D.C. Follies Explained

Genre:Comedy
Creator:Sid & Marty Krofft
Director:Rick Locke
Presenter:Fred Willard
Starring:Maurice LaMarche
Joe Alaskey
Country:United States
Language:English
Num Seasons:2
Num Episodes:44
Producer:Sid & Marty Krofft
Runtime:30 minutes
Company:Sid & Marty Krofft Pictures
Negative Entertainment (1987–1988)
Cannon Films (1988–1989)[1]
Channel:Syndication

D.C. Follies is a syndicated sitcom which aired from 1987–1989. The show was set in a Washington, D.C. bar, where a bartender played by Fred Willard would welcome puppet caricatures of politicians and popular culture figures.[2]

Synopsis

The show, a satire, made frequent sardonic comments on Cold War and late 1980s politics and pop culture. Although Willard was the only live actor appearing regularly, each episode featured a celebrity guest, including Martin Mull, Robin Leach, Leslie Nielsen, Bob Uecker, and Betty White. In one episode, Robert Englund showed up as his Freddy Krueger character, and in a special Christmas episode an un-billed actor played Santa Claus.[3] [4]

Style

The show's use of puppets that mimicked popular culture and political figures was similar to the British series Spitting Image; it was produced by Sid and Marty Krofft, well-known puppeteers in the United States who were responsible for popular children's television shows including H.R. Pufnstuf[5] and Sigmund and the Sea Monsters. The show was originally funded and syndicated nationally by New York-based Syndicast Services Inc.

Frequently appearing puppet characters included

[6]

Accolades

The series was nominated for two Emmy Awards.[7]

Home media

A series of three "Best of D. C. Follies" VHS tapes were released, with each volume containing two episodes.[8]

On August 4, 2017, Shout! Factory announced they had acquired the rights to the series and subsequently released D.C. Follies – The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1 on November 14, 2017.[9]

The show has been made available via video on demand at Amazon Video and iTunes.[10]

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://web.archive.org/web/20201124154005/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b79496c02 BFI
  2. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1988-08-07-8801210055-story.html WILLARD GIVES 'D.C. FOLLIES' A HUMAN TOUCH - Chicago Tribune
  3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkS4GCxgKdo Fred Willard on "DC Follies" - TelevisionAcademy.com/Interviews - FoundationINTERVIEWS on YouTube
  4. https://www.vulture.com/article/fred-willard-career-interview.html An Interview with Fred Willard About His Delightful Career - Vulture
  5. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/550541/dc-follies-puppet-political-satire No Strings Attached: The Puppet Satire of D.C. Follies|Mental Floss
  6. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-11-07-ca-4810-story.html 'D.C. Follies' Guests Are Full of Foam - Los Angeles Times
  7. https://www.emmys.com/shows/sid-and-marty-kroffts-dc-follies Television Academy
  8. https://vhscollector.com/movie/best-sid-marty-kroffts-dc-follies VHS Collector
  9. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/DC-Follies-The-Complete-Series/23551 D.C. Follies - 'The Complete Series' Starring Fred Willard, from Sid and Marty Krofft! Shout! Factory to release a 4-DVD set into stores this fall
  10. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/18/arts/television/fred-willard-best-performances.html Best in Show: Watch Fred Willard's Most Memorable Roles - The New York Times

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