History Series / TheMortonDowneyJrShow

* During his monologues: "Let me/I gonna tell ya!"
** Downey would frequently tell guests any of the following lines if they spoke out of turn or kept arguing after he told them to stop:
*** "Zip it!"
*** "You pablum puking liberal!"

* CatchPhrase: Downey would frequently tell guests any of the following lines if they spoke out of turn or kept arguing after he told them to stop:
** "Zip it!"
** "You pablum puking liberal!"

The show was hosted by Morton Downey Jr., an acerbic, chain-smoking commentator who previously worked in the radio field. Downey was approached by a New Jersey television station, WWOR-TV, in October 1987 to create his own local program. What followed was a nightly talk show where Downey would interview known pundits, politicians and plenty of wacky guests while being openly hostile to them.

->''If you think Primetime Sitcoms and Soaps are a snooze,[[labelnote:Explanation]]Accompanied by scrolling [=ZZZZZZZs=] and sounds of [=ZZZZZZZs=] on a black background[[/labelnote]] and the Movies bore you to tears,[[labelnote:Explanation]]Accompanied by BOOHOO and sounds of a BOOHOO on a blue background[[/labelnote]] then watch the man who will excite you and incite you: Morton Downey Jr.! Weeknights at 9 p.m. on Channel 9!''

* EqualOpportunityOffender: Many parodies of Morton Downey Jr. appear to emphasize their perceptions of him as an aggressive, hardcore right-wing conservative 'Murica spokesman. But Downey's confrontations were with individuals from all over the political spectrum, not just "pablum puking liberals". He would just as soon punch a klansman as we would a draft dodger.

* AbsoluteCleavage: The "Strippers for God" episode, where two strippers show up with incredibly low-cut dresses.

However, as the show entered its second season (having begun national syndication via MCA/Creator/{{Universal}}, which owned WWOR at the time), the quality of the guests waned and ratings faltered, leading it to be canceled in June 1989. Its impact on the genre influenced later "trash talk shows" like ''[[Series/TheJerrySpringerShow Jerry Springer]]'', and it even inspired a character in the form of Morton Koopa Jr. in the ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' video game series.

Many celebrity guests appeared on the show, including the Reverend Al Sharpton, [[{{Creator/Troma}} Lloyd Kaufman]], [[{{Music/KISS}} Ace Frehley]], Congressman Ron Paul and many others, and the show tackled controversial subjects like abortion, HIV, race relations and the death penalty.

Compare ''Series/HotSeatWithWallyGeorge'', a West Coast equivalent with a very similar atmosphere and a tenth of the budget.

* RealityShowGenreBlindness: Played straight and averted. Some of the celebrity guests who appeared on the show had no idea how bad Downey's behavior towards them would be, and would yell back at him, unaware that their actions were being broadcast to millions of households. Later on, most guests wised up to this fact and refused to appear, forcing the show to focus on oddball guests who deliberately played up their idiosyncracies for the cameras.

* UnbuiltTrope: For the whole RealityShow genre. The show seems like a GenreDeconstruction with all the worst excesses of later shows like ''[[Series/TheJerrySpringerShow Jerry Springer]]'' and ''{{Series/Maury}}'', but it was produced four years before ''Springer'' and did many of the things the later shows did. An audience cheering for the host (Morty! Morty! Morty!), [[TalkShowWithFists fights breaking out during live episodes]], [[PointAndLaughShow ridiculous guests only brought on to mock and cajole]] and much more were all done first on Downey's show.

->''If you think Primetime Sitcoms and Soaps are a snooze,[[labelnote:Explanation]]Accompanied by scrolling ZZZZZZZs and sounds of ZZZZZZZs on a black background[[/labelnote]] and the Movies bore you to tears,[[labelnote:Explanation]]Accompanied by BOOHOO and sounds of a BOOHOO on a blue background[[/labelnote]] then watch the man who will excite you and incite you: Morton Downey Jr.! Weeknights at 9 p.m. on Channel 9!''

* SmokingIsCool: One of Downey's signature mannerisms was to pull out a cigarette at the beginning of each show, tap out the ashes in a large metallic dish, and later blow smoke into the faces of his guests as a way to shut them up. He would defend smoking all the time. Later inverted when Downey (who developed lung cancer) became an anti-smoking advocate who lamented what he had done with cigarettes on the show.

* UnbuiltTrope. For the whole RealityShow genre. The show seems like a GenreDeconstruction with all the worst excesses of later shows like ''[[Series/TheJerrySpringerShow Jerry Springer]]'' and ''{{Series/Maury}}'', but it was produced four years before ''Springer'' and did many of the things the later shows did. An audience cheering for the host (Morty! Morty! Morty!), [[TalkShowWithFists fights breaking out during live episodes]], [[PointAndLaughShow ridiculous guests only brought on to mock and cajole]] and much more were all done first on Downey's show.

* MeanCharacterNiceActor: According to several guests who appeared on the show, Downey was much nicer to them off-camera, asking them to come on again and debate because he enjoyed the debates. His own daughter said she never liked her father on camera, because his character was so different from how he behaved at home.

* FollowTheLeader: Almost every major trash talk show used elements that originally appeared on Downey's show, including audiences that talked back to the guests, or the fights that broke out between guests.

However, as the show entered its second season, the quality of the guests waned and ratings faltered, leading it to be canceled in June 1989. Its impact on the genre influenced later "trash talk shows" like ''[[Series/TheJerrySpringerShow Jerry Springer]]'', and it even inspired a character in the form of Morton Koopa Jr. in the ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' video game series.

The show was hosted by Morton Downey Jr., an acerbic, chain-smoking commentator who previously worked in the radio field. Downey was approached by a New Jersey television station, WWOR-TV, in October 1987 to create his own local program.
What followed was a nightly talk show where Downey would interview known pundits, politicians and plenty of wacky guests while being openly hostile to them.

However, as the show entered its second season, the quality of the guests waned and ratings faltered, leading it to be canceled in June 1989. However, its impact on the genre influenced later "trash talk shows" like ''[[Series/TheJerrySpringerShow Jerry Springer]]'', and it even inspired a character in the form of Morton Koopa Jr. in the ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' video game series.

* VerySpecialEpisode: Many of the episodes focused on hot-button issues. One episode (as chronicled by [[http://www.avclub.com/articles/when-the-morton-downey-jr-show-examinedand-mimicke,86194/ The AV Club]]) even focused on the subject of {{kayfabe}} in ProfessionalWrestling, at a time when it was held to the highest commitment by the various companies and wrestlers.

* MsFanservice: The "Strippers for God". In a rarely-seen clip, the two strippers perform an impromptu show for the audience, complete with Downey taking off one girl's brassiere and the other pushing her breasts into another guest's face.

However, as the show entered its second season, the quality of the guests waned and ratings faltered, leading it to be canceled in June 1989. However, its impact on the genre influenced later "trash talk shows" like ''JerrySpringer'', and it even inspired a character in the form of Morton Koopa Jr. in the ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' video game series.

* UnbuiltTrope. For the whole RealityShow genre. The show seems like a GenreDeconstruction with all the worst excesses of later shows like ''JerrySpringer'' and ''{{Series/Maury}}'', but it was produced four years before ''Springer'' and did many of the things the later shows did. An audience cheering for the host (Morty! Morty! Morty!), [[TalkShowWithFists fights breaking out during live episodes]], [[PointAndLaughShow ridiculous guests only brought on to mock and cajole]] and much more were all done first on Downey's show.

* ShortLivedBigImpact: The show only lasted two years, but it pretty much started the "trash talk" shows genre like JerrySpringer.

* ImplausibleDeniability: Happened to Downey himself, via an infamous incident/publicity stunt where he claimed he was attacked by a group of Neo-Nazis in an airport bathroom, who proceeded to draw a swastika on his face and attempted to shave his head. Despite the fact that corroborating witness and security footage discounted his story, Downey kept to his original assertion, which backfired and caused ratings to slip even further.

* OpinionMyopia: Despite being called a debate show it was never one in the first place. Every episode was basically the host inviting people who opposed his own views, but never discussing them. Downey already had his preconceived opinion ready and just scolded, insulted, yelled at everyone disagreeing with him. The audience itself was always full with people supporting one particular opinion, namely Downey's own, so he could act cocky and self assured, because he knew they would never turn against him. Downey even twisted what his opponents were saying so that urban legends about the topics remained intact.

* GuiltyPleasure: Between Downey ridiculing and insulting his guests, audience members having arguments with said guests, fights breaking out and all manner of general insanity, it makes for eminently watchable television.

* MeanCharacterNiceActor: According to several guests who appeared on the show, Downey was much nicer to them off-camera, asking them to come on again and debate because he enjoyed the debates.

* SmokingIsCool: One of Downey's signature mannerisms was to pull out a cigarette at the beginning of each show, tap out the ashes in a large metallic dish, and later blow smoke into the faces of his guests as a way to shut them up. Later inverted when Downey (who developed lung cancer) became an anti-smoking advocate who lamented what he had done with cigarettes on the show.

* VerySpecialEpisode: Many of the episodes focused on hot-button issues. One episode (as chronicled by [[http://www.avclub.com/articles/when-the-morton-downey-jr-show-examinedand-mimicke,86194/ The AV Club]]) even focused on the subject of {{kayfabe}} in ProfessionalWrestling, at a time when it was held to the highest committment by the various companies and wrestlers.