My Big Redneck Wedding is a reality television series airing on CMT

CMT

- Medicine :* California mastitis test* Certified Massage Therapist* Cervical motion tenderness, a sign of pelvic inflammatory disease* Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease* Chemically modified tetracyclines* Circus Movement Tachycardia...

. Hosted and narrated by actor

Actor

An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...

 and comedian

Comedian

A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...

, Tom Arnold

Tom Arnold (actor)

Thomas Dwaine "Tom" Arnold is an American actor and comedian. He has appeared in many films, perhaps most notably True Lies . He was the host of The Best Damn Sports Show Period for four years.-Early life:...

, the show debuted Friday, 11 January 2008 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. My Big Redneck Wedding is produced by Pink Sneakers Productions, a production company located in Orlando, Florida.

CMT states: "....After scouring the country to find the most down-home country couples, CMT documents their journey down the aisle, as outrageous and over the top as it might be. Each episode, hosted by Tom Arnold, will feature a different redneck wedding, each with its own rustic eccentricities, whether it is a four-legged best man, a romantic beer can canopy, a celebratory shotgun salute or a reception filled with mattress surfing and mud wrestling

Mud wrestling

Mud wrestling is defined as physical confrontation that occurs in mud or a mud pit. The popular modern interpretation specifies that participants wrestle while wearing minimal clothing and usually going barefoot, with the emphasis on presenting an entertaining spectacle as opposed to physically...

."

The show profiles country couples who plan over-the-top, country-western style weddings. The couples proudly celebrate their down-home heritage by getting hitched on horseback, exchanging vows with the help of ordained ex-cons, or hosting mud-wrestling competitions during the reception. Baked beans

Baked beans

Baked beans is a dish containing beans, sometimes baked but, despite the name, usually stewed, in a sauce. Most commercial canned baked beans are made from haricot beans, also known as navy beans – a variety of Phaseolus vulgaris – in a sauce. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, a tomato...

, roast squirrel, and turkey testicles make for finger-licking meals. Family members and guests contribute to the festive fun by buying unique lingerie

Lingerie

Lingerie are fashionable and possibly alluring undergarments.Lingerie usually incorporates one or more flexible, stretchy materials like Lycra, nylon , polyester, satin, lace, silk and sheer fabric which are not typically used in more functional, basic cotton undergarments.The term in the French...

 for the bride or organizing shotgun salutes.

Casting calls

Casting calls were posted on the web September 21, 2007 for interested couples across the country. The posting indicated:

"CMT is currently casting for the new series "My Big Redneck Wedding." This show will document the planning and preparation it takes to pull off a truly fun, down-to-earth, redneck nuptial. From denim wedding dresses, to camouflage tuxedos, shotgun salutes, and arriving at the reception on an ATV—anything goes, as long as it's rowdy and redneck!"

In addition to requiring applicants to be "redneck and proud of it", CMT asked that applicants appear to be between the ages of 18 and 45 and that they are planning a "super redneck" wedding. CMT was scheduled to begin shooting immediately so applicants should have set a wedding date anywhere from September to December 2007. CMT also hoped couples "(w)ould like to share their lives and wedding day with us." Applicants were asked to send an email

Email

Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...

 with name, contact information, wedding location, and a photo of the bride and groom.

Casting calls were closed on December 25, 2007.

Casting calls were reopened on October 1, 2010 for the new season that will begin to air January 21, 2011.

Episodes

Seasons 1 and 2 consist of eight episodes whereas Season 3 is a sixteen episode run.



Season 1



1. Anna & Carl - Borden, IN

2. Suzy & Ron - Norco, CA

3. Geneva & Kyle - Copper Hill, TN

4. Christy & Kevin - Lithia, FL

5. Gail & John - Westover, MD

6. Tami & Brad - Puyallup, WA

7. Amber & John - Statenville, GA

8. Kelli & Ron - Hunker, PA



Season 2



1. Anna & Bo - Verbena, AL

2. Jeanne & Phil - Midway, MD

3. Emily & Eric - Worden, MT

4. Amyie & George - Francisco, IN

5. Sabrena & Blair - Columbus, PA

6. Rawni & Rob - Dublin, GA

7. Lynn & Graeme - Lake Wales, FL

8. Shawna & Vince - Sprague, WA



Season 3



1. Sandy & David - Woodriver, IL

2. Melissa & Bradley - Venedocia, OH

3. Kimberly & Heinz - Portersville, PA

4. Amy & Keith - Wyoming, MI

5. Jamie & Jimmy - Clarksburg, WV

6. Vickie & Brandon

7. Terri & Greg

8. Leann & Gary

9. Tamzen & Kevin

10. LeeAnne & Nathan

11. Kathy & Gator

12. Jessica & Jon

13. Christy & Chris

14. Carol & Carlis

15. Taran & James

16. Cindy & Gene

Reception

Common Sense reviewer Melissa Camacho wrote: "The series attempts to diffuse existing stereotypes about people from the South by using the term "redneck" to connote pride in one's Southern heritage. But the weddings here are presented as bizarre and eccentric and sometimes feature behavior that comes off as uneducated and crass. Instead of celebrating the fun, meaningful side of country-style weddings, the show actually perpetuates negative stereotypes about the South." Camacho also noted that the show's "extensive alcohol consumption and some salty language" made it "rough viewing" for youngsters.

Deanna Goodson in her review, "CMT Should Ditch This Redneck Getting Hitched Schtick" (14 January 2008), states: "We’re not sure why we sat down to watch “My Big Redneck Wedding” on CMT. This parody of a TV series premiered on Friday, January 11 at 8:30 pm CST. Hosted by Tom Arnold – oh yes – the thrice-wed 'star' of small and big screen himself – Redneck Wedding is one big Jeff Foxworthy

Jeff Foxworthy

Jeffrey Marshall "Jeff" Foxworthy is an American comedian, television and radio personality and author. He is a member of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, a comedy troupe which also comprises Larry the Cable Guy, Bill Engvall and Ron White. Known for his "you might be a redneck" one-liners, Foxworthy...

joke come to life."

She continues: "The couple featured in the premiere, Carl and Anna, decided to have a western-inspired wedding. Anna went to a costume shop to pick up her Dolly Parton-esque ensemble. Carl wore a tux, but asked if'n he had to wear shoes with it. The duo lives right behind a train tracks because the price is right. The groom-to-be dumpster dives for his bride's gift because he doesn't believe in buying something when you can 'git it for free'."

"The bachelor party featured poker and deep-fried turkey nuts. Yes, Carl found turkey testicles, fried 'em up and fed 'em to his buddies. Meanwhile the bride tells her cake maker to bake them up some horse manure so they can shove it into each other's mouths at the ceremony. How classy! We've always envisioned shoving a tasty treat that's made to look like horse poopie into our hubbies' mouths... but only when we were really, really mad at them.

"The bride didn't walk down the aisle and neither did her groom. The rode on in on horseback. They ate a feast that included a pig that the groom picked out special at the slaughterhouse as well as tasty edibles like squirrel. For the final touch, Carl and Anna rode off into the redneck sunset on a tractor with trash cans attached to it."

External links

• My Big Redneck Wedding Retrieved January 31, 2008
• CMT's new 'My Big Redneck Wedding' series to debut January 11 by Christopher Rocchio, 21 December 2007 Retrieved January 31, 2008
• My Big Redneck Wedding on Fancast
• My Big Redneck Wedding - BridesTelevision.com