It’s not the revival of "In Living Color" some of us were hoping for, but Fox is getting back into the sketch comedy business.
The network has ordered a pilot for "Inside Jokes," a sketchcom that promises to bring classic comedy back to life in a unique way. That means well-known comedy from the past will be presented in a new way. While not a pure sketch show like "Saturday Night Live," the show will have a regular cast and short-form comedy bits.
Merv Griffin Entertainment and "Entourage" star Kevin Connolly are behind the project, with Roy Bank, Connolly, Ted Brunetti, Ron Ward and John Moffitt executive producing. Gerry Cohen will direct.
"If you can make people laugh you’ve accomplished something pretty special and this show, if nothing else, is full of laughs," Bank told TheWrap via e-mail Wednesday night. " ‘Inside’ Jokes is a simple, straight-forward but totally fresh way of doing short-form comedy that we hope will resonate as familiar yet innovative — and most of all funny."
Fox, despite its relative youth, has a rich history with sketch and short-form comedy.
"In Living Color," from the Wayans, was one of Fox’s earliest big hits. The network also won critical love (but low ratings) with the before-its-time Ben Stiller show.
It’s tried a few other primetime sketch attempts in recent years (including a not so funny Kelsey Grammer-produced half-hour), but with no luck. The network also recently bid farewell to latenight sketch show "Mad TV."
