Whitest Kids U Know
Encyclopedia
The Whitest Kids U' Know is an American
sketch comedy
troupe and television program of the same name. The group consists of Trevor Moore
, Sam Brown
, Zach Cregger
, Timmy Williams
and Darren Trumeter
, though other actors occasionally appear in their sketches. They were accepted into the HBO U.S. Comedy Arts Festival
in 2006 and won the award for Best Sketch Group.
, a young comedian from Charlottesville, Virginia
, transferred to New York's School of Visual Arts
film program. Moore previously produced a local TV sketch-comedy show back in Virginia
titled The Trevor Moore Show, but it was later canceled due to offensive content. Moore decided to start a comedy troupe with the eventual goal of replicating his earlier success on a national level.
After making the rounds at local New York City
comedy clubs, he eventually met fellow SVA film student Sam Brown
from Massachusetts
and SVA Graphic Design student/actor Zach Cregger, also from Virginia. By chance, all three lived in the same dormitory. According to an IFC interview, Trevor Moore says that the group's name originated during a freestyle rapping session on a subway, when one of their friends said, "You guys are the whitest kids I know."
The troupe started off as an officially sanctioned club at School of Visual Arts
. During the early years WKUK included Jon Kovel, Oliver Lyons, Anthony Mair, and Tina Tiongson. Timmy Williams
also joined in late 2001 and was the only member at the time who did not attend SVA. Unofficially, however, the core trio of Moore, Brown, and Cregger tried to keep the group as lean as possible. At its peak, the group had ten members, but a large percentage of the sketches were written by one of these three. In the audio commentary for the first season of the show, though, Trevor Moore mentions the existence of 12 members in the troupe at one point prior to initial negotiations with various cable channels (Sundance being the first) to air the program.
The Whitest Kids U' Know held near-monthly free shows at SVA's amphitheater, which would frequently fill to capacity. Finally, in 2003, as Moore approached graduation, the group separated officially from the school, and all but Moore, Brown, Cregger and Williams left the troupe. Darren Trumeter, an actor and filmmaker who had worked previously with Cregger, was then added that same year.
Starting in 2003, the reinvented troupe started touring the various comedy venues in New York City, concluding in early 2005 with a well-attended show at Caroline's
, a famous stand-up comedy club in Times Square.
However, due to what some at Fuse felt was the sometimes extreme nature of the group's comedy, the second season order came with limitations on content. The group considered walking away from the pick up order, due to the new content restrictions. Then former head of Fuse programming, Jennifer Caserta, had recently left to become the General Manager of the IFC network, and brought the Whitest Kids along with her to IFC. At the time, Fuse and IFC were both part of Rainbow Media and Rainbow Media executives felt that the Whitest Kids program was more appropriate for IFC, than Fuse, and approved the switch.
On July 12, 2007, Trevor Moore posted a message on the Whitest Kids U' Know's official website stating that the second season of the Whitest Kids TV show would move to the Independent Film Channel
(IFC). According to Moore, they were excited about the channel switch because it allowed for no commercial breaks, with vulgarities and obscene content uncensored. However, when IFC began airing commercials during their programming on December 8, 2010, the show was censored at certain times of day, (including removing stronger sexual language such as "fuck" and censoring any nudity), despite promises that it would remain unedited.
Shooting for season two of the show started on August 13, 2007, and debuted on IFC on February 10, 2008.
The season one DVD was released on February 5, 2008. It was stated several times on the show that the season will be first released uncensored on DVD. However, IFC
started to air uncensored episodes of season one just two months before the DVD release.
The tenth episode of season two was broadcast live on IFC. The sketches performed on stage were based on their stage shows.
The third season, which premiered on IFC on January 27, 2009 in the 10 PM time slot, comprised ten 30 minute episodes as well as twenty and fifteen minute episodes. Both formats played on IFC.
The fourth season premiered on June 11, 2010 on IFC, continuing with the 10/30 minute and 20/15 minute episode formats.
The fifth season premiered on April 15, 2011, and was the final season of the show. The format of 10 half-hour episodes remains, with each episode ending with a segment of The Civil War on Drugs, a full-length film starring Whitest Kids troupe members reimagining the American Civil War
as a war on drugs.
Confirmed by Trevor Moore and Timmy Williams, the Whitest Kids troupe are currently writing a new movie which will be an actual WKUK movie.
. He is incredibly tasteless, promoting things such as baby skull-seeking bullets and making jokes about his best friend's death. He is not above killing innocent people and has even killed a baby before (though by accident). Moore confirmed him as a recurring character in the commentary of the season one DVD.
Satan
– The Lord of Hell. His appearance varies throughout sketches. In "Demon Ouija
Board," he is a disembodied booming voice who reminds Balthalthazar (possibly a deliberate misspelling of Balthazar
) that the sole job of demons is to entertain. In contrast, he appears in Act 3 of "Opus Acts 1-4" as a horned humanoid who rants about people making assumptions on who he is. Satan is also mentioned several times by various Whitest characters throughout the sketches.
Abraham Lincoln
– The 16th President of the United States. He is seen in the sketches "Abe Lincoln," "John Wilkes Booth," and "The Civil War on Drugs." Abraham Lincoln is played by Zach Cregger and John Wilkes Booth is played by Trevor Moore. In "Abe Lincoln" and "John Wilkes Booth" , he is the victim of John Wilkes Booth
's assassination attempts, though in each sketch the circumstances are quite different. In "Abe Lincoln", Lincoln disrupts a performance of Hamlet, frustrating Booth sitting in the audience, and is consequentially bashed to death. In "John Wilkes Booth" the president is victim to constant harassment by Booth, who sneaks into the theater and hits him with a variety of objects. In "The Civil War on Drugs," Trevor Moore and Sam Brown portray activists who travel to Washington D.C. to see Abraham Lincoln and make Marijuana legal, thinking the entire American Civil War
was about it.
The Boss – A powerful and rich executive of a company whose purpose or product is unknown. The Boss is well known for considering unusual and violent situations as normal and not worth making a big deal out of. In "Sniper Business"/"Business Battle," he calmly explains to an employee at his office that business is about hard work and integrity – while trying to avoid and kill a sniper hired by a rival business. The Boss is also seen in "Asian Hooker," where he tries to coordinate and run an office meeting while chained to a bed and a screaming Vietnamese hooker. As the meeting progresses, the hooker's pimp enters and stabs her repeatedly, while The Boss continues to run the meeting to the best of his abilities, despite objections from his colleagues. The Boss reappeared in "Not Particularly Sure," claiming that he does not know what his company actually does. The character is usually played by Trevor Moore
, and is characterized by his deep, official, and serious voice.
Billy Matherson – Billy Matherson has appeared in multiple sketches and is depicted as a young male child. He has appeared in the sketches "Irresponsible Television," "Genie," and a few others. Not much can be said about Billy Matherson himself as his character and situation seems to vary from sketch to sketch. In "Dear Black People," his name is changed to Danny Matherson.
Caleb – Not strictly a recurring character, but Caleb is typically a name that has been used several times, along with the names "Brian", "Rick" and "Candice". Unlike most other characters that share a name, Caleb's character is relatively consistent. He is usually depicted as an average teenager who is always getting in some sort of trouble. He appears in "Blue Whale Dick," "Homeschool," and "We Buy Drugs", and is mentioned in "Call of Duty," played by different Whitest Kids members each time. His last name varies, with "Matthews", "McLaughlin", and "Carlyle" having all been used.
SuperDog – Perhaps more of a prop than a character. SuperDog has made appearances in several episodes of season three, with Sam carrying him around. SuperDog also has a cult following of humans who think of him as a god.
Fat Black Woman – Pops in the end of several sketches in the fourth season to say her catchphrase: "Oh, Hell No!"
Adolf Hitler
– Hitler is played by Trevor Moore and appears in the sketches "Nazi Beach Party", "Charlie Chaplin", "Little Hitler" and "Triumph Of The Ill", a rap song about his desire to stop being the Führer and instead become a rapper. Hitler also makes appearances in some sketches filmed when the troupe was still part of the SVA. There are also references to Nazism and the Nazi regime.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sketch comedy
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
troupe and television program of the same name. The group consists of Trevor Moore
Trevor Moore
Trevor Paul Moore is an American actor, comedian, writer, and director best known as a founding member of the New York City-based comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U' Know, who had their own sketch comedy series on IFC which ran for five seasons...
, Sam Brown
Sam Brown (comedian)
Samuel Kelly Brown is an American actor, comedian and writer. He is best known as a member of the sketch comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U' Know, founded by Trevor Moore and him. The troupe has their own show on IFC, which ended its 5th and final season on June 17, 2011.-Early life and career:Sam...
, Zach Cregger
Zach Cregger
Zachary Michael "Zach" Cregger is an American comedian, actor, satirist, writer, and director. He is known mostly for his current project, the New York City-based comedy troupe Whitest Kids U' Know, and also starred in the film Miss March, which he directed and wrote with Trevor Moore.Cregger...
, Timmy Williams
Timmy Williams
Timmy Williams is an American actor, comedian, writer and one of the 5 members that make up the New York-based sketch-comedy group and TV series "The Whitest Kids U'Know." He and Darren Trumeter are the only members not to attend New York's School of Visual Arts...
and Darren Trumeter
Darren Trumeter
Darren Trumeter Jr. is an American actor, comedian, writer and one of the 5 members that make up the New York-based sketch comedy group The Whitest Kids U' Know. He and Timmy Williams are the only members not to have attended New York's School of Visual Arts...
, though other actors occasionally appear in their sketches. They were accepted into the HBO U.S. Comedy Arts Festival
U.S. Comedy Arts Festival
The Comedy Festival, formerly known as the US Comedy Arts Festival, is a comedy festival held each year in Las Vegas, Nevada. From its 1985 inception to 2007, it was held annually at the Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, Colorado...
in 2006 and won the award for Best Sketch Group.
History
The Whitest Kids began in 2000 when Trevor MooreTrevor Moore
Trevor Paul Moore is an American actor, comedian, writer, and director best known as a founding member of the New York City-based comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U' Know, who had their own sketch comedy series on IFC which ran for five seasons...
, a young comedian from Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
, transferred to New York's School of Visual Arts
School of Visual Arts
The School of Visual Arts , is a proprietary art school located in Manhattan, New York City, and is widely considered to be one of the leading art schools in the United States. It was established in 1947 by co-founders Silas H. Rhodes and Burne Hogarth as the Cartoonists and Illustrators School and...
film program. Moore previously produced a local TV sketch-comedy show back in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
titled The Trevor Moore Show, but it was later canceled due to offensive content. Moore decided to start a comedy troupe with the eventual goal of replicating his earlier success on a national level.
After making the rounds at local New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
comedy clubs, he eventually met fellow SVA film student Sam Brown
Sam Brown (comedian)
Samuel Kelly Brown is an American actor, comedian and writer. He is best known as a member of the sketch comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U' Know, founded by Trevor Moore and him. The troupe has their own show on IFC, which ended its 5th and final season on June 17, 2011.-Early life and career:Sam...
from Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and SVA Graphic Design student/actor Zach Cregger, also from Virginia. By chance, all three lived in the same dormitory. According to an IFC interview, Trevor Moore says that the group's name originated during a freestyle rapping session on a subway, when one of their friends said, "You guys are the whitest kids I know."
The troupe started off as an officially sanctioned club at School of Visual Arts
School of Visual Arts
The School of Visual Arts , is a proprietary art school located in Manhattan, New York City, and is widely considered to be one of the leading art schools in the United States. It was established in 1947 by co-founders Silas H. Rhodes and Burne Hogarth as the Cartoonists and Illustrators School and...
. During the early years WKUK included Jon Kovel, Oliver Lyons, Anthony Mair, and Tina Tiongson. Timmy Williams
Timmy Williams
Timmy Williams is an American actor, comedian, writer and one of the 5 members that make up the New York-based sketch-comedy group and TV series "The Whitest Kids U'Know." He and Darren Trumeter are the only members not to attend New York's School of Visual Arts...
also joined in late 2001 and was the only member at the time who did not attend SVA. Unofficially, however, the core trio of Moore, Brown, and Cregger tried to keep the group as lean as possible. At its peak, the group had ten members, but a large percentage of the sketches were written by one of these three. In the audio commentary for the first season of the show, though, Trevor Moore mentions the existence of 12 members in the troupe at one point prior to initial negotiations with various cable channels (Sundance being the first) to air the program.
The Whitest Kids U' Know held near-monthly free shows at SVA's amphitheater, which would frequently fill to capacity. Finally, in 2003, as Moore approached graduation, the group separated officially from the school, and all but Moore, Brown, Cregger and Williams left the troupe. Darren Trumeter, an actor and filmmaker who had worked previously with Cregger, was then added that same year.
Starting in 2003, the reinvented troupe started touring the various comedy venues in New York City, concluding in early 2005 with a well-attended show at Caroline's
Caroline's
Carolines on Broadway is a venue for stand-up comedy located in Times Square in New York City on Broadway between 49th and 50th Street. It is one of the most established, famous, and recognized stand-up comedy clubs in the United States. Its marketing slogan is "America's Premiere Comedy...
, a famous stand-up comedy club in Times Square.
Television
In 2005, the Whitest Kids began working with noted comedy producer Jim Biederman. In early 2006, Biederman and the Whitest Kids sold the show to the Fuse network, after the Whitest Kids won the Best Sketch Group award at the Aspen Comedy Festival. Production of the first season took place in New York City, during the summer of 2006. The first season of the Whitest Kids U Know premiered in March 2007. It was an instant hit for Fuse, and the show was picked up for a second season immediately.However, due to what some at Fuse felt was the sometimes extreme nature of the group's comedy, the second season order came with limitations on content. The group considered walking away from the pick up order, due to the new content restrictions. Then former head of Fuse programming, Jennifer Caserta, had recently left to become the General Manager of the IFC network, and brought the Whitest Kids along with her to IFC. At the time, Fuse and IFC were both part of Rainbow Media and Rainbow Media executives felt that the Whitest Kids program was more appropriate for IFC, than Fuse, and approved the switch.
On July 12, 2007, Trevor Moore posted a message on the Whitest Kids U' Know's official website stating that the second season of the Whitest Kids TV show would move to the Independent Film Channel
Independent Film Channel
The Independent Film Channel is an American cable TV network that airs independent film and related programming. IFC programming includes commercially interrupted feature-length films, original documentaries, shorts, animated series, original series, acquired series, and content exclusively for...
(IFC). According to Moore, they were excited about the channel switch because it allowed for no commercial breaks, with vulgarities and obscene content uncensored. However, when IFC began airing commercials during their programming on December 8, 2010, the show was censored at certain times of day, (including removing stronger sexual language such as "fuck" and censoring any nudity), despite promises that it would remain unedited.
Shooting for season two of the show started on August 13, 2007, and debuted on IFC on February 10, 2008.
The season one DVD was released on February 5, 2008. It was stated several times on the show that the season will be first released uncensored on DVD. However, IFC
Independent Film Channel
The Independent Film Channel is an American cable TV network that airs independent film and related programming. IFC programming includes commercially interrupted feature-length films, original documentaries, shorts, animated series, original series, acquired series, and content exclusively for...
started to air uncensored episodes of season one just two months before the DVD release.
The tenth episode of season two was broadcast live on IFC. The sketches performed on stage were based on their stage shows.
The third season, which premiered on IFC on January 27, 2009 in the 10 PM time slot, comprised ten 30 minute episodes as well as twenty and fifteen minute episodes. Both formats played on IFC.
The fourth season premiered on June 11, 2010 on IFC, continuing with the 10/30 minute and 20/15 minute episode formats.
The fifth season premiered on April 15, 2011, and was the final season of the show. The format of 10 half-hour episodes remains, with each episode ending with a segment of The Civil War on Drugs, a full-length film starring Whitest Kids troupe members reimagining the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
as a war on drugs.
Confirmed by Trevor Moore and Timmy Williams, the Whitest Kids troupe are currently writing a new movie which will be an actual WKUK movie.
Recurring characters
Jerry Bronham – A hunter seen in the sketches "Sexy Fawn," "I Don't Know Bob,"and "Point/Counterpoint", played by Trevor MooreTrevor Moore
Trevor Paul Moore is an American actor, comedian, writer, and director best known as a founding member of the New York City-based comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U' Know, who had their own sketch comedy series on IFC which ran for five seasons...
. He is incredibly tasteless, promoting things such as baby skull-seeking bullets and making jokes about his best friend's death. He is not above killing innocent people and has even killed a baby before (though by accident). Moore confirmed him as a recurring character in the commentary of the season one DVD.
Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
– The Lord of Hell. His appearance varies throughout sketches. In "Demon Ouija
Ouija
The Ouija board also known as a spirit/fire key board or talking board, is a flat board marked with the letters of the alphabet, the numbers 0-9, the words "yes", "no", "hello" and "goodbye", and other symbols and words are sometimes also added to help personalize the board...
Board," he is a disembodied booming voice who reminds Balthalthazar (possibly a deliberate misspelling of Balthazar
Balthazar
Balthazar may refer to:- Traditional and religious uses :* A name commonly attributed to one of the Biblical Magi * An alternate form of the Babylonian king Belshazzar, mentioned in the Book of Daniel...
) that the sole job of demons is to entertain. In contrast, he appears in Act 3 of "Opus Acts 1-4" as a horned humanoid who rants about people making assumptions on who he is. Satan is also mentioned several times by various Whitest characters throughout the sketches.
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
– The 16th President of the United States. He is seen in the sketches "Abe Lincoln," "John Wilkes Booth," and "The Civil War on Drugs." Abraham Lincoln is played by Zach Cregger and John Wilkes Booth is played by Trevor Moore. In "Abe Lincoln" and "John Wilkes Booth" , he is the victim of John Wilkes Booth
John Wilkes Booth
John Wilkes Booth was an American stage actor who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. Booth was a member of the prominent 19th century Booth theatrical family from Maryland and, by the 1860s, was a well-known actor...
's assassination attempts, though in each sketch the circumstances are quite different. In "Abe Lincoln", Lincoln disrupts a performance of Hamlet, frustrating Booth sitting in the audience, and is consequentially bashed to death. In "John Wilkes Booth" the president is victim to constant harassment by Booth, who sneaks into the theater and hits him with a variety of objects. In "The Civil War on Drugs," Trevor Moore and Sam Brown portray activists who travel to Washington D.C. to see Abraham Lincoln and make Marijuana legal, thinking the entire American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
was about it.
The Boss – A powerful and rich executive of a company whose purpose or product is unknown. The Boss is well known for considering unusual and violent situations as normal and not worth making a big deal out of. In "Sniper Business"/"Business Battle," he calmly explains to an employee at his office that business is about hard work and integrity – while trying to avoid and kill a sniper hired by a rival business. The Boss is also seen in "Asian Hooker," where he tries to coordinate and run an office meeting while chained to a bed and a screaming Vietnamese hooker. As the meeting progresses, the hooker's pimp enters and stabs her repeatedly, while The Boss continues to run the meeting to the best of his abilities, despite objections from his colleagues. The Boss reappeared in "Not Particularly Sure," claiming that he does not know what his company actually does. The character is usually played by Trevor Moore
Trevor Moore
Trevor Paul Moore is an American actor, comedian, writer, and director best known as a founding member of the New York City-based comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U' Know, who had their own sketch comedy series on IFC which ran for five seasons...
, and is characterized by his deep, official, and serious voice.
Billy Matherson – Billy Matherson has appeared in multiple sketches and is depicted as a young male child. He has appeared in the sketches "Irresponsible Television," "Genie," and a few others. Not much can be said about Billy Matherson himself as his character and situation seems to vary from sketch to sketch. In "Dear Black People," his name is changed to Danny Matherson.
Caleb – Not strictly a recurring character, but Caleb is typically a name that has been used several times, along with the names "Brian", "Rick" and "Candice". Unlike most other characters that share a name, Caleb's character is relatively consistent. He is usually depicted as an average teenager who is always getting in some sort of trouble. He appears in "Blue Whale Dick," "Homeschool," and "We Buy Drugs", and is mentioned in "Call of Duty," played by different Whitest Kids members each time. His last name varies, with "Matthews", "McLaughlin", and "Carlyle" having all been used.
SuperDog – Perhaps more of a prop than a character. SuperDog has made appearances in several episodes of season three, with Sam carrying him around. SuperDog also has a cult following of humans who think of him as a god.
Fat Black Woman – Pops in the end of several sketches in the fourth season to say her catchphrase: "Oh, Hell No!"
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
– Hitler is played by Trevor Moore and appears in the sketches "Nazi Beach Party", "Charlie Chaplin", "Little Hitler" and "Triumph Of The Ill", a rap song about his desire to stop being the Führer and instead become a rapper. Hitler also makes appearances in some sketches filmed when the troupe was still part of the SVA. There are also references to Nazism and the Nazi regime.
Miss March
Miss March is a comedy film directed by and starring Trevor Moore and Zach Cregger. The other Whitest Kids troupe members do not feature in the film, and the directors have stated that they did not want the film seen as a "Whitest Kids movie". It was released on March 13, 2009 to negative reviews.Album
The Whitest Kids U' Know is the debut album of the New York City-based sketch comedy troupe.External links
- Official website
- WKUK on IMDb
- IFC's WKUK profile
- Extensive audio interview on public radio program The Sound of Young AmericaThe Sound of Young AmericaThe Sound of Young America is a public radio program and podcast based in Los Angeles, California and distributed by Public Radio International...