Trash TV Party
So you want to host your own trash tv party?
Are you sure?
Really? Well, okay. There's no accounting for taste.
I put together a few tips I've learned after a few years of hosting
trash tv parties:
-
Have key party members bring a show to watch during the evening. (Give
them time constraints. Try to keep the actual TV watching time to under
three hours. Even die-hard fans burn out after that.) Check out some of
the shows that have made it in the past few years.
-
In addition to snacks, have an actual dinner break where you turn off the
TV and give everyone a break.
-
Plan a party game.
-
I, of course, make up my own games. Like the Trash TV
game. See how creative you can be.
-
Make a trivia game. Ask all the party members to make up questions and
a category. That way everyone can play.
-
Have everyone bring a 1-5 minute clip of the worst show thye can find.
The group votes on who has the "best of the worst" and the winner gets
the doorprize.
-
More into spontaneity? Just get a TV show book. My favorite is The Complete
Directory to Prim Time Network and Cable TV Shows by Tim Brooks and
Earle Marsh. Open to any page, pick a show, and have someone come up with
a sequel to the show.
If you have a trash tv party, let
me know how it goes. 
Door Prizes
Past cherished door prizes include:
Shows Featured on Trash TV Nights in the Past
Although trash tv is generally considered "shows you watch with the
curtains shut," I do have a few exceptions.
-
No easy targets. If I wanted to watch episodes of A-Team or Knightrider,
I would, but unless it's a special episode (see Chips,
below) the rule is "try to put some effort into it."
-
If anyone begins to bleed from the eyes, it is permissible to stop the
tape. Otherwise, once it's rolling, everyone must suffer through.
-
In place of a trash tv episode, your television finale can be a little-known
show that is actually good, that you want to turn everyone onto. (I did
this with X-Files when it was brand new and no one had heard of it.)
Look down the list. Although primarily bad shows, I have listed a couple
that fell under the exception #3 rule. If I have listed your favorite show
and you are offended, my apologies in advance.
By the way, several of these classics seem to have no shrines out there
in Webland. Can you imagine that there is no one hosting candlelight vigils
in hopes of bringing back "Manimal"? If you or anyone you know has a beloved
webpage which I should link to, please let me know.
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