On the Television

Man, I loved this show when I was a kid. A parody/spoof of Siskel & Ebert, only for television shows, which they created themselves and then reviewed. Some hilarious moments. The lead star was George McGrath, and is one of the funniest people I've ever come across. I never understood why we haven't seen more of him over the years.

This was a unique show! I am glad that I taped some of the episodes back when it was on. Notably, Lisa Kudrow appeared in a number of sketches playing various characters!

The premise was that two critics were reviewing new and upcoming TV shows. Most of these were parodies of actual shows or other celebrity-oriented materials. My favorite segment was one called "Inside Debbie Dibson's Bedroom," a hilarious parody of 'teen queen" Debbie Gibson (who, by the way, I really like!). There were also parodies of game shows, aging stars trying to make comebacks, 60's reunion concerts, et al. There were also many mystery-laden sequences which were intentionally very hokey; and there were behind-the-scenes type vignettes, ranging from a couple who travels in a camper and never leaves it, to "interviews" with the "stars" of the parodied shows.

This incredible series featured comedy sketches which were topical, cerebral, slap-stick and just incredibly funny. George McGrath is a comedy genius; perfect timing, excellent writing and awesome delivery; this effort SHOULD have propelled him into the spotlight. Tim Conway Jr balanced the show out perfectly; although apparently the 1st choice was a bit too (hardly) closeted to make it palatable for syndication (think "Men on Film" before its time). Not sure how, but they managed to get some incredibly talented actors (Mindy Sterling), and others who were...well...later became famous anyway (Lisa Kudrow). I'd have to say my favorite sketches were 1) Our Maid Imelda 2) Classic Tales Classically Told and 3) Videos banned by the Vatican. I sincerely wish the best to all the cast and crew 20+ years on from this show.

This show was not on for very long at all, but it was a terrific show. The two characters did reviews of fake TV Shows starring themselves. The one I remember best was "Heimlich; A Man and his Maneuver", in which Heimlich watches someone die from choking in a restaurant and exclaims "If only I had some type of maneuver!" He retires to his lab and forces his assistant to choke on candy while he tries a variety of maneuvers to save him.

I still laugh when I think about this show, it was a great blend of creative shows and the reviewers heartfelt comments. The two hosts play things so seriously. If this show ever comes out on DVD I would buy it in a heartbeat.

this show, which ran for a couple of seasons on nickelodeon, on saturday nights, deserves to be seen again.. i think the rights to the show are all tied up somewhere, otherwise it would be perfect programming for comedy central.. basically the show was a series of reviews of non-existant t.v. shows, which spoofed some of the more popular t.v. shows of the time. for example, one show they reviewed was, "gigantic herman's playground." in this spoof of pee wee's playhouse, when you hear "the annoying repeated word" you are supposed to "scream until you spit up blood." Actually in this episode, focusing on children's programming, there is a show reviewed, "beverly hills teenage ponies" which bears a striking resemblance to today's south park.. the real highlight of the show were the interviews conducted by McGrath's character, Nat Caulfield, at Universal Studios. This show starred a number of McGrath's fellow groundlings. totally hilarious and original.. my favorite tv show ever