| Pirate TV | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sketch comedy |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 44 mins. |
| Production company | MTV Networks |
| Original release | |
| Network | MTV |
| Release | August 8, 1990 (1990-08-08) |
Pirate TV is an Americansketch comedy series that aired onMTV. The series premiered January 26, 1990.[1]
Set on a boat that beamed illegal television signals,Pirate TV consisted of skits and parodies of commercials and television programs, includingRastapiece Theater, a takeoff ofMasterpiece Theatre with adreadlocked, patois-speaking host, and "Reejok" (jockstraps with inflatable pouches, à laReebok's"Pump" sneaker, popular at the time). It was co-created byDave Kolin andSteve Kerper.
Originally airing as 13 one-hour episodes, they were later edited down to a half hour. Many of the concepts of the show, and indeedRastapiece Theater itself, later transferred to Kerper and Kolin's HBO seriesHardcore TV (1992-1993)
The crew of the boat were played by,Boyd Hale (himself), James Rosenthal (himself), Gena Rositano (herself),Spruce Henry (himself) and Gregory Wolfe & James Wolfe as "the Wolfe Brothers."[2]
Some episodes had a special guests such as Sgt. Slaughter, Maury Povich and Clarence Clemons.Most notably was Tim Blake Nelson as "Scab O'Hooley". He would race his pet rats to answer the great questions that plagued the world, so you could "...Quit yer blatherin' and get on with yer miserable lives. This is Scab O'Hooley sayin, I'm not laughin atcha...I'm not laughin!"