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MANIAC MANSION’s first episode is a 10th anniversary clip show (with Chris Cummins)
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Maniac Mansion: "The 10th Anniversary Special"
In quite possibly the only time we’ll ever cover a pilot episode on this podcast, Chris Cummins of Sci-Fi Explosion joins us for this forgotten, but subversive and smart Eugene Levy-helmed Canadian sitcom and its bizarre first episode – a fake clip show celebrating its 10th anniversary. Seriously! We talk about this show’s deep connections with Schitt’s Creek, Freaks and Geeks, and the hugely influential improvisation powerhouse Second City and SCTV. Plus, a dive into this show's origins as a LucasArts video game adaptation, a brief history of The Family Channel and its religious ties, and the clip show parodies, dream sequences, anniversary special tropes, JFK assassination jokes, and meta references that this truly daring episode offers.
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Sources:
1992 Entertainment Weekly piece on “SCTV” alumni are working on the show, Benjamin Scetskey writing for Entertainment Weekly, January 1992
The Weird and Wonderful History of Maniac Mansion, Ian Howard writing for Fandom, November 2022
Exclusive Interview with Eugene Levy: Creating the Comedy for Maniac Mansion, Dan Madsen writing for Lucasfilm Fan Club Magazine, August 1990. Scans from The International House of Mojo
Family Channel Strays from Religion, Embraces Clean Fun, Susan King writing for the Los Angeles Times, January 1991
The Long, Strange History of ABC Family, Jacqui Shine writing for The New Republic, October 2015
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