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Kevin Schini Interview


Kevin Schini is a producer and writer who is probably best known for his work on the Comedy Central Roasts. In 2007 he worked on MXC as the Script Coordinator. Mr. Schini was kind enough to answer some questions about his experiences working on MXC. I want to thank Mr. Schini for taking the time to talk about his work on MXC. This interview may not be posted outside of KeshiHeads or KeshiKingdom without expressed permission from myself.

Joshua M: When did you first see MXC and what did you think of it?

Kevin Schini: I was working in development at Sony Pictures Television when a co-worker of mine showed up with a VHS tape (yup, we were still recording things off TV using video tape at that time) and asked me to come check out this outrageous new show on Spike called MXC.

The first game we saw was the horse race where the contestants were dressed up in horse and jockey costumes while wearing roller skates as they attempt to win a steeplechase-type of race. It looked so dangerous, which only added to the humor when the contestants lost their balance and fell. It couldn’t get any funnier than this, I thought. But then the game switched to “Sinkers and Floaters”, which is probably the most iconic MXC game of all. It’s the one where contestants sprint across a pond while jumping on real rocks, or Styrofoam rocks that sink. Again, the combination of watching people risk their lives with the incredibly funny and smart dialogue was instantly addicting. It was as if you had sports announcers giving color commentary on actual train wrecks. We wanted to look away, but we couldn’t because we’d probably miss a joke or two.

We stood there watching in disbelief because the show was so funny and so confusing. We weren’t sure if what we were watching was a joke or if it was a real show, or if it was a translated version of what was originally said. All we knew was that we wanted more of it, whatever it was, because it was just so downright funny.


Joshua:How did you become involved in MXC?

Kevin: After we watched the tape a few times (at least 20) that morning, I went back to my office and called a friend of mine to tell him about the show. For some reason, the show made me think of this friend’s sense of humor. I had this weird feeling that he’d love it. “You’ve gotta see this new show called MXC. It’s one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen.” And then my friend on the other end says, “Know it? I’m working on it!” I couldn’t believe it. That person, of course, is Herb Goss. (If you’re a true MXC fan, you’ll know that they named a character on the show after Herb. But I’ll let Herb tell you all about how that came to be.)

Herb was the original script coordinator on MXC. When he was promoted to writer, he needed to replace himself at the SC job, so he called me up to set up a meeting with Paul Abeyta, the show’s creator. At this point, MXC was just gearing up for its 5th season which would start a month or so later. Herb set up an interview for me with Paul. I figured it’d just be a few minutes of “you’re qualified for this potential job” talk, and then thanks for coming. I was wrong. It was maybe three minutes of job talk, then Paul pushed a button on his computer and said “watch this.” Paul was simultaneously working on another TV pilot in a similar style to MXC, this one was a Japanese voice-over project with female professional wrestlers called “Kat Fights.” It was hilarious. He then pointed out a clip and said, “got a joke for this?” I instantly spouted off something smart-assey, Paul laughed, and he typed it up. I thought, wow, that’s cool. I guess he liked my joke. Paul then showed me another clip, and said the same thing. Again, I spouted off whatever instantly came to my head, and we both laughed, and Paul typed it up. This same process went on for the next four hours. It felt so natural, like it’s obviously where I belong. We could tell that this was a good fit. Afterwards, Paul told Herb that he knew I just “got it” from the start the way I did. The week following the meeting, Paul and I worked on jokes for “Kat Fights” and then a few weeks later I started working on MXC.

Here’s a link to the “Kat Fights” presentation- https://youtu.be/9hBh4xCzrAA

 


Joshua: As a script coordinator, what were your duties on MXC?

Kevin: I had to take care of all things writing and script related. You’re essentially the “pilot” in the room because the writers are there for only a limited number of hours for the day, so you’re directing everything the room’s working on. (To clarify, Paul was the captain. I’m just the guy steering the ship in the direction he’d tell me.) You need to be ready to go so you can instantly pull a file up and get to work. That includes keeping tabs of all documents related to writing. For example, before we write a script, for our “spotting sessions” we’d view MXC footage for the first time and everyone pitches out on jokes, contestant names, specific contestants, and tons more. All that needs to get to the proper place if it’s going to be used a script. If there was a game in this new episode that was in an earlier episode, we had to go through the master file to find the correct description. We had to save jokes that weren’t used in case they were useful in another episode. Once the script is done, we had to color-line the the dialogue and characters names, etc, in order for it to be seen correctly on screen for our voice over sessions.

The SC job was a lot of the behind-the-scenes work, however, it was also an opportunity to move up to a full writer position because I could fill in the holes of the script with my own joke pitches. If I was getting a script out the night before and I noticed that we still didn’t have a joke scripted yet for a certain section, if I had something, obviously I’d fill it in with that instead of leaving the section blank. Sometimes the video for Kenny’s Top Ten list wasn’t edited together in time for anyone to pitch out on it, so that was an opportunity to get ten more jokes in. Paul and crew all liked what they saw, so they were okay with it. I’m sure they wouldn’t have been if my material sucked. So of course, the lesson is… only pitch funny jokes.



Joshua: What were your impressions of the MXC crew?

Kevin: My first impression was that they were all insane is a non-harmful way, which is the best way possible to be insane. I can’t say it was non-threatening, because John Cervenka’s Mr. Waverely character, which he’d improv at the table anytime someone asked how Mr. Waverly was doing, was equally as hilarious as it was creepy. For the most part, the core of writers who perform the show’s characters are Groundlings. Sometimes Paul would ask them questions on whatever the topic of the moment was, and one or more of them would improv a new bit just to get everyone laughing.

What was so memorable for me was that I was at a table with eight or nine of the funniest people I’d have ever met, pitching jokes, doing room bits, just laughing all day, five days each week. And then on Friday on the way out the door, they handed me a paycheck. It was like stealing money because not one minute of it ever felt like work. I felt like I should be paying them for the entertainment.


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notundercovercop.
I found the BGMS for
Catch It
Rat Race
Extinction
Avalanche
Cheese berry hill
Corn cob trip
Roll the dice
End Bell
Dominoes
Bite the bun
17/Sep/17, 3:15 am Link to this post    PM josechung
 
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Re: Kevin Schini Interview


Joshua: What did you think of the footage from Takeshi’s Castle when you first saw it?

Kevin: I couldn’t believe some of the hits we saw. It also looked so flimsy and cheap that I often wondered if the course was going to collapse. I also was in shock when I learned that there was no insurance and that if you wanted to be on the show, you couldn’t sue if you got hurt or killed. It was your own fault for taking the risk.

Joshua: In your experience, what is the difference between working on MXC and your subsequent work on the CC roasts?

Kevin: There’s a slight difference between the two for certain reasons. Such as… more fart jokes on MXC. However, the two are very similar. They’re both “shotgun comedy,” which is basically just to shoot joke after joke after joke. They both usually mention people’s failures, or why they suck, and they both turn those things into something people can laugh at. I miss MXC…



Joshua: You started working on the show during Season 5, where you surprised when the show wasn’t picked up for a season 6?

Kevin: I was shocked because it still belongs on the air. On top of that, there was so much unused footage to make probably another 5 seasons if not more. Seems like such a waste to the world of comedy.


Joshua: Did you ever get to voice a character on the show?

Kevin: I did, yes. I sung a song as a character in one of the Season 5 karaoke bits. Other than that, I was just part of the chorus of random voices for crowds, and of course the “don’t get eliminated!” ending.



Joshua: What would you say was your most important contribution to MXC?

Kevin: My first scripted joke for an episode, which was 502, Religious Right vs Gay Rights. There’s a clip at the beginning with the Captain interviewing the contestants, and a guy held up some sort of scroll for everyone to see. After a few minutes of pitching, no one could come up with what the guy or scroll was and it was quiet. So I said, “maybe he’s a Mad Libs bible salesman.” And Chris Darga immediately said, “The lord is my noun. I shall not verb.” And bam! A joke was made. It opened the door to pitching jokes instead of just typing them up.

Joshua: What was the transition from MXC to Super Big Product Fun Show like?

Kevin: It was different because we had to figure out what the show was about. It was creative in a different way that MXC was because sometimes we really had to stretch to come up with the fake explanation of the products. That said, it was my first Co-Executive Producer credit, so that’s cool.

Joshua: Do you have a favorite joke or scene from MXC that stands out to you?

Kevin: Please don’t make me pick favorites because there are so many favorite scenes to me. But if I had to pick a favorite episode, I’d have to say episode 326 Career Day White Collar vs Blue Collar is pretty much the epitome of what MXC is about. The jokes are hilarious and some of the best written of the series, the VO performances are all hysterical, the wipeouts are great. Even though I had nothing to do with it but wish I did, it’s one of the best episodes of the entire 5 seasons.



Joshua: In summation, could you give one or two thoughts on the following people: Paul Abeyta, Peter Kaikko, Larry Strawther, Vic Wilson, Chris Darga, John Cervenka, Mary Scheer, Roy Jenkins, Mickey Ramos, Ray James and Herb Goss.

Kevin: It was fate that I met Paul Abeyta. Without ever realizing it, I had been a fan of his work for years. Before I moved from Florida after college, I worked in a restaurant and during cleanup at night, we’d turn the TV to a show called “Nightstand with Dick Detrick”. It was a talk show that we weren’t sure was real or fake. All we knew was that it was hilarious and that we all were addicted to watching it. Now, without being aware of it at the time, “Nightstand” was one of Paul’s creations. When I got to LA and eventually met Herb Goss, he mentioned being a writer on “Nightstand.” I told him how much I loved that show. MXC hit the air, and again, I was instantly addicted to it, again without realizing it was another one of Paul’s shows. Herb tells me I have to meet Paul, that he’s hilarious, and even was one of the writers for Steve Martin’s early career. I mentioned to Herb that one of my favorite jokes of Steve Martin’s is the one about the neighbor’s cat, and Herb laughs and says Paul wrote that one. So obviously, it was destiny that we got to work together.

Peter Kaikko’s a nice guy, even though I didn’t really work directly with him too much. I only saw him around the office mostly.

Larry Strawther same as Peter.

Vic Wilson was a really great improv actor. He was a great straight man to Chris Darga’s Kenny character.

Chris Darga is just downright hilarious. Incredible actor. Great improv-er and writer. He’s a wealth of talent.

John Cervenka can lose himself in any character he plays. He commits to his parts in such a believable way. Off the cuff, there’s really no one better to have had on the show.

Mary Scheer is the heart of MXC. Not only did she play “everywoman” but she was responsible for so much hilarious material whether it was in the form of jokes, background VO, naming games (Eat Shitake was her idea), etc.

Roy Jenkins is another brilliant writer and improv actor. He was a great addition to the show in the second or third season. I’ve always loved working with Roy.

Micky Ramos is such a great person. One of the most dedicated workers I’ve ever met. She’s smart and funny and was one of the most important people on the show.

Ray James is another brilliant joke writer. One of the best in the country. He’s also the reason why I’m working on the Comedy Central roasts. He was the head writer for the Joan Rivers roast and asked me to come with him as the writers assistant. I wound up getting jokes in, and the rest is history. I have Ray to thank for that.

I met Herb Goss my second year in Los Angeles on the show “Rude Awakening.” He and I just hit it off and he always seemed to check in on me and look out for me for jobs, etc. He’s the reason why I got the MXC job, so again, he can do no wrong in my book. Great human being, on top of being a great writer.


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notundercovercop.
I found the BGMS for
Catch It
Rat Race
Extinction
Avalanche
Cheese berry hill
Corn cob trip
Roll the dice
End Bell
Dominoes
Bite the bun
17/Sep/17, 3:17 am Link to this post    PM josechung
 
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Re: Kevin Schini Interview


Nice interview! Thanks jose and Kevin for taking the time to make it emoticon

One thing, the first time I watched MXC (before I saw TC), I never thought anyone was even risking death by being on the show, and obviously no one ended up dying. That's one of the most common questions my friends ask me about these shows and I always just tell them that they haven't caused any deaths. If anything the water is the dangerous thing, because it looks like the TC mud could be stagnant with bacteria. But yeah, I never think it's as dangerous as others do. Crazy and confusing, often yes. Dangerous and risky, never.

Good, entertaining interview anyway emoticon

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17/Sep/17, 2:55 pm Link to this post    PM Messup434
 
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Another great read, it must of been great working on that show, all interviewed crew members have been really positive about it.

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Handsome Herbert
17/Sep/17, 3:18 pm Link to this post    PM General Jonnie
 
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Re: Kevin Schini Interview


Interesting read! Different from a lot of the previous ones too.
17/Sep/17, 6:25 pm Link to this post    PM DuffDan
 
josechung Profile
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Re: Kevin Schini Interview


I Love talking to the cast of MXC. They always have fun stories to share. The best part is everyone seems willing to talk about the experience. I've only had one crew member say they didn't want to be interviewed. I hope to have more interviews soon.

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notundercovercop.
I found the BGMS for
Catch It
Rat Race
Extinction
Avalanche
Cheese berry hill
Corn cob trip
Roll the dice
End Bell
Dominoes
Bite the bun
18/Sep/17, 2:03 am Link to this post    PM josechung
 
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I'm curious who it was that said no now emoticon
18/Sep/17, 7:04 am Link to this post    PM DuffDan
 
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Re: Kevin Schini Interview


Quote:

DuffDan wrote:

I'm curious who it was that said no now emoticon



Well if you must know...
I sent Excecutive Producer Peter Kaikko a couple of messages but none of them ever went through. I asked a favor to see if anyone could put in a good word. One of the crew got back to me and said that Peter is grateful that he wants to be heard but would rather the rest of the cast "get all the well-deserved glory." Everything he needed to say he felt he said on the DVD commentary, Fair enough. One thing that he won't say about how good of a producer he was that needs to be said. I was told that he was really oversaw a lot of the financial part of the production and "did a masterful job of making sure every dollar we spent ended up on the screen."

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notundercovercop.
I found the BGMS for
Catch It
Rat Race
Extinction
Avalanche
Cheese berry hill
Corn cob trip
Roll the dice
End Bell
Dominoes
Bite the bun
19/Sep/17, 1:51 am Link to this post    PM josechung
 
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Re: Kevin Schini Interview


Good job Dan emoticon emoticon

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19/Sep/17, 4:01 am Link to this post    PM Messup434
 
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Re: Kevin Schini Interview


I can not believe you fools are branching out. Null. emoticon Thank you very much, Mr. Jose, for interviewing the bald guy from Shark Tank.

Now will someone fix my damn TV control? emoticon
24/Sep/17, 2:33 am Link to this post    PM Castle Capers
 


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