Big Chuck and Lil' John
| Big Chuck and Lil' John | |
|---|---|
Charles Schodowski (right) and John Rinaldi (left), c. 1986. | |
| Genre | |
| Starring |
|
| Opening theme |
|
| Ending theme | "Is That All There Is?" by Peggy Lee |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 28 |
| Production | |
| Production location | Cleveland, Ohio |
| Running time | 2 hr. 30 min. |
| Original release | |
| Network | WJW (channel 8) |
| Release | September 2, 1979 – June 17, 2007 |
| Related | |
| Ghoulardi | |
Big Chuck and Lil' John were a duo of entertainers and horror hosts based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, consisting of Charles Mitchell "Big Chuck" Schodowski (June 28, 1934 – January 19, 2025) and "Lil' John" Rinaldi (born January 19, 1946). They co-hosted a late-night program over Cleveland television station WJW (channel 8) from 1979 until 2007, but Schodowski's tenure at the station dated back to 1961, first as a technician, then as a sidekick for Ghoulardi (Ernie Anderson) and a co-host alongside Bob "Hoolihan" Wells.
In addition to hosting a movie with a live audience, they also performed original sketch comedy routines. At the end of each sketch was a very distinctive laugh (see external links section below) voiced by comedian/actor Jay Lawrence, who was a disc jockey for KYW radio in Cleveland during the early 1960s.
On September 10, 2011, WJW began airing a weekly half-hour program – simply titled Big Chuck and Lil' John – featuring classic show skits along with limited new production.