A variety show or variety entertainment is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and comedy skits, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Comedy (from the Greek κωμωδίαkomodia has a popular meaning (any discourse generally intended to amuse especially in Television, Film, and A presenter, or host (sometimes hostess, in feminine form is a Person or Organization responsible for running an event The variety format made its way from Victorian era stage to radio to television. Culture The Victorian fascination with novelty resulted in a deep interest in the relationship between modernity and cultural continuities Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic Variety shows were a staple of English-language television from its early days into the 1970s, and lasted into the 1980s, but are now reduced to the level of the occasional special. A television special is a Television program, typically a Short film or Television movie, which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally In several parts of the world, variety TV remains popular and widespread.
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History
The format is basically that of music hall in the UK or vaudeville in the U.S. Variety in the UK evolved in theatres and music halls, and later in Working Men's Clubs. Music hall is a form of British theatrical Entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Theatre (or theater, see spelling differences) is the branch of the Performing arts defined by Bernard Beckerman as what "occurs when one Working men's clubs are a type of private social club founded in the 19th century in industrial areas of Great Britain, particularly the North of England Most of the early top performers on British television and radio did an apprenticeship either in stage variety, or during World War II in Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA). World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Entertainments National Service Association, or ENSA was an organisation set up in 1939 by Basil Dean and Leslie Henson to provide entertainment In the UK, the ultimate accolade for a variety artist for decades was to be asked to do the annual Royal Command Performance at the London Palladium theatre, in front of the monarch. The Royal Variety Performance is a gala evening held annually in the United Kingdom, which is attended by senior members of the British Royal Family, normally The London Palladium is a 2286 seat West End theatre located off Oxford Street in the City of Westminster.
In the U. S. , former vaudeville performers such as the Marx Brothers, George Burns and Gracie Allen, W. C. Fields, and Jack Benny moved to sound movies, then radio, and then television, including variety shows. Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s The Marx Brothers were a popular team of sibling Comedians who appeared in Vaudeville, stage plays film and television George Burns ( January 20 1896 &ndash March 9 1996; born Nathan Birnbaum) was an American comedian, Actor Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen ( July 26 1895 Allen used to claim that she was born in 1906 but when pressed for evidence she would say that her birth certificate W C Fields ( January 29, 1880 &ndash December 25, 1946) was an American Juggler, Comedian, and Actor Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky February 14, 1894 - December 26, 1974) was an American Comedian, vaudevillian A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image as opposed to a Silent film. Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. In the 1960s, even a popular rock band such as The Beatles undertook this ritual of appearing on variety shows on TV. The Beatles were a pop and rock band from Liverpool, England formed in 1960 In the US, shows featuring Milton Berle, Jackie Gleason, Bob Hope, and Dean Martin also helped to make the Golden Age of Television successful. Mendel "Milton Berle" Berlinger ( July 12, 1908 &ndash March 27, 2002) was an Emmy -winning American Comedian Herbert Walton Gleason Jr, baptized John Herbert "Jackie" Gleason ( February 26, 1916 – June 24, 1987) was an Bob Hope, KBE KCSG ( May 29, 1903 &ndash July 27, 2003) was an American comedian and actor who appeared in Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7 1917 &ndash December 25 1995 was an American Singer, Film Actor, television personality The Golden Age of Television is the period in the United States from approximately 1949 to 1961 a time when many hour-long anthology drama series received critical acclaim
From 1948 to 1971, The Ed Sullivan Show was one of CBS's most popular series. The Ed Sullivan Show was an American television Variety show that ran from June 20, 1948 to June 6, CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. Using his no-nonsense approach, Ed Sullivan allowed every known act possible from every known medium to get their "fifteen minutes of fame. Edward Vincent "Ed" Sullivan ( September 28, 1901 – October 13, 1974) was an American Entertainment Writer " Sullivan was also partially responsible for bringing Elvis Presley and The Beatles to U. The Beatles were a pop and rock band from Liverpool, England formed in 1960 S. prominence, while in the UK The Good Old Days, which ran from 1953 to 1983, featured modern artists performing dressed in late Victorian/Early Edwardian costume, either doing their own act or performing as a music hall artist of that period. The Good Old Days was a popular BBC Television light entertainment programme which ran from 1953 to 1983. Culture The Victorian fascination with novelty resulted in a deep interest in the relationship between modernity and cultural continuities Class and society Socially the Edwardian era was a period during which the British Class system was very rigid The audience was also encouraged to dress in period costume in a similar fashion.
On television, variety reached its peak during the period of the 1960s and 1970s. With a turn of the television dial, viewers around the globe could variously have seen shows featuring Andy Williams, Julie Andrews, The Carpenters, Olivia Newton-John, Lynda Carter, Johnny Cash, Sonny and Cher, Bob Monkhouse, Carol Burnett, Rod Hull and Emu, Flip Wilson, Dinah Shore, Lawrence Welk, Glen Campbell, Donny & Marie, Barbara Mandrell, Judy Garland, The Captain & Tennille, The Jacksons, Bobby Darin, Sammy Davis Jr., Mary Tyler Moore, Tony Orlando and Dawn, The Smothers Brothers, Danny Kaye, Buck and Roy, Roy Hudd, Billy Dainty Max Wall or The Muppet Show. Howard Andrew "Andy" Williams (born December 3 1927 in Wall Lake Iowa) is an American pop singer Dame Julie Elizabeth Andrews, DBE (born Julia Elizabeth Wells on October 1 1935) is an award-winning English Actress The Carpenters were a vocal and instrumental duo consisting of Siblings Karen and Richard Carpenter. Olivia Newton-John, AO, OBE (born September 26 1948) is a Grammy Award -winning and Golden Globe -nominated English-born Lynda Carter (born July 24, 1951) is an American actress and Singer. Johnny Cash (born J R Cash; February 26 1932 - September 12 2003 was a Grammy Award -winning American country Singer-songwriter. Sonny & Cher were an American Pop music duo made up of husband and wife team Sonny Bono and Cher in the 1960s and 1970s Robert Alan Monkhouse OBE (1 June 1928 – 29 December 2003 was an English Entertainer. Carol Creighton Burnett (born April 26, 1933) is an American Actress, Comedian, Singer, Dancer and Rodney Stephen Hull ( 13 August 1935 – 17 March 1999) better known as Rod Hull, was a popular entertainer on British Clerow Wilson Jr, known professionally as Flip Wilson, ( December 8, 1933 &ndash November 25, 1998) was an American Dinah Shore (born Frances Rose Shore February 29, 1916 - February 24, 1994) was an American Singer, Actress Lawrence Welk ( March 11, 1903 &ndash May 17, 1992) was a Musician, Accordionist Bandleader, and Television Glen Travis Campbell (born April 22 1936 in Delight, Arkansas) is a Grammy Award, Dove Award winning and two time nominated Golden Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10 1922 – June 22 1969 was an American actress and singer Captain & Tennille are US Pop music recording artists who achieved recording chart success from 1976-80 with a repertoire of romance and novelty hit songs The Jackson 5 (also spelled The Jackson Five or The Jackson 5ive, and later known as The Jacksons) was an American popular music Family Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert "Bobby" Cassotto, May 14 1936 &ndash December 20, 1973) was one of the most popular Samuel George “Sammy” Davis Jr (8 December 1925 &ndash 16 May 1990 was an American Entertainer. Mary Tyler Moore (born December 29, 1936) is an Academy Award -nominated and seven-time Emmy Award -winning American actress Tony Orlando and Dawn (originally known as Dawn, and later as Dawn featuring Tony Orlando) is a Pop music group that was popular in the 1970s The Smothers Brothers are an American music-and- Comedy team consisting of the brothers Tom ("Tommy" and Dick Smothers. Danny Kaye ( January 18, 1913 – March 3, 1987) was an American award-winning Actor, Singer and Comedian For the EP by The Birthday Party, see Hee Haw (EP Hee Haw was a Television Variety show co-hosted Roy Hudd, OBE (born 16 May 1936 in Croydon) is an English radio and television actor William Hooper Frank John (Billy Dainty ( 22 February 1927 - 19 November 1986) was a British Comedian, Dancer Max Wall ( 12 March 1908 – 21 May 1990) was the stage name of English comedian Maxwell Lorimer The Muppet Show is an American Television program featuring a cast of Muppets which was produced by Jim Henson and his team from Variety shows were once as common on television as Westerns, courtroom dramas, suspense thrillers, sitcoms, or (in more modern times) reality shows. The Western is a fiction Genre seen in Film, Television, Radio, Literature, Painting and other Visual arts. A legal drama is a work of dramatic Fiction about crime and civil litigation The thriller is a broad Genre of Literature, Film, Gaming and Television. Reality television is a genre of Television programming which presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations documents actual events and usually features ordinary
During the 1960s and 70s, there were also several one-time variety specials, featuring stars such as Shirley MacLaine, Frank Sinatra, or Mitzi Gaynor, none of whom ever had a regular television series. Shirley MacLaine (born April 24, 1934) is an American Academy Award -winning Film and Theater Actress, well-known Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra (December 12 1915 &ndash May 14 1998 was an American singer and actor Mitzi Gaynor (born September 4 1931, Chicago Illinois) is an American Actress, Singer, and Dancer.
Contemporary U. S. variety shows
The last major network attempt at a traditional variety show was Dolly (starring Dolly Parton), which ran on ABC during the 1987-88 season. For the 1976 TV series featuring Dolly Parton see Dolly! Dolly is a television Variety show that Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American Country music Singer / Songwriter, Author, actress By that time, the format had fallen out of fashion (due largely to changing tastes and the advent of MTV), and the series was not successful. MTV ( Music Television) is an American Cable television network based in New York City.
A contemporary version of the variety show format, NBC's Saturday Night Live, which made its debut in 1975, is still airing today, with its combination of comedy sketches and musical performances, but Saturday Night Live places most of its emphasis on comedy (especially parody and satire), while earlier variety shows placed most of their emphasis on music. The National Broadcasting Company ( NBC) is an American Television network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Saturday Night Live ( SNL) is a weekly late-night 90-minute American Sketch comedy / Variety show based in New York City A parody (ˈpɛɹədiː US, [ˈpaɹədiː] UK) in contemporary usage is a work created to mock comment on or poke fun at an original work its subject Satire is often strictly defined as a literary genre or form; although in practice it is also found in the graphic and Performing arts In satire human
In 2004, ABC's The Nick and Jessica Variety Hour attempted to revive the prime-time variety hour as a special for today's generation. The American Broadcasting Company ( ABC) is an American Television network. The first show was a ratings success, and it was followed by Nick & Jessica's Family Christmas in early December of that year.
The Scouting Gang Show performed principally by young people 18 years of age and under in many locations around the world is an example of a variety show format that has endured for over seventy years. Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide Youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical mental and spiritual A Gang Show is an Amateur theatrical performance where the cast is made up of principally youth members of Scouts and Guides and a minority of adult leaders
Other countries
The prime time variety show format was popular in the early decades of Australian television, spawning such series as In Melbourne Tonight, The Graham Kennedy Show, The Don Lane Show, and Hey Hey It's Saturday, which ran for 27 years. Prime Time is the major News analysis current affairs and Politics programme broadcast on Radio Telefís Éireann in Ireland For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. In Melbourne Tonight, otherwise known as " IMT " was a variety and interview television show produced at GTV-9 Melbourne The Graham Kennedy Show was an Australian talk show that debuted on 19 September 1972 on the Nine Network. Hey Hey It's Saturday was a long running variety television program on Australian television. Recent prime time variety shows include the short lived Micallef Tonight and The Sideshow. Micallef Tonight was a short-lived Australian Variety show that aired on the Nine Network in 2003 The Sideshow was an Australian television programme that premiered on ABC TV on 2007-04-21.
Since 1962, the Spanish-language variety show known as Sábado Gigante has been hosted by Don Francisco. Sábado Gigante ("Giant Saturday" is a Spanish-language variety Television show it is Univision 's longest running program and the oldest American Biography Don Francisco was born nto a Chilean - Jewish German family his parents had fled to Chile escaping from Nazi persecution It is currently broadcast by Univision on Saturday evenings. Univision is a Spanish-language television network in the United States and Puerto Rico.
The first Chinese variety show to become a major success was Hong Kong's Enjoy Yourself Tonight, which first aired in 1967 and ran for 27 years. Hong Kong ( officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located on China 's south coast on the Pearl River Delta, and borders Enjoy Yourself Tonight or EYT was a popular Variety show in Hong Kong.
Another of today's variety shows in Asia is Taiwan's Variety Big Brother. Taiwan ( Taiwanese: Tâi-oân/Tāi-oân (historically 大灣/台員/大員/台圓/大圓/台窩灣 is an Island in East Asia. Variety Big Brother ( literally Big Brother of Entertainment) is a Television show hosted by Chang Fei a Taiwanese variety shows are infamous for their constant use of artificial laugh tracks even though there is a studio audience. However, the most popular variety program would have to be the long-running "Super Sunday", known for it's fast-paced style and catchphrases.
In South Korea the hugely popular Muhan Dojeon (Infinite Challenge), broadcast by MBC since 2005, is a new model of this. South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often referred to as Korea ( Korean: 대한민국 tɛː Muhan Dojeon ( Korean: 무한도전 Hanja: 無限挑戰 Abbr: Mudo is a Korean television entertainment program, distributed Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation ( MBC) is one of four major national South Korean television and radio networks It combines comedy and variety scenes including unscripted stunts.
In the Philippines, the longest-running variety show Eat Bulaga still airs up to this day on GMA Network. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP Eat Bulaga! is a local noon-time Variety show in the Philippines produced by the Television And Production Exponents Inc Global Media Arts (GMA Network Incorporated ( a Philippine multi-media conglomerate is a Television network in the Philippines. The show was first broadcast in 1979, originally on RPN channel 9. Radio Philippines Network Inc ( RPN) is a Philippine VHF Television network of the Government Communications Group and is shown on cable
Many television specials continue to resemble the variety show format to this day. A television special is a Television program, typically a Short film or Television movie, which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally
See Also
Japanese variety show is television entertainment made up of a variety of original stunts musical performances comedy skits quiz contests and other actsDictionary
variety show
-noun
- A theatrical entertainment featuring a succession of short, unrelated performances by singers, dancers, comedians, acrobats, magicians etc
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