Urkel (and Myrtle Urkel, Urkel-Bot, andStefan Urquelle) come to Nick at Nite
I know many of you have been waiting for this moment, so I’ll get right to it. Tonight begins the official entry of Family Matters onto the Nick at Nite schedule. Starting at 9 p.m., there will be a marathon of the series that began as a spinoff of the ABC sitcom Perfect Strangers.
For those unfamiliar with the show, Family Matters was a traditional sitcom about the Winslows — Carl, Harriet, Eddie, Laura, the other daughter that mysteriously disappeared mid-way through the series, Grandma Estelle, Aunt Rachel, and, eventually, cousin Richie. Of course, all of these characters became second bananas to one Steve Urkel, who eventually became the star of the show. Face it, you didn’t tune in to see what wisdom Carl would pass on to his son Eddie. You tuned in to see Urkel breaking something at the Winslow home, fawning over Laura, inventing transformation chambers and Urkel-bots, and uttering the now-famous phrase, “Did I do that?”
To get you warmed up for Urkel specifically and Family Matters as a whole, Nick at Nite has provided an Urkel-O-Meter on their website to determine how much of the suspenders-wearing nerd we have in all of us. By answering a few questions the Urkel-O-Meter tells you if you are suave like Stefan Urquelle, a belle like Myrtle Urkel, or a true, lovable nerd like Urkel himself. After taking the quiz it turns out that I am a true Steve Urkel. Well, no surprise to some of you readers out there, is it?
Nineties kids rejoice: GUTS is back
Right about this time of year, most of the true children of the nineties are graduating from four years of Hell and preparing for a lifetime of also Hell, this time sans meal plan and floor meetings. Take a break from job-hunting and crying about student loans, children, and join me in wading in this pool of nostalgia, for your dreams have finally come true. Yes, yes. It looks like Nickelodeon’s totally awesome sports challenge show, GUTS, is coming back.
Now, before people get way too excited, keep two things in mind. First of all, you’re probably way too old to climb the Aggro-Crag with the gazelle-like grace you once had. Secondly, the format has changed a bit. Remember how Double Dare turned into Family Double Dare and it was extra-embarrassing for Daddy when he had to go back to the office on Monday with Gak in his hair, nineties kid I’m pretending to talk to? Well, prepare for more of that, because this resurrection will be called My Family’s Got GUTS and will air this fall on Nick at Nite. On the show, three teams of two parents and two kids will face off in four different sports-inspired challenges. I hear the promise of it being humiliating for all involved, which is why I fully intend to watch.
Since I’m sure Mike O’Malley is still busy doing sitcoms I don’t like, the show is searching for a host to oversee the challenges, which will take place at Universal Studios Florida. No word on whether or not they will find another adorable English woman to put on an ill-fitting referee shirt and blow a whistle every once in a while.
That’s all the 90s news for now, kids. Now, go cut that hair and find a job. Seriously, eating Top Ramen everyday outside of a dorm room environment isn’t thrifty, it’s sad.
Tim Allen’s scary Internet avatar
A few weeks ago, while doing some research on stand-up comedians who became sitcom stars, I ended up Googling a whole bunch of names to get some additional pre-television history on them. One of these was Home Improvement’s Tim Allen. While looking up Tim’s information I came upon a listing for his personal website. It was a weird listing though — something like Tim Allen — T’Avatar. Well, since I know Tim’s not a Romulan, I thought this was just an abbreviation of something. Needless to say I clicked in.
Turns out, T’Avatar was short for Tim Allen’s Avatar, which appears in an opening video to his website. Folks, this Avatar freaks the living piss out of me.
It’s just a picture of Tim, with his computer animated eyes, eyebrows and mouth. They have just the right amount of exaggeration to them that it makes the Avatar a tad bit scary. At first, I thought this was just an initial reaction to Allen’s Avatar. But, when I pulled his site up again for this post the initial appearance was just jarring.
Heck, maybe I’m being a tad too sensitive here. So, I would like you to take a look and let me know. Just click on this link and tell me if you feel the way I do about this. By the way, a less scary Tim Allen can be seen regularly on Nick at Nite’s daily airings of Home Improvement.
Get Smart: Five New TV Spots
Warner Bros has released five new television spots for the upcoming big screen adaptation of Get Smart. I grew up on a steady diet of Nick at Nite: Get Smart, The Dick Van Dyke Show, and Mr. Ed. The Mel Brooks created spy comedy series was always my favorite of the bunch, so understandably I’ve been excited about for this movie since day one. I’ve heard a bunch of good things from a couple friends who have seen the film at test screenings. I’m just wondering if it looks too stupid to people who are unfamiliar with the series it is based on. Watch the five new television spots below.
Get Smart TV Spot: Same Page
Get Smart TV Spot: Super Agents
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Get Smart TV Spot: World-Class
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Get Smart TV Spot: Plain Smart
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Get Smart TV Spot: No Escape
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Get Smart hits theaters on June 20th 2008.