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[07/18/05 - 12:00 AM]
Comedy Central(R) and Parallel Entertainment Strike Multi-Program Blue Collar Production and Development Pact
[via press release from Comedy Central]

Comedy Central� And Parallel Entertainment Strike Multi-Program Blue Collar Production And Development Pact

Agreement Calls For A Third Blue Collar Comedy Tour Concert Film, An Annual Summer Event Franchise, Three Stand-Up Specials Featuring Up-And-Coming Blue Collar Talent And Pilot/Presentation Pick-Up For "The Naked Trucker" Featuring David Koechner And David Gruber

NEW YORK, July 18, 2005 -- COMEDY CENTRAL and J.P. Williams' Parallel Entertainment, the independent management and production company that represents Blue Collar comedians Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall, Ron White and Larry the Cable Guy, have reached an agreement with COMEDY CENTRAL on a multi-project development and production pact that will result in a third sequel to the enormously successful Blue Collar Comedy Tour Movie as well as several original specials and a series pilot, it was announced today by Lauren Corrao, executive vice president, original programming and development, COMEDY CENTRAL and J.P. Williams, owner and CEO, Parallel Entertainment.

"Given the extraordinary popularity and ratings success of Blue Collar comedy on COMEDY CENTRAL, this agreement to extend and broaden our relationship with J.P. Williams and Parallel Entertainment was a top priority for the network," said Corrao. "All of us look forward to collaborating with J.P., Jeff, Bill, Ron, Larry and all of the emerging talent being developed for the Blue Collar comedy franchise in the years ahead."

"It has been a wonderful experience working with COMEDY CENTRAL and this has really been a win/win situation for both of us," said Williams "We look forward to building on our past successes and are excited about the new projects we are developing."

COMEDY CENTRAL was the home of the Network Television Premiere of "Blue Collar Comedy Tour: The Movie" which scored big in its debut in November 2003, drawing over 2.1 million viewers and later became the most-watched movie in COMEDY CENTRAL history when 2.9 million viewers tuned in March 2004 during COMEDY CENTRAL's "Redneck Weekend." In February 2005, "Blue Collar Comedy Tour Rides Again" shattered the first Blue Collar movie's ratings delivery when over 6.1 million viewers caught its premiere. "Blue Collar Comedy Tour, One For The Road," will shoot in Washington, DC at the Warner Theater next March with an expected debut date sometime in the second quarter of 2006.

The COMEDY CENTRAL/Parallel Entertainment pact also calls for an annual 1-2 hour summer-themed Blue Collar comedy special event featuring Foxworthy and his regular Blue Collar cohorts as well as three original stand-up specials featuring up-and-coming comics from the Parallel Entertainment stable. In addition, a pilot of the long-running Los Angeles-based stage show "The Naked Trucker and T-Bones Show," featuring Dave "Gruber" Allen ("Freaks and Geeks") and David Koechner ("Saturday Night Live") will be developed at the COMEDY CENTRAL Stage in Los Angeles. "The Naked Trucker and T-Bones Show" has a country/rock art-house feel, featuring a naked trucker and his ne'er-do-well sidekick, Gerald "T-Bones" Tibbons, backed by a hell-raising band. They sing songs and weave tales of being on the road in pursuit of the American Dream.

J.P. Williams has been the owner and CEO of Parallel Entertainment for the past thirteen years and currently manages the careers of Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall, Larry the Cable Guy and David Koechner. Williams most notable producer credits include several one-hour specials for COMEDY CENTRAL and HBO as well as "Blue Collar Comedy Tour: The Movie," which has sold more than three million DVDs. Williams also produced the sequel "Blue Collar Comedy Tour Rides Again," which had its world premiere on COMEDY CENTRAL and was the network's third most-watched telecast ever. The sequel has sold more than 2.6 million DVDs since its release on December 7, 2004. He is also an executive producer on the WB hit comedy show "Blue Collar TV" and executive produced a special for the WB Network called "Mobile Home Disasters," which starred Bill Engvall.

COMEDY CENTRAL, the only all-comedy network, currently is seen in more than 87 million homes nationwide. COMEDY CENTRAL is owned by Comedy Partners, a wholly-owned division of MTV Networks. COMEDY CENTRAL is a registered trademark of Comedy Partners. COMEDY CENTRAL's Internet address is http://www.comedycentral.com.





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· BLUE COLLAR TV (WB)
· FREAKS & GEEKS (NBC)
· MOBILE HOME DISASTER (CMT)
· NAKED TRUCKER & T-BONES SHOW, THE (COMEDY CENTRAL)




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