Mad TV facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mad TV |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre | Sketch comedy Variety show Satire Parody |
| Created by |
|
| Starring | see List of Mad TV cast members |
| Theme music composer |
|
| Opening theme | "Mad TV Theme" performed by Heavy D |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 15 |
| No. of episodes | 329 (plus 7 specials) (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
|
| Production location(s) |
|
| Running time | 40–48 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
|
| Release | |
| Original network |
|
| Picture format | |
| Original release | October 14, 1995 – September 27, 2016 |
Mad TV (also known as MADtv) was a funny American sketch comedy TV show. It was created by David Salzman, Fax Bahr, and Adam Small. The show first aired on October 14, 1995, on the Fox network. It ran for 14 seasons, with its last episode airing on May 16, 2009.
The show was inspired by the famous humor magazine Mad. Mad TV featured pre-recorded comedy sketches. These sketches often made fun of (or parodied) popular movies, TV shows, music videos, and famous people. Sometimes, they even made jokes about politics. The show also had many original characters, and some of them appeared in multiple episodes.
David Salzman created Mad TV after he and music producer Quincy Jones bought the rights to Mad magazine in 1995. They wanted the show to compete with another popular sketch comedy series, Saturday Night Live (SNL). Even though Mad TV usually had fewer viewers than SNL, critics often called it a more daring or "edgier" show. Fox didn't promote Mad TV much and often cut its budget. The show was eventually canceled in 2009 because it was too expensive.
Over the years, many talented actors were part of Mad TV's cast. Some popular members included Debra Wilson, who was on the show the longest from the original cast. Michael McDonald was the longest-running cast member overall. The show was nominated for many awards, including 43 Primetime Emmy Awards, and it won five of them.
After a special reunion show aired in 2016, Mad TV came back for a 15th season. This new season had eight episodes and aired on The CW network, starting on July 26, 2016.
Contents
How the Show Was Made
The owner of Mad magazine, William Gaines, didn't like television. He refused to sell the rights to the magazine for a TV show. But after he passed away in 1992, EC Comics sold the rights to Mad in 1995. They sold them to music producer Quincy Jones and TV producer David Salzman.
Fax Bahr and Adam Small, who used to write for another comedy show called In Living Color, joined Salzman. They became the main people in charge of making Mad TV. The show started with 12 writers and a diverse group of actors. The first episode aired on October 14, 1995, on Fox. Fox liked the first episode and ordered 12 more for the first season.
Mad TV was filmed in Hollywood. It featured short live-action sketches and parodies of movies. It also had animated sketches. For four seasons, the show included animated parts of "Spy vs. Spy." This was a comic strip from Mad magazine with no words. The show's theme song was made by the hip hop group Heavy D & The Boyz.
As the show continued, Mad TV focused on making fun of (or satirizing) characters and pop culture. This meant they often parodied popular films, TV shows, and music videos. The show was known for its celebrity impressions, where actors pretended to be famous people. Sometimes, they even made jokes about politics.
Mad TV was designed to compete with Saturday Night Live (SNL). When Mad TV started, SNL was not very popular with critics. However, SNL soon became popular again. Mad TV usually had fewer viewers than SNL. But by 2001, Mad TV was more popular among teenage viewers than SNL. Former cast members said that teenagers often made up most of the audience watching the show live.
In 2008, Fox announced that Mad TV's 14th season would be its last. The network said the show was too expensive for its ratings. At that time, Mad TV was the fourth longest-running Fox series ever. The final episode aired on May 16, 2009.
Watching Mad TV
Mad TV was owned by Warner Bros. and aired every Saturday night on Fox. Reruns of the show also aired on Fox during prime time. Other channels like TNN and Comedy Central also showed reruns. You could also stream episodes online on websites like TheWB.com and CW Seed. As of 2020, the show was available to stream on HBO Max.
Meet the Cast Members
In its early years, critics thought Mad TV's cast was very diverse. The first season featured actors like Debra Wilson, Nicole Sullivan, Phil LaMarr, Artie Lange, Mary Scheer, Bryan Callen, Orlando Jones, and David Herman.
Debra Wilson was the first actor hired for Mad TV. She was on the show for eight seasons, from 1995 to 2003. This made her the longest-running original cast member. She was also the show's first and only Black female cast member during her time there. She later shared that she left the show because she found out another male cast member, who joined after her, was earning more money. Her attempts to get a fair salary did not work out.
Michael McDonald was on Mad TV for ten seasons, starting in 1997. He was the show's longest-running cast member. He also sometimes directed parts of the show. Aries Spears was the second longest-running cast member. He appeared in 198 episodes from 1997 to 2005.
Other popular cast members included Alex Borstein, Ike Barinholtz, Will Sasso, Mo Collins, Stephnie Weir, Nicole Parker, and Bobby Lee. Some actors, like Andy Daly, Simon Helberg, and Taran Killam, became famous after being on Mad TV for a short time. Taran Killam was the youngest person ever cast on the show.
Comedians Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key met when they were cast on Mad TV in 2004. They later starred together in their own very popular sketch comedy series, Key & Peele.
Popular Characters and Impressions
Many characters and sketches on Mad TV became famous because they appeared often. Michael McDonald played Stuart Larkin, a spoiled child with a bowl cut and bright red cheeks. His mom, Doreen (played by Mo Collins), had a strong accent. She would try to get Stuart to do simple things, but his silly actions would drive others crazy. Stuart had many catchphrases like "Look what I can do!" and "Dooooon't!" Stuart appeared in 38 sketches over nine seasons. He was one of the show's most memorable characters.
Alex Borstein played Ms. Swan, an immigrant nail salon owner. She had a strong, funny accent and often annoyed people by not answering simple questions. She wore a muumuu and had a bowl cut. Ms. Swan's catchphrase was "He look-a like-a man." Even though many thought Ms. Swan was Asian, the show said she was from a fictional place called Kuvaria. Alex Borstein said her own grandmother and singer Björk inspired the character. Sketches with Ms. Swan became very popular online after the show ended.
Nicole Sullivan played The Vancome Lady, a rude woman who struggled to keep a job. She appeared in over 25 episodes. Fans loved to dislike her. A sketch with Anjelah Johnson as Bon Qui Qui, an irritable fast food worker, became very popular on YouTube. Anjelah Johnson has continued to play Bon Qui Qui since then.
Other popular characters included Coach Hines, a hot-tempered gym teacher played by Key. Mo Collins played Lorraine Swanson, a middle-aged mom, and Trina, a fragile woman. Bobby Lee played Bae Sung, an incompetent interpreter. Will Sasso often played singer Randy Newman. Aries Spears often played Bill Cosby.
Debra Wilson and Aries Spears often appeared as married singers Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown. Debra Wilson was also famous for her impression of Oprah Winfrey. Critics called her Oprah impression "the gold standard." Wilson later played Oprah in the animated show The Proud Family and the movie Scary Movie 4. Other popular celebrity impressions included Will Sasso as Robert De Niro and James Gandolfini. Bobby Lee did a great impression of newscaster Connie Chung. Frank Caliendo was known for his impressions of John Madden and George W. Bush.
New Life for Mad TV
Reunion Special
Mad TV had a special one-hour reunion show called MADtv 20th Anniversary Reunion. It aired on The CW network on January 12, 2016. About 1.7 million people watched it. The show featured 19 original cast members going to an awards show where funny things happened.
The 2016 Reboot
A new version of the series, or "reboot," premiered on The CW on July 26, 2016. This was the show's 15th season. It had eight hour-long episodes and featured eight new cast members. Some original cast members, like Nicole Sullivan and Will Sasso, hosted the new episodes.
The reboot focused more on political comedy. It included parodies of former U.S. Presidents like Donald Trump and Bill Clinton.
However, the 2016 reboot received mostly negative reviews from critics. Many said it was not very funny and didn't feel as fresh as the original. Some critics felt it didn't have a good reason to exist. While some praised the diverse new cast, most agreed that the humor was often weak.
See also
In Spanish: Mad TV para niños
Images for kids
-
The official logo for Mad TV.
