Daryl Somers has revealed the moment when American executives understood why Hey Hey It’s Saturday was so successful.
In 1996, the variety show was invited to host from Disney World to celebrate their 25th anniversary.
During the trip, Daryl revealed he shocked American executives when he revealed the reason why the show is so successful is because it is unscripted.
No script, no problem! Hey Hey It’s Saturday host Daryl Somers (pictured) has revealed that Americans finally understood the appeal of the popular variety show after learning it was unscripted
‘They wanted scripts. And I said ‘That’s a little difficult with our show’ but I went over and went on every ride you’ve ever known and and came up with some sketch stuff that we could do,’ he told TV Tonight.
He went on to say: ‘I [also] found myself gambling at Jupiter’s with Bob Daly at the International room, and he was playing with $100 chips.’
‘And he said, ‘Daryl, how many episodes do you do? Maybe five shows a year?’ And I said, ‘No we do 42 shows, two hours long or more’. He couldn’t believe it and he called the head of Time Warner television to get us over to Burbank.’
Big deal: In 1996, the Channel Nine variety show was invited to host their show from Disney World to celebrate their 25th anniversary
Hey Hey It’s Saturday ran for 28 years on the Nine Network from 1971 to 1999, before returning for special episodes in 2009.
A new season of 20 episodes was commissioned in 2010, but the variety program did not return in 2011.
Much of Hey Hey’s success came from the quick-fire interplay between host Daryl Somers and voiceover man John Blackman, who created the iconic Dickie Knee.
Not script: During the trip, Daryl revealed he shocked American executives when he revealed the reason why the show is so successful is because it is unscripted
However, during its run Hey Hey It’s Saturday had its fair share of controversy.
Last year, TV veteran Daryl was called out for performing Louis Armstrong’s What a Wonderful World in blackface on the show in the 1980s.
Another incident in 2009 involved a comedy troupe dressed up as the Jackson Five in blackface for Hey Hey’s regular Red Faces talent show segment.
Successful: Much of Hey Hey’s success came from the quick-fire interplay between host Daryl Somers and voiceover man John Blackman, who created the iconic Dickie Knee