Sha Na Na is a syndicated television variety series that ran from 1977 to 1981 for a total of 97 episodes, hosted by the popular rock & roll/comedy group of the same name

Sha Na Na

Sha Na Na is an American rock and roll group. The name is taken from a part of the long series of nonsense syllables in the doo-wop hit song "Get a Job", originally recorded in 1957 by the Silhouettes....

. The show was produced by Pierre Cossette

Pierre Cossette

Pierre Maurice Joseph Cossette was a television executive producer and Broadway producer who brought the Grammy Awards to television. Cossette produced the first television broadcast of the Grammy Awards in 1971....

 and originally distributed by LBS Communications. Sony Pictures Television

Sony Pictures Television

Sony Pictures Television, Inc. is an American and global television production/distribution subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment. In turn, the latter is part of the Japanese conglomerate Sony.-Background:...

 currently owns the rights to the series. Donny York, Jocko Marcellino, and Screamin' Scott Simon of the TV group continue to tour as Sha Na Na.

The show featured the group performing hits from the 1950s and 1960s along with comedy skits along the show's nostalgic theme but with a contemporary twist, with performances from that era's well-known acts as well as popular acts of the 1970s.

Among the supporting members featured in the series were: Avery Schreiber

Avery Schreiber

Avery Lawrence Schreiber was an American comedian and actor. He was a veteran of stage, TV, and film.-Biography:...

, Kenneth Mars

Kenneth Mars

Kenneth Mars was an American television, movie, and voice actor. He may be best-remembered for his roles in several Mel Brooks films: the insane Nazi playwright Franz Liebkind in 1968's The Producers, and the relentless Police Inspector Hans Wilhelm Fredrich Kemp in 1974's Young Frankenstein...

 and Phillp Roth in the first season; Pamela Myers

Pamela Myers

Pamela Myers is an American actress who made her Broadway debut as Marta in Stephen Sondheim's musical Company. For this role, in which she introduced the show-stopping number, "Another Hundred People," she was nominated at the 1971 Tony awards for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical...

 and actress Jane Dulo (she played the crabby Lady in the Window, who watched over the street scenes from the window of her apartment with undisguised disdain) (Both throughout the show's run), June Gable

June Gable

June Gable is an American Character actress, best known for her role as Estelle Leonard of The Estelle Leonard Talent Agency in the American sitcom Friends.-Life and career:...

 and Soupy Sales

Soupy Sales

Soupy Sales was an American comedian, actor, radio-TV personality and host, and jazz aficionado. He was best known for his local and network children's television show, Lunch with Soupy Sales; a series of comedy sketches frequently ending with Sales receiving a pie in the face, which became his...

 (Seasons 2 to 4); Michael Sklar (Season 2); and Karen Hartman (Season 4).

Quotes

During the shows' opening after the cast and guests are mentioned Myers kicks off the show by saying "And now, here they are, all greased up and ready to sing their brains out, Sha Na Na!" while Jon "Bowzer" Bauman would close out each show by saying "Good night, and grease for peace!" with Sha Na Na singing "Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight

Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight

"Goodnight Sweetheart, Goodnight" is a popular song that was a hit during the mid 1950s.It was written by Calvin Carter and James "Pookie" Hudson in 1953....

" as their closing theme song.

Cultural references

Actor Will Smith took a swipe at this series in his 1988 rap hit "Parents Just Don't Understand." Disappointed with his mother's choices for back-to-school clothing, Smith remarked, "This isn't Sha Na Na, come on Mom, I'm not Bowzer"