Mad Movies with the L.A. Connection

I stumbled across MM one night on Nick. From that moment I was hooked. To this day I still have a tape with about 10 of the episodes on it.

My favorites were the Little Princess, DOA (Ruesie), Beneath the 12 Mile Reef (Blueberry pancakes!! LOL)... aw heck, I liked them all.

I'm so sorry that the LA Connection couldn't get the rights to the originals but I'm looking forward to the new ones that they'll be putting out this year and next. The writers and performers on this show certainly knew their stuff. It remains a mystery to me why Nick or the Comedy network never picked this up in reruns.

Great show with timeless humor.

I'm so relieved to find a place where people know this show! I thought it was only a dream...This was far and away the most hilarious TV I've ever seen, back when it meant something to be a cable channel. Not a line is wasted in these dubbed over flicks and even now I'll see something that awakens in me an old memory (we were cleaning up the lawn the other day and I ran over to my sig other with a bundle of brush and shouted-"Quick! Give them these sticks!") Yes! Bring it back in some form so I can die fulfilled!!!

This mid-80's funny show went beyond the simplistic making fun of a film as we watch i.e. MS3000. They didn't just use bad movies to make fun of they also used classics such as Cyrano and Shock. They edited the films to fit a unique story and told it with voice over characters of their own creation (in 20 minutes no less) As an example: in Below the 12 Mile Reef the film in transformed from a dull story about sponge divers filmed in Tarpon Springs,Florida to Jacques Cousteau fighting sea brain poachers. In one scene a ship is burning and the authorities come to investigate- they begin questioning a frail old man named Gupeteau who tells them about his whittling when suddenly Pinocchio burst into flame. Why the show was ever canceled I have no idea- perhaps AIDS took it's toll on the L.A. Connection...who knows...it was wonderfully funny and I still have a few shows taped and would be happy to share them with anyone who has an interest. Talent should not go unnoticed nor unseen. However, my absolute favorite episode was Cyrano..the redone story about a man with a chip on his shoulder. I do not own this one but would love to get my eyes on it one day...if anyone has it for loan or sale please let me know. On the other hand if any executives out there should happen across this memo you may want to pull them out for syndication or restart the genius behind the laughs consider this format again ...hell, I'd write for you! LBJ

It's so good to find others talking about this amazing show. My wife and I were just reminiscing about those old shows (and crying about the tape that we accidentally recorded over, years ago) and wondering if they're available on DVD.

I remember the night I came across it on TV. I started watching it and was laughing so hard I couldn't make it over to the VHS to start taping it. I could only tell my wife about it the next morning. (No, she didn't move out). The next time it was on, we taped it and played it more times for more people than the poor oxide on the tape could stand. The reaction was always the same: "When is this on?" Our answer ("It's not on anymore") always astounded our guests.

I hope that someone, somehow, gets this back into the public domain.

Since this seems to be the only place in the world where any memory of this hilarious show exists, I wanted to put in my 2 cents. I saw this show during the nascent days of Nick at Nite in 1985/86, when, due to lack of programming and sponsors, there were full length movies in the wee hours, black and white classic shows in the evening (starting at 8 PM), and only one commercial interruption during the shows. Ah, the good old days.

Mad Movies took a very old or "B" movie and edited it. The original dialogue was cut completely, and most footage deleted. The edited version was really nothing like the original, not even being in the same chronology, and often repeating clips. The purpose was to fit in with the new funny "plot" in which new dialogue was added, a la the well known MST3K, but thanks to the editing and killing the original dialogue altogether, Mad Movies was much funnier. MST3K, maintaining the original length of the movie and dialogue, usually dragged in my opinion.

One of the two movies I remember well is the oft mentioned (here anyway) "Night of the Living Dead" in which the new plot was the kids planning a big house party. They kept showing one of the zombies approaching the house, and he'd always say "Telegram."

The other was Shirley Temple in "The Little Princess." If you've ever seen the original, you know that she often gets mad and throws sort of an enraged tantrum. The mad movies spoof made use of this by making her a possessed girl that needed an exorcism. It's amazing how well the original movie fit this new plot once edited. I can never watch the original without thinking of the demon inside every time she gets angry and frustrated.

Sadly, I believe I will never see these shows again, especially on the pathetic remnants of "Nick at Nite" which is now nothing more than overnight sitcom filler for Nickelodeon. I wonder if they are available for viewing at the Museum of Television and Radio History.