Buzzkill
From Free net encyclopedia
Buzzkill was a hidden camera reality show created in 1995 by three aspiring actors from the Chicago area for the MTV network. The show was essentially a series of elaborate pranks (backed, of course, by a major television network's budget) played not only on the layman but often on celebrities and major public figures. The show's most memorable moment was when one of the principal pranksters (Frank Hudetz) disguised himself as famous designer Isaac Mizrahi. The likeness was so uncanny that he fooled superstar Whitney Houston at an awards show; when Houston discovered the error, she felt made a fool of and vowed never to appear on MTV again. After 13 episodes the show was cancelled due to litigation concerns at MTV. Ironically, because of Buzzkill more outrageous reality shows were created at MTV including The Tom Green Show, Jackass, and Punk'd.
The show derived its name from the slang Buzzkill, meaning a sudden undesired event that causes one's "high" or "buzz" to become of a lesser experience or depleted. It is commonly used in association with marijuana. The term was first coined in minneapolis when two grass-head's roommate came home when they were playing darts in his room. They both said, "man why is he such a buzzkill?"