Top Notch Comedy Writers Come from the Harvard Lampoon

Everyone knows that getting into Harvard is very challenging. They only accept the cream of the crop, academically. The average high school grade point average to get into Harvard is a 4.0. Most students take AP or IB classes that make their g.p.a. above 4.0. Many people would not associate super academic people with people who are incredibly funny, but at Harvard, the humorous students write for The Harvard Lampoon. Members must demonstrate that they are funny on paper, by submitting six pieces of humor writing. These are evaluated by the Lampoon members, including the president of the organization. Founded in 1876 by seven Harvard undergraduates, The Harvard Lampoon is one of the world’s longest-running continuously-published humor magazines. The Lampoon publishes five issues annually and occasionally parodies other magazines (People, Time, Mademoiselle, Playboy, National Geographic, and many more) or the day’s popular literature (Bored of the Rings, The Hunger Pains, Nightlight, Lame of Thrones). The publication’s circulation is 30,000. It’s inside a castle-like building (pictured above) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a few blocks from Harvard Square. You have probably heard of The National Lampoon, which once had a magazine and was behind films such as Vacation, European Vacation, Christmas Vacation, Animal House, and others. The National Lampoon was founded by Harvard Lampoon members in 1970. But, everyone associated with National Lampoon was not a Harvard Lampoon member. The Lampoon name was licensed to National Lampoon and that provides much of the revenue for the Harvard Lampoon. The National Lampoon Radio Hour included Chevy Chase, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer. 1973 was the launch of a stage show called National Lampoon; Lemmings which was a launching pad for Chase, Guest and John Belushi. This was a precursor to Saturday Night Live. Alumni of the Harvard Lampoon include: business tycoon and newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst, authors George Plimpton and John Updike, MSNBC anchor Lawrence O’Donnell, and actor Fred Gwynne. Many of the top comedy writers in late night TV and sitcoms are Lampoon alumni such as: Conan O’Brien (SNL, The Simpsons, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Conan), Greg Daniels (The Office, SNL, The Simpsons, King of the Hill, Parks and Recreation), Colin Jost (SNL), Jeff Martin (The Simpsons, David Letterman), Jim Downey (SNL, David Letterman), BJ Novak (The Office), Mike Reiss (The Simpsons, The Critic, Johnny Carson), Steve Young (David Letterman), Bill Oakley (The Simpsons), Josh Weinstein (The Simpsons), Robert Carlock (SNL, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, The Dana Carvey Show, 30 Rock), Al Jean (The Simpsons, The Critic, Johnny Carson), Jon Vitti (The Simpsons, The Critic, King of the Hill, The Office), Steve O’Donnell (David Letterman, The Simpsons, Seinfeld), Al Jean (The Simpsons, Johnny Carson, ALF, It’s Garry Shandling’s Show), Jon Beckerman (David Letterman, Ed), David X. Cohen (Beavis and Butthead, The Simpsons, Futurama), Andy Borowitz (The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, The Facts of Life, Square Pegs), George Meyer (David Letterman, The Simpsons), Eric Kaplan (David Letterman, The Simpsons, Futurama, The Big Bang Theory, Malcolm in the Middle), Ethan Cohen (Beavis and Butthead, King of the Hill, American Dad). An old copy of the Lampoon was shown in the season four finale of NewsRadio. It was called a "nefarious scandal sheet." Honorary members include: John Cleese, Bill Cosby, Billy Crystal, Jay Leno, Adam Sandler, Tracey Ullman, Robin Williams and more. It's incredible to think about how many Lampoon writers worked on very funny, popular shows, especially The Simpsons, SNL and David Letterman.

The Critic

There are a few animated series that I enjoy, such as The Simpsons, Futurama, South Park, Beavis and Butthead, Daria, Family Guy, etc. I discovered that the Tubi streaming service has a program I had not watched in years, but used to enjoy, The Critic. The main character is a New York City film critic (Jay Sherman) with his own cable TV show, voiced by Jon Lovitz of SNL fame. His catchphrase was “It stinks!” The show lampooned actors and the film industry. Jay Sherman is a loveable loser who has challenges with his personal life. He has a tyrannical media mogul boss who was based on Ted Turner. In 1994-95, the show aired on ABC, then Fox, then Comedy Central for a total of 23 episodes. The final 10 episodes were put on a website called atomfilms.com in 2000-01. The Critic spoofed films such as Howard’s End, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, Apocalypse Now, The Lion King, The Godfather, Arthur and more. This show would be enjoyed by film fans, and Siskel and Ebert guest starred in an episode. The duo gave the show a lukewarm review. Film critics Rex Reed and Gene Shalit also played themselves. The show was created by Al Jean and Mike Reiss, who were also the primary writers. These two have an impressive comedy resume. They wrote for Johnny Carson and The Simpsons. Like many successful comedy writers at the highest level, they went to Harvard. Some people from The Simpsons provided voices for The Critic (such as Nancy Cartwright, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Doris Grau etc). This show was the voice acting debut for Billy Crystal. Later, he did voice work for Pixar films Monsters Inc and Cars. Park Overall from the show Empty Nest provided the voice of Jay’s girlfriend Alice. The Critic was intended as a love letter to New York City. Ironically, it did better ratings-wise in the Midwest than New York or other major cities. The show was never a smash hit but achieved a cult status. *Some information from imdb and wikipedia.

TV Spin-offs: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

It may seem like a no-brainer. Take a popular show and make a spin-off show out of it featuring one or more of the characters. Some work out well, (think Laverne and Shirley or The Jeffersons) and some are flops (like Joanie Loves Chachi or The Bradys), lasting only a few episodes. Here are some notable spin-offs, listed after the original show the were based upon. How many do you remember?


All in the Family...The Jeffersons...Archie Bunker's Place...Maude
Several spin-offs emerged from the groundbreaking All in the Family, produced by TV titan Norman Lear.

Happy Days...Joanie Loves Chachi...Laverne and Shirley...Mork and Mindy
Laverne and Shirley also lived in Milwaukee, like the Cunningham family. Mork (Robin Williams) had appeared on Happy Days. Happy Days' Ron Howard and Laverne and Shirley's Cindy Williams appeared together in the film American Graffiti, directed by George Lucas.

Cheers...Frasier...The Tortellis
Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) had a long running sitcom after Cheers ended, playing a Seattle radio talk show host. The Tortellis, featuring Nick and Loretta Tortelli, was short-lived and failed to attract an audience.

Three's Company...Three's a Crowd...The Ropers
After the end of Three's Company, Jack Tripper (John Ritter) had a show called Three's a Crowd. Mr. and Mrs. Roper (Norman Fell and Audra Lindley) had their own spin off.

Diff'rent Strokes...The Facts of Life
Mrs. Garrett from Diff'rent Strokes went on to supervise the girls at the boarding school in The Facts of Life. Both shows enjoyed many successful seasons.

The Cosby Show...A Different World
A Different World was a spin-off created for Lisa Bonet as she left the Huxtable family and went off to college.

MASH...After MASH
The show MASH was such a smash hit, garnering record setting ratings for its final episode. After MASH featured only 3 of the original MASH cast members, and it was a ratings disappointment that was quickly cancelled.

The Golden Girls...Empty Nest...The Golden Palace
The Golden Girls was a smash, Empty Nest lasted for a few years. The Golden Palace had the original ladies from Golden Girls except for Bea Arthur. It did not fare well.

The Danny Thomas Show...The Andy Griffith Show...Gomer Pyle, USMC...Mayberry RFD
These were shows from the early days of television that featured much loved characters. Of course little Opie from Andy Griffith was Ron Howard, who went on to star in Happy Days, which spawned several spin-offs.

Perfect Strangers...Family Matters
Some may not recall that characters from Family Matters had appeared in Perfect Strangers.

The Tracey Ullman Show...The Simpsons
The Simpsons animated shorts, created by Matt Groening, appeared on Tracey Ullman's comedy show, in the early days of the Fox network.

Friends...Joey
Friends was a smash hit for NBC and it was a big break for Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox and more. Joey was a short lived show and a disappointment for Matt LeBlanc who hoped for a continuation of the Friends magic.

That 70's Show...That 80's Show
That 70's Show, big hit with Ashton Kutcher, Laura Prepon, Mila Kunis and more. That 80's show, one decade later, much worse in the ratings.

The Brady Bunch...The Bradys
The Bradys took a more serious tone but it did not last long, and people had seen enough of this family.

Mary Tyler Moore...Rhoda...Lou Grant
People loved the character of Mary Richards played by Mary Tyler Moore. Valerie Harper had her own show as Rhoda. Ed Asner reprised his role as the crusty newsman Lou Grant.

Beavis and Butt-Head...Daria
Daria was a spin-off featuring a dour yet unquestionably more mature friend of Beavis and Butt-Head.

Jackass...Viva La Bam
Skateboarding pro Bam Margera had his own show where he would play wacky stunts on his family members. The Jackass guys would appear on his show regularly.

Family Guy...The Cleveland Show
Cleveland Brown became the focus of his own show, separate from Family Guy's Griffin family.


Sources:

http://www.businessinsider.com/best-spinoff-shows-of-all-time-2013-11?op=1

https://tv.yahoo.com/photos/12-more-tv-spinoffs-that-no-one-asked-for-1384900826-slideshow/

http://nypost.com/2014/06/26/11-of-tvs-best-comedy-spinoffs/

http://flavorwire.com/464337/the-25-best-and-worst-tv-spin-offs-of-all-time

http://www.gold1043.com.au/entertainment/the-best-and-worst-tv-spin-offs-you-may-never-want-to-remember

The Simpsons/Family Guy Crossover is Coming

Do you like The Simpsons? Do you like Family Guy? They will have a crossover episode this September. It will be cool to see Bart and Stewie together, and Homer and Peter hanging out at the bar drinking some beers. How will Brian get along with Santa's Little Helper? Will Marge and Lois like each other? Some might say that a crossover has already been happening since Family Guy borrows so much of their comedy from The Simpsons. Seth MacFarlane has built an empire to rival that of Simpsons creator Matt Groening. He has created Family Guy, American Dad and The Cleveland Show. Prior to Family Guy, MacFarlane was a writer for animated shows like Johnny Bravo and Dexter's Laboratory. Read about the crossover episode here.

*Some information from imdb.com.