''Puttin' on the Hits'' is an American syndicated music/variety competition show that was hosted and written by Allen Fawcett. The show featured amateur acts

lip-synching Lip sync or lip synch (pronounced , like the word ''sink'', despite the spelling of the participial forms ''synced'' and ''syncing''), short for lip synchronization, is a technical term for matching a speaking or singing person's lip movements ...

to popular songs. It aired on weekends from 1984 to 1988. The show's title refers to

Irving Berlin Irving Berlin (born Israel Isidore Beilin; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-born American composer and songwriter. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook. Berlin received numerous honors including an Acade ...

's 1929 song " Puttin' on the Ritz", which had enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in 1983 after it became a hit for Indonesian-Dutch singer

Taco A taco (, , ) is a traditional Mexican cuisine, Mexican dish consisting of a small hand-sized corn tortilla, corn- or Flour tortilla, wheat-based tortilla topped with a Stuffing, filling. The tortilla is then folded around the filling and fing ...

Description

The show grew out of lip synching contests developed by William "Randy" Wood. Chris Bearde saw one of the contests with his daughter. He then created, developed and sold ''Puttin' on the Hits'' with Bearde and

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American television and radio personality and television producer who hosted ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 1989. He also hosted five incarnations of the Pyramid (game show), ...

serving as executive producers. Clark's son, R.A. Clark, produced. MCA Television served as distributor. ''Puttin' on the Hits'' was taped in

Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and district in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. ...

, at Universal City Studios. Contestants would often dress up in costumes and use props to make their act more outrageous. This varied from a seemingly severed head singing "I Ain't Got Nobody" to an

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

drag act using couch cushions for breasts. Other acts were more conservative and placed emphasis on performance. The competition was conducted as many other televised performance contests (e.g. ''

Star Search ''Star Search'' (later known as ''Ed McMahon's Star Search'') is an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./ Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 29 ...

'') were. Each act was judged by a panel of celebrity judges based on their originality, appearance, and lip-sync abilities. The judges could award a maximum of ten points per category, and their score totals were combined to give an act a total score of up to ninety points. In the event of a tie, the judges made a final decision to determine each winner. Each season was conducted as a tournament. Winners of a preliminary round received $1,000. Winning in the semifinal round was worth $5,000 to an act. At the end of the season, the winners of the semifinals competed in a grand championship final with $25,000 going to the winning act. Each contestant was given complimentary gifts and a videotape of their performance. Following the conclusion of the fourth season's tournament, the three previous season champions were invited back to compete once more against the winner of that season. The winning act won an additional $25,000. ''Puttin' on the Hits'' has been credited with launching the career of the group

Troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troo ...

, and Jazzmun, a drag performer who can be seen in many contemporary television shows.

Kato Kaelin Brian Gerard "Kato" Kaelin (born March 9, 1959) is an American actor and radio and television personality. A friend of Nicole Brown Simpson, Kaelin is best known for serving as a witness in the O. J. Simpson murder trial in 1995, receiving con ...

was another notable contestant, appearing during the show's third season performing Steppenwolf's " Born to Be Wild".Archived a
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Wayback Machine

Children's version

A short-lived spinoff called ''Puttin' on the Kids'', hosted by Michael Young, aired in the 1986–87 television season, also distributed in syndication. Celebrity judges awarded savings bonds to two weekly winners.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, tt0346377 1980s American music television series 1984 American television series debuts 1988 American television series endings First-run syndicated television programs in the United States Singing talent shows Television series by Universal Television Television series by Dick Clark Productions

Description

Children's version

See also

References

External links