In Living Color Halftime Show
In Living Color Halftime Show
Broadcast Competition

In Living Color Halftime Show

"We knew that we could give a better show." - Tommy Davidson

Prior to 1993, Super Bowl halftime shows were not the popular-culture spectacles they are today. They usually had themes, such as "Winter Magic", a 1992 Winter Olympics show, or "Be Bop Bamboozled" and they were not widely popular. In 1992, FOX decided to air a live episode of “In Living Color,” its hit comedy sketch show starring Jim Carrey and the Wayans Brothers (among others) to compete with halftime programming on CBS, which was airing the game. The “In Living Color” episode drew over 20 million viewers, and sparked changes to the Super Bowl halftime show moving forward. The following year, for Super Bowl XXVII, Michael Jackson gave an epic concert performance – and the halftime show has been a cultural phenomenon and mass media extravaganza ever since.