The Whitest Kids U' Know
| The Whitest Kids U' Know | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Created by | Sam Brown Zach Cregger Trevor Moore Darren Trumeter Timmy Williams |
| Starring | Sam Brown Zach Cregger Trevor Moore Darren Trumeter Timmy Williams |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 20 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 20-24 min (Fuse) 30 min (IFC) |
| Original release | |
| Network | Fuse- (2007) IFC- (2007–Present) |
| Release | March 20, 2007 |
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (January 2009) |
The Whitest Kids U'Know is an American sketch comedy troupe based in New York City. The group consists of Trevor Moore, Sam Brown, Zach Cregger, Timmy Williams, and Darren Trumeter, though other actors occasionally appear in their sketches. Some of their sketches can be downloaded from their official website [1]. They were accepted into the HBO U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in 2006 and won for "Best Sketch Group" by the Jury.
The show has been renewed for a third season,[2] which will begin airing on IFC starting Tuesday, January 27th at 10PM.[3]
History
The Whitest Kids began in 2000 when Trevor Moore, a young comedian from New Jersey, transferred to New York's School of Visual Arts film program. Having previously produced a locally popular TV sketch-comedy show, The Trevor Moore Show, back in Virginia, Trevor decided to start a comedy troupe with the eventual goal of replicating his earlier success on a national level.[citation needed]
After making the rounds at local New York City comedy clubs, he eventually met fellow SVA film student Sam Brown[4] from Massachusetts and SVA Graphic Design student/actor Zach Cregger, also from Virginia. By chance, all three attended the school, and they also all lived in the same dormitory. According to an AOL Video interview, the origin of the group's name was believed to be taken from a party during school.
Much of The Whitest Kids U Know' early history was spent as an officially sanctioned club at School of Visual Arts, which meant they had to accept, more or less, any SVA student that wanted to join.[citation needed] During the early years WKUK included Jon Kovel, Oliver Lyons, Anthony Edwards, and Tina Tiongson. Timmy Williams also joined in late 2001 and was the only member at the time who didn't attend SVA.[citation needed] Unofficially, however, the core trio of Moore, Brown and Cregger tried to keep the group as lean as possible.[citation needed] At its peak, the group had ten members, but almost all sketches were written by one of these three.[citation needed]
The Whitest Kids u know held near-monthly free shows at SVA's amphitheater, which would frequently fill to capacity.[citation needed] Finally, in 2003, as Moore approached graduation, the group separated officially from the school, and all but Moore, Brown, Cregger and Williams left the troupe. Darren Trumeter, an actor and filmmaker who had worked previously with Cregger, was then added that same year.[citation needed]
Starting in 2003, the reinvented troupe started touring the various comedy venues in New York City, concluding in early 2005 with a well-attended show at Caroline's, the famous club in Times Square. The group still regularly performs at Pianos in the Lower East Side and Rififi's in the East Village.[citation needed]
Film and television
On July 12, 2007, Trevor Moore posted a message on the Whitest Kids U'Know's official website stating that the second season of the Whitest Kids TV show will move to the Independent Film Channel. According to Moore, they are excited about the channel switch because this allows for no commercial breaks, vulgarities and obscene content uncensored (with no bleeps or blurs), and "If you get the FUSE network - odds are you get IFC. So everyone who already watches the show, still can!"[5]. Season 2 premiered on IFC on Sunday, February 10th, 2008 at 11 PM ET/PT.
Shooting for season two of the show started on August 13, 2007, and debuted on IFC on February 10, 2008.
Season One DVD was released on February 5, 2008. It was stated several times in the show that the season will be the first to be released uncensored on DVD. However, IFC started to air uncensored episodes of Season One, just 2 months before the DVD release.
The tenth episode of season two was broadcast live on IFC. The sketches performed on stage were based on their stage shows.
The group has started shooting the third season, which will premiere on IFC on January 27, 2009 in the 10PM timeslot. Unlike other seasons this season will be comprised of 20 episodes but will only run for 15 minutes an episode.
Trevor and Zach recently completed production for their film Miss March, which they both act, wrote and directed together. The title is a reference to Playboy centerfolds, which the mansion and Hugh Hefner play a key role in the film.
International broadcasts
Recurring Characters
Certain characters with similar traits are used in sketches every now and then.
Jerry Bronham - A hunter seen in the sketches "Sexy Fawn", "I Don't Know Bob", and "Point/Counterpoint", played by Trevor Moore. He is incredibly conservative and tasteless, promoting things such as baby skull seeking bullets and making jokes about his best friend's death. He is not above killing innocent people, and has even killed a baby before. Moore confirmed him as a recurring character in the commentary of the season 1 DVD.
Satan - The Lord of Hell. His appearance varies depending on the different Whitest Kids sketches. In "Demon Ouija Board", he is a disembodied booming voice, who reminds Balthalthazar that the purpose of Hell is to entertain. In contrast, his appearance in "Opus" is a horned humanoid who makes unprecedented rants against people who make assumptions of what the Devil is. Satan is also mentioned several times by various Whitest characters throughout the sketches.
Abraham Lincoln - The 16th President of the United States, seen in the sketches "Abe Lincoln" and "John Wilkes Booth", both played by Zach Cregger. In both of these, he is the victim of John Wilkes Booth's assassination attempts, though in each sketch the circumstances are quite different. "John Wilkes Booth" shows him as an upset victim of Booth's harassment, while in "Abe Lincoln" he severely annoys and harasses Booth until Booth kills him out of anger and annoyance.
References
- ^ The Whitest Kids U'Know
- ^ IFC expands lineup, renews 'Whitest Kids'
- ^ IFC Whitest Kids Site
- ^ DeBartolo, Dick; MAD magazine #468; February 2008; Page 26.
- ^ Whitest Kids U Know » Blog Archive » BIG NEWS: WHITEST KIDS MOVE TO IFC!!!