Cynthia Littleton Business Editor“AFV,” the family TV institution that Bob Saget helped launch in 1989, will pay tribute to its original host for the rest of the season with a regular segment showcasing memorable moments from his time on the ABC series.“America’s Funniest Home Videos” honored its original emcee in its Jan.
16 episode, a week after Saget’s death at the age of 65. But executive producer Vin Di Bona decided earlier this week that there was too much prime PG-rated Saget material in the vault from his eight-year run not to share more on the air.“I’d forgotten how whimsical and crazy his host bits were — very physical and very visual,” Di Bona told Variety. “In one show he walks on stage in front of the audience and says ‘Did I tell you it’s my birthday?’ And the audience all raises their hands with wrapped gifts for him.
It’s that kind of gentle crazy humor that I want younger generations to see from him.” Saget helped “AFV” take root as a Sunday evening mainstay for ABC with his performance as host, serving up a mix of pratfalls, on-the-edge of snarky comments and a repertoire of crazy cartoon-like voices that he added to heighten the comedy of the homemade video clips.At the time Saget was a seasoned standup comic and star of ABC’s hit “TGIF” Friday night comedy “Full House.” He was a natural choice to host “AFV,” which began its storied run as a one-off special.
It was a flier for ABC, a special adapted from a Japanese TV series format to capitalize on the home video recording revolution as it hit critical mass in the late 1980s.
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