D.C. Follies
D.C. Follies is a syndicated sitcom which aired from 1987–1989 and was set in a Washington, D.C. bar, where bartender Fred Willard would welcome puppet caricatures of politicians and popular culture figures. The show was satirical, and frequently commented on politicians and the political process. Although Willard was the only live actor appearing regularly, each episode brought a celebrity guest into the bar, such as Martin Mull, Robin Leach, 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. Another episode had Mike Tyson confront his own puppet character.
| D.C. Follies | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Created by | Sid & Marty Krofft |
| Written by | Larry Arnstein Wayne Kline Bob Dolan Smith John Debilis Mike Kirchenbaum E. Jeffrey Smith Jeff Zimmer |
| Directed by | Rick Locke |
| Presented by | Fred Willard |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 44 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Sid & Marty Krofft |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Sid & Marty Krofft Pictures Negative Entertainment (1987–1988) Cannon Films (1988–1989) |
| Distributor | Access Syndication |
| Release | |
| Original network | Syndication |
| Original release | September 26, 1987 – September 1, 1989 |
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 and Sigmund and the Sea Monsters. The show was originally funded and syndicated nationally by New York-based Syndicast Services Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Australian-based Network Media Limited.
Frequently appearing puppet characters included
- Former Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and then-President Ronald Reagan and Vice-President George H. W. Bush. When Bush was elected President in 1988, Vice-President Dan Quayle also became a regular. The former and current presidents were portrayed as having a special Presidents' Table, where they sat together. (To date, only Carter & Quayle are still living.)
- First Ladies Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush; and Marilyn Quayle.
- Woody Allen
- Jim Bakker and his then-wife, Tammy Faye Bakker
- Cher
- Sam Donaldson
- Senator Robert Dole
- Governor Michael Dukakis
- Whoopi Goldberg
- Katharine Hepburn
- Rev. Jesse Jackson
- Michael Jackson
- Don King
- Henry Kissinger
- Ted Koppel
- Madonna
- Sean Penn
- Edwin Meese
- Oliver North
- Tip O'Neill
- Dolly Parton
- John Poindexter
- Dan Rather
- Geraldo Rivera
- Pat Robertson
- Sylvester Stallone
- Oprah Winfrey
- British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and Queen Elizabeth II
- Prince Charles and his then-wife, Princess Diana
- Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev
- Pope John Paul II
- Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeni
Home media
A series of three "Best of D. C. Follies" VHS tapes were released, with each volume containing two episodes.
On August 4, 2017, it was announced that Shout! Factory had acquired the rights to the series and was released D.C. Follies – The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1 on November 14, 2017.[1]
The show has been made available via video on demand at Amazon Video and iTunes.
References
External links
- D.C. Follies on IMDb