''Sherman's Showcase'' is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

television series created by Bashir Salahuddin and Diallo Riddle. The series premiered on July 31, 2019, on IFC. An hour long "Black History Month Spectacular" aired on June 19, 2020, and that same month a six-episode second season was confirmed, set to air on both IFC and

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in 2022.

Premise

''Sherman's Showcase'' is inspired by variety shows including ''

Soul Train ''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. After airing locally on WCIU-TV in Chicago, Illinois, for a year, it aired in syndication from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featu ...

'', ''

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'' (AB) is an American Music television, music performance and dance television series that aired in various iterations from 1952 to 1989. It was hosted by Dick Clark who also served as the program's Television producer, pr ...

'', '' The Midnight Special'', and ''

In Living Color ''In Living Color'' is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran on Fox from April 15, 1990, to May 19, 1994. Keenen Ivory Wayans created, wrote and starred in the program. The show was produced by Ivory Way Productions ...

'' with each episode hosted by Sherman McDaniel as he takes viewers through time via music and comedy drawn from the forty-year library of a legendary (but fictitious) musical variety show. To do this, the series uses the

plot device A plot device or plot mechanism is any technique in a narrative used to move the plot forward. A clichéd plot device may annoy the reader and a contrived or arbitrary device may confuse the reader, causing a loss of the suspension of disbelief ...

of presenting a series of paid programs involving the sale of a mostly-complete 23-disc set of 47 seasons of ''Sherman's Showcase'', which are introduced by various celebrity hosts.

Cast

* Bashir Salahuddin as Sherman McDaniels * Diallo Riddle as Dutch Shepherd

Cameos

Common Common may refer to: As an Irish surname, it is anglicised from Irish Gaelic surname Ó Comáin. Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Com ...

Lil Rel Howery Milton "Lil Rel" Howery Jr. (born December 17, 1979) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is known for playing Robert Carmichael in NBC's television comedy series '' The Carmichael Show'' (2015–2017) and Rod Williams in the horror fi ...

Tiffany Haddish Tiffany Sara Cornilia Haddish (born December 3, 1979) is an American stand-up comedian and actress. Her breakthrough came in with a leading role in the comedy film '' Girls Trip'' (2017), which earned her several accolades and was included on ...

Ray J William Ray Norwood Jr. (born January 17, 1981), known professionally as Ray J, is an American R&B singer, songwriter, television presenter, and actor. Born in McComb, Mississippi and raised in Carson, California, he is the younger brother o ...

Terrence J Terrence Jenkins (born April 21, 1982) is an American actor, television presenter, model and entertainment reporter best known as the host of BET's popular music video countdown show ''106 & Park'' from 2006 until 2012.MacCash, Doug. "Back in ...

* Damon Wayans Jr. *

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

Mike Judge Michael Craig Judge (born October 17, 1962) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, and director. He is best known for being the creator of the animated television series ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' (1993–1997, 2011, 2022–present). He ...

Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo ( ), is an American singer and songwriter. Regarded as a leading figure of Contemporary R&B#2000s, 2000s R&B music, he is the recipient of numerous accolades, includi ...

Marlon Wayans Marlon Lamont Wayans (born July 23, 1972) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for his work with his brother Shawn Wayans on The WB sitcom ''The Wayans Bros.'' (1995–1999) and the comedy films ''Don't Be a M ...

Gary Anthony Williams Gary Anthony Williams (born March 14, 1966) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. He has voiced the character Uncle Ruckus on ''The Boondocks'', General Horace Warfield in '' StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty'' and Dr. Richard Tygan in '' ...

Colleen Camp Colleen Celeste Camp (born June 7, 1953) is an American character actress and producer. After appearing in several bit parts, she had a lead role in the comedy '' The Swinging Cheerleaders'' (1974), followed by roles in two installments of the ' ...

* Phonte Coleman

Episodes

Season 1 (2019)

Special

Season 2 (2022)

Production

Development

On July 29, 2017, it was announced that IFC had given the production an episodic script order. The series was created by Bashir Salahuddin and Diallo Riddle who were also expected to write and executive produce the potential series. On May 3, 2018, it was announced that IFC had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of eight episodes. In addition to the previously announced creative team, it was announced that

John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He began his musical career working behind the scenes for other artists, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Every ...

would serve as an executive producer. Production companies involved with the series include Get Lifted Film Co. and

RadicalMedia RadicalMedia is an independent global media and creative production company. Founded by Jon Kamen and Frank Scherma, the company had developed film, television, and branded content. In 2010, Fremantle purchased a 60 percent stake in the compan ...

. On April 8, 2019, it was announced that the series would premiere on July 31, 2019.

Casting

Alongside the series order announcement, it was confirmed that Bashir Salahuddin would star as the host of the fictional variety series.

Reception

On review aggregation website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the series holds an approval rating of 100% with an average rating of 8.58/10, based on 21 reviews. The site's critics consensus reads: "Bold, brisk, and beautiful, ''Sherman's Showcase'' is a delightful and stylish sketch show that moves to its own groove and invites everyone to laugh along."

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, which uses a weighted average, assigned the series a score of 76 out of 100 based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

External links

References

{{AMC Shows 2010s American satirical television series 2020s American satirical television series American English-language television shows 2019 American television series debuts 2022 American television series endings IFC (American TV channel) original programming