Top “Weird Al” Song Parodies About Television
“Weird Al” Yankovic is the master of song parodies and pop culture references, so naturally he would mock television over the years. In 1995, “Weird Al” put out The TV Album, which compiled all of his TV-related songs up to that point. Well, he hates it. Now that over 10 years have passed, the album seems kind of arbitrary. There are so many more recent songs about TV songs that deserve recognition, so here are five songs from “Weird Al’s” collection that either weren’t on The TV Album or were included, but still hold up fairly well today.
Couch Potato
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Jesse & The Rippers Perform On ‘Late Night With Jimmy Fallon’
Jimmy Fallon has not matured since 1995. The man loves his 90s shows, which explains the recent reunion of Full House‘s Jesse & The Rippers on Late Night. Every part of this clips is perfect. Danny Tanner is in the audience and Aunt Becky kisses Uncle Jesse at the end. What more could a Full House fan ask for?
Want more Jesse & The Rippers? Check out their classic “Forever” music video.
A ‘Food Court Wars’ Upset
Sarah and Tyler from Casual Joe’s
The Wausau Center Mall in Wausau, Wisconsin was home to the Food Court War between Casual Joe‘s and The Wrap Trap, which is now Carlie and Company. Tyler Sailsbery and Sarah Smith from Casual Joe’s want to give mall goers “A real taste of Wisconsin” with fried cheese curds and brats. The Wrap Trap’s Carlie Peterson & Brianna Shidell want to give shoppers a healthier alternative to standard food court fare.
Food Court Wars no longer features stories that pull at the heartstrings. This week there was one finding yourself story and one partner took everything after the split, so it looks like Food Network realized that normal life stories are good and make people relatable. Sob stories just make viewers feel bad for the contestants.
Welcome To ‘Wedding Island’
Wedding Island: where Mr. Rourke and Tattoo make your fantasies come true. Oops, that’s Fantasy Island. On Wedding Island, wedding planner Sandy Malone and employees do their best to make sure brides have their perfect wedding. The title is self-explanatory, the show is about planning island weddings.
Wedding Island takes place on the Puerto Rican island of Vieques. Unlike the main island, which has over 3.5 million people, Vieques has less than 10,000 residents and is only 21 miles long and 4 miles wide. The island only has one baker and one rental company, which means there is a very real possibility that something may not arrive on time or even at all. On top of that, there are no flowers on the island, so flowers have to be flown in from elsewhere. As Sandy points out, anywhere else, she could get in her car and drive to the florist. In Vieques, the flowers she ordered may die on the runway from neglect and the only thing she can do is yell, which is not a problem for Sandy.
Not Everyone Can ‘Deal With It’
Howie Mandel is a prankster. He also likes to produce Candid Camera inspired shows, which is why Howie Do It, Mobbed, and now Deal With It exist. The former two shows both lasted less than 20 episodes. If TBS is smart, Deal With It will meet the same fate. In other words, the show isn’t good. To make matters worse, it is an exact copy of a short-lived Food Network show that even the Internet doesn’t remember.
Deal With It ambushes a random restaurant patron, who is then asked to participate in a game where they can win up to $5,000. Of course, all the people agree to go along with whatever crazy thing host Theo Von and his celebrity guest tell them to do. There are five rounds, which are worth $250, $500, $1,000, $2,500, respectively. If a contestant does not feel comfortable continuing the game, he or she can end the game by saying “I can’t deal with it.” Unlike many shows in this genre, the contestant then gets to keep the money won up to that point.
The CW Gets 5,000 Points For ‘Whose Line?’
The only show where the points don’t matter and everything is made up on the spot is back. This time on The CW. Despite a six year absence from television, Whose Line Is It Anyway? never skipped a beat. Drew Carey didn’t come back, but Aisha Tyler holds her own against old favorites, Wayne Brady, Colin Mochrie, and Ryan Stiles.
Fans of the Drew Carey version of Whose Line? will notice that Aisha doesn’t participate in the skits like Drew did. Hopefully, Aisha comes out from behind the desk and joins the gang in later episodes because right now she is funny and clearly not using all of her potential. Those who are used to the UK version where Clive Anderson interacts with the performs, but never leaves his desk probably won’t mind that Aisha doesn’t move.
Johnny Carson’s Memorable Moments
Since TCM airs some of Johnny Carson’s interviews every Monday night at 8pm in July, Wait! What’s a Dial? has compiled other memorable moments from The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. None of these moments are rare. We’ve all seen them in every Johnny Carson special, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t fun to watch them again. In no particular order, here are four memorable moments from Johnny’s 30 years as host of The Tonight Show.
The Tomahawk Incident
The Underdog Wins ‘Food Court Wars’
Jenn and Trish Tirado with Tyler Florence
Food Court Wars may not be original, but it is certainly consistent. In this week’s episode, The Taco Spot competed against Tirado’s Empanadas & More.
The two teams had very different motivations for wanting a kiosk at Spartanburg, South Carolina’s WestGate Mall. The Taco Spot’s owner, V.J., and his store manager, Michael, want to expand past their current two locations. If they win the mall space, Michael will get to own a Taco Spot location. The Tirados, Trish and her daughter Jenn, want to move up in the world. Prior to the Food Court Wars, Trish and Jenn sold their empanadas out of a food cart.
‘Hollywood Game Night’: Fun Show, Obnoxious Host
Hollywood Game Night combines elements from all of the classic game shows, specifically Password and Body Language, and makes them modern. It may also be the first new game show that allows the viewer to participate at home, which is something that Minute to Win It and The Winner Is lack. Watching people make fools of themselves on television is only fun for so long.
Television is usually a passive experience, but the reason why Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, and The Price is Right have been around for over 30 years is because people love to feel like they are participating at home in a way that doesn’t involve consuming large amounts of alcohol. Hollywood Game Night‘s producers understand that. Although, host Jane Lynch did recommend a Hollywood Game Night drinking game five minutes into the show; it was tongue in cheek.
Richard Branson is The Man
Richard Branson is awesome. The British billionaire is the only person who can talk about a Pamela Anderson shaped cola bottle and legitimizing the mile high club and not come off as a total sleaze. Despite his antics, Branson has somehow managed to stay married to the same woman since 1989. In the clip below, Conan interviews Branson as Branson shamelessly flirts with Salma Hayek.
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