From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is an incomplete list of characters that appeared on the HBO sketch comedy series, Mr. Show from 1995 to 1998.
[edit] Recurring characters
[edit] Ronnie Dobbs
-
Main article: Ronnie Dobbs
- Ronnie Dobbs (full name: Ronwell Quincy Dobbs) was a habitual criminal regularly caught in the act on Fuzz, a COPS-like program.
- Ronnie was an alcoholic spokesperson for the National Entitilitus Foundation. He appeared in a PSA admitting that he was dying of the disease that had no known cause, cure, or even a basic understanding of what it was. He was unable to keep out of trouble and demonstrated a natural talent for attracting the attention of whatever local police force had jurisdiction over him. As his arrests mounted, so did his notoriety. He became the most arrested person in Fuzz history, often brought down after domestic squabbles with his girlfriend.
- Dobbs' fortunes changed the day he met Terry Twillstein, (Bob Odenkirk) a cameraman for Fuzz and failed infomercial director. Twillstein was fascinated by Dobbs after noticing he was getting arrested in every city the show filmed in. This led to a strong bond where Twillstein promised to make Ronnie a reality TV star. A deal was struck with the producers of Fuzz, who agreed to create a show in which Ronnie would get arrested in every state of the Union, as well as France and outer space.
- Ronnie's story was re-told and expanded in the movie Run Ronnie Run.
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearances: "The Cry of a Hungry Baby" (1995), "Peanut Butter, Eggs, and Dice" (1998), and the straight-to-video movie Run Ronnie Run (2002).
[edit] Terry Twillstein
- Terry Twillstein is a foppish, manipulative, British television producer who discovers Ronnie Dobbs, and is always looking to use Ronnie for his success. In the Third Season he records, "Fuzz the Musical", starring Ronnie Dobbs, Tammy Dobbs, and police officers who have arrested Ronnie in the past.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearances: "The Cry of a Hungry Baby" (1995), "Peanut Butter, Eggs, and Dice" (1998), and the straight-to-video movie Run Ronnie Run (2002).
[edit] Senator Tankerbell
- Senator Howel Tankerbell is an ultra-conservative Southern Dixiecrat Senator.
- Tankerbell is concerned about the proliferation of obscenity and indecency and subsequently, he sees it everywhere. He participates in a Government program in which certain artists are assigned Senators to monitor them. Tankerbell is assigned David and forces him to wear a tracking collar that shocks him if he attempts to step onto the stage to do the show. Tankerbell also considers art to be something that Government money is wasted on and speaks out against funding it.
- Tankerbell appears to be easily "aroused and titillated" by innocuous objects with no inherent sexual value. He is fond of sharing a parable that has an overt sexual theme. There is a strong indication that he indulges at least one paraphilia. He has a ribald sense of humor that is occasionally playful and insulting.
- Senator Tankerbell is also responsible for selling off unused and undesirable parts of America, including San Francisco, which is bought by GloboChem and turned into a family-friendly theme park.
- He appears in a later episode as one of the Senators from Night Talk with the Senate Sub-Committee (Tonight-Show-esque Senate panel), which also features Jon Stewart.
- Tankerbell reappeared years later in 2006, in the episode "Election" of the animated series Freak Show. Odenkirk provided his voice and he appeared in a scene about a Senate hearing. Cross created and voices one of the characters of the show. Interestingly, in the episode, Tankerbell's party is listed as a Republican, not a Dixiecrat.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearances: "What to Think" (1995), "If You're Going to Write a Comedy Scene, You're Going to Have Some Rat Feces in There" (1996), "A White Man Set Them Free" (1997), and an episode of the Comedy Central series Freak Show (2006).
[edit] Three Times One Minus One
- Three Times One Minus One (T.T.O.M.O) is a fictional R&B duo made up of Pootie T. and Wolfgang Amadeus Thelonius Van Funkenmeister The 19th and 3 Quarters (Played by David Cross and Bob Odenkirk, respectively).
- They are the performers of a song, "Ewww, Girl, Ewww", which is designed to promote literacy. In an interview on the WPCBCN (White People Co-opting Black Culture Network), both performers discuss the struggles of being white and borrowing black culture for their songs. The duo was honored at the Homage Awards (a send up of the Image Awards), which celebrates the borrowing of black culture by white entertainers. Their song "Goodbye 2 Every 1 Ever" garnered them a nomination for a Teardrop Award (Saddest song) at the 24th Annual Song Awards - which they lost to Horace Loeb's "Heaven Better Save Some Tears."
- Odenkirk and Cross noted (in the Mr. Show DVD commentaries) that during interviews, Wolfgang does all the talking for the two, in a motormouth-like fashion, while Pootie says little if anything at all. Yet, during the songs, Pootie does all the singing, while Wolfgang's contributions are limited to interjecting "Damn!" in at appropriate moments. The pair was based on R&B musician R. Kelly.[citation needed]
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk (as Wolfgang Amadeus Thelonius Van Funkenmeister The 19th and 3 Quarters) and David Cross (as Pootie T.)
- Appearances: "A Talking Junkie" (1996), "Sad Songs Are Nature's Onions" (1998), and the straight-to-video movie "Run Ronnie Run" (2002).
[edit] "Droopy"
- Dirty and chronically congested, "Droopy" is likely a take on the "lazy twenty-something slacker" stereotype. He loves to messily eat chocolate and, for an unknown reason, wants to work at the front desk of his local museum, though he has few qualifications. Apparently he is the only friend of David Cross' insufferable luddite hipster character Dylan.
- Note: "Droopy" is the name Odenkirk uses when referring to the character; in the show he is nameless. On the audio commentaries for the series' DVDs, Odenkirk claims to have based Droopy's mannerisms on one of his memorable college roommates. It was also revealed in the commentaries that Bob and David had a huge argument over whether Droopy and Dylan were best friends or were total strangers.
- Droopy appears in 3 of the 4 seasons of Mr. Show. In the audio commentaries, the cast members apologize to the audience for not being able to fit "Droopy" into the fourth season.
- Droopy appeared years later in 2005 in an episode of the Comedy Central show Crank Yankers. Odenkirk provided his voice and he made a prank phone call.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearances: "Who Let You In?" (1995), "The Velveteen Touch of a Dandy Fop" (1996), "Goin' on a Holiday" (1997), and an episode of the Comedy Central series Crank Yankers (2005).
- Dylan is a balding, bespectacled man with a scarf who hates everything that is popular or current. He prefers extremely old technology. Examples of things that he does not like include television, donuts, CDs, and air conditioning. His favorite musicians are the pop group The Fad Three and megaphone crooners Dickie Crickets and Kid Jersey.
- Dylan appears twice during the series. In his first appearance, he joins "Droopy" at a donut shop and complains about technology. In his second appearance, he is shown with his landlord, Victor (played by Bob Odenkirk).
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearances: "The Velveteen Touch of a Dandy Fop" (1996) and "Please Don't Kill Me (1997).
[edit] Blueberry Head
- Blueberry Head is a blue-haired prop comic, an obvious parody of Carrot Top. He is a touted as being a "college favorite."
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearances: "We Regret to Inform You" (1995) and "A White Man Set Them Free" (1998).
[edit] Fancy Pants
- Making short, odd-moment walk-on scenes, "Fancy Pants" wears a colonial getup of pantaloons, stockings, and a blouse with poets sleeves. The character is played by Bob's brother, writer Bill Odenkirk.
- Played by: Bill Odenkirk
- Appearances: "We Regret to Inform You" (1995) and "Oh, You Men" (1997)
[edit] Fervel Lankman
- Fervel Lankman is the fictional actor played by Brian Posehn for the Bob Lamonta sketch. Supposedly Fervel plays "Donnie", in "The Crack'd Mirror", and again in its sequel, "Goin' Crackers". Ferval has not another appearance but a suggestion in the very last episode, where a clever fade-out into the last sketch shows a little tombstone on a desk which says, "I'm dead in the morning without my coffee - Fervel Lankman".
- Played by: Brian Posehn
[edit] Single appearance characters
[edit] Sweetie Pie Jonus
- Sweetie Pie Jonus is a jailed gangster who has become Mr. Show's producer in "The Story of Everest" (Season 4, Episode 4), and who only appears via video teleconference from jail. In a scene reminiscent of the demystification of the wizard in "The Wizard of Oz", he is actually revealed at the end of the episode (by a dog named Toto, no less) as being Bob and David's kitten, Sweetie Pie, who is manipulating production of the show from behind a curtain. David Cross states in the audio commentary for The Story Of Everest that Sweetie Pie is based on hip hop mogul Suge Knight.
- Played by: Freez Luv
- Appearance: "The Story of Everest" (1997)
[edit] Larry Branson
- Larry Branson marries a man he pushes into at a bar in the namesake sketch in the episode "Eat Rotten Fruit From A Shitty Tree" (Season 4, Episode 7).
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearance: "Eat Rotten Fruit from a Shitty Tree" (1997)
[edit] Pit-Pat
- Pit-Pat is the name of an animated humanoid character seen in the "Commercials of the Future" sketch from Season 1, Episode 2.
- Odenkirk and David Cross play two ad men attempting to sell the Globo-Chem company ("Globo-Chem: We own everything so you don't have to") on a new mascot. David refers to Pit-Pat as a "magical, pan-sexual, non-threatening spokesthing!" The purpose of the mascot is revealed in the video advertisements that the ad men have created for GloboChem. Each ad features a GloboChem product or holding being demonstrated as well as progressively more insistent profanity. Pit-Pat appears at the end to squeal, "Take it from me, I love you".
- Pit-Pat also appears on a box of cereal called "Pit-Pat-Os" in Season 1, Episode 4.
- Played by: Bill Odenkirk (the man in the Pit-Pat suit) and Bob Odenkirk (the voice of Pit-Pat)
- Appearance: "What to Think" (1995)
[edit] Rev. Winton Dupree
- Rev. Winton Dupree is a foul-mouthed televangelist who hosts a religious cable television program called "Swear to God with the Rev. Winton Dupree." Peppering his fundamentalist sermons with frequent obscenities, he speaks often of need to reject Satan and accept the word of God.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearance: "Please Don't Kill Me" (1997)
[edit] Famous Mortimer
- Famous Mortimer is the fictional director of several shows, music videos, and films (including "Coupon: The Movie", "Bare Ambition", and "StreakDome 97") appearing throughout Mr. Show sketches. He appears only once, as a background character.
- Played by: Patton Oswalt
- Appearance: "Operation Hell on Earth" (1996)
[edit] F.F. Woodycooks
- F.F. Woodycooks is a character featured in the first episode of the second season. He hosts a show called "Take Back the Streets", which is similar in form to America's Most Wanted, but with several differences. When a suspect is apprehended, Woodycooks shakes his "Crime Stick" at their actions and refers to them as ding-a-lings. He also comically refers to himself as "Me."
- The character is based on Chicagoan J.J. Bittenbinder, an ex-cop who hosted a television show about crime safety. Mr. Show writer and cast member Paul F. Tompkins has said he was inspired to create the character after seeing an episode of Bittenbinder's show in which the host referred to a group of rapists as "goofs."
- Woodycooks, unlike Bittenbinder, owns an Ice Cream franchise with three locations, or "precincts." His ice cream was the official ice cream of the Independent Nations Games.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearance: "Now Who Wants Ice Cream?" (1996)
[edit] Panzic Poojaran
- Panzic Poojaran is a character who is introduced at a press conference in a sketch called "Hunger Strike' that aired in Season 3, show 6. He has subsisted on nothing but water for 23 days and is making his first public appearance. His strike is to draw attention to the plight of his people, although "his people" are never specifically named. It is sponsored by Stenson's condiments.
- He is swathed in the traditional garb of his unspecified homeland. He is exceedingly weak and easily distracted. He begins his speech with the simple plea: "I want the world to know...that I am so hungry". He becomes rather lost in the fantasy of eating something, anything, and his focus on his people wavers. His passionate plea for help for his people soon degenerates into illustrated examples of what he would eat that prove just how hungry he is. These include 100 buckets of water chestnuts, which he used to hate, and condiments that people at restaurants "put [it] in a glass and they dare their friends to drink it, and . . . they think it is funny. Right now I would drink it!! And I would thank them for it." He finishes his appearance by expressing his wish that if he dies, he wants to be buried in mashed potatoes ("The lum-lumpy kind with gravies and a gravy boat by the side and ya-ya little yams, too".)
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearance: "Please Don't Kill Me" (1997)
- "Spank" was a "performance" artist who was prevented from emptying his bowels upon the United States flag.
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearance: "Who Let You In?" (1995)
[edit] Jeepers Creepers
- Jeepers Creepers is a parody of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar, where Jeepers Creepers is a slacker with a devoted following of like-minded loafers, rather than the Messiah. Intended to parody the perceived strictness of Christianity, Jeepers Creepers is indecisive in addition to being disobedient and slothlike.
- Played by: Jack Black
- Appearance: "The Biggest Failure in Broadway History" (1996)
[edit] C.S. Lewis, Jr.
- C.S. Lewis, Jr. is a country-western singer resembling Hank Williams, Jr. and Toby Keith, who performs a pro-American/anti-moon song when the U.S. Government decides to use its technology to blow up the moon. When a chimp questions the idea of blowing up the moon, an additional song is written mocking the chimp.
- Bob Odenkirk revived the character in 2004 in a sketch presented on the BobAndDavid.com website, as a comment on the upcoming presidential election.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearance: "Goin' on a Holiday" (1997)
[edit] The Cock Ring Chicken
- The Cock Ring Chicken is a mascot for a cock ring outlet store, whose catch phrase is "any-cock'll-dooo!"
- Played by: Bill Odenkirk (the man in the chicken suit)
- Appearance: "Peanut Butter, Eggs, and Dice" (1997)
[edit] Livingston Brewster
- Livingston Brewster is a singer-songwriter based on Livingston Taylor, who performs the song, "Thank You For The Ride", dedicated to the victims of The Devastator in episode 301 "Heaven's Chimney". Brewster is never shown, only his voice singing the song is heard.
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearance: "Heaven's Chimney" (1997)
[edit] Kedzie Matthews
- Kedzie Matthews is a zany and immensely popular stand-up comedian who temporarily replaced Bob during the opening sequence of episode 307 "Bush is a Pussy". His appearance and comic style is a parody of mediocre stand-up comedians from the 1980's, and possibly modeled on Robin Williams based on his clothing and delivery. Kenny performs as Matthews in several of the show's DVD audio commentaries.
- Played by: Tom Kenny
- Appearance: "Bush is a Pussy" (1997)
[edit] Bob Lamonta
- Bob Lamonta is the subject of the movie "Why Me? The Bob Lamonta Story" about his struggles through life. Having mentally-handicapped parents who are an embarrassment to him, he begins to run. He runs and runs and runs. He keeps running until he becomes an Olympic athlete and wins the gold medal, subsequently dying. At his (movie) award acceptance speech, he reveals that it was all made up including his tragic death, except for the fact that he "had a mustache for a while" and that he “did a few walk-a-thons” and “did pretty well.” The sketch is a parody of a 1976 TV film called "The Loneliest Runner" directed and starring Michael Landon in which a young boy turns to running--and eventually runs in the Olympics--to escape the humiliation of his chronic bed-wetting.
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearance: "Peanut Butter, Eggs, and Dice" (1997)
[edit] Borden Grote
- Borden Grote was a method actor who was profiled by Bob Odenkirk on the third episode of the first season, entitled, "We Regret to Inform You."
- Grote demonstrated virtually absolute dedication to his craft. He once empirically studied the psychology of crowds in order to play an extra in a crowd scene. He attended three years of medical school for an exceedingly brief cameo in the Mel Brooks fiasco, Badman Whatever.
- At the time of his appearance on the program, Grote was recovering from a frontal lobotomy, which he undertook in order to star in a film about mistreatment at a mental institution.
- In the audio commentary for the Mr. Show DVD, Cross admitted that he drew inspiration for the character after watching a behind-the-scenes look at Meryl Streep's method acting (in which she once lay on a block of ice before filming a scene in which she was supposed to be dead).
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearance: "We Regret to Inform You"(1995)
[edit] "Grass Valley" Greg Sniper
- Grass Valley Greg invented the "delete" button and is the eccentric, over-enthusiastic CEO of the GV Corporation ("Where ideas can hang out - and do whatever!") where his employees are paid to find new mistakes. The primary stockholder of Mr. Show, he often interrupts his employees, without prior warning, to take a break for Tofutti, an ice cream substitute, or to listen to Boz Scaggs play an impromptu concert. Anyone who refuses may be sent to care for Sniper's retarded goats at his ranch, Nannadu. Within one episode of Mr. Show ("If You're Going To Write A Comedy Scene, You're Going To Have Some Rat Feces In There"), he manages to go bankrupt thanks to, among other reasons, his campaign to legalize tomatoes. In the Mr. Show DVD commentary, Cross says the character was inspired when he read that Microsoft's Paul Allen regularly made his employees listen to himself playing Jimi Hendrix songs on his guitar.
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearance: "If You're Going to Write a Comedy Scene, You're Going to Have Some Rat Feces in There" (1996)
[edit] Willips Brighton
- A thinly veiled parody of Brian Wilson, Willips Brighton is nominated for a Teardrop Award for his song, "A Mouth Full Of Sores", about his struggle with herpes simplex II. He loses to Horace Loeb, who accidentally tosses his teardrop-shaped award into the chest of Brighton's son, killing him. This inspires Willips Brighton to write the song, "Ain't No Fun", which is nominated for the following year's Teardrop Awards. He and Loeb tie for first place, and Brighton stabs Loeb with the award in revenge.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearance: "Sad Songs Are Nature's Onions" (1998)
[edit] Horace Loeb
- Horace Loeb wins a Teardrop Award for his song "Heaven Better Save Some Tears", written in honor of his dead son (an obvious lampoon of Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven"). When he wins, he reacts overjoyously, and his acceptance speech is rather self-centered and excited, given the somber subject matter of the song. During his speech, he accidentally lets loose of his award, which flies across the room and stabs the son (Jerry Messing) of fellow nominee Willips Brighton. Loeb is nominated the following year for his tribute to Brighton's son, "There's No More Room In Heaven", and he and Brighton both place first. Loeb's second speech is much like his first, until Brighton stabs him with the award. Loeb had produced a video to be released in the event of his death - a tribute, similar to his previous two songs, to himself. Horace Loeb lived from 1963 to 1998.
- Played by: David Cross
- Appearance: "Sad Songs Are Nature's Onions" (1998)
[edit] The Royal Dutch of Dukes
- The Dutch of Dukes is seen in attendance at the fetal beauty pageant, and is later kicked out of the Burgundy Loafe and arrested for impersonating royalty, at which point he abandons pretense and states in a drawling, middle-American growl that he intends to kick the ass of the maître d', Pierre.
- Played by: Jay Johnston
- Appearance: "Rudy Will Await Your Foundation" (1998)
[edit] The 2000 lb. Old Man
- The 2000 lb. Old Man is the lone survivor of a plane crash, high in the mountains. When reporters interview him about the difficult decision to eat his fellow passengers to survive, he admits that he ate all of them - before they were even dead. In fact, he is as bloated as a tick. The scene delves into further comedic absurdity, prompting the reporters to laugh at his exploits, before one of the journalists (David Cross) arrives at the idea of taking the man on the road to deliver hacky jokes about his exploits to paying audiences. Cross and Odenkirk then parody Mel Brooks' 2000 Year Old Man routine; calling the act the 2000 lb. Old Man.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearance: "Like Chickens...Delicious Chickens" (1998)
- Dr. X is an evil genius who launches a laser-equipped satellite powerful enough to destroy the earth. Each year, Dr. X hosts a TV telethon to raise the $30 million dollar ransom he demands in exchange for the non-activation of his doomsday device. The skit is a satirization of telethons in general, but perhaps more pointedly, of Jerry Lewis.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearance: "Please Don't Kill Me" (1997)
[edit] Monsters of Megaphone
- Monsters of Megaphone is a duo of "megaphone crooners" consisting of Dickie Crickets and Kid Jersey. Dickie Crickets became massively popular with his "megaphone crooning", that is, singing with a megaphone, but was soon rivaled by the emergence of Kid Jersey. Kid Jersey's politeness, always punctuating songs with "thank you", a phrase which he invented, won over the public. Songs done in the style of megaphone crooning typically consist of four lines of very basic lyrics, dealing with a (then) current invention, for example, Automobile: Oh, automobile/Baby loves my automobile/Can't get enough of automobile/Riding it all night long. The two decided to join forces, as it was becoming increasingly difficult to perform songs of current inventions (Crickets failed miserably attempting to sing about time machines). The two crooners, working on the "Monsters of Megaphone" tour, attempted to remedy the problem of lack of material by performing together. There was an interesting concept however, in that a patent officer was present on stage, and the two would compete against each other, but both had to invent the item they were to sing about. Such inventions were "sports bra" and "electric tie rack". Dickie seemingly "won" the competition, as Kid Jersey was taken forcefully off-stage, presumably by a police officer, after inventing a "counterfeit money machine". Megaphone crooning became unpopular soon after the tour, however, and the two faded into obscurity, working as theater custodians in their old age.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk and David Cross
- Appearance: "The Velveteen Touch of a Dandy Fop" (1996)
[edit] Van Hammersly
- Van Hammersly is a popular billiards player who also sells a line of "teaching-by-billiards" tapes. These tapes cover such diverse topics as: The Golden Age of Hollywood, the 1974 Kentucky Derby, December 7, 1941, mass transit and billiards. He also sells a tape that, by viewing it, instantly qualifies the viewer for a GED. The tapes are nothing more than Hammersly hitting billiard balls that supposedly represent certain people, places or things, then clapping his hands and putting them out, as if bowing. The character is reportedly based on the main character from the 1939 film Goodbye, Mr. Chips.[citation needed]
- The name "Van Hammersly" was previously used for a character in The Ben Stiller Show, which also starred Bob Odenkirk.
- Played by: Bob Odenkirk
- Appearance: "If You're Going to Write a Comedy Scene, You're Going to Have Some Rat Feces in There" (1996)
[edit] Fartin' Gary & Fartin' Rudy
- Fartin' Gary appeared in the second season of Mr. Show. The character is a comedian whose stand-up act consists of voluntarily farting on stage as the punch-line to his "jokes." Over the course of the skit, Gary's act is eclipsed by a man in the audience named Rudy who has too much gas of his own, and whose farts undermine Gary's. Despite pleading with the man to control himself, Gary is ultimately forced to walk offstage. Rudy then becomes the new "Clown Prince of Fartistry", taking on the name "Fartin' Rudy", and starring in his own TV sitcom, "Second Wind."
- In the DVD commentary for Mr. Show, David Cross noted that the character of Fartin' Gary was a parody of an actual farting comedian at a comedy festival who stole the show from the rest of the acts. Cross and Odenkirk were so put off by his mediocre act that they quickly wrote up the "Fartin' Gary" sketch to lampoon him.
- Played by: David Cross (as Fartin' Gary) and Bob Odenkirk (as Fartin' Rudy)
- Appearance: "Operation Hell on Earth" (1996)
[edit] Professor Peens and Gerald Hennesy
- Professor Peens is a law school professor who on the first day of law school has the student assistant, Gerald Hennesy, take his place temporarily when he finds out his wife's scarlet rubella is acting up again.
- Played by: Michael McKean (as Professor Peens) and Bob Odenkirk (as Gerald Hennesy)
- Appearance: "Life is Precious and God and the Bible" (1998)
