Kwik Witz
Encyclopedia
Kwik Witz was a syndicated comedy program which aired in syndication
, mainly on numerous NBC
affiliate stations - usually in the time-slot following Saturday Night Live
. The show originated from WMAQ-TV
in Chicago, Illinois and was produced by Beau & Arrow Productions. The show shared studio space with Sally Jessy Raphael
.
The show sought to capitalize on the popularity of the improvisational comedy television program Whose Line Is It Anyway?
and featured two teams of two performers competing against each other. The show had a live audience which voted to select the winner at the end of the sketch (usually four in a given program), with teams earning points based on the percentage of votes they got in each sketch. The winning team was given a prize brought by the losing team - a token gift usually of more comedic value than monetary.
Performers were scouted from various improvisational comedy and sketch comedy
troupes. Comedians Wayne Brady
and Ron West made appearances on Whose Line (West was an occasional performer on the British version; Brady later became a regular performer on the American version and appeared in a few episodes of the British show). Steve Carell
appeared as a contestant on at least one episode, that being in March, 1997, along with Robert Covarrubias, Dan O'Connor, and John Rubano. One episode in April 1997 featured Judith Scott, Dave Razowsky, Jackie Hoffman, and Joe Liss. The May 3rd, 1997 show featured Wayne Brady, Dave Razowsky, Theresa Mulligan, and Clare Sera. During this time frame, the emcee was Andi Matheny.
Although the games played on the show were familiar to fans of improvisational comedy, and the show's title and opening suggested that it was improvised, the performers in fact had advance knowledge of the challenges and had already rehearsed the sketches weeks in advance. (As the show's hosts explained at the beginning of each episode while laying out the rules, "we allow [the contestants] to cheat," although how much time the contestants were given to rehearse was never specified on air.)
The show launched with a limited-run pilot season in 1995, which was distributed by Hearst-Argyle Television (via their Milwaukee station, WISN-TV
, which helped to coordinate the pilot tapings) and Beau & Arrow to stations throughout the Midwest during the test run http://google.com/search?q=cache:T75x6AwPe4EJ:findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4196/is_19950530/ai_n10197102+%22kwik+witz%22+%2Bwisn&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=us&client=opera. Nationally, the show debuted on September 20, 1996 and was canceled in the midst of its third season in 1999 (during which time the spelling of its title was altered to Quick Witz).
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
, mainly on numerous NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
affiliate stations - usually in the time-slot following Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
. The show originated from WMAQ-TV
WMAQ-TV
WMAQ-TV, channel 5, is an owned-and-operated television station of the NBC Television Network, located in Chicago, Illinois. WMAQ-TV's main studios and offices are located within the NBC Tower in the Streeterville neighborhood, with an auxiliary street-level studio on the Magnificent Mile at 401...
in Chicago, Illinois and was produced by Beau & Arrow Productions. The show shared studio space with Sally Jessy Raphael
Sally Jessy Raphaël
Sally Lowenthal , better known as Sally Jessy Raphael, is an American talk show host, known for the eponymous Sally talk show she hosted for two decades.-Early years:...
.
The show sought to capitalize on the popularity of the improvisational comedy television program Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Whose Line Is It Anyway? is a short-form improvisational comedy TV show. Originally a British radio programme, it moved to television in 1988 as a series made for the UK's Channel 4, for a 10 series run...
and featured two teams of two performers competing against each other. The show had a live audience which voted to select the winner at the end of the sketch (usually four in a given program), with teams earning points based on the percentage of votes they got in each sketch. The winning team was given a prize brought by the losing team - a token gift usually of more comedic value than monetary.
Performers were scouted from various improvisational comedy and sketch comedy
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
troupes. Comedians Wayne Brady
Wayne Brady
Wayne Alphonso Brady is an actor, singer, comedian and television personality, known for his work as a regular on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series Whose Line Is It Anyway?, and as the host of the daytime talk show The Wayne Brady Show...
and Ron West made appearances on Whose Line (West was an occasional performer on the British version; Brady later became a regular performer on the American version and appeared in a few episodes of the British show). Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...
appeared as a contestant on at least one episode, that being in March, 1997, along with Robert Covarrubias, Dan O'Connor, and John Rubano. One episode in April 1997 featured Judith Scott, Dave Razowsky, Jackie Hoffman, and Joe Liss. The May 3rd, 1997 show featured Wayne Brady, Dave Razowsky, Theresa Mulligan, and Clare Sera. During this time frame, the emcee was Andi Matheny.
Although the games played on the show were familiar to fans of improvisational comedy, and the show's title and opening suggested that it was improvised, the performers in fact had advance knowledge of the challenges and had already rehearsed the sketches weeks in advance. (As the show's hosts explained at the beginning of each episode while laying out the rules, "we allow [the contestants] to cheat," although how much time the contestants were given to rehearse was never specified on air.)
The show launched with a limited-run pilot season in 1995, which was distributed by Hearst-Argyle Television (via their Milwaukee station, WISN-TV
WISN-TV
WISN-TV, virtual channel 12.1 , is a television station located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin serving as an affiliate of the ABC television network. Its signal covers most of southeastern Wisconsin and parts of northeastern Illinois, including Racine, Kenosha, Sheboygan and Waukesha...
, which helped to coordinate the pilot tapings) and Beau & Arrow to stations throughout the Midwest during the test run http://google.com/search?q=cache:T75x6AwPe4EJ:findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4196/is_19950530/ai_n10197102+%22kwik+witz%22+%2Bwisn&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=us&client=opera. Nationally, the show debuted on September 20, 1996 and was canceled in the midst of its third season in 1999 (during which time the spelling of its title was altered to Quick Witz).