Pardon the Interruption
Pardon the Interruption (abbreviated PTI) is an American sports talk television show that airs weekdays on various ESPN TV channels.Similar in format to Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert's At the Movies,[2][3] PTI is known for its playful banter between the cohosts, humorous and often loud tone, and a "rundown" graphic which lists the topics yet to be discussed on the right-hand side of the screen.[6][8][9][10][11] The founding production team behind PTI includes Mark Shapiro,[12] Erik Rydholm,[13] Todd Mason, James Cohen,[12] and Joseph Maar.From the premiere of PTI until September 5, 2014, Tony Reali served as the show's statistician (earning him the nickname "Stat Boy") and eventually became a de facto co-host.Kornheiser began exclusively hosting from his home upon the show's return from its 2020 COVID-19 hiatus, though he made an in-studio appearance on December 5, 2023 but cautioned to viewers "Don't get used to it.[8][21][22] Famous fans include Barack Obama,[23] George W. Bush,[11] Tom Hanks,[24] Bill Murray,[25] David Letterman,[25] Tom Cotton,[26] Hank Azaria,[27] Chris Christie,[28] Eric Stonestreet,[28] Matthew Morrison,[28] John Heilemann,[29] Penny Marshall,[11] Michael Kelly,[30] Eva Longoria,[31] John McCain,[31] Tim Russert,[31] and Maury Povich.For much of its run PTI had a unique studio layout featuring a "wall" full of cut-out cardboard heads of athletes and celebrities that had been used in the "Role Play" segment,[37] bobblehead dolls of the show's hosts and Reali, Etch-A-Sketch art of Kornheiser and Wilbon, multiple penguins and several other toys and trinkets they have received, such as Kornheiser's beloved "Leg Lamp" from A Christmas Story, Stewie Griffin, and Elmo.[40] On rare occasions when more serious news will lead the discussion, such as the death of Junior Seau, the hosts will omit their typical intro banter.[43] Other times, there are two "Five Good Minutes" segments with two different guests, there are also shows where two related guests appear during one segment, such as Joe Buck and Tim McCarver of Major League Baseball on Fox broadcasts (Another example of this was Al Michaels and Doc Rivers, when they appeared together while covering the 2004 NBA Finals for ABC Sports)."Jaws" and "the Polish Rifle" - the latter usually rendered in a Howard Cosell-like voice), frequently guested, until his departure from ESPN.Among games no longer regularly played: Odds Makers, which is featured weekly and involves the hosts giving their prediction in the form of a percentage about the likeliness of a future event occurring.Reali gives the topics and keeps track of responses on a chalkboard, to which he refers at the end of the segment in order to declare a winner.Additionally, during the early run of PTI, a "Doctors" segment was featured occasionally, in which the hosts had to choose which head to cut off and throw in the trash out of two that were stuck together.From the start of the series until July 2005 and then again since August 2009, the show ends with the Big Finish, in which the hosts alternate quick takes on a list of roughly half a dozen final topics, usually ending with Wilbon answering which telecast of a pair posed by Kornheiser he will watch that evening, or predicting the outcome of a game to be played.The half-hour broadcast concludes with Kornheiser waving a small Canadian flag while Wilbon mentions their podcast and pitches the show over to the SportsCenter studio.[47] Kornheiser made the routine into a trademark sign-off and continued even after TSN added the extra segment to its early-evening edition of SportsCentre.After the opening segment of SportsCenter (normally 10–14 minutes), PTI returned to debate an additional sports-related topic, then end with The Big Finish and the typical goodbyes.The longevity and popularity of the show has led to numerous running jokes between Wilbon and Kornheiser that longtime viewers will recognize.Some of these include such gags as The Bald Brotherhood, Blowed Out, (He's) Ya Boy, Beatdown!, Strugg-a-ling, The Yanks and the Sawks!, Choking Dawgs!, The Penguin Dance, Kornheiser's I-95 Bias, The Wilbon Power Rankings, Let Me Axe You Something, Uranus, Playoffs?[42][51] In it, the main characters Tony Kleinman (Jason Alexander) and Bernie Widmer (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) co-hosted an off-beat sports show titled "Listen Up!On February 8, 2006, it was announced that Tony Kornheiser would join Mike Tirico and Joe Theismann in the broadcast booth during Monday Night Football beginning in the 2006 NFL season.On February 18, 2012, Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil featured Wilbon and Kornheiser as the local policemen with a nod to their good cop/bad cop PTI segment.Dan Le Batard, of The Miami Herald and his then-ESPN Radio program, was another frequent guest-host, known for his polarizing irreverence and for punctuating his first appearance in each show with a trademark "BAM!!".A. Adande, Kevin Blackistone, Tim Cowlishaw, Dominique Foxworth, Israel Gutierrez, Jay Mariotti, Jackie MacMullan, Bill Plaschke and Michael Smith have also all had stints as guest hosts.Others appearing over the years include David Aldridge, Skip Bayless, Jay Bilas, Norman Chad, Mike Golic, Sally Jenkins, Max Kellerman, Tim Kurkjian, Patrick McEnroe, Rachel Nichols, Keith Olbermann, Rick Reilly, Bill Simmons, T.J. Simers, Dan Shaughnessy, Stephen A. Smith, Michele Tafoya, Mike Tirico, Bob Valvano, Ralph Wiley and Jason Whitlock.During a phone interview on the August 15, 2006 edition of The Dan Patrick Show, Kornheiser explained this absence in most of July by revealing that he was recovering from skin cancer surgery.[57] Multiple commentators have credited PTI with inspiring and laying the groundwork for a number of successful TV sports debate shows, including Around the Horn and First Take.
Tony KornheiserMichael WilbonTony RealiABC NewsWashington, D.C.The Sports ReportersAround the Hornsports talktelevision showGene SiskelRoger EbertAt the MoviesSportsCenterThe Washington PostMark ShapiroKat CressidaNew York CityGood Morning AmericaCOVID-19Sports Emmy AwardOutstanding Studio ShowESPNEWSSportsCentreCanadian flagpodcastBT Sport ESPNESPN 3 Mexico, Central America & CaribbeanESPN 5The 5 NetworkPhilippine Standard TimeBarack ObamaGeorge W. BushTom HanksBill MurrayDavid LettermanTom CottonHank AzariaChris ChristieEric StonestreetMatthew MorrisonJohn HeilemannPenny MarshallMichael KellyEva LongoriaJohn McCainTim RussertMaury PovichPresidentWhite HouseOval Officebobblehead dollsEtch-A-SketchpenguinsA Christmas StoryStewie Griffinjack-o'-lanternsIndependence DaySt. Patricks DayChristmashigh definitionbaseballcommissionerBud SeligMike Wilbontitle cardCut Your HairPavementJunior SeauremoteJoe BuckTim McCarverMajor League Baseball on FoxAl MichaelsDoc Rivers2004 NBA FinalsABC SportsDenver NuggetsChauncey BillupsWashington WizardsRon JaworskiPhiladelphia EaglesHoward CosellMonday Night FootballDrew RosenhausTim FloydO. J. MayoJackie MacMullanMagic JohnsonIsiah Thomase-mailThanksgivingOdds MakerschalkboardDan LeBatardOver/Underhome runsletter gradesbackground musicshout-outNielsen ratings2008 season2009 football seasonThe Yanks and the Sawks!Choking Dawgs!Bulls CornerDrew BreeeesSuper Bowl XXXVIfear of flyingOrlandoFloridasplit-screenListen UpJason AlexanderMalcolm-Jamal WarnerMr. 3000Bernie MacMike TiricoJoe Theismann2006 NFL seasonEA SportsNBA Live 07Xbox 360PlayStation 3eponymous podcastSouth ParkSeason 14