Whose Line is it?

     It appears that I am on a T.V. nostalgia kick at the moment. A couple days ago I posted about the "Animaniacs," today it is "Whose Line is it Anyway."
     For those of you not familiar (which rock have you been living under, anyways?) with WLIIA, it is a sketch comedy show. I was first introduced to the idea back in 1995, while I was a freshman in college. I believe the concept originated in Britain.       
     Here in the States Together, Drew Carey was the host of WLIIIA, and there was a rotating cast of 4 different comedians. A couple of the comedians seemed to have fairly permanent spots on the show, Colin Mochrie, Ryan Stiles and Wayne Brady. Apparently Colin & Ryan were transfers from the British show. Wikipedia gives the following information: "The show occasionally featured celebrity fourth-chairs: Robin Williams, Kathy Kinney, Kathy Griffin and Whoopi Goldberg each made appearances. Other celebrities made guest appearances for individual games, including: Sid Caesar, David Hasselhoff, Florence Henderson, Jerry Springer, Joanie "Chyna" Laurer, Richard Simmons, Katie Harman, Jayne Trcka, Hugh Hefner and Lassie."
     Drew would give two or more of the comedians different scenarios, words, or props, and the comedians would have to come up with a quick comedic scene incorporating the given item. Sometimes they had to make up a song on the spot and sing it with the accompanying music. There were points awarded, but as Drew said at the beginning of the show, "the points don't matter." A winner was chosen at the end of the show, the prize being either participating in a sketch with Drew, directing Drew and another player in a sketch, or reading the closing credits is a manner dictated by Drew.
     Whose Line is it Anyway was a niche show. It was neither fish nor fowl. It was not a sitcom, not a cartoon, not a soap, a drama, or any of the other typical T.V. show categories. This lack of fitting into a classic definition may have been part of what contributed to its demise.
     If you are not familiar with the genre, spend some time checking it out. A great resource is Mark's guide to Whose Line is it Anyway over at www.whoseline.net/index.html. Be sure and investigate the games guide link, which lists nearly all the different games played on the show over the course of its run. Be warned that Drew and Co. are not always clean or appropriate, which is why I will not include a clip in this post.
     And remember, as is often true in life, "the points don't matter."