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'''''Strangers with Candy''''' is<!--Do not change this to "was"; we continue using "is" after a TV show concludes.--> an American television
''Strangers with Candy'' episodes were produced in a [[single-camera setup]] and were filmed between upstate New York and New Jersey. The pilot episode premiered on April 7, 1999, and three seasons followed. The series stars Sedaris, Colbert, Dinello and [[Greg Hollimon]] with a supporting cast that includes [[Roberto Gari]], [[Deborah Rush]], [[Larc Spies]], [[Maria Thayer]], Orlando Patoboy, [[Sarah Thyre]] and [[David Pasquesi]].
Tonally, ''Strangers with Candy'' uses [[surreal humor]] to satirize [[after school special|after school specials]] and the
==Plot==
Set in the fictional city of Flatpoint, ''Strangers with Candy'' follows Geraldine Antonia "Jerri" Blank, a former prostitute and drug addict –referred to in the show as a "junkie whore"– who returns to [[high school]] as a 46
Jerri tries to do things the right way but always ends up learning the wrong lesson. Her hijinks often involve, either directly or indirectly, history teacher Chuck Noblet and his secret lover art teacher Geoffrey Jellineck. Every episode features a warped theme or moral lesson and ends with the cast and other featured actors from the episode dancing. The last episode features Flatpoint High being turned into a strip mall,
==Development==
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Sedaris, Dinello, Colbert and Rouse first created the sketch comedy show ''[[Exit 57]]'', which debuted on Comedy Central in 1995 and aired through 1996''.''<ref name="ign">{{cite web|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2003/08/11/an-interview-with-stephen-colbert|title=An Interview with Stephen Colbert|first=Ken|last=P.|website=IGN|date=August 11, 2003|access-date=July 22, 2006|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140105202148/http://www.ign.com/articles/2003/08/11/an-interview-with-stephen-colbert|archive-date=January 5, 2014}}</ref> Although it lasted only 12 episodes, the show received favorable reviews<ref>{{cite news|title = Critic's Corner|first = Matt|last = Roush|work = [[USA Today]]|date = August 18, 1995}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title = The new skitcoms: Sketches of pain|first = David|last = Lipsky|magazine = Rolling Stone|date = January 21, 1995}}</ref> and was nominated for five [[CableACE Award]]s in 1995, in categories including best writing, performance, and comedy series.<ref name="ccbio">{{cite web|url = http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_daily_show/news_team/correspondents/stephen_colbert.jhtml|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20051026174626/http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_daily_show/news_team/correspondents/stephen_colbert.jhtml|archive-date = October 26, 2005|title = Biography of Stephen Colbert at ''The Daily Show'' official website|publisher = [[Comedy Central]]|access-date = July 22, 2006}}</ref> After the show was cancelled, Colbert and Dinello were preparing a pitch for a show known as "Mysteries of the Insane Unknown.” Simultaneously, Rouse and Sedaris had developed their own pitch, which Sedaris described as "something based on after-school specials" inspired by shows like ''[[The Brady Bunch]].'' They presented it first to [[MTV]], as Rouse knew someone there; while his friend loved it, they were told the channel would not go for it.<ref name="Rouse">{{cite web|url=https://trainwreckdsociety.com/2017/12/04/mitch-rouse-interview/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230202121938/https://trainwreckdsociety.com/2017/12/04/mitch-rouse-interview/|date=December 4, 2017|archive-date = February 2, 2023|title= Mitch Rouse [Interview]|access-date = April 28, 2023}}</ref> Comedy Central was prepared to greenlight "Mysteries" but Dinello convinced Colbert to go help Sedaris with her pitch. Colbert was reticent after hearing her idea because he knew it was better than theirs; he was right, and Comedy Central's [[Kent Alterman]] chose her show instead.<ref name="GQ"/><ref name="CCORAL">{{cite web|last=Seabaugh|first=Julie|url=https://www.avclub.com/night-after-night-to-midnight-an-oral-history-of-come-1798246395|date=April 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703101144/https://www.avclub.com/night-after-night-to-midnight-an-oral-history-of-come-1798246395|archive-date =July 3, 2023 |title=Night After Night to @midnight: An oral history of Comedy Central (Part 1) |access-date = October 1, 2023}}</ref>
At first, Sedaris wanted to do a straight after-school special: "We wanted to play it dead, dead serious. No laugh track, nothing. But Comedy Central didn’t go for it."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Spitznagel|first1=Eric|title=An Interview with Amy Sedaris |url=https://www.thebeliever.net/an-interview-with-amy-sedaris/ |website= [[The Believer (magazine)|The Believer]]|date=March 1, 2004|issue=11|archive-date=March 22, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322194749/https://www.thebeliever.net/an-interview-with-amy-sedaris/}}</ref><ref name= "FreshAir">{{Cite news|last=Gross|first=Terry|url=https://freshairarchive.org/segments/fake-newsmans-fake-newsman-stephen-colbert|title=A Fake Newsman's Fake Newsman: Stephen Colbert|date=January 24, 2005|work=NPR|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref> Rouse, Colbert, and Dinello went to the [[Paley Center for Media|Museum Of Television]] and found several after-school specials starring [[Scott Baio]], which they used as reference.<ref name="Rouse"/><ref name="Paley">{{cite web| title=Museum Of Television & Radio Seminar Series: Strangers With Candy| first=David| last=Bushman| website=[[Paley Center]]| url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Efwfn1S-iM| access-date=April 28, 2023| url-status=| df=mdy-all}}</ref> Dinello later found a tape of [[Florrie Fisher]]'s ''[[The Trip Back]]'' at [[Kim's Video and Music|Kim's video]] in the [[East Village, Manhattan|East Village]]; Fisher, a motivational speaker, recalled her days as a New York prostitute and heroin addict to a group of high-school students. After watching it, Dinello thought Fisher reminded him of Sedaris and promptly suggested doing a character—inspired by Fisher—that would go back to high school. Colbert added the idea of her learning the wrong lesson after every episode, and
===Writing and production===
Colbert, Dinello and Sedaris wrote most of the episodes
Comedy Central picked up the series in 1998 after Colbert had already begun working on ''The Daily Show''. As a result, he accepted a reduced role, filming only around 20 ''Daily Show'' segments a year while he worked on the new series.<ref name="ign"/> The show was originally entitled ''The Way After School Special'',<ref name="Salon">{{Cite news|last=Millman|first=Joyce|url=https://www.salon.com/1999/04/05/strangers_4/|title=Middle-aged wasteland|date=April 5, 1999|work=[[Salon.com|Salon]]|access-date=February 26, 2024|archive-date=February 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209071754/https://www.salon.com/1999/04/05/strangers_4/|url-status=live}}</ref> but later was changed to Strangers With Candy, which was just a name they had come up with years earlier, and had been wanting to use for one of
===Casting===
When writing the pilot,
===Filming===
The show was filmed between [[Westchester County, New York]] and [[New Jersey]], with two different abandoned schools in the [[Rutherford, New Jersey|Rutherford]] area being used as the set for Flatpoint High.<ref name="ign"/><ref name="Transcript"/><ref name="Indexmag"/>
==Cancellation==▼
The show was cancelled to give space for a new show called ''[[Strip Mall]].'' A week after the show was cancelled, Colbert had a moral breakdown: "I found myself vomiting, weeping and quoting scripture because I'd spent three years trying to think of the worst possible choices anyone could ever make, morally, for every character, for three years, pretty much, 24 hours a day, and I thought Strangers with Candy was actually corrupting my soul at some level, just having to think that way for three years."<ref name= "InsideJoke">{{Cite news|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116205423/http://www.inside-joke.com/colbert.html|title=Inside Joke with Carl Arnheiter|date=March 29, 2004|work=Inside Joke|access-date=October 19, 2023}}</ref> In 2016, Sedaris said, "We never knew we had an audience. We never knew what the ratings were—we still haven’t been told we were canceled! But we were fine doing more or not doing more, either way." <ref name="CCORAL"/> ▼
==Cast and characters==
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{{Main|List of Strangers with Candy episodes}}
{{:List of Strangers with Candy episodes}}
▲==Cancellation==
▲The show was cancelled to give space for a new show called ''[[Strip Mall]].''
==Reception==
===Critical response===
In an early review, [[Joyce Millman]] of ''[[Salon.com|Salon]]'', said: "Strangers With Candy" is one of the most inventively bizarre shows in a long time –right up there with [[HBO]]'s recent trial run of the mock-rock duo sitcom ''"[[Tenacious D]]"''–. It manages to sustain the "Afterschool Special" joke with its smudged, '70s neo-realistic look, generic pseudo-pop background music and Jerri's throwback wardrobe."<ref name="Salon">{{Cite news|last=Millman|first=Joyce|url=https://www.salon.com/1999/04/05/strangers_4/|title=Middle-aged wasteland|date=April 5, 1999|work=[[Salon.com|Salon]]|access-date=February 26, 2024|archive-date=February 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209071754/https://www.salon.com/1999/04/05/strangers_4/|url-status=live}}</ref> ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' was also complimentary of the show, "Strangers With Candy is gleefully absurdist stuff that is clearly not factory-made to suit all tastes, but it's certainly a brave if willfully fucked-up piece of work. And, who knows, Comedy Central has done well for itself selling that previously forbidden flavor before."<ref name="RS">{{Cite magazine|title=Strangers with Candy|issue= Spring 1999|work=[[Rolling Stone]]}}</ref> Pete Schulberg at ''[[The Oregonian]]'', commented on the show's uncompromising humour, "In its own twisted and taboo-bashing way, the series proves to be as outrageous as anything you'll see on TV. The satire is heavy-duty, but more often than not, it works".<ref name="TO">{{Cite news|last=Schulberg|first=Peter|title=A sociopathic sitcom from Comedy Central|date=April 7, 1999|work=[[The Oregonian]]}}</ref>
''[[The New York Post|The New York Post's]]'' Michelle Greppi, compared the show unfavourably to similar media, "Strangers With Candy" aspires to be the anti-after-school special. Instead, it's just a flat and unfunny rip-off of ''"[[South Park]]"'' refracted through a prison prism and executed in a style that makes cable access look Oscar-ready and all of the ''"[[Heathers]]"'' ready for sainthood".<ref name="NYP">{{Cite news|last=Greppi|first=Michelle|url=https://nypost.com/1999/04/07/candy-leaves-sour-taste/|title=‘CANDY’ LEAVES SOUR TASTE |date=April 7, 1999|work=[[The New York Post]]|access-date=February 26, 2024|archive-date=February 26, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240226170939/https://nypost.com/1999/04/07/candy-leaves-sour-taste/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Ana Marie Cox]] of ''[[Feed Magazine|Feedmag]]'', had similar thoughts, "So far, critics have mostly responded to the show's supposed "outrageousness," though anyone who still thinks drug references and abortion jokes are "outrageous" must have stopped watching TV when the real After School Specials went off the air." Further adding, "Yet for all the richness of its targets, the show is curiously flat -- a broad parody whose sharpest moments stem from social non-sequitors and squeamishly inappropriate one-liners, as when Jerri announces: "I have to leave class early -- I'm getting my uterus scraped." Perhaps flatness is to be expected, as the show's creators [...] are veterans of "[[alternative comedy]]," a genre whose distinguishing characteristic is that it is rarely, you know, funny."<ref name="FM">{{Cite news|last=Cox|first=Ana Marie|title=Strangers with Candy Review|date=1999|work=[[Feed Magazine]]}}</ref>
In a review of the second season, Tom Conroy of ''[[US Weekly]]'' called the show, "A tart satiric confection with a hard center", and rated it three of four stars.<ref name="USW">{{Cite news|last=Conroy|first=Tom|title=Review|date=June 26, 2000|work=[[US Weekly]]}}</ref> ''[[The Badger Herald]]'', praised it as: "One of the most intelligently written shows on TV today. [...] believe me, "Strangers with Candy" is a rose garden in the decomposing landscape of network programming."<ref name="BH">{{Cite news|title=Strangers with Candy gives dark glimpse into teen reality|date= January 25, 2000|work=[[The Badger Herald]]}}</ref> On another positive review, Kinney Littlefield of
''[[The Orange County Register]]'' said, "Like great chocolate, Strangers With Candy has proved to be an addictive substance over its past two seasons".<ref name="ocr">{{Cite news|last=Littlefield|first=Kinney|title=Don't be a Stranger to Candy |date= June 30, 2000|work=[[Orange County Register]]}}</ref>
On the show's cancellation, ''[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]'', commented: "Say it ain't so: Cable's zippy Comedy Central might be canceling the sage, delightfully back-ass-wards Strangers With Candy show. If your response is "What's Strangers With Candy?" consider yourself part of the problem rather than the solution."<ref name="abc">{{Cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=115199&page=1|title=Ryder Guests on Final Strangers With Candy|date=September 27, 2000|work=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|access-date=February 26, 2024|archive-date=September 19, 2015|archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20150919070514/https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=115199&page=1|url-status=live}}</ref> Similarly, Melanie McFarland of ''[[The Seattle Times]]'', lamented its demise: "The show regularly took viewers outside their comfort zone, and ardent fans kept "Strangers" a secret, taking the show's existence for granted. After all, it had a faithful core viewership that seemed to grow as more turned their friends on to it. As you can tell, "Strangers With Candy" is probably one of the most deliciously non-P.C. shows out there and certainly deserves more attention on TV than it's getting."<ref name="TST">{{Cite news|last=McFarland|first=Melanie|title=Bye-bye 'Big Brother,' but must 'Strangers' end, too?|date=September 27, 2000|work=[[The Seattle Times]]}}</ref>
In 2007, ''Strangers with Candy'' was ranked #30 on ''[[TV Guide]]'''s Top Cult Shows Ever.<ref name="TopCultShows">[http://www.tvguide.com/news/top-cult-shows-40239.aspx TV Guide Names the Top Cult Shows Ever – Today's News: Our Take] TV Guide: June 29, 2007</ref>
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Although the series had low ratings during its emission, it became a [[Cult film|cult classic]], and served as inspiration for other comedians and screenwriters.<ref>{{cite web|last=Adjei-Kontoh|first=Hubert|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2019/feb/19/amy-sedaris-at-home-season-two|title=How Amy Sedaris and her distinctive comedy finally found a home|work=The Guardian|date=February 19, 2019|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Leary|first=Matt|url=https://www.gawker.com/5459925%2Fexit-57-down-in-the-basement|title=Exit 57: Down In the Basement|work=Gawker|date=January 30, 2010|access-date=September 28, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213102342/https://www.gawker.com/5459925%2Fexit-57-down-in-the-basement|archive-date=February 13, 2023}}</ref> When talking about ''Would It Kill You to Laugh?'' [[John Early (comedian)|John Early]] and [[Kate Berlant]] cited the show as an influence, with Early saying: "It pushes back against schmaltziness in general, I feel a real kinship with that. It’s irreverent and it’s handled so well that it feels very personal."<ref>{{cite web|last=Harper|first=Blake|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/blakeharper/kate-berlant-john-early-inspirations|title=The 10 Things That Inspired Kate Berlant And John Early|work=Buzzfeed|date=June 24, 2022|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Gibsone|first=Harriet|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2018/feb/10/goodbye-lena-dunham-why-john-early-is-millennial-comedys-new-king|title=Goodbye Lena Dunham! Why John Early is millennial comedy’s new king|work=The Guardian|date=February 10, 2018|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Levin |first= Hannah |date=June 23, 2017|url=https://masterchatmag.com/2017/06/23/john-early-the-art-of-good-taste/|title=John Early: The Art Of Good Taste|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref> [[Lena Dunham]] also talked about it as an inspiration for ''[[Girls (TV series)|Girls]]'' and cited Jerri Blank as one of her favorite television characters.<ref>{{cite web|last=Schoenbrun |first=Jane |date=March 12, 2012|url=https://filmmakermagazine.com/42146-five-questions-with-girls-creator-lena-dunham/|title=Five Questions with Girls Creator Lena Dunham|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Carlson|first=Jen |date=April 4, 2012|url=https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/lena-dunham-talks-emgirlsem-boys-emdawsons-creekem|title=Lena Dunham Talks Girls, Boys & Dawson's Creek|work=Gothamist|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Everett|first=Cory |date=April 4, 2012|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2012/03/sxsw-12-lena-dunham-judd-apatow-the-team-behind-girls-discuss-the-brilliant-new-hbo-show-112170/|title=SXSW ’12: Lena Dunham, Judd Apatow & The Team Behind ‘Girls’ Discuss The Brilliant New HBO Show|work=IndieWire|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=April 9, 2012|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=av33w0k0lDQ|title=Lena Dunham & Lesley Arfin (GIRLS) - What's In My Bag?|work=Amoeba|access-date=April 27, 2023}}</ref> [[Cole Escola]], who was Sedaris's co-star on
In 2003, Dinello said of the show's cult status: "People were angered by it or fanatical about it. We were mocking the conventions of after-school specials and most of what you see on television--how easily things are sewn up, how false relationships are."<ref name="chicagotribune"/> In a panel with Levy, when asked about why they think the show had such a dedicated fanbase, Dinello and Sedaris said, "We embrace losers, misfits and outcasts." Sedaris has described the audience for the show as "[[Drag Queens]] getting ready on a Friday at 5:30."<ref name="92Y"/> as well as "Homosexuals and 14-year-olds and farmers and ghosts."<ref name="Transcript"/> She has also said, "I’m just glad it still lives on. It’s fun to know that you threw a hole on the wall, you went through it, you did this show that you didn’t know what it was, and now there’s a whole new generation of kids watching it. It’s still out there and still alive, and we’re all really proud of it.<ref name="CCORAL"/> Colbert echoed the statement: "It's a badge of honor that I served Amy's comedic vision. I could do hack shit for the rest of my life, but I'd go, "Yeah, but I also wrote that stuff."<ref name="GQ"/> In 2024 he described the show's fan base as "deeply troubled," continuing, "And I’m happy for them, because I’m deeply troubled too."<ref name="lat24"/>
==Film adaptation and future==
{{Main|Strangers with Candy (film)}}
On February 7, 2006, film company [[ThinkFilm]] announced that it had acquired the distribution rights to a feature film based on the series. The film, a [[prequel]] to the television show, was completed in 2004 and acquired by Warner Independent at Sundance in 2005, but release of the film was delayed due to legal clearance issues. Amy Sedaris, Stephen Colbert, and Paul Dinello reprised their roles for the film; several other characters were recast because the actors who played them now looked too old to be in high school. In addition to acting, Colbert is a co-producer and Dinello is a director for the film. [[Worldwide Pants]], a production company owned by comedian [[David Letterman]], was also a producer. This is the company's first feature film production. A [[teaser trailer]] for the film was released in April 2006.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6I9wgY91VB8 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/6I9wgY91VB8| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=STRANGERS WITH CANDY – Teaser Trailer – Exclusive First Look |publisher=YouTube |date=2006-04-25 |access-date=2013-12-04}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
The initial theatrical release was June 28, 2006, in the New York City area, followed by the remainder of the United States on July 7. A DVD of the film was released in November 2006. [[Amy Sedaris]] said of Jerri Blank that "she's like a rash; you never know when she's going to pop up."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://media.www.dailytexanonline.com/media/storage/paper410/news/2006/07/19/LifeArts/strangers.With.Candy.Show.Blooms.Into.Film.Promises.Laughs-2132789.shtml?sourcedomain=www.dailytexanonline.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com|title=Lauren Thompson, ''The Daily Texan''|date=2006-07-09|access-date=2006-07-09|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930200925/http://media.www.dailytexanonline.com/media/storage/paper410/news/2006/07/19/LifeArts/strangers.With.Candy.Show.Blooms.Into.Film.Promises.Laughs-2132789.shtml?sourcedomain=www.dailytexanonline.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com|archive-date=2007-09-30}}</ref>
In 2024, it was revealed that the creators had been approached about a revival of the series, which they have declined as "Nothing has felt right so far”.<ref name="lat24"/> Regardless, they have not brushed off the possibility of it coming back in some way. Dinello noted: "Everybody seems game to do something. But we need an adult to make it happen."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.emmys.com/news/online-originals/strangers-with-candy-amy-sedaris-paul-dinello-interview-25th-anniversary|first=Neil|last=Mortiz|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240408151607/https://www.emmys.com/news/online-originals/strangers-with-candy-amy-sedaris-paul-dinello-interview-25th-anniversary|url-status=live|archive-date=April 8, 2024|title=Strangers with Candy's Amy Sedaris Reflects on the Cult Sitcom's 25th Anniversary (Exclusive)|publisher=Television Academy|date=April 5, 2024|access-date=April 8, 2024}}</ref> Although Sedaris has brought up concerns about the difficulty to make the show now, due to its [[Political correctness|un-PC]] humor, Colbert has disagreed, "You can make anything you want, you just have to deal with people being upset."<ref name="lat24"/>
==References==
{{Reflist
<ref name="Wynn">
{{cite web
|last = Wynn
|first = Natalie
|author-link = Natalie Wynn
|title = Jordan Peterson
|date = May 2, 2018
|publisher = YouTube
|url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LqZdkkBDas#t=440
|time = 7:20
|access-date = May 6, 2024
|quote = On the Left we don’t really talk about [the meaning of life]. All we talk about is how society oppresses people. And that might not be enough, because people need to have a positive purpose in life. I mean, personally, I don’t give a shit: I’m pretty happy to sit here watching the same three seasons of Strangers With Candy until I die.
}}
</ref>
}}
==External links==
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[[Category:1990s American high school television series]]
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[[Category:1990s American satirical television series]]
[[Category:2000s American satirical television series]]
[[Category:1990s American single-camera sitcoms]]
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[[Category:American English-language television shows]]
[[Category:American LGBT-related sitcoms]]
[[Category:Stephen Colbert]]
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