The Weird Al Show
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The Weird Al Show | |
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The Weird Al Show - The Complete Series DVD cover |
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Genre | Live action/animation |
Creator(s) | "Weird Al" Yankovic |
Starring | "Weird Al" Yankovic Brian Haley Gary LeRoi Gray Judy Tenuta Paula Jai Parker Danielle Weeks |
Country of origin | US |
No. of episodes | 13 |
Production | |
Running time | 23 minutes |
Broadcast | |
Original channel | CBS |
Original run | September 13, 1997 – December 6, 1997 |
Links | |
IMDb profile | |
TV.com summary |
The Weird Al Show was a short-lived television show starring "Weird Al" Yankovic. Produced in association with dick clark productions, it aired Saturday mornings on the CBS TV network from September to December 1997.
CBS forced the show to fit its FCC "E/I" requirements for education programming.[1] Though the show appeared to be geared at children, the moralistic messages were interspersed with Yankovic's trademark slapstick parody, and the humor was aimed at older audiences. The show was canceled after one season as part of a series of major changes CBS made to its Saturday morning programming.
The theme song can be found on Yankovic's album Running with Scissors (1999) as "The Weird Al Show Theme". The show was released on DVD on August 15, 2006.
Contents |
[edit] Cast
- Eddie Deezen as The Guy Boarded in the Wall
- Donavan Freberg as Baby Boolie
- Stan Freberg as Papa Boolie, J. B. Toppersmith
- Gary LeRoi Gray as Bobby the Inquisitive Boy
- Brian Haley as The Hooded Avenger
- Harvey the Wonder Hamster as himself
- Ed Marques as Varna the Squirmese Cook
- Paula Jai Parker as Val Brentwood, Gal Spy
- Patricia Place as Mrs. Fesenmeyer
- Jack Plotnick as Uncle Ralphie
- Judy Tenuta as Madame Judy the Psychic
- Danielle Weeks as Cousin Corky
- Mary Yankovic as Mom (herself)
- Nick Yankovic as Dad (himself)
- "Weird Al" Yankovic as himself, Fred Huggins, Tony Malone, Fatman, various other characters
[edit] Episodes
# | Title | Guest stars | Original airdate | Code |
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1 | "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Hamster" |
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November 15, 1997 | 3601 |
2 | "Mining Accident" |
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September 27, 1997 | 3602 |
3 | "Bad Influence" |
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September 13, 1997 | 3603 |
4 | "Promises, Promises" |
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September 20, 1997 | 3604 |
5 | "Back to School" |
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October 4, 1997 | 3605 |
6 | "One for the Record Books" |
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October 18, 1997 | 3606 |
7 | "Because I Said So" |
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October 25, 1997 | 3607 |
8 | "The Competition" |
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November 22, 1997 | 3608 |
9 | "Time Machine" |
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October 11, 1997 | 3609 |
10 | "Al Gets Robbed" |
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December 6, 1997 | 3610 |
11 | "Al Plays Hooky" |
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November 8, 1997 | 3611 |
12 | "Talent Show" |
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November 1, 1997 | 3612 |
13 | "The Obligatory Holiday Episode" |
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November 29, 1997 | 3613 |
[edit] Trivia
- J. B. Toppersmith was initially rejected for inclusion into the show. The network's reasoning was "Insider Hollywood Jokes".
- Many of the show's celebrity appearances were taken from The Tonight Show, which filmed next door to The Weird Al Show. Reportedly this built up bad feelings between the staff of the Tonight Show and Yankovic.[citation needed]
- In the "Al Gets Robbed" episode, the Hooded Avenger walks over to Al delivering him his tabloid papers. The paper is called "Midnight Star", referring to the same-titled song about the tabloid off "Weird Al" Yankovic in 3-D. The main headline, "Incredible Frog Boy on the Loose", refers to a lyric in the song.
- Randy Savage almost cancelled his appearance when he found out he was supposed to lose to a hamster. He was eventually coaxed into continuing once he was assured it wasn't a girl hamster.
- Gedde Watanabe's character, Kuni, also appeared in Yankovic's film, UHF. David Bowe, Victoria Jackson, Kevin McCarthy, and Emo Phillips also starred in the film.
- CBS sent various notes to the writers of the show after reviewing the scripts, asking the writers to "Yankocize" (i.e. make funny) the commercial-break bumper announcements that the network wrote to reinforce each episode's lesson (or as Al put it, make them suck a little less), as well as remove any "imitatible behavior" from the scripts that children might want to mimic after seeing on TV. The writers were often surprised not at what the censors took out, but what they left in — for example, a sketch (written and submitted as a joke) in which Baby and Papa Boolie commit suicide after listening to one too many of Fred Huggins's songs was being seriously considered by the network for use on the show. (The sketch was later rewritten to have Papa Boolie call a mental hospital to take Fred away.)
- Before the DVD set release, a compilation of the short music video segments for "Lousy Haircut", "Lasagna", and "Livin' in the Fridge" (as well as the show opening) was released on "Weird Al" Yankovic: The Ultimate Video Collection in 2003.
Sources: Weird Al Show DVD commentaries, "Weird Al" Yankovic in 3D (CD)
[edit] DVD release
The Weird Al Show - The Complete Series was released on August 15, 2006. It is a 3-DVD set of all 13 episodes of The Weird Al Show, plus bonus features. [1]. The episodes are presented in broadcast order.
It was released in Canada on September 26, 2006, alongside the U.S. release of his new album, Straight Outta Lynwood.
[edit] Special Features
- 13 commentaries with "Weird Al" as well as other cast and crew members
- "The Evolution of 'Fatman'", a featurette comprised of original concept art
- Galleries of concept art
- Animated storyboards
- Karaoke for the theme song of the show
[edit] External links
“Weird Al” Yankovic |
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Band members |
"Weird Al" Yankovic • Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz • Steve Jay • Jim West • Rubén Valtierra |
Discography |
Studio albums: "Weird Al" Yankovic (1983) • "Weird Al" Yankovic In 3-D (1984) • Dare To Be Stupid (1985) • Polka Party! (1986) • Even Worse (1988) • UHF (1989) • Off The Deep End (1992) • Alapalooza (1993) • Bad Hair Day (1996) • Running With Scissors (1999) • Poodle Hat (2003) • Straight Outta Lynwood (2006) |
List of singles by "Weird Al" Yankovic • List of songs by "Weird Al" Yankovic • Complete discography |
Filmography |
Music videos • "Al TV" • The Compleat Al • UHF • "The Weird Al Show" • "Weird Al" Yankovic Live! |
Related articles |
Singles • Songs • Dr. Demento • Music videos • Parody musicians • Comedy musicians |
Categories: Articles lacking sources from December 2006 | All articles lacking sources | Articles with unsourced statements since March 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | "Weird Al" Yankovic | 1990s American television series | CBS network shows | Children's television series | Comedy television series | 1997 television program debuts