GONE TOO SOON: The State (1993 – 1995)
The sketch-comedy troupe The State were given a television show on MTV in 1993 and ran for three seasons on the station before parting ways. The State produced many familiar faces in television and comedy and still to this day, the show makes me laugh whenever I am able to catch the rare repeats. After issuing the complete series on DVD in 2009, there was a short resurgence of airing the program on MTV, but it has since subsided.
Some of the most memorable characters from The State include Louie, portrayed by Ken Marino, and Doug, played by a personal favorite, Michael Showalter. Louie was everybody’s favorite party attendee who had the famously quotable catch-phrase “I wanna dip my balls in it”. Somehow, it managed to not get old hearing that episode after episode. And who could forget Old Fashioned Guy? Nothing like an old, ignorant white dude to make you laugh.
Cast members of The State have gone on to accomplish successful careers in the entertainment industry. David Wain has directed several hilarious movies, including Wet Hot American Summer, The Ten, and Role Models, as well as the current Adult Swim hit Childrens Hospital. Wain also was a part of the Stella troupe with former State alumni Michael Ian Black and Michael Showalter. Black has been seen all over TV, most notably on VH1 (sorry Mike), while Showalter went on to write and direct one of my favorite flicks, The Baxter, and pen a recent book, Mr. Funnypants. Thomas Lennon has had an extremely successful run as Officer Dangle on Reno: 911, along with co-stars Robert Ben Grant and Keri Kenney. Anyone who did not think The State were a talented group of comedians can just look at their impressive accomplishments since the show ended as evidence.
