Sports Quiz
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Sports Quiz is a talk/comedy/variety radio program on 99.5 WUSR in the Scranton, Pennsylvania area. The show airs every Thursday night from 12:00am to 2:00am EST.
The show's DJs are Tyler Durden, Canada Jackson, and DJ and producer DRock. The show is often controversial, and a running gag is that each show is the last show due to the DJs getting fired. The DJs have confessed that the name of the show is simply an attempt to confuse people into listening due to the popularity of game shows and sports. The show's subtitle is often given as "the show that has nothing to do with either sports or quizzes." The show is completely improvised and unscripted.
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[edit] "Special Guests and Listeners"
Sports Quiz features many "Special Guests," which are usually the DJs doing impressions of various famous people. Some noted guests include:
- Actor Christopher Walken, who, the DJs claim, lives in the studio and smells like vodka.
- Former President Bill Clinton, who is on a crusade to help starving children in Africa, but usually ends up talking about how much he hates his wife, Senator Hillary Clinton.
- Director Martin Scorsese
- Actor Sean Connery
- Singer/Songwriter Prince
- 80's Pop King Michael Jackson
- Dead Actor Walter Matthau, and often simultaneously the ghost of Walter Matthau and the evil half-formed clone of Walter Matthau. This occurs when all three DJs are impersonating Walter Matthau. One of the DJs impressions is admittedly awful, thus the "evil half-formed clone."
- Muppet Kermit the Frog, who, in one of the most controversial episodes, was revealed to be a bigot. He is also a living weapon developed by the government.
- Comedian Chris Rock, who usually complains about the lack of racial diversity on the show.
- Cereal Spokesman Captain Crunch
- Actor/Comedian Bill Cosby
- Actor Robert DeNiro
- Actor Al Pacino
- Actor Tom Cruise
- Actor James Stewart
- President George W. Bush and former President George H.W. Bush
- Evil villain Skeletor (revealed to have the last name Goldstein), who has fallen on hard times since losing Castle Grayskull to He-Man in a police auction. He now lives in a motel and watches Law & Order reruns. He works in telemarketing for Capital One.
- DJ Dr. Cool Spag
The show also includes a host of fictional characters:
- The DJs' Native American spirit guide, who communes with the River Spirit
- Several thinly disguised parodies of University of Scranton faculty
- Nick and Nora, who host the "Home Improvement Corner." They are married and the segment usually ends in them insulting each other calmly and divulging secrets about their marriage (such as Nora purposely drinking heavily during pregnancy). They are probably named after the famous Nick and Nora Charles of The Thin Man.
- The Antichrist
- Colonel Tubbs and Fatty Lipids, two characters who sound and behave exactly the same but none-the-less appear together often.
- Porter Goss, of no relation to the real Porter Goss. He often claims to be in a relationship with actress Kate Beckinsale and also that he is a werewolf. He is noted for using the Scouse term "boss" though he is American (e.g., he often mentions that his "Mom's burritos are so boss.")
Several Listeners of Sports Quiz are referenced often:
- Kraft87 - The name Kraft87 comes from the listener's AOL Instant Messenger screen name, which is how he communicates to the DJ's during the show. The name is a reference to the video game Warcraft.
- DJ Stone - A fan of the show who lives in Boise, Idaho. Once guest hosted the show at the end of Season 1.
- "Lisa Ooo One" - A fan who sends the DJs links to things that are apparently so horrible they usually can't be described on the radio. The name "Lisa Ooo One" probably refers to her screen name in some way.
- Sports Quiz also has a lot of loyal listeners at the nearby prison, and regularly gets fan mail from female inmates.
[edit] "Exclusive Footage"
A running gag on the show is that the DJs have somehow gotten "Exclusive Footage" of a given fictional event. These events have incuded:
- Footage of Kermit the Frog displaying racism towards Rowlf the dog, Actor Ben Vereen, and showing marked bigotry while reporting on the L.A. Riots.
- Footage of the death of Australian conservationist Steve Irwin.
- Clips from the sequel to Batman Begins, entitled "Batman Begins Again," starring Tom Cruise as Batman, Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro as The Joker and Harley Quinn, and Chris Rock as Alfred Pennyworth.
[edit] Controversy and Cancellation
Sports Quiz has ruffled some feathers during its run:
- The show is technically programmed as an alternative show, and the DJs have mentioned that they get calls from station managers telling them to play more music or turn the microphones off during songs. Also, if the DJs do not like the song being played, they fade in a Spanish public service announcement for the Internal Revenue Service.
- The DJs of Sports Quiz are sometimes accused of being overtly liberal. In one episode, they advocated (humorously) the beating of the ultra-wealthy with wrenches. In another episode they rejoiced the 2006 Democratic takeover in the House of Representatives and the Senate. They also ridiculed former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
- One episode featured a half hour interview with Kermit the Frog which had some racially charged dialogue. At one point, the DJs played "exclusive footage" of Kermit bursting into Ben Vereen's dressing room at the Muppet Show and saying "Hey Mr. Bojangles, got any drugs?" The DJs claimed that Kermit's behavior was a spoof of the Michael Richards scandal, and a commentary on the ridiculousness of racism in general.
- Sports Quiz was cancelled in April of 2007 after the DJs were fired from WUSR after a skit involving a dentist discussing aspects of his personal life with a patient. The story told by the dentist became more and more explicit as it went on, much to the discomfort of the helpless patient. It is speculated that the skit was picked up at random by a Nielsen scanner after mention of the word “thong.” The University received complaints, and the DJs were fired. No on-air explanation was given as to the disappearance of the program.
[edit] "Dennicio's"
Prior to each broadcast, the DJs go to the Denny's in Dickson City, which they refer to as "Dennicio's" in order to make it sound more classy. The name is attributed playwright Robert John Parry IV, who has been friends with one of the DJs since childhood. The strange Denny's staff has often come up on the show, especially George the busboy (who is apparently homosexual and mildly retarded).
[edit] Theme song
Sports Quiz has had two theme songs during its run. The first, which lasted for only a few shows, was "Wah Wah" by George Harrison. The longer running and current theme song is "Let's Go Crazy" by Prince. Although, in the first episode of season three, "Let's Go Crazy" was not used.
[edit] Sports Quiz Entertainment
Due to its cult following on the University Campus and nearby prisons, Sports Quiz may branch out into other media. Currently in the works are a sketch comedy show, "SQTV," to be aired on the campus network and youTube, and possibly a series of graphic novels and an "SQ Magazine."
