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Strangers with Candy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For the film based on the television program, see Strangers with Candy (film).
| Strangers With Candy | |
|---|---|
 Strangers With Candy title screen from the second season. |
|
| Genre | Comedy |
| Creator(s) | Stephen Colbert Paul Dinello Amy Sedaris Mitch Rouse |
| Starring | Amy Sedaris Stephen Colbert Paul Dinello Greg Hollimon |
| Country of origin | USA |
| No. of episodes | 30 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 Minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Comedy Central |
| Original run | April 7, 1999 – October 2, 2000 |
| Links | |
| IMDb profile | |
Strangers with Candy was a television series produced by Comedy Central. It first aired on April 7, 1999, and concluded its third and final season on October 2, 2000. Its timeslot was Sundays at 10 PM (EST), and the Comedy Central show Strip Mall replaced it.
Contents |
The series's main character, Jerri Blank (played by Amy Sedaris), was a runaway returning to high school as a freshman at age 46 at the fictional Flatpoint High School, in the town of Flatpoint.
Created and written by Amy Sedaris, Paul Dinello, Stephen Colbert, and Mitch Rouse, the show was a spoof of the after school specials of the 1970s and 1980s and was also inspired, at least in part, by a 1970 public-service film The Trip Back that featured a reformed drug addict named Florrie Fisher (see Origin below). Sedaris, Colbert, Dinello, and Rouse were cast members of the short-lived Comedy Central series Exit 57; they, along with Greg Hollimon and many other stars of the series, were also alumni of Chicago's Second City comedy troupe.
According to the show's animated introduction, [1] Jerri ran away from home and became "a boozer, a user, and a loser," after dropping out of high school as a teenager, supporting her drug habits through prostitution, stripping, and larceny. She has been to prison several times, the last time because, in her words, "I stole the TV."
Every episode featured a theme or moral lesson, although the lessons were often amoral or warped; in an episode about eating disorders, Jerri learns that it's OK to become an anorexic, because it will get people to pay attention to you. When Jerri's father passes away in the episode "The Goodbye Guy", Jerri learns the valuable lesson, "You never really 'lose' your parents. Unless of course they die. Then they're gone forever. And nothing will bring them back." In another episode, Jerri learned that "Violence really isn't the only way to resolve a conflict, but it's the only way to win it."
Each episode ends with the cast and other features from the episode dancing in a party/rave.
The series was first envisioned by Dinello and Colbert, both of whom had seen a public service Scared Straight!-type film called The Trip Back, in which motivational speaker Florrie Fisher recalled her days as a New York prostitute to a group of high school students. Seeing that Fisher strongly resembled their friend Amy Sedaris, they showed her a copy of the tape, and suitably impressed with Sedaris' imitation of Fisher, began developing a series based around the idea of Fisher going back to high school herself. The three, along with Mitch Rouse, combined this concept with lampooning the after-school specials they had all been subjected to in high school, along with the short-lived mid-1990s teen series My So-Called Life. Much of Jerri's past is taken from anecdotes in The Trip Back, some of which were also included in Fisher's autobiography, The Lonely Trip Back. Several lines of dialogue in the series were taken verbatim from Fisher's public service film. It is arguable that Jerri Blank has become even more famous than the woman that inspired her; while Strangers with Candy became a cult success, Florrie Fisher sank into obscurity in the 1980s. Today, much speculation among fans of the series revolves around finding out whatever happened to Fisher.
- Geraldine 'Jerri' Antonia Blank – A 46 year old ex-con, ex-junkie, and high school freshman at Flatpoint High.
- Guy Blank – Jerri’s natural father.
- Sara Blank – Jerri’s step-mother.
- Derrick Blank – Jerri’s half-brother. He plays quarterback for the Flatpoint Donkeys football team.
- Stew – The Blank family’s meat man. He is having an affair with Sara Blank.
- Principal Onyx Blackman – Principal of Flatpoint High School.
- Charles 'Chuck' Noblet – Chuck is the school’s History teacher and sponsor of the school newspaper, The Donkey Trouser. He and his wife, Claire, have a child, Shamus. Despite his apparent heterosexuality, he is in-fact in a secret homosexual relationship with Geoffrey Jellineck.
- Geoffrey Jellineck – Geoffrey is the school’s art teacher. He is an emotionally fragile man who is engaged in a secret homosexual relationship with Chuck Noblet.
- Coach Cherri Wolf – The girls’ gym teacher.
- Iris Puffybush – Secretary to Principal Blackman.
- Cassie Pines – The school’s guidance counselor.
- Orlando Pinatubo
- Tammi Littlenut
- Jimmy Tickles
- Claire Noblet – Wife to Chuck Noblet. She is oblivious to her husband’s relationship with Geoffrey Jellineck.
On February 7, 2006, movie company ThinkFilm announced that it had acquired the distribution rights to a feature film based on the series. The film, a prequel to the television show, was completed in 2004 and acquired by Warner Independent at Sundance in 2005, but release of the film was delayed due to legal clearance issues. Amy Sedaris, Stephen Colbert, and Paul Dinello reprised their roles for the film; several other characters were recast. In addition to acting, Colbert is a co-producer and Dinello is a director for the film. Worldwide Pants, a production company owned by comedian David Letterman, was also a producer. This is the company's first feature film production. A teaser trailer for the film was released in April 2006 [1] (see "external links"). The initial theater release was June 28, 2006, in the New York City area, followed by the remainder of the United States on July 7. A DVD of the film was released in November 2006. Amy Sedaris said of Jerri Blank that "she's like a rash, you never know when she's going to pop up."[2]
- ^ The animated introduction was used only after the first season. In the first season, Jerri would give the introduction during the episodes' beginnings before the song started.
- ^ Lauren Thompson, The Daily Texan (2006-07-09). Retrieved on July 9, 2006.
- The Official Strangers with Candy Movie Web Site
- Strangers With Candy at the Internet Movie Database.
- Strangers With Candy at TV.com.
- Tony's Strangers With Candy Companion Site.
- The Comfort Zone Strangers With Candy photo galleries and quotes pages, as well as Amy Sedaris pictures, audio downloads and interview transcripts