The cast of Those Funky Idiots are preparing to film its cable access show, which celebrated 4 years on the air this month.

"It's the only sitcom on cable access in Delaware County," Funky Idiots creator Tom Cherry was proud to point out.

The sitcom airs Mondays and Tuesdays on Delaware County's cable access channel 42 (it recently moved from channel 15). Other shows in the weekly lineup offer karate instruction, church sing-a-longs, government meetings, pets who need homes, independent movies and more.

The camera begins rolling, Cherry holds the intro cards as he sings: "They live down the street , they're not very neat. Those Funky Idiots."

Cut. Time for some background.

Those Funky Idiots takes place in Waffleville. There you'll find Uncle Arlo Wazzo, his niece Amanda, Birnie the next door neighbor, a foreign exchange student named Sven, tough guy Vinnie Tuscany, cowboy mailman Tulsa Pike, Sarah Euler the public access queen wannabe, the Rummage Sale Lady, a puppet for a mayor and more.

"I think of it as kind of a Family Affair thing," Cherry said.

Family Affair in the Twilight Zone, perhaps.

The show started as a Thanksgiving tradition. "Aunt Linda got a video camera, brought it to the family Thanksgiving dinner, and 3 hours later we came out with a video," cast member Tim Richardson said.

"It was Tom's brainchild", said Richardson, a Southside High School student. "He decided that we should get it on the air." They called cable access. "They pretty much said we could shoot a blank wall and get it on the air, so we knew we were set," Richardson said.

Cherry and Richardson are joined on the show by other Southside students Brad Quinton, 18, Audrea Quinton, 16, and Jon Sipes, 18. The group films every 2 weeks in the garage of Richardson's grandmother.

The set is simple -an old couch, a few chairs, a coffee table, a leaning Christmas tree and a backdrop. "[The backdrop is] actually the box that the new couch came in...that's why we got this couch," Richardson said. But the show is not limited to the garage. The cast will often film on location-a rollerskating rink, a "bridge" at Mansfield Park, the streets of Muncie.

After the first few episodes, people started recognizing the cast on the street, at the bank, in the grocery store. "Every girl I've dated since then , their moms have taped the show," Richardson said.

Century Communications, which oversees Channel 42, recently sent a survey to subscribers (about 300). One question was whether or not they watched cable access. "About 50 percent of the responses said they watch it at least weekly," general manager Phil Hopkins said. "Many watch it for the community messages." 

"This is a great opportunity that we have to focus on local news and local entertainment," he said.

And it's easy to do. Get a camera (Century has one you can borrow). Run through the cable access guidelines (no profanity, nudity, disrespectful behavior) and start shooting.

Sonny Johnson, owner of Sonny Johnson's Karate, started his own show a little more than 3 years ago. The show, Sonny Johnson's Intro to Martial Arts, airs Wednesdays. "I think the show has been very helpful," Johnson said. "It has taught people about self defense, movement, and it's provided pointers for people who are involved in martial arts classes."

He films the show with a class of martial arts students, beginners to advanced. "I get comments from people when I'm around town," he said. "It's great to know that people are actually staying home to watch you, or better yet, that they are watching your show instead of another one."

When you pair easy-to-follow instructions with the certain celebrity status you achieve in town, it's easy to see why folks have kept cameras rolling. Cherry said he was surprised more people didn't have shows. "It's a lot of fun and anyone can do it," he said. Hopkins agreed. "We could use even more diversity on cable access," he said.

The Funky Idiots cast runs through the lines for the first scene. Richardson grabs the camera and Cherry and Brad Quinton get in their places. Cherry puts on neon green frog glasses and Quinton plops on his black cowboy hat.

"And action!" Richardson announced.

 

PREVIOUS ARTICLE

PRESS

NEXT ARTICLE