles)

* Ross Elliot in various roles

* Jerry Hausner as Jerry, Ricky's agent (1951–1954) (also the show's announcer in early seasons)

* Bob Jellison as Bobby, the Hollywood bellboy (1955) (earlier appearances in various roles)

* Doris Singleton as Caroline Appleby (1953–1957) (earlier appearance as Lillian Appleby and various other roles)

* Shirley Mitchell as Marion Strong (1953–1954)

* Frank Nelson as Ralph Ramsey (1957) (many earlier appearances in various roles, including Freddie Filmore, a game show host)

* Elizabeth Patterson as Mrs. Matilda Trumbull (1953–1956) (earlier appearance as "Mrs. Willoughby" in 1952)

* Joseph D. and Michael Mayer as Ricky Ricardo, Jr. (baby) (1953–1954)

* Richard and Ronald Lee Simmons as Ricky Ricardo, Jr. (baby) (1954–1955)

* Charles Lane as various characters, often-timed short-tempered. (Throughout series)

* Barbara Pepper as various characters. (Throughout Series)

 

Lucille Ball liked naming supporting characters after real-life people. For instance, Carolyn Appleby had been one of her teachers, and Marion Strong was a friend in Jamestown, New York.

 

Primary production team

 

* Producers: Jess Oppenheimer (150 episodes); Desi Arnaz (150 episodes)

* Writers: Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh Davis, Bob Carroll, Jr., Bob Schiller, Bob Weiskopf

* Original Music: Wilbur Hatch (33 episodes, 1951-54); Eliot Daniel (135 episodes, 1952-57)

* Cinematography: Karl Freund (149 episodes, 1951-56)

* Costume Design: Elois Jenssen (57 episodes, 1953-55)

 

Radio

 

When Desi was 33, CBS asked Lucy to take her popular radio show to television, but Lucy insisted that the man playing the role of husband be her own husband, who had been on the road as a bandleader touring, and away from Lucy for months at a time. When CBS refused because he was foreign-born, Lucy decided to create a television series of her own to bring her husband back home, and "I Love Lucy" was brought to television. I Love Lucy was somewhat similar to My Favorite Husband, a 1948-51 CBS comedy radio series in which Lucille Ball (as zany housewife Liz Cooper) starred with Richard Denning. Some of the My Favorite Husband scripts were rewritten as TV scripts for I Love Lucy by the same writers, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr.. Based on the novel Mr. and Mrs. Cugat by Isabel Scott Rorick, My Favorite Husband was broadcast from July 23, 1948 to March 31, 1951, sponsored by General Foods.

 

On February 27, 1952, an I Love Lucy radio show was produced, but it never aired. This was a pilot episode, created by editing the soundtrack of the television episode "Breaking the Lease", with added Arnaz narration. It included commercials for Philip Morris, which sponsored the TV series. While it never aired on radio at the time in the 1950s, copies of this radio pilot episode have been circulating among "old time radio" collectors for years, and this radio pilot episode has aired in more recent decades on numerous local radio stations which air some "old time radio" programming.

 

Production

 

At the time, most television shows were broadcast live from New York City, and a low-quality 35mm or 16mm kinescope print was made of the show to broadcast it in other time zones. But Ball was pregnant at the time, and she and Arnaz therefore insisted on filming the show in Hollywood. The duo, along with co-creator Jess Oppenheimer, then decided to shoot the show on 35 mm film in front of a studio audience, with three cameras, a technique now standard for most present-day sitcoms. The result was a much sharper image than other shows of the time, and the audience reactions were far more authentic than the "canned laughter" used on most filmed sitcoms of the time. The technique was not completely new — another CBS comedy series, Amos 'n' Andy, which debuted four months earlier, was already being filmed at Hal Roach Studios with three 35mm cameras to save time and money. Hal Roach Studios was also used for filming at least two other TV comedies as early as 1950, both airing on ABC, namely Stu Erwin's "The Trouble with Father", and the TV version of "Beulah"; and the original 1949/50 Jackie Gleason TV version of "The Life of Riley" on NBC was also done on film, not live. There were also some dramatic TV shows pre-dating I Love Lucy which were also filmed, not live. But I Love Lucy was the first show to use this film technique in front of a studio audience.

 

Arnaz persuaded Karl Freund, cinematographer of such films as Metropolis (1927), Dracula (1931), and The Good Earth (1937), as well as director of The Mummy (1932), to be the series' cinematographer.

 

Scenes were often performed in sequence, as a play would be, which was unusual for comedies at that time. Retakes were rare and dialogue mistakes were often played off for the sake of continuity.

 

Desilu, the company jointly owned by Ball and Arnaz, produced I Love Lucy as well as other shows. It rented space at General Service Studios in Hollywood from 1951 to 1954, when it bought the Motion Picture Center, also in Hollywood, and renamed it Desilu Studios.

 

Many real-life facts about Arnaz and Ball made it into the series. Like Ball, Lucy Ricardo was born on August 6 in Jamestown, New York, and attended high school in Celoron, New York. Also, the Ricardos were married at the Byram River Beagle Club in Greenwich, Connecticut, just as the Arnazes had been. In one particular episode Lucy and Ricky are fighting over whether or not the bedroom window should be open or closed while they slept.

 

The opening familiar to most viewers, featuring the credits superimposed over a "heart on satin" image, was created specifically for syndication. As originally broadcast, the episodes opened with animated matchstick figures of Arnaz and Ball making reference to whomever the particular episode's sponsor was. These sequences were created by the animation team of Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera, who declined screen credit because they were technically under exclusive contract to MGM at the time.

 

The original sponsor was cigarette maker Philip Morris, so the program opened with a cartoon of Lucy and Ricky climbing down a pack of Philip Morris cigarettes. In the early episodes, Lucy and Ricky, as well as Ethel and Fred on occasion, were shown smoking Phillip Morris cigarettes. Since the original sponsor references were no longer appropriate when the shows went into syndication, a new opening was needed, which resulted in the classic heart on satin opening. The original openings, with the sponsor names edited out, are now used on TV Land showings, with a TV Land logo superimposed to obscure the original sponsor's logo. Ironically, this has led some people to believe that the restored introduction was created specifically for TV Land as an example of kitsch.

 

Pregnancy and Little Ricky

 

Just before filming the show, Lucy became pregnant with her and Desi's first child, Lucie Arnaz. They actually filmed the original pilot while Lucy was "showing", but did not include any references to the pregnancy in the episode.

 

Later, during the second season, Lucy was pregnant again with second child Desi Arnaz, Jr., and this time the pregnancy was incorporated into the series' storyline. Despite popular belief, Lucy's pregnancy was not television's first on-screen pregnancy. That distinction belongs to Mary Kay on the late 1940s sitcom, Mary Kay and Johnny.

 

CBS would not allow I Love Lucy to use the word "pregnant", so "expecting" was used instead.[5] The episode "Lucy Is Enceinte" first aired on December 8, 1952 ("enceinte" being French for "expecting" or "pregnant"). The episode in which Lucy gives birth, "Lucy Goes to the Hospital," first aired on January 19, 1953. To increase the publicity of this episode, the original air date was chosen to coincide with Lucille Ball's real-life delivery of Desi, Jr. by Caesarean section.[6] "Lucy Goes to the Hospital" was watched by more people than any other TV program up to that time, with 68% of all American television sets tuned in.

 

America saw Little Ricky as an infant in the 1952-53 season, a toddler from 1953 to 1956, and finally a young school-age boy from 1956 to 1960. However, five actors played the role, two sets of twins and later Keith Thibodeaux.

 

When Jess Oppenheimer was trying to consider the sex of the child he asked Desi what he wanted. Desi replied that he wants a boy because this might be his only chance to get a son out of Lucy. So from then on no matter what the sex of Lucy Ball's real baby was, Lucy Ricardo would have a boy.

 

Episodes

 

Main article: List of I Love Lucy episodes

 

Most episodes take place in the Ricardos' modest brownstone apartment at 623 East 68th Street or at the downtown "Tropicana" nightclub where Ricky is employed, though other parts of the city are sometimes used. Later episodes take the Ricardos and the Mertzes to Hollywood for Ricky to shoot a movie, and to Europe, when Ricky and his band tour the continent. There is also a trip to Miami Beach for the two couples, with a side trip to Ricky's homeland of Cuba. Eventually, the quartet move to Westport, Connecticut.

 

Some especially memorable episodes:

* "Lucy Does a TV Commercial". Lucy is hired to act as the "Vitameatavegamin girl" in a TV commercial, to promote a health tonic that contains healthy amounts of vitamins, meat, vegetables, minerals — and a less-than-healthy dose of 23% alcohol. Lucy becomes progressively more drunk, but gamely keeps on pitching the product. In November 2001, fans voted this episode as their favorite, during a 50th anniversary I Love Lucy television special. TV Guide and Nick at Nite ranked it the second greatest television episode of all time, after the Mary Tyler Moore Show's "Chuckles Bites the Dust".

 

* "Job Switching". Lucy and Ethel get jobs packaging candy that is delivered on a conveyor belt. The work seems easy enough when they are shown what to do by their supervisor, but then the pace picks up and the women soon fall further and further behind. In desperation, they resort to comical means to try to keep up. The skit, a variation of an old vaudeville routine, has been parodied numerous times.

 

* "Lucy and Superman". Lucy tries to get George Reeves, star of the 1950s Adventures of Superman TV series, to appear at little Ricky's birthday party. When she fails, she dresses up as Superman herself, only to have Reeves turn up in costume at the last minute and rescue her after she traps herself on the ledge of her apartment.

 

* "L.A. At Last". Lucy, Fred, and Ethel have lunch at The Brown Derby, where Lucy accidentally causes a waiter to heave a pie in William Holden's face. Later at the hotel, Ricky has a surprise for her. He has brought one of her favorite actors to meet her — none other than William Holden. Fearing that the actor will recognize her, she puts on a disguise that includes a putty nose which catches on fire when she lights a cigarette.

 

* "Lucy and Harpo Marx". While living in Hollywood, Lucy is visited by Carolyn Appleby, a friend who is under the impression that Lucy knows numerous celebrities. After Lucy and Ethel get Carolyn's glasses away from her, Lucy pretends to be various stars. Meanwhile, Ricky and Fred invite Harpo Marx to the Ricardos' apartment. When he shows up, Lucy is disguised as him; seeing the real Harpo, she hides in a kitchen doorway. Harpo is perplexed when he sees what he thinks is his reflection, forcing Lucy to mimic his every move to avoid detection. This was a tribute to Harpo and Groucho's famous mirror scene in the Marx Brothers comedy classic, Duck Soup.[7]

 

* "Lucy Does the Tango". The Ricardos and the Mertzes chicken business isn't doing very well. Lucy and Ethel come up with a scheme to fool the boys into thinking the hens are laying lots of eggs by smuggling some, hidden underneath their clothes, into the henhouse. On one such trip, Ricky insists that he and Lucy rehearse their tango number for a local benefit. Unbeknownst to Ricky, Lucy's blouse is filled with chicken eggs.

 

Feature films

 

Arnaz and Ball capitalized on the series' popularity by starring in Vincente Minnelli's 1954 film The Long, Long Trailer as Tacy and Nicky Collini, two characters very similar to Lucy and Ricky. Also during this time, Desilu produced a feature film version of the show in 1953, consisting of three first-season episodes edited together: "The Benefit", "Breaking the Lease" and "The Ballet". New scenes featuring the cast were filmed and put between the episodes to tie them into one cohesive story. MGM, however, demanded the I Love Lucy movie be shelved because they felt it would diminish interest in the The Long, Long Trailer. Although I Love Lucy was never theatrically released and had been forgotten, it has since been found and has been released on the bonus disc in the Complete Series collection, available now.

 

In 1956 Lucy and Desi starred in the feature film Forever, Darling with James Mason.

 

After Lucy

 

After the conclusion of the sixth season of I Love Lucy, Lucy and Desi decided to cut down on the number of episodes that were filmed. Instead, they extended I Love Lucy to 60 minutes, with a guest star each episode. They renamed the show the The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show and later changed for syndication to The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour. Thirteen hour-long episodes aired from 1957 to 1960. The main cast, Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley were all in the show. The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour is available on DVD, released as I Love Lucy: The Final Seasons 7, 8, & 9. On March 2, Desi's birthday, 1960, the day after the last hour-long episode was filmed, Lucille Ball filed for divorce from Desi Arnaz.

 

When the series ended, Vance and Frawley were said to have been offered a chance to take their characters to their own spin-off series. Frawley was willing, but Vance refused to ever work with Frawley again since the two did not get along. Frawley did appear once more with Lucille Ball--in an episode of The Lucy Show.

 

In 1962, Ball began a six-year run with The Lucy Show, followed immediately in 1968 by six more years on yet another sitcom, Here's Lucy, finally ending her long run as a CBS sitcom star in 1974. Both The Lucy Show and Here's Lucy are notable for having Vance as recurring characters named Viv (Vivian Bagley Bunson on The Lucy Show and Vivian Jones on Here's Lucy), so named because she was tired of being recognized on the street and addressed as Ethel. Vance was a regular during the first three seasons of The Lucy Show but continued to make guest appearances through the years on The Lucy Show, and on Here's Lucy. In 1977, Vance and Ball were reunited one last time in the CBS special, Lucy Calls the President, which co-starred Gale Gordon.

 

In 1986, Ball tried another sitcom, Life with Lucy. The series aired on ABC for eight episodes before being cancelled due to low ratings. Oddly enough, the show debuted to very high ratings, landing in Nielson's Top 20 for that week.

 

I Love Lucy has remained perennially popular. For instance, it was one of the first programs made in the USA seen on British television, which became more open to commerce with the launch of ITV, a commercial network that aired the series, in September 1955. As of July 2007, it remains the longest-running program to air continually in the Los Angeles area, almost 50 years after production ended. Ironically, the series is currently aired on KTTV, which had given up the CBS affiliation several months before I Love Lucy premiered.[citation needed] In the US, reruns have aired nationally on Nick at Nite and TV Land in addition to local channels. This is particularly notable because, unlike some shows to which a cable channel is given exclusive rights to maximize ratings, Lucy has been consistently—and successfully—broadcast on multiple channels simultaneously.

 

Emmy Awards

 

Wins

 

* Best Situation Comedy, 1953, 1954

* Best Comedienne, Lucille Ball, 1953

* Best Series Supporting Actress, Vivian Vance, 1954

* Best Actress - Continuing Performance, Lucille Ball, 1956

 

Nominations

 

I Love Lucy

 

* Best Situation Comedy, 1952

* Best Written Comedy Material: Madelyn Pugh Davis, Jess Oppenheimer, Robert G. Carroll, 1955

* Best Situation Comedy, 1955

* Best Comedy Writing: Bob Carroll Jr., Madelyn Davis, Jess Oppenheimer, Bob Schiller, Bob Weiskopf for the episode "L.A. At Last", 1956

 

Lucille Ball

 

* Best Comedian or Comedienne, 1952

* Most Outstanding Personality, 1953

* Best Female Star of Regular Series, 1954

* Best Actress Starring in a Regular Series, 1955

* Best Comedienne, 1956

* Best Continuing Performance by a Comedienne in a Series, 1957

* Best Continuing Performance (Female) in a Series by a Comedienne, Singer, Hostess, Dancer, M.C., Announcer, Narrator, Panelist, or any Person who Essentially Plays Herself, 1958

 

Vivian Vance

 

* Best Supporting Actress in a Regular Series, 1955

* Best Supporting Performance by an Actress, 1957

* Best Continuing Supporting Performance by an Actress in a Dramatic or Comedy Series, 1958

 

William Frawley

 

* Best Series Supporting Actor, 1954

* Best Supporting Actor in a Regular Series, 1955

* Best Actor in a Supporting Role, 1956

 

Honors

 

* In 1999, Entertainment Weekly ranked the birth of Little Ricky as the fifth greatest moment in TV history.[8]

* In 2002, TV Guide ranked I Love Lucy #2 on its list of the 50 greatest shows, behind Seinfeld and ahead of The Honeymooners[1] (According to TV Guide columnist Matt Rousch, there was a "passionate" internal debate about whether I Love Lucy should have been first instead of Seinfeld. He stated that this was the main source of controversy in putting together the list.[9])

* In 2007, Time magazine placed the show on its unranked list of the 100 best TV shows.[2]

 

 

 

 

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