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''Tim Conways Funny America'' is a 1990 American
television comedy Television comedy is a category of broadcasting that has been present since the early days of entertainment media. While there are several genres of comedy, some of the first ones aired were variety shows. One of the first Television in the United ...
starring
Tim Conway Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway (December 15, 1933 – May 14, 2019) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. Conway is perhaps best known as a regular cast member (1975–1978) on the TV comedy ''The Carol Burnett Show'' where he port ...
. Its first episode aired as a special on April 29, 1990,tvtango.com Episode List: Tim Conway's Funny America
/ref> and it then was broadcast as a weekly series from July 29, 1990, to September 2, 1990.McNeil, Alex, ''Total Television: The Comprehensive Guide to Programming From 1948 to the Present'', New York: Penguin Books, 1996, pp. 839-840.Brooks, Tim, and Earle Marsh, ''The Complete Directory to Prime-Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present, Sixth Edition'', New York: Ballantine Books, 1995, , pp. 1042-1043.


Production

Seeking a compatible series to insert in its Sunday evening lineup after its hit ''
America's Funniest Home Videos ''America's Funniest Home Videos'', also called ''America's Funniest Videos'' (abbreviated as ''AFV''), is an American video clip television series on ABC, based on a recurring segment on the Japanese variety show '' Fun TV with Kato-chan and ...
'' show,
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
aired ''Tim Conway's Funny America'' in the summer of 1990. Starring
Tim Conway Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway (December 15, 1933 – May 14, 2019) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. Conway is perhaps best known as a regular cast member (1975–1978) on the TV comedy ''The Carol Burnett Show'' where he port ...
, ''Tim Conway's Funny America'' borrowed heavily from the format of the long-running ''
Candid Camera ''Candid Camera'' is an American hidden camera and practical joke reality television series. The show was created, developed, and presented by Allen Funt. Various versions of the show have appeared on television from 1948 to 2014. The program ...
'' show, with Conway traveling around the United States in various disguises and playing
practical jokes A practical joke or prank is a trick played on people, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. The perpetrat ...
on unsuspecting people while
hidden camera A hidden camera or spy camera is a camera used to photograph or record subjects, often people, without their knowledge. The camera may be considered "hidden" because it is not visible to the subject being filmed, or is disguised as another obje ...
s filmed their reactions. Among the shows gags were Conway pretending to be an old man crossing a street, an eccentric employee of a pet-grooming salon, a member of the "fashion police" in a motorcycle policemans uniform ticketing passersby on the street for their attire, a clumsy
teppanyaki , often called in the United States and Canada, is a post-World War II style of Japanese cuisine that uses an iron griddle to cook food. The word is derived from , the metal plate on which it is cooked, and , which means grilled, broiled, or ...
chef in a
Japanese restaurant Japanese cuisine encompasses the regional and traditional foods of Japan, which have developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes. The traditional cuisine of Japan ( Japanese: ) is based on rice with miso soup and othe ...
, and an
aerobics Aerobics is a form of physical exercise that combines rhythmic aerobic exercise with stretching and strength training routines with the goal of improving all elements of fitness (Flexibility (anatomy), flexibility, Muscle, muscular strength, and ...
class leader – the latter in the guise of his character " Dorf," a dark-haired man with a normal-sized head, body, and arms, but extremely short legs and an odd foreign accent. Conway presented the resulting videos to a studio audience. Despite his success as a member of the cast of the situation comedy ''
McHale's Navy ''McHale's Navy'' is an American sitcom starring Ernest Borgnine that aired 138 half-hour episodes over four seasons, from October 11, 1962, to April 12, 1966, on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television network. The series was filmed i ...
'' from 1962 to 1966 and in two theatrical films spun off from the series, ''
McHale's Navy ''McHale's Navy'' is an American sitcom starring Ernest Borgnine that aired 138 half-hour episodes over four seasons, from October 11, 1962, to April 12, 1966, on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television network. The series was filmed i ...
'' in 1964 and '' McHale's Navy Joins the Air Force'' in 1965, as well as his popularity during several years as a regular on ''
The Carol Burnett Show ''The Carol Burnett Show'' is an American variety/sketch comedy television show that originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 279 episodes, and again with nine episodes in fall 1991. It starred Carol Burnett, Harv ...
'' in the 1970s, Tim Conway had found no success in starring in a television show of his own. His situation comedies '' Rango'' in 1967, '' The Tim Conway Show'' in 1970, and '' Ace Crawford, Private Eye'' in 1983 had all been cancelled after short runs, as had two comedy-
variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
series, ''
The Tim Conway Comedy Hour ''The Tim Conway Comedy Hour'' is a variety/sketch comedy television show broadcast in the United States by CBS as part of its 1970 fall lineup on Sundays at 10:00 pm. Background ''The Tim Conway Comedy Hour'' was one of several attempts to d ...
'' in the fall of 1970 and '' The Tim Conway Show'' in 1980-1981. Conway had no better luck with ''Tim Conways Funny America'', which was cancelled after only a few weeks on the air. A total of seven episodes aired, including a special on April 29, 1990, and six weekly episodes broadcast between July 29 and September 2, 1990. ''Tim Conways Funny America'' aired at 8:30 p.m.
Eastern Time The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, and the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico. * Eastern Standard Time (EST) is five hours behi ...
on Sunday throughout its brief run.


Notes

{{reflist American Broadcasting Company reality television shows 1990 American television series debuts 1990 American television series endings 1990s American reality television series American English-language television shows 1990s American comedy television series