The continued impact of the sketch comedy classic In Living Color, which ran from 1990-94 on Fox, is impossible to overstate. And in a new interview conducted as part of the Sonic the Hedgehog promo campaign, show alum Jim Carrey spoke definitively on how the celebrated comedy series arguably changed Super Bowl halftime festivities forever.
Indeed, back in 1992, Fox made the decision to air a live episode of In Living Color to rival the broadcast of Super Bowl XXVI. The following year, Michael Jackson was enlisted as the Super Bowl halftime performer, setting a precedent for halftime shows to come.
Asked by BET about the special In Living Color broadcast being "the reason why we have a Super Bowl halftime show," Carrey recalled the excitement surrounding the experiment.
"It was revolutionary, man," Carrey said. "I remember that we all thought it was a kooky idea and we went 'Well, what have we got to lose, right?' And we had to do things live, so I had to do Fire Marshall Bill live. I had never done it live before and literally my face is cramping up. I don't know if you can notice it in the actual sketch. ... It's a little rough on the facescape."
The live special turned out to be "a blast" and "so much fun" for the Keenen Ivory Wayans-created show's cast, with all involved "blown away" by the subsequent influence on future Super Bowl halftime shows.
"If you'll remember, I believe it was the very next year they had somebody like Michael Jackson on the halftime show," Carrey said. "Until then, it was marching bands and whatever, right? It definitely pushed it to another level."
For the full Jim Carrey chat, head over to BET. Sonic the Hedgehog opens on Valentine's Day.
