South Park

From The TV IV

South Park
Premiere	August 13, 1997
Finale
Airs	On hiatus
Creator	Trey Parker & Matt Stone
Network	Comedy Central
Style	30-minute animated comedy
Company	South Park Studios
Episodes	237 (through season 16)
Seasons	16
Status	Renewed through season 20 (2016)
Origin	USA

South Park is the groundbreaking animated program which launched Comedy Central into mainstream popularity. The series, created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, centers around four young boys who spout profanity and get into adventures ranging from the sick to the weird to the completely insane. However, the show is best known for its dark, absurdist humor and use of heavy-handed satire to lampoon current events.

The series got its start in 1991 when the two creators made a short film that included characters resembling what would become the South Park characters. The short made the rounds, eventually catching the eye of FOX executive Brian Graden, who commissioned the two to make what would become infamously known as The Spirit of Christmas in 1995. This second short eventually was the genesis for the series after FOX passed on the idea of airing it on their network. It was picked up and aired in late 1997 on Comedy Central, where it was an overnight success. At its height, the series reached Simpsons levels of popularity. It got to the point where merchandise from the series was banned from many public schools, paralleling the early 1990s when the same reaction was taken in response to Bart Simpson merchandise.

The series continued to evolve and change over the years, culminating in the production of a South Park feature film entitled South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut as well as technological advancements which allowed production of episodes be sped up to taking less than a week to build an episode. The use of the Maya animation system allows South Park to be as topical as a news show. The series most notably used this ability on It's Christmas in Canada which parodied Saddam Hussein's capture mere days after it occurred.

The series is currently renewed up through season 20, meaning it will continue through at least 2016.

Cast

Seasons

Feature Film

In-Depth

• At a Glance: Additional information about the series
• Characters: A listing of characters in the series

DVD and Blu-ray Releases

DVD

Blu-ray

External Sites

• Official website for South Park Studios
• South Park Episodes, TV Listings, News, Photos and More at TVGuide.com