Stella | |
---|---|
DVD cover for season one of Stella. | |
Created by | Michael Ian Black Michael Showalter David Wain |
Starring | Michael Ian Black Michael Showalter David Wain |
Opening theme | Instrumental theme by Craig Wedren |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 10 |
Production | |
Executive producers | Michael Ian Black Michael Showalter David Wain |
Producer | Jerry Kupfer |
Camera setup | Single camera |
Running time | 20–22 minutes (approx.) |
Original release | |
Network | Comedy Central |
Release | June 28 – August 30, 2005 |
Stella is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran from June 28 to August 30, 2005 on Comedy Central. It was created by and stars Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter, and David Wain, former cast members of MTV's The State (1993). As a comedy troupe, Stella started in 1997 and played to sold out shows across the United States with a cult following. In September, after 10 episodes, Stella's timeslot was succeeded by Mind of Mencia . The DVD was released on September 12, 2006.
In the pilot only, the third roommate was played by Rashida Jones.
Stella is an adaptation of the Stella comedy troupe's stage show and short films. The series centers on Michael, Michael, and David, three childlike men who consistently wear suits, live together in a New York apartment, and seemingly have no employment. The show blends sketch comedy with a sitcom format, featuring a central plot for each episode along with recurring characters, but it disregards continuity and often embraces surreal elements.
The trio had made 28 short films between 1998 and 2002, which were shown as part of the live show. The shorts cover various topics such as searching for Santa, mustache growing, pizza eating, and other absurd situations. The group cleaned up much of its material for the show, much of which had been often derived from taboo or adult topics like necrophilia and dildos.
The show employs absurdist humor. Notable guest stars include Paul Rudd, Rashida Jones, Sam Rockwell, Topher Grace, Tim Blake Nelson, Alan Ruck, Janeane Garofalo, Elizabeth Banks, and Edward Norton.
No. | Title | Original air date | Prod. code |
---|---|---|---|
1 | "Pilot" | June 28, 2005 | 101 |
The guys are kicked out of their apartment after finally pushing their landlord too far. | |||
2 | "Campaign" | July 5, 2005 | 102 |
When Michael Ian Black decides to run for president of the resident's board, David is left on the outs doing menial internship work. | |||
3 | "Office Party" | July 12, 2005 | 105 |
The guys get invited to one of their neighbors' office party and run afoul of a couple of stereotypical office jerks. They plot their revenge at the next company picnic. | |||
4 | "Coffee Shop" | July 19, 2005 | 103 |
When the girls downstairs have a fight, the guys tell them the story of the time their friendship was almost destroyed by their competing coffee shop jobs. | |||
5 | "Paper Route" | July 26, 2005 | 104 |
After running over the paperboy, Kevin O'Malley, the guys take over his paper route, but get discouraged after getting beaten up by bullies. They set out to teach the bullies about the power of friendship. | |||
6 | "Meeting Girls" | August 2, 2005 | 107 |
The guys dance in a bar and become popular. While they are there, Michael Ian Black and Michael Showalter get dates and David does not. Problems ensue, and soon, Michael and Michael move out, and David is forced to replace them with new roommates as they begin their lives with their new significant others. David's new roommate Jeremy in this episode is played by Josh Charles, Michael Ian Black's girlfriend Tamara is played by Elizabeth Banks, and a scene from this episode was filmed at Alfred Lerner Hall. | |||
7 | "Camping" | August 9, 2005 | 106 |
Tired of working, the guys take a vacation to the forest, where they quickly get lost. | |||
8 | "Novel" | August 16, 2005 | 108 |
Inspired by famous author Jane Burroughs (who is played by Janeane Garofalo), the trio tries their hand at writing. They show their manuscript to Jane, who steals it, with the intention of publishing it under her own name. | |||
9 | "Vegetables" | August 23, 2005 | 109 |
The guys decide to grow their own vegetables on their apartment floor to save money. | |||
10 | "Amusement Park" | August 30, 2005 | 110 |
The guys are excited to go on a trip to the amusement park to alleviate their irritation with each other, but the trip is ruined by rainy weather. The girls downstairs recommend visiting a psychiatrist, who commits them after they have a fight in his office. |
The State is an American sketch comedy television series originally broadcast on MTV from 1994 to 1995. The show combined bizarre characters and scenarios to present sketches that won the favor of its target teenaged audience. The cast consisted of comedy troupe The State, who were 11 comedians who created, acted, wrote, directed and edited the show. In various combinations, the former members of The State have continued to collaborate over the years, with alumni playing major creative, directing and acting roles in a number of notable projects including Reno 911! and Wet Hot American Summer.
Wet Hot American Summer is a 2001 American satirical comedy film directed by David Wain from a screenplay written by Wain and Michael Showalter. The film features an ensemble cast, including Janeane Garofalo, David Hyde Pierce, Molly Shannon, Paul Rudd, Christopher Meloni, Showalter, Elizabeth Banks, Ken Marino, Michael Ian Black, Bradley Cooper, Amy Poehler, Zak Orth, and A. D. Miles. It takes place during the last full day at a fictional summer camp in 1981, and spoofs the sex comedies aimed at teen audiences of that era.
Reno 911! is an American comedy television series created by Robert Ben Garant, Thomas Lennon and Kerri Kenney-Silver for Comedy Central. It is a mockumentary-style parody of law enforcement documentary shows, specifically Cops, with comic actors playing the police officers. Lennon, Garant and Kenney-Silver all starred in and are billed as creators of the series.
Stella or STELLA may refer to:
Michael Ian Black is an American actor, writer, and comedian. He has starred in several TV comedy series, including The State, Viva Variety, Stella, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, Michael & Michael Have Issues, and Another Period. In the late 1990s to early 2000s, he was the puppeteer and voice actor for the Pets.com sock puppet dog, and played a supporting character on the TV series Ed. Since 2008 he has written a number of books, including several for children.
Kenneth Joseph Marino is an American actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. He was a cast member on MTV's The State and has starred in shows such as Party Down, Marry Me, Burning Love, and Childrens Hospital. He played the Lehman brothers on the Showtime series Black Monday. He also stars as Victor in the cult-classic comedy film Wet Hot American Summer, as well as its spin-offs.
David Benjamin Wain is an American comedian, writer, actor, and director. He has co-written and directed six feature films, including Wet Hot American Summer (2001), Role Models (2008), Wanderlust (2012), and They Came Together (2014). He has also served as a creator, producer, writer and director on a number of television series, including Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, Childrens Hospital, and Medical Police. He has had small roles in most of the films and TV series he has produced or directed. Wain had a starring voice role as The Warden on the 2008–2014 Adult Swim animated series Superjail!, and has provided the voices for Courtney Wheeler and Grover Fischoeder on Bob's Burgers since 2012.
Viva Variety is an American sketch comedy series that aired on Comedy Central from April 1997 to December 1999. The series satirizes European variety shows.
Michael Showalter is an American comedian, actor, director, writer, and producer. He first came to recognition as a cast member on MTV's The State, which aired from 1993 to 1995. He and David Wain created the Wet Hot American Summer franchise, with Showalter co-writing and starring in Wet Hot American Summer (2001), and the Netflix series. Showalter wrote and directed The Baxter (2005), in which he starred with Michelle Williams, Justin Theroux, and Elizabeth Banks. Both films featured many of his co-stars from The State, and so do several of his other projects. Showalter is also a co-creator, co-producer, actor, and writer for the TV series Search Party. He directed the 2017 critically acclaimed feature film The Big Sick.
Rashida Leah Jones is an American actress and filmmaker. She is best known for her roles as Louisa Fenn on the Fox drama series Boston Public (2000–2002), as Karen Filippelli on the NBC comedy series The Office, as Ann Perkins on the NBC comedy series Parks and Recreation (2009–2015), and as the eponymous lead role in the TBS comedy series Angie Tribeca (2016–2019).
The Baxter is a 2005 American comedy film written by, directed by and starring comedian Michael Showalter. A "Baxter", as defined by the film, is the nice, dull guy in a romantic comedy who is dumped at the end of the story for the protagonist.
Andrea Rosen is an American comedian and actress most notable for her work with comedy troupes Stella and Variety Shac, and for her appearances in numerous television commercials. She is the creator of Take Me to Your Mother, a documentary-style comedy on the Nick Jr. Channel/NickMom cable network.
Anthony David Miles is an American actor, writer and comedian. He was head writer for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon from 2014 to 2017, which he helped to develop. As an actor, he is best known as step-dad Gary on the Fallon skit Ew! and as Marty Shonson on Comedy Central's Dog Bites Man. He has also appeared in multiple other Fallon sketches, such as a member of the Ragtime Gals and Mr. Fletcher in the sketches in which Fallon and Justin Timberlake sing songs at their childhood camp. He also appeared in recurring roles on both Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!
Stella is a comedy trio or comedy troupe consisting of Michael Showalter, Michael Ian Black, and David Wain. The group formed in 1997 as a weekly nightclub comedy attraction, performing at New York City nightclub Fez from 1997 until the club's closing in February 2005. Stella soon gained a wider cult following after a series of self-produced shorts known as the Stella shorts were released in limited quantities on DVD beginning in 2002. The trio later created and starred in a Stella television series in 2005. Now known for their unique blend of potentially mainstream comedy and surrealist humor, Stella has garnered a small but dedicated fanbase.
The Stella shorts are a collection of short films by the comedy group Stella. The short films were produced and written by Michael Showalter, Michael Ian Black, and David Wain, who also star in the shorts with a number of guest actors. They have gained considerable popularity on the Internet, after initially appearing on CollegeHumor.
Joe Lo Truglio is an American actor and comedian. Best known for his role as Charles Boyle on the Fox/NBC sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine, he also was a cast member on the television series The State and Reno 911!. His notable film roles include Wet Hot American Summer, I Love You, Man, Superbad, Paul, Role Models, and Wanderlust.
Wainy Days is an internet video series starring David Wain that is hosted on the website My Damn Channel. The web series follows a fictionalized version of Wain through his everyday life as he tries to form relationships with numerous women and discusses his problems with his friends at the sweatshop where he works. Elizabeth Banks, Jonah Hill, Julie Bowen, Megan Mullally, Jason Sudeikis, Rob Corddry, Lake Bell, Amanda Peet, Rosemarie DeWitt, Elizabeth Reaser, Thomas Lennon, Joe Lo Truglio, Josh Charles, Lucy Punch, A.D. Miles, Paul Rudd, Michael Ian Black, Rashida Jones, Michael Showalter and various other Stella/The State/Wet Hot American Summer alumni have all guest-starred in various episodes. A DVD containing the first four seasons was released February 14, 2012. In 2013, Blip Partnered with My Damn Channel, leading to season 5 of Wainy Days being premiered simultaneously on Blip and MyDamnChannel.
Michael & Michael Have Issues is a cable television comedy series starring comedians and actors Michael Ian Black and Michael Showalter, who created the series. Both comedians appeared together in several TV comedy series, including The State, and Stella. The show premiered on July 15, 2009, on Comedy Central. Showalter and Black confirmed on March 3, 2010, via their Twitter accounts that the show had been canceled.
Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp is an American satirical comedy television miniseries written by David Wain and Michael Showalter, and directed by Wain. First Day of Camp is the second installment in the Wet Hot American Summer franchise. The eight-episode Netflix series is a prequel to Wain's 2001 film Wet Hot American Summer, a parody of teen sex comedies which has since developed a cult following. Although many of the original film's ensemble cast have gone on to high-profile work, all of the then-adult actors returned for this series, playing even younger versions of their original roles. The episodes were released for online viewing at the end of July 2015.
The State is an American comedy troupe. The troupe was founded by a group of New York University students in 1988, as an offshoot of the NYU improv comedy group The Sterile Yak; it was briefly named The New Group before landing on the name The State. The troupe's members are Kevin Allison, Michael Ian Black, Robert Ben Garant, Todd Holoubek, Michael Patrick Jann, Kerri Kenney-Silver, Thomas Lennon, Joe Lo Truglio, Ken Marino, Michael Showalter and David Wain. As a group, the troupe is best known for creating and starring in the 1993-1995 MTV sketch comedy series The State. However, since the show aired, members of the troupe have frequently collaborated on other television and film projects, including Viva Variety, Reno 911!, and the Wet Hot American Summer media franchise. The comedy group Stella is composed of three of The State's members, Showalter, Black and Wain, and starred in the 2005 sketch comedy series Stella, among other works. Additionally, some members of The State have achieved independent success as comic actors, writers and directors.
"Stella: The New Marx Brothers" -- Rolling Stone interview