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Arliss
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Arliss (rendered in its logo as Arli$$) is an American situation comedy on HBO about a sports agent and his group of associates. The series premiered in 1996 and ended in 2002. Reruns of the show aired on ESPN Classic in their comedy block where it was partnered with Cheap Seats.
Contents
- 1 Cast
- 1.1 Notable guest stars
- 1.1.1 Three-plus appearances
- 1.1.2 Two appearances
- 1.1.3 One appearance
- 2 Arliss on other programs
- 3 Criticism
- 4 References
- 5 External links
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Cast
Notable guest stars
Nearly every episode included one or more notable personalities, primarily from the sports industry (such as athletes, coaches, and broadcasters), appearing as themselves.
Three-plus appearances
Two appearances
One appearance
Arliss on other programs
In
July 1999, Wuhl also appeared on
World Championship Wrestling's
Monday Nitro in the company's dying days as a guest announcer. Joining
Scott Hudson and
Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, Robert did not appear as himself but was named as Arliss and acted in character. He announced that "the WCW" (sic) would appear on
Arliss because none of the
Big Three networks would have WCW. Arliss stayed in character on color commentary as
Randy Savage,
Gorgeous George, and
Miss Madness walked to the ring. Arliss said he was scouting
Dennis Rodman, who was doing his third stint with the company. The Arliss appearance was panned by fans and wrestling critics, especially because most people didn't know what an "Arli$$" was. Wuhl appeared for cross-promotion as WCW was owned by
Time Warner (and
Nitro aired on
TNT), as was HBO. At the time both shows had low
ratings, it was apparently hoped that Arliss fans would watch
wrestling and vice versa. Whul never appeared or mentioned on WCW TV again and the stunt did nothing notable to improve the ratings of either program. In the
Arliss episode entitled "To Thy Own Self Be True", WCW creative head
Eric Bischoff guest stars along with wrestlers
Lex Luger,
Randy Savage and Gorgeous George.
During the October 12, 2002 episode of Saturday Night Live, guest host Sarah Michelle Gellar delivered the following monologue in a fake television commercial sketch:
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| You know the feeling. Someone's about to tell a joke, and you panic. What if you start laughing? Lots of us experience slight loss of bladder control. An embarrassing accident can happen any time. Sometimes, just when laughing. That's why I watch Arliss on HBO Comedy. It's nice to know that, every weekday at midnight, I can sit down with Robert Wuhl and the gang at Arliss Michaels Sports Management, and, a half-hour later, my drawers will be as dry as a bone. And now I know I'll be able to get 100% bladder control whenever I'm feeling insecure. Because all seven seasons of Arliss are now available on DVD. That's over forty hours of keep-your-pants-dry entertainment! So, don't let slight loss of bladder control cramp your style. Watch Arliss, and take back your life. Ask your doctor if Arliss is right for you. Side effects may include nausea, depression, and slight sexual dysfunction.
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Criticism
Despite its lengthy run on HBO,
Arliss never caught on with viewers and was bashed by many critics;
Entertainment Weekly consistently referred to it as one of the worst shows on television
[1]. Many felt that the show was subpar and that the show's frequent use of obscure sports references made the humor something only die-hard sports fans would understand. In addition, rumors swirled that
Arliss was kept on the air, despite its poor
ratings and scathing reviews, mainly because of Robert Wuhl's friendship with top HBO executives
[citation needed].
References
- ^ http://www.ew.com/ew/article/commentary/0,6115,398606_3%7C32440%7C%7C0_0_,00.html
