''MTV's The 70s House'' is an American

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1 ...

show created by Aaron Matthew Lee. The show premiered on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

on July 5 and ended on September 6, 2005. The show featured twelve contestants participating in a 24/7 simulation of the 1970s. They were required to part with all modern technology including

cell phones A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whi ...

laptops A laptop, laptop computer, or notebook computer is a small, portable personal computer (PC) with a screen and alphanumeric keyboard. Laptops typically have a clam shell form factor with the screen mounted on the inside of the upper li ...

, and

MP3 players A portable media player (PMP) (also including the related digital audio player (DAP)) is a portable consumer electronics device capable of storing and playing digital media such as audio, images, and video files. The data is typically stored o ...

, as well as all modern clothing and lingo, only to adopt their cultural equivalents of the 1970s.

Overview

On each

episode An episode is a narrative unit within a larger dramatic work or documentary production, such as a series intended for radio, television or streaming consumption. The noun ''episode'' is derived from the Greek term ''epeisodion'' (), meaning th ...

contestants were assigned tasks by Oscar, the house's unseen owner who communicated over

speakerphone A speakerphone is a telephone with a microphone and loudspeaker provided separately from those in the handset. This device allows multiple persons to participate in a conversation. The loudspeaker broadcasts the voice or voices of those on the ot ...

in a parody of ''

Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, producing five seasons and 115 episodes. The series was created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts and was produced by ...

''. Dawn, the show's host, acted as a liaison between the contestants and Oscar and instructed them on how to complete the tasks. After finishing the task Oscar awarded a prize to the contestant (or team) which best completed the task. Two contestants were then chosen, based on that day's performance and how well they otherwise kept their 70s facade. These contestants competed in an elimination challenge at the end of the show and the loser would be eliminated from the show. In the ninth episode, however, three contestants competed in the elimination round and two were eliminated.

Stand-up comedian Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...

Natasha Leggero played Dawn, while Bil Dwyer played the elimination challenge host, Bert Van Styles. Guest judges included

Erik Estrada Henry Enrique Estrada (born March 16, 1949) is an American actor and police officer. He is known for his co-starring lead role as California Highway Patrol officer Francis (Frank) Llewelyn "Ponch" Poncherello in the police drama television series ...

, Jimmie Walker and Leif Garrett.

Results

: The contestant won the ''70s House'' : The contestant won the challenge : The contestant was awarded immunity and did not compete in the main challenge : The contestant did not win the challenge, but was awarded safety : The contestant faced an elimination challenge and won : The contestant was eliminated from the competition

Episodes

Successor

A similar show centered around 1990s culture called ''

90's House ''90's House'' is an American reality television series broadcast on MTV before being moved to MTV2 MTV2 (formerly M2) is an American pay television Cable television, channel owned by the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global ...

'' premiered on MTV in 2017.

References

External links

Official Website (via Internet Archive)
* {{MTVNetwork Shows 2005 American television series debuts 2005 American television series endings 2000s American reality television series English-language television shows MTV reality television series Historical reality television series Television shows set in Los Angeles