The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that operated from 1995 to 2006. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' subsidiary, United Television. Viacom turned it into a joint venture in 1996 after acquiring a 50% stake in the network, and subsequently purchased Chris-Craft's remaining stake in 2000. On December 31, 2005, UPN was kept by CBS Corporation, which was the new name for Viacom when it split into two separate companies. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Time Warner jointly announced that the companies would shut down UPN and competitor The WB to launch a new joint venture network later that year. UPN ceased broadcasting on September 15, 2006, with The WB following two days later. Select programs from both networks moved to the new network, The CW, when it launched on September 18, 2006.
The Larry Sanders Show is an American television sitcom set in the office and studio of a fictional late-night talk show. The series was created by Garry Shandling and Dennis Klein and aired from August 15, 1992, to May 31, 1998, on the HBO cable television network.
George Denis Patrick Carlin was an American comedian, actor, author, and social critic. Regarded as one of the most important and influential stand-up comedians of all time, he was dubbed "the dean of counterculture comedians". He was known for his black comedy and reflections on politics, the English language, psychology, religion, and taboo subjects.
Richard Philip Lewis was an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. Lewis came to prominence in the 1980s and became known for his dark, neurotic, and self-deprecating humor. As an actor, he was known for starring in the ABC sitcom Anything but Love from 1989 to 1992, and for playing the role of Prince John in the 1993 film Robin Hood: Men in Tights. Lewis also had a recurring role as a semi-fictionalized version of himself in the HBO comedy series Curb Your Enthusiasm from 2000 to 2024.
Kevin Brennan is an American stand-up comedian, podcaster, and writer. He is the host of the Misery Loves Company podcast, and is best known for his work on Saturday Night Live'sWeekend Update in 1999 and 2000.
Robert Klein is an American stand-up comedian, singer, and actor. He is known for his appearances on stage and screen. He has released four standup comedy specials: A Child of the 50s (1973), Mind Over Matter (1974), New Teeth (1975), and Let's Not Make Love (1990). The first two albums received Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album nominations. Klein hosted Saturday Night Live in its first season in 1975 and again in 1978. Klein made his Broadway debut in the 1966 production of The Apple Tree opposite Alan Alda. He earned a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical nomination for his performance in Neil Simon's musical comedy They're Playing Our Song (1979).He also starred on his own show that aired on the cable network USA called Robert Klein Time in the mid 80s(1986-88).
Jeffrey Marshall Foxworthy is an American comedian, actor, author, radio and television host, and writer. He is a member of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, with Larry the Cable Guy, Bill Engvall, and formerly Ron White. Known for his "You might be a redneck" one-liners, Foxworthy has released six major-label comedy albums. His first two albums were each certified triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. He has written several books based on his redneck jokes, as well as an autobiography entitled No Shirt, No Shoes... No Problem!
The following is the 1994–95 network television schedule for the six major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 1994 through August 1995. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and series cancelled after the 1993–94 season. All times are Eastern and Pacific, with certain exceptions, such as Monday Night Football. This was the first season to feature the United Paramount Network and The WB Television Network, as both launched in January 1995. Both networks would ultimately shutdown and form The CW in September 2006.
Shorties Watchin' Shorties is an American adult animated comedy television series that aired on Comedy Central from April 28 to December 16, 2004. The show is made up of various short animated clips with audio from comedians' stand up routines. It also features two "shorties," a pair of babies voiced by Nick DiPaolo and Patrice O'Neal who watch and comment upon the routines on TV. For many of the episodes, the babies only stayed in the house, but in later episodes, they were shown walking around the city.
George Henry Wallace is an American comedian and actor. Wallace has had supporting roles in a number of films, including 3 Strikes and the Coen Brothers film The Ladykillers. Wallace also appeared in Batman Forever (1995) as the Mayor of Gotham City. Other film credits include A Rage in Harlem (1991), The Wash (2001), Punchline (1988), Things Are Tough All Over (1982), Postcards from the Edge (1990), and Mr. Deeds (2002).
Richard John Colangelo, better known by his stage name Richard Jeni, was an American stand-up comedian and actor.
Love, Inc. is an American television sitcom created by Andrew Secunda, which originally aired for one season on United Paramount Network (UPN) from September 22, 2005, to May 11, 2006. With an ensemble cast led by Busy Philipps, Vince Vieluf, Reagan Gomez-Preston, Ion Overman and Holly Robinson Peete, the show revolves around five matchmakers working at a dating agency. The series was produced by Chase TV, the Littlefield Company, Burg/Koules Television, and Paramount Television. It was distributed by UPN in its original run and later by LivingTV and Nelonen in the United Kingdom and Finland respectively. The executive producers were Adam Chase, Warren Littlefield, Mark Burg and Oren Koules.
Bill Cosby: Himself is a 1983 comedy film featuring American stand-up comedian Bill Cosby. Filmed before a live audience at Hamilton Place, in Hamilton, Ontario in 1981, Cosby gives the audience his views ranging from marriage to parenthood. The film also showcases Cosby's conversational style of stand-up comedy. For most of the performance, Cosby is seated center-stage, only getting up to emphasize a joke.
Pig Sty is an American sitcom that aired on UPN during the network's first season. The series premiered on January 23, 1995, ran on Monday nights, after Star Trek: Voyager and Platypus Man, and was cancelled after 13 episodes on May 15, 1995. Pig Sty was produced by Paramount Network Television.
The Watcher is an American anthology drama series created by Christopher Crowe that premiered on UPN on January 17, 1995 and ended on June 7, 1995, during the network's inaugural season. The series aired Tuesday night at 9:00 p.m Eastern time.
Yvette Reneé Wilson was an American comedian and actress. She was known for her role as Andell Wilkerson, the shopkeeper of the local hangout on the UPN sitcoms Moesha (1996–2001); and restaurant owner and Nikki's best friend on its spinoff The Parkers (1999–2004). She had appeared in many comedy films such as House Party 3, Friday, and on Russell Simmons' Def Comedy Jam. She was also known for her role as Rita in the 1995 F. Gary Gray film Friday. Wilson died from cervical cancer at the age of 48.
Peter Benedict Holmes is an American comedian, actor, writer, producer, and podcaster. Musings on spirituality and religion are frequent themes in his works.
Chris Rock: Bring the Pain is a television special that premiered on HBO on June 1, 1996, starring comedian Chris Rock. This was Rock's second special for the network, following 1994's Big Ass Jokes as part of HBO Comedy Half-Hour. Rock was already a well-known comedian, but Bring the Pain made him one of the most popular comedians in the United States. The special included subjects about then-D.C. mayor Marion Barry, the O. J. Simpson murder case, dating, marriage, and race relations in America.
David Adkins, better known by his stage name Sinbad, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He became known in the 1990s from being featured on his own HBO specials, appearing on several television series, most notably as Coach Walter Oakes in A Different World (1987–1991) and as David Bryan on The Sinbad Show (1993–1994). He has also appeared in films such as That's Adequate (1989), Coneheads (1993), Houseguest (1995), Jingle All the Way (1996), Crazy as Hell (2002) and Planes (2013).
In 1995, Viacom and Chris-Craft Industries' United Television launched United Paramount Network (UPN) with Star Trek: Voyager as its flagship series, fulfilling Barry Diller's plan for a Paramount network from 25 years earlier. In 1999, Viacom bought out United Television's interests, and handed responsibility for the start-up network to the newly acquired CBS unit, which Viacom bought in 1999 – an ironic confluence of events as Paramount had once invested in CBS, and Viacom had once been the syndication arm of CBS as well. During this period the studio acquired some 30 television stations to support the UPN network as well acquiring and merging in the assets of Republic Pictures, Spelling Television and Viacom Television, almost doubling the size of the studio's television library.
