''Let's Bowl'' is a scripted

bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), thou ...

game show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or demonstrative and are typically directed by a host, ...

that aired on the

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programmin ...

television network A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid- ...

from 2001 to 2002 after a brief run on several TV stations across the U.S. in the mid-1990s, the first three being Minneapolis-St. Paul stations: KXLI-TV 41 (Now KPXM-TV), KLGT-TV 23 (now

WUCW WUCW (channel 23) is a television station licensed to Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, serving the Twin Cities area as an affiliate of The CW. Owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, the station maintains studios in the Pence Building on 8th S ...

), and KARE channel 11.

Overview

Hosts Steve "Chopper" Sedahl (himself) and Wally Hotvedt (Rich Kronfeld) wore outfits and

headsets Headset may refer to: * Headset (audio), audio headphone(s), particularly with an attached microphone * Head Set (band), an American alternative rock band * Headset (bicycle part), a bicycle part that connects the fork to the frame * Head-mounte ...

reminiscent of sportscasters of the 1970s and early 1980s, and did

play-by-play In sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real-time commentary of a game or event, usually during a live broadcast, traditionally delivered in the historical present tense. Radio was ...

as contestants bowled against each other. Described as a cross between ''

The People's Court ''The People's Court'' is an American arbitration-based reality court show, featuring an arbitrator handling small claims disputes in a simulated courtroom set. Within the court show genre, it is the first of all arbitration-based reality sty ...

'' and ''

Bowling for Dollars ''Bowling for Dollars'' is a television game show on which people could play the sport obowling to win cashand sometimes prizes based on how well they bowled. Unlike most TV game shows of the time, which were taped in either New York or Hollyw ...

'', the show had participants play against each other to settle feuds and win nearly worthless

prize A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements.

s. For example, in the second 1998 episode, a player received merchandise for a

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

that had been defunct for two years. Gift certificates for Old Country Buffet were common that year. Another episode gave a foodservice-sized can of tuna to the runner up, while the winner received a 2 gallon consumer-strength jug of Roundup. Two women known as the "Queen Pins" were on each show — while women are often used to provide visual stimuli in TV programs, these two acted differently, usually taunting the contestants as they tried to compete. Drew Jansen played unctuous Announcer/Musical Commentator Ernie Jansen (aka "Trip Stuyvesant" in the original pre-cable pilot). The pre-cable pilot was shot at Bryant-Lake Bowl in Minneapolis, and featured yet another host, played by John Brady. Brady's name in the pilot was "Ernie," but that name was transferred to Jansen when shooting resumed, primarily because the polyester jacket Brady sported with "Ernie" stitched on the lapel fit Jansen pretty much as well as it had Brady. Another character in the show was "The Pig" played by Matt Sarazine. The original shows, pre-Comedy Central also featured "Butch the Janitor", played by

Nick Schenk Nick Schenk (born November 12, 1965) is an American screenwriter known for writing the Clint Eastwood-directed feature film ''Gran Torino'' in 2008 for which he won Best Original Screenplay from the National Board of Review.AwardsBest Origin ...

, and "Berni the Scorekeeper", played by Berni Sarazine. Schenk went on to become one of the writers for the Comedy Central episodes of ''Let's Bowl'' and also wrote the screenplay for the film ''

Gran Torino ''Gran Torino'' is a 2008 American drama film directed and produced by Clint Eastwood, who also starred in the film. The film co-stars Christopher Carley, Bee Vang, and Ahney Her. This was Eastwood's first starring role since 2004's ''Million D ...

''. The show also included a halftime performance by a local musical band, most notably

Ruth Adams and the World's Most Dangerous Polka Band Ruth Adams and the World's Most Dangerous Polka Band are a senior citizen polka duet who use a rotation of four different drummers. Adams founded the group in 1974, with Joe Hayden joining in 1996. They received national attention when they appeare ...

, a fixture from northeast Minneapolis. It would be followed by a special "Inside Bowling" segment where Chopper and Wally interviewed unusual people and participated in bizarre escapades.

Michael J. Nelson Michael John Nelson (born October 11, 1964) is an American comedian and writer, most known for his work on the television series '' Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (''MST3K''). Nelson was the head writer of the series for most of the show's origi ...

of '' Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (also produced locally in the Twin Cities) fame was one of the writers for the show, both in 1998 and during the run on Comedy Central (though possibly only for the

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

). The series was filmed in several different bowling alleys in the Twin Cities. Outside of the region, the 1998 season was carried on stations in markets such as

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...

;

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

; and

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Bowling centers used

* Bryant-Lake Bowl, Minneapolis, Minnesota * Chanhassen Lanes,

Chanhassen, Minnesota Chanhassen is a city about southwest of Minneapolis in Carver County and partially in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The southwest edge of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul suburbs, there is a mix of residential neighborhoods and rura ...

(Closed) * Stardust Lanes (now Memory Lanes), Minneapolis, Minnesota (interior used for some Comedy Central

shows, exterior seen at beginning of all Comedy Central shows) * Wallaby's Lanes, Columbia Heights, Minnesota (Closed) * Wells Lanes (now Concord Lanes), South St. Paul, Minnesota * White Bear Bowl,

White Bear Lake, Minnesota White Bear Lake is a city in Ramsey County in the state of Minnesota, United States. A small portion of the city also extends into Washington County. The population was 23,769 at the 2010 census. The city is located on White Bear Lake, one o ...

(Closed)

Bands showcased

* Man or Astro-man? * The Blue Up? * Soul Asylum * Manplanet *

Trailer Trash ''Trailer trash'' is a derogatory North American English term for poor people living in a trailer or a mobile home. It is particularly used to denigrate white people living in such circumstances History In the mid-20th century, poor whites who ...

* House of Large Sizes *

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

(no relation to Mitch Ryder's band from the 1970s) * The Dust Bunnies * Jack Knife and the Sharps * Flipp * The VibroChamps * The Joint Chiefs * The Senders * Tina and the B-Sides * The Mouldy Figs * Martini & Olive * James "Cornbread" Harris

References

External links

Comedy Central website
* * {{Comedy Central programming 1998 American television series debuts 1998 American television series endings 2001 American television series debuts 2002 American television series endings 1990s American comedy game shows 2000s American comedy game shows Bowling television series Comedy Central game shows Television in Minnesota