Thomas Lennon, Kerri Kenney and Michael Ian Black of the comedy group "The State" did a real variety show that was both homage to and parody of this near-forgotten (in the U.S., anyway) type of TV show. They had name celebrities mixed in with weird novelty acts of the type you can only find at Circus Circus in Las Vegas. They never made fun of the acts, but created characters at whom they could jab. It was too original and weird to survive, alas. I hope they all put together another original creation this good!
Review of Viva Variety
