| The B.S. of A. with Brian Sack | |
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| Genre | |
| Created by |
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| Written by |
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| Directed by |
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| Creative director | Jack Helmuth |
| Presented by | Brian Sack |
| Voices of | George Lowe |
| Opening theme | Matt Mangano |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Editor | Robert Arrucci |
| Running time | 30 minutes (with commercials) |
| Original release | |
| Network | TheBlaze |
| Release | November 11, 2011 (2011-11-11) – 2019 (2019) |
The B.S. of A. with Brian Sack is an Americansketch comedy television series that aired onTheBlaze television network. The show premiered on November 11, 2011. The show's name derived from the title of hostBrian Sack's book,The B.S. of A.: A Primer in Politics for the Incredibly Disenchanted (Simon & Schuster, 2011),[1]
The show featured comedic sketches interspersed with a "panel of experts" discussing topical news items. The "experts" were improvisational actors often portraying celebrities or absurd characters.
Despite being on a network owned by right-wing punditGlenn Beck, the show routinely made jokes at the expense of political figures and politics of all party affiliations. Beck toldThe Daily Beast that he green-lit the show under the condition that Sack not play any political favorites, telling him, "if it deserves to be poked at, poke."[2]
Jack Helmuth served as show runner and occasional performer. Sack acted as host, writer and performer. All cast members were drawn from theUpright Citizen's Brigade improvisational comedy theater in New York City.[3]
The show regularly featured the voice ofGeorge Lowe, best known for his role as the title character inSpace Ghost Coast to Coast.
Full-time staff included Lauren Conlin Adams (writer/performer), Jon Bershad (writer), Caitlin Bitzegaio (writer), Matt Fisher (writer/performer) and César Zamora (writer).
The show's roster of regular performers includedAnthony Atamanuik, Jeremy Bent, Lydia Hensler, Langan Kingsley, Molly Lloyd, Tim Martin,Michael Nathanson, Ben Rameaka, Emilea Wilson andSasheer Zamata.
Atamanuik, who did a wide range of impersonations in "The Experts" segment of the show, went on to portray PresidentDonald Trump inThe President Show. Zamata later went toSaturday Night Live.
The show routinely lampooned political figures of the day, includingBarack Obama,Sarah Palin,Michael Bloomberg,Newt Gingrich andHillary Clinton.
Sack had a particular affinity for jokes at the expense of "nanny-state" politics,[4] theTransportation Security Administration,[5] mainstream media malfeasance, and abuses of power by theExecutive Branch of the American government.
The show routinely poked fun at Glenn Beck himself. When Beck proposed the creation of a conservative amusement park, Sack responded with a sketch advertising the fictional "Libertypendence Park".[6]
Fact-Free News Reporting lampoons the mainstream media's tendency to rush to report the news first, at the expense of accuracy. In it, Sack interrupts an interview withBuck Sexton to speculate wildly on a breaking news story.
99 Problems and a Glitch Day One portends to be an interview with an individual responsible for the error-plagued rollout of theAffordable Care Act. When questioned, he reveals that the infrastructure runs on his son's iPad, and that the software was outsourced to "Bosco from Serbia."
Security Theater is an operatic satire ofTransportation Security Administration screening procedures.
NSA Funnies makes jokes at the expense of theNational Security Agency in a recurring bit that pays homage toRowan & Martin's Laugh-In.
Video Game Violence is a 1980s-themed parody about the panic over video games.
Moving to Canada mocks individuals who threaten to move to Canada when an election doesn't go their way.
You're Not Hitler is a song Sack sings to one of thePumpernickel Boulevard puppets who compares the town mayor to Hitler.
Pumpernickel Boulevard was a parody of the PBS children's programSesame Street, and one of the most popular recurring segments. In it, Sack contends with a cast of well-meaning but outrageously politically correct, left-wing puppets.
The Experts was a three-person panel of actors hosted by Sack. The actors portrayed celebrities and absurd characters opining on a variety of topical news items. The format often resulted in moments such asBatman arguing in favor of the White House Correspondent's Dinner,[7]Paul McCartney talking about cannibalism, orAdolf Hitler discussing his views onbreastfeeding in public.
Patriot Kidz featured Sack as "Liberty the Penguin" and Lauren Adams as a cheerful co-host of aDepartment of Homeland Security show that encouraged kids to help the government by snitching on parents and neighbors.
The Best Stuff of America featured Matt Fisher ruminating comedically on iconic Americana like mobile homes and baseball.
The Glenn Beck Show Highlight of the Week featured a brief, out-of-context clip from Glenn Beck's own program with the intention of making Beck look ridiculous.[8]
Every show featured a commercial for anUnder-the-Table Sponsor. Sponsors paid the show directly, outside of TheBlaze network, in return for an often absurd commercial that they had no creative control over. The commercials frequently ended with the death of staff member Benjamin Korman.