The Distorted View Show

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The Distorted View Show (also known as Distorted View, Distorted View Daily, or DV) is an adult-oriented comedy podcast hosted by Tim Henson and broadcast weekdays.

The Distorted View Show
Hosting Tim Henson
 RSS http://www.distortedview.com/show/index.xml
 Atom http://www.distortedview.com/show/atom.xml
Updates Daily
Debut 2004
Genre Comedy
Website http://www.distortedview.com/

Contents

[edit] History

Henson, who has a serious bowel control problem, began experimenting with Web-based comedy in 1996, and began producing episodes of the Distorted View Show in 2000 through telephony company Tellme[1], under the name Distorted View Daily. The show was broadcast over telephone to listeners. As its popularity increased, the show was soon featured on several Internet radio broadcasts and on FM radio. The show moved to Mp3NewsBreak in 2002, but the company ultimately collapsed[2]. In 2003, Distorted View partnered briefly with Sirius Satellite Radio[3]. On December 6, 2004, Distorted View began as a podcast and has continued ever since, resulting in over 700 episodes of the show.

[edit] Features

While billed as primarily a podcast that presents bizarre news stories, the Distorted View show also integrates other sources of aberrant material, including audio clips ripped from videos, unusual songs, or the occasional Canadian public service announcement. All of the components of Henson's podcast deal with adult themes, including (but not limited to) sex and sexual fetishes, drugs, domestic violence, unusual accidents, and racism. Henson approaches these topics with parodies, skits, and off-the-cuff commentary.

While the light and insensitive manner Henson uses while discussing these topics may be considered offensive by some, he insists on the show that it is all done in jest. Upon the listing of Distorted View on the UK iTunes he recommended that the potential new European listeners should keep an open mind and treat the show as a "daily 30-minute vacation from compassion."

[edit] Introduction and Bizarre Audio

[edit] Intro Clips

A typical episode of Distorted View will open with a selection of audio which will play uninterrupted by Henson's live commentary. This audio is very often a Great Moments introduction. Introduced with Henson's prerecorded "Distorted View Daily...proudly presents," followed by the clip's context, this intro is usually humorous audio of, for example, a bizarre or ludicrous situation or someone's ignorance or overreaction. Other possibilities include Fictional Sponsors (including Grandma Jigaboo's Old Negro-Style Pancake Mix, a parody of Aunt Jemima or the unfortunate Levinge Group legal firm), a bizarre or satirical song.

[edit] Bizarre Audio

After Henson's initial greeting, recitation of what news stories will be covered in the show, and the playing of the show's theme song, there is a block of time before said news stories' coverage during which Henson plays a variety of different featured strange clips. There is a veritable pantheon of different semi-regular segments and common themes which Henson touches upon. These include:

[edit] Ask Satan

Standard advice show structure--but with the Devil.

Satan also makes irregular "appearances" during the show -- often when the devil is casually spoken of, abruptly interrupting with a deep and sinister laugh. He will then have a chatty exchange with Henson, expressing a gripe, threat or an attempt at self-exoneration.

Segment concluded with Satan dramatically hissing, "Satan, away!" followed by a zooming sound ordinarily associated with super-heros leaping to flight.

[edit] Black and White

The short-lived Black and White segment consisted of the playing of two clips: one of black participants and one of white participants. The clips were of the members of either race 'acting crazy,' as Henson put it. After playing both clips Henson would analyze them using a sophisticated computer named the Blackulator Caucasiatron (currently on loan from M.I.T.) , which would determine which race had emerged as the most crazy as defined by either clip.

The segment began and ran occasionally during early 2007, recurring again in spring 2008 for at least one episode.

[edit] Black Friday

A semi-regular segment, Black Friday is a bit wherein audio from television and especially radio trailers for blaxploitation films are played. Previous Black Fridays have included Coffy, Mandingo, and Boss Nigger. This segment began in early summer 2007 and aired every Friday. In recent months the bit has only aired occasionally, possibly due to the show running out of appropriate movie promotions.

[edit] Pornographic Movie Clips

The multitude of clips originating from pornographic videos are played for their bizarre audio. Common genres include:

[edit] 'Sabotage'

Stemming from Henson's playful infuriation at the 'uselessness' of the Yahoo! Answers service, the Sabotage Yahoo! Answers segment began as an effort to—obviously—sabotage Yahoo! Answers. Listeners were to post ridiculous or offensive questions to Yahoo! Answers or respond to normal Yahoo! users' questions with ridiculous or offensive answers. Henson would then read the answers or questions his listeners submitted, in the latter case also reading the responses garnered from uninvolved Yahoo! users.

The segment eventually left the podcast to find a new home in the updated Distorted View Website, where listeners can post and view other listeners' efforts to sabotage Yahoo! Answers and any other site they attempt to sabotage as well

[edit] Sextastic Tuesday

Sextastic Tuesday is the most well known reoccuring feature of Distorted View, and it is simply a bit in which Henson reads a pornographic story. However, the stories he reads are not normal. Usually, the stories involve either a bizarre fetish or weird fanfiction. Some of the most infamous Sextastic Tuesday stories include a story of a woman who inserted rotting meat and maggots into her vagina, and a story in which syrup mascots Aunt Jemima and Mrs. Butterworth have lesbian sex.

[edit] Vagina Power

[edit] The "Distorted News"

Originally the news segment of the show was introduced by Henson as news of the weird. This phrasing introduction was scrutinized for its resemblance to a syndicated news humor column called "The News of the Weird." When Henson's use of the phrase was called into question, to distinguish his treatment from the column's timid satire, he rebranded it Distorted News or simply "Crazy, Bizarre, Twisted, Fucked-Up News".

Henson's struggles in his niche market have also pitted him against the "Superfreak Sideshow" people for his use of that domain.

[edit] Voicemails and Outro

[edit] References

[edit] Recurring Audio Drops

[edit] Gay Fisting Porn

[edit] The Crazy Christian Lady

"No! Noooo! She's not a Christian!"

"Everything is ungodly... Gorgyles!"

[edit] The Dickhole Guy

"Look at that! Look at that. Did you see that. Have you ever seen that?"

"It feels f*in' fantastic, man. Whoah..."

[edit] The Shitslurper

[edit] Other

While many recurring references come in the form of repeated audio clips, other references are merely things Henson says in the normal commentary or bits of his show. Many of them, predictably, are references to particularly memorable clips he has played.

[edit] Feigned Antisemitism

Without fail, Henson will immediately follow up his assurances that he has no biases against any group of people with the phrase "...except the Jews." Occasionally he'll follow this up with the ominous pronouncement of "I'll get you, Jews!"

Henson has never gone into any detail over how he intends to "get" the Jews.

[edit] Is Don on the Phone?

Clips of Casey Kasem losing control on his radio program are a beloved, occasional component of Distorted View. One particular clip features Kasem being unable to transition successfully to a more serious tone for a death dedication after coming out of an up-tempo record. In particular, Kasem expresses his exasperation thusly;

  • ...You know, they do this to me all the time. I don't know what the hell they do it for but god dammit if we can't come out of a slow record, I don't understand it—is Don on the phone? Okay, I want a goddamn concerted effort to come out of a record that isn't a fucking up-tempo record every time I do a goddamn death dedication. Now, make i—and I also wanna know what happened to the pictures I was supposed to see this week!...

Now it has become a recurring joke for Henson to, when, for instance, he is expressing his confusion at the sheer ludicrousness of a news story he is reading, say "I don't understand" and immediately follow it with "is Don on the phone?" Occasionally he will follow it up with more references from Kasem's tirade.

[edit] Jigoo!

While not a commonly said reference, Jigoo! refers to audio from a pornographic video featuring men whose fetish is to have their head repeatedly smashed between a woman's thighs. One man in the clip, after being hit by the legs of one woman, shouted something that sounded a lot like jigoooooo!. It is now, within the Distorted View universe, an acceptable noise for a man to shout while climaxing.

Although the spelling of the word Jigoo! is disputed, the one currently given is the most widely accepted within the Distorted View Community.

[edit] Mah Deekgot Hooaad

The phrase Yo deekgit hooaad and eventually Mah Deekgot hooaad stems from a video in which two black men are working out. One man, instructing the other on the attitude one needs to successfully 'pump iron', likens the intensity to when one is going to have sex with someone. Specifically, "when you're fuckin' somebody...and your dick gets hard." In the man's manner of speech, however, the phrase sounded more like "And yo dick get hooaad". Deekgot Hooaad became a staple of the Distorted View culture when Henson returned to the show after a weekend and remarked that he was obsessed with the phrase and couldn't stop saying it (albeit in an exaggerated manner). Since then it has evolved into a reference Henson rarely brings up but comes back in waves occasionally during the voicemail segment. Therein a listener might comment on something Henson did or something they were doing that made their "deekgit hooaad."

The spelling of the phrase Mah Deekgot Hooaad is uncertain. Its shirt, sold at the show's website, spells it Digget Hoawd.

[edit] Meyownus

Henson's alternative pronunciation of the word mayonnaise is a direct result of off-the-show attempts to irritate waiters and waitresses. His intent, he explained, was to insist on pronouncing commonplace items in bizarre ways and insist on that pronunciation when at restaurants. He therefore now pronounces mayonnaise on the show as 'meyownus', mustard as 'mustred', parmesean cheese as 'pramesan', and bananas as 'banaynays'.

[edit] "Our Friends at MIT"

Often Henson, in the need to feign some sort of objective or high-tech analysis system, will refer to a supercomputer "on loan from MIT" which is assisting him with whatever bit he is 'using' it for. It will interact with Henson by emitting a synthesized voice and usually processes data with the audible "Boop beep beep boop boop beep boop boop".

Any resemblance of these beeps to Henson's own voice is only in the imagination of the listener.

[edit] Distorted View Sideshow

Opened in November 2006, Distorted View Sideshow is a members-only extension of the Distorted View podcast and web site. Created to fund Henson's addiction to meth-amphetamines; Sideshow features include full access to the Distorted View archive (over 600 shows), pre-recorded extensions of the regular podcast, live "aftershows," and a personalized RSS feed for each member. Membership is $5 (USD) per month or $50 per year. The Distorted View Show itself remains free.

[edit] Awards

  • In 2005 and 2006, Distorted View won Best Comedy Podcast at the Podcast Awards[4][5].
  • In 2007, Distorted View was nominated for Best Comedy Podcast at the Podcast Awards[6].
  • In November 2005, Distorted View was a finalist for Best Podcast in The Weblog Awards[7].
  • Distorted View typically ranks in the top ten user-nominated podcasts each month at Podcast Alley [8].
  • On November 28, 2005, the Columbus Dispatch profiled Henson[9].

[edit] References

  1. ^ How Did Distorted View Get Its Start? (Official Site)
  2. ^ Release notes for last version of MP3NewsBreak
  3. ^ How Did Distorted View Get Its Start? (Official Site)
  4. ^ Podcast Awards Announced
  5. ^ 2006 People's Choice Podcast Award Winners
  6. ^ Nominees for 2007 Podcast Awards
  7. ^ 2005 finalists for Best Podcast at The Weblog Awards
  8. ^ Top podcast statistics at PodcastAlley.com
  9. ^ Central Ohioan's shtick earns him award for comedy

[edit] External links