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Bloopers from the filming of The Summer I Turned Pretty.

A blooper, or gag reel, is a short clip from a film, television program or video production, usually a deleted scene, which includes a mistake made by a member of the cast or crew. It also refers to an error made during a live radio or TV broadcast or news report, usually in terms of misspoken words or technical errors.

The word blooper comes from the early days of radio, from around 1926. Used in baseball by 1940, it meant "hit a ball in a high arc over the head of a fielder". It has been used as a noun from 1931.[1]

The term blooper was popularized in the 1950s and 1960s in a series of record albums produced by Kermit Schafer entitled Pardon My Blooper, in which the definition of a blooper is thus given by the record series' narrator: "Unintended indiscretions before microphone and camera."

Bloopers are often the subject of television programs and may be shown during the closing credits of comedic films or TV episodes. Prominent examples of films with bloopers include The Cannonball Run, Cheaper by the Dozen, and Rush Hour. Jackie Chan and Burt Reynolds are both famous for including such reels with the closing credits of their movies.

In recent years, many animated films have also incorporated bloopers, including a mix of faked bloopers, genuine voice-actor mistakes set to animation, and technical errors. Examples can be found in Pixar films A Bug's Life (1998), Toy Story 2 (1999), and Monsters, Inc. (2001). Humorous mistakes made by athletes are often referred to as bloopers as well, particularly in baseball. The more provocative term "choke" may be used to describe such plays instead, especially if a blooper affects the outcome of a sports competition in a major way, such as a late-game event in a close game. This is especially true if the game was an important one in the outcome of a season such as a playoff game or championship event.[2]

Origins

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United States

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The term "blooper" was popularized in the United States by television producer Kermit Schaefer in the 1950s; the terms "boner" (meaning a boneheaded mistake) and "breakdown" had been in common usage previously. Schaefer produced a long-running series of Pardon My Blooper! record albums in the 1950s and 1960s which featured a mixture of actual recordings of errors from television and radio broadcasts and re-creations. Schaefer also transcribed many reported bloopers into a series of books that he published up until his death in 1979.[citation needed]

Schaefer was by no means the first to undertake serious study and collection of broadcast errata; NBC's short-lived "behind-the-scenes" series Behind the Mike (1940–42) occasionally featured reconstructions of announcers' gaffes and flubs as part of the "Oddities in Radio" segment, and movie studios such as Warner Brothers had been producing so-called "gag reels" of outtakes (usually for employee-only viewing) since the 1930s. As recently as 2003, the Warner Brothers Studio Tour included a screening of bloopers from classic films as part of the tour.[citation needed]

United Kingdom

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Jonathan Hewat (1938–2014),[3][4] who had a vast personal collection of taped broadcasting gaffes,[5] was the first person in the UK to broadcast radio bloopers, on a bank holiday show on BBC Radio Bristol at the end of the 1980s.

He subsequently produced and presented a half-hour show on that station called So You Want to Run a Radio Station?. This was nominated for a Sony Award. The transmission of humorous mistakes, previously considered private material only for the ears of industry insiders, came to the attention of BBC Radio 2. They commissioned a series of six fifteen-minute programmes called Can I Take That Again?,[6][7] produced by Jonathan James Moore (then Head of BBC Light Entertainment, Radio). The success of this series led to a further five series on Radio 2 (the programme ran from 1985 to 1990),[5] as well as a small number of programmes (called Bloopers) on BBC Radio 4.

Some of the earliest clips in Hewat's collection went back to Rudy Vallee "corpsing" (giggling uncontrollably) during a recording of "There Is a Tavern in the Town" and one of the very earliest OBs (Outside Broadcasts) of The Illumination of the Fleet.[citation needed]

The comment made by newsreaders after making a mistake "I'm sorry I'll read that again" was the origin of the title of the radio show which ran on the BBC during the 1960s and 1970s.

Television shows

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Comedian Dick Emery showcased his own out-takes as an epilogue entitled "A Comedy of Errors" to his BBC shows in the mid-1970s. The later ITV show It'll Be Alright on the Night (originally hosted by Denis Norden) showed out-takes from film and TV. The BBC's answer to the show, Auntie's Bloomers and its spin-off, Auntie's Sporting Bloomers, ran until 2001. It was replaced by Outtake TV, which began as a series of one-off specials in 2002, hosted by Paul O'Grady, before a series was commissioned for BBC One in 2004, hosted by Anne Robinson. Special Weakest Link-themed editions were common during Robinson's tenure, which lasted until 2009. Rufus Hound took over in 2010. Outtake TV now appears as occasional one-off specials, much in the same way as It'll Be Alright on the Night.[citation needed]

ITV has produced two other shows, TV Nightmares, and TV's Naughtiest Blunders. Both were presented by Steve Penk, before the latter show changed to show continuous clips with voice-over by Neil Morrissey. Nightmares presented TV personalities relating some of their most hair-raising moments, and Naughtiest Blunders presented more risqué mistakes. The latter has also been criticised for being used as a simple schedule filler, often with ridiculously titled editions (e.g. All New TV's Naughtiest Blunders 18).

During the 1982–83 season, TV producer Dick Clark revived the bloopers concept in America for a series of specials on NBC called TV's Censored Bloopers. This led to a weekly series which ran from 1984 through 1992 (co-hosted by Clark and Ed McMahon) and was followed by more specials that appeared on ABC irregularly until 2004, still hosted by Clark. These specials and a record album of radio bloopers produced by Clark in the mid-1980s were dedicated to the memory of Kermit Schaefer.[8]

After Clark suffered a stroke, the blooper shows went on hiatus until 2007, when John O'Hurley hosted a special for ABC that was packaged by Dick Clark Productions.

The success of both Clark's and Norden's efforts led to imitators on virtually all American and Australian TV networks, as well as scores of home video releases; many American productions are aired to fill gaps in prime time schedules. The ABC Network aired Foul-Ups, Bleeps & Blunders hosted by Steve Lawrence and Don Rickles in direct competition with the Clark TV series. With the coming of DVD in the 1990s, it became common for major film releases to include a "blooper reel" (also known as a "gag reel" or simply "outtakes") as bonus material on the disc.

In 1985, Steve Rotfeld began compiling stock footage of various sports-related errors and mistakes and compiled them into a program known as Bob Uecker's Wacky World of Sports. In the early 1990s, that series eventually evolved into The Lighter Side of Sports and continued in limited production through the early 2000s.

NFL Films, the official production arm of the National Football League, has produced a line of blooper reels known as the Football Follies for both television and direct-to-video consumption since 1968.

Causes

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Bloopers are usually accidental and humorous. Where actors need to memorize large numbers of lines or perform a series of actions in quick succession, mistakes can be expected. Similarly, newsreaders have only a short time to deliver a large amount of information and are prone to mispronounce place names and people's names, or switch a name or word without realizing it, as in a slip-of-the-tongue or Freudian slip.

Some common examples include:

  • Uncontrollable laughter (called, in television and acting circles, corpsing)
  • Unanticipated incidents (e.g. a prop falling or breaking, or a child/animal failing to behave as expected)
  • Forgotten lines
  • Deliberate sabotage of an actor's performance by a fellow actor; a prank or practical joke (to evoke laughter from cast and crew).

The famous old chestnut of show business "Never work with children or animals" demonstrates two other causes of out-takes: Children, especially those who have no acting experience, often miss cues, deliver the wrong lines or make comments which are particularly embarrassing. (The Kids Say the Darndest Things series, conceived by Art Linkletter, deliberately sought these kinds of remarks.) Similarly, animals are very likely to do things not in the script, generally involving bodily functions.

A third type of blooper is caused by failure of inanimate objects. This can be as simple as a sound effect being mistimed or a microphone not working properly, but frequently involves doorknobs (and doors) not working or breaking, props and sets being improperly prepared, as well as props working in ways they should not work.

In recent years, mobile phones have been a new source of bloopers with them frequently going off. Many of them belong to actors, presenters, and contestants who may have forgotten to turn them off or put them in silent mode. The effect is especially pronounced when the film setting is before the modern era (e.g., ancient Greece or Rome). However, this blooper is rarely seen in recent films (most productions enforce "no cellphone" rules while on-set to reduce the risk of plot or production details being leaked) but is commonly used in fake bloopers for animations.

The reaction to bloopers is often intensified in the stressful environment of a movie or television set, with some actors expressing extreme annoyance while others enjoy the stress relief brought on by the unexpected event.

Examples

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One of the earliest known bloopers is attributed to 1930s radio broadcaster Harry Von Zell, who accidentally referred to then-US President Herbert Hoover as "Hoobert Heever" during an introduction. Reportedly it was upon hearing of this mistake that Kermit Schafer was inspired to begin collecting bloopers, although the exact circumstances of the event have been debated.[9] A similar situation occurred decades later when then-new president Gerald Ford was introduced as "Gerald Smith", the same name as an American Fascist leader from the 1930s.

On an episode of The Red Skelton Show in the 1950s, a skit involving Red's "country bumpkin" character "Clem Kadiddlehopper", had him leading a cow onto the stage. Several seconds into the skit, the cow defecated on-stage during the live broadcast. Whereupon the audience laughed uncontrollably, and Skelton resorted to the use of the ad-lib, saying "Boy, she's a great cow! Not only does she give milk, {pause} she gives Pet-Ritz Pies!" (Laughs for about ten seconds, then says some things to the cow by her ear). He followed up with, "Why didn't you think of that earlier?", "On top of that, you have a bad breath, you know that?" and finally, "Well sir, it's like they say in psychiatry. Get it out of your system."[This quote needs a citation]. Then the network cut to a commercial.

A much-bootlegged recording of Bing Crosby has him singing to a recording of a band playing "Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams", when he realizes that the master tape had not been fully rewound, and ad-libbed vocals to the truncated music. He begins, "Castles may tumble, that's fate after all/ Life's really funny that way." Realizing the shortened music, he ad-libs, "Sang the wrong melody, we'll play it back/ See what it sounds like, hey hey/ They cut out eight bars, the dirty bastards/ And I didn't know which eight bars he was gonna cut/ Why don't somebody tell me these things around here/ Holy Christ, I'm going off my nut". This recording was first made available to the public by Kermit Schaefer in Volume 1 of his Pardon My Blooper album series for Jubilee Records in the late 1950s.[citation needed]

On the Wild Bill Hickok radio series in the early 1950s, a newsflash caused an unexpected blooper when it broke into the show. With sound effects providing the sound of horses' hoofs galloping and guns firing, Guy Madison spoke the line "Cut him off at the pass, Jingles!" Whereupon an announcer interrupted with, "We interrupt this program to bring you a bulletin from the Mutual newsroom in New York! According to an announcement from Moscow radio, Lavrenti Beria, former head of the Soviet secret police, has just been executed! We now return you to Wild Bill Hickok." At this point, Andy Devine (as Jingles) was delivering the line "Well, that oughta hold him for a little while, Bill!"[This quote needs a citation]

In a similar vein, New York children's radio show host "Uncle Don" Carney supposedly delivered the ad-libbed line "Are we off? Good...well, that oughta hold the little bastards" after signing off on his show one night, thinking his studio microphone was switched off. As a discredited urban legend has it, the remarks went to air, eventually leading to the show's cancellation and "Uncle Don"'s disgrace; apparently, Carney himself would tell the story of his blooper, especially once it became popular after the release of Schaefer's records. However, according to the debunking website Snopes.com, not only did the alleged incident never happen, the much distributed recording of the incident was a fabrication.[10] (The alleged incident was even parodied in the 1993 Simpsons episode "Krusty Gets Kancelled".)

An episode of the radio drama Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons was presumably introduced as "Mr. Keen, Loser of Traced Persons." (Bob and Ray once did their own parody of this program under the title "Mr. Trace, Keener Than Most Persons".)[citation needed]

A popular story among Texas broadcasting circles has it that a station manager's late change in programming from Les Brown's orchestra to a religious programme marking the somber Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur led to the staff announcer's billboard urging his listeners to "Stay tuned for the dance music of Yom Kippur's Orchestra." (Many gentile DJs have urged their Jewish listeners to "Have a happy Yom Kippur!")

A radio commercial for A&P food stores ended with the announcer excitedly blurting out "...and be sure to visit your nearby A & Food P Store!" In much the same vein was an ad for instant tea as came out in the end "Instant White Rose, hot or cold – Orange Tekoe Pee" and a bakery advertising itself as having "the breast bed and rolls you ever tasted; I knew that would happen one night, friends," all the while breaking out in fits of uncontrollable laughter trying to get the line right.

During the Davy Crockett mania of the mid-1950s, a radio ad for children's bedding cashing in on same had the line "...with scenes of Davy Crockett in action on the mattress," a clear example of how unintentional double-entendre can translate into blooper material.

Afrikaans news anchor Riaan Cruywagen made several live-bloopers during his long career, most notably: where the normally very composed and highly professional Cruywagen burst into uncontrollable laughter while covering story about a record-breaking frog;[11] as well as when co-anchor Marïetta Kruger asked what the word "dysentery" meant while covering a story related to the topic, to which he responded with "spuitpoep" (it translated as "spray poo"), which resulted in Kruger going into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

A public service announcement urging young women to volunteer as nurses during a critical shortage thereof ended with the appeal "Volunteer to be one of America's white-clapped angels of mercy," confusing a slang term for infection with gonorrhea with "white-clad."

The announcer of a radio ad for the 1948 Bob Hope film The Paleface, which costarred buxom actress Jane Russell, enthusiastically promised: "Bob Hope, America's favorite comedian, and Jane Russell...what a pair!"

A Canadian Broadcasting Corporation radio announcer's station-identification message once allegedly came out "This is the Dominion Network of the Canadian Broadcorping Castration," in turn coining an oft-used sarcastic term for the public broadcaster. Like other blooper recordings distributed by Schaefer, a recreation was created as the original recording was not preserved, leading to debate over whether the event actually happened.

A radio adaptation of Don Quixote over the BBC had one episode ending with the announcer explaining where "I'm afraid we've run out of time, so here we leave Don Quixote, sitting on his ass until tomorrow at the same time." In US English, ass could refer either to the buttocks or to a jackass. However, this would not have been seen as a blooper in the UK in the period when it was transmitted, since the British slang word for buttocks is arse, pronounced quite differently. It is only since it has become permissible for ass in the sense of buttocks to be used in US films and on television, and syndicated to the UK, that most Brits have become aware of the buttocks usage. Indeed, since the King James Bible translation is now rarely used, and since the word jackass is very rare in the UK, much of British youth is now unaware that ass can mean donkey. As with the word gay, its usage has completely changed within a few years. The announcer was merely making a joke of the character being frozen in place for 24 hours waiting for us, rather like Elwood in the opening minutes of Blues Brothers 2000, or like toys put back in the cupboard in several children's films.

Contemporary examples

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The American sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air had a tradition of airing outtakes over the closing credits, though blooper reels were not shown during the closing credits of the show during the first, fifth (except for one episode), and sixth seasons. Many of these involved malapropisms on the part of the cast, often lampooned by Will Smith, who would chime in on the mistakes made by the rest of the cast. An example of this is when Uncle Phil (James Avery) comments, "Well, the silverware's obviously not in the house. It must been stolen", before realizing the line was "It must have been stolen" and correcting himself. Smith appears in the shot and, in an exaggerated accent, responds, "It must been stolen. Feet, don't fail me now!"[This quote needs a citation]

Another sitcom, Home Improvement, also showcased outtakes over its closing credits; however, some episodes featured a tag scene over the credits in lieu of a blooper reel.

Star Trek produced many famous out-takes, which were shown to the delight of fans at gatherings over the years and have been extensively bootlegged. One famous example shows actor Leonard Nimoy, who plays the supposedly emotionless Mr. Spock, breaking into laughter when, in the first-season episode "This Side of Paradise", instead of saying the line "The plants act as a repository", says "The plants act as a suppository". In another out-take, series star William Shatner breaks character during a scene and starts complaining about the food served in the studio commissary. A third example begins with the third-season episode "Is There in Truth No Beauty?", in which guest actress Diana Muldaur recited the line, "We've come to the end of an eventful... trip", to which Shatner replies, "I don't know what you've been taking..." – a reference to the then-topical issue of drug-induced hallucinations or "trips". People bumping into supposedly automatic doors when the backstage personnel mistimed opening them was a common accident depicted. Similarly there were also mishaps while filming in exterior, with aircraft flying over supposedly alien planets.[citation needed]

Hee Haw often showed bloopers in the show itself, usually with the actor or actors requiring several tries to get a line right, ending in most cases with the correctly delivered line.[citation needed]

Many theatrical motion pictures feature bloopers during the end credits. For example, many Jackie Chan movies end with footage of failed stunts, blown dialogue, and other mishaps; Chan was inspired to do this by Burt Reynolds' films of the early 1980s (in particular Smokey and the Bandit II and The Cannonball Run) that also featured end-credits bloopers. As an homage to its inspiration, the closing-credits blooper reel for Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy actually featured one outtake from Smokey and the Bandit II.[citation needed]

Pixar also has a tradition of including blooper-like material during the end credits of such films as A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, and Monsters, Inc.; the latter was at one point reissued to theatres with a major selling feature being the addition of extra "bloopers". Since Pixar's films are painstakingly animated, making actual blunders of this sort is impossible, these scenes are in fact staged to provide additional audience enjoyment. The makers of another animated film, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, likewise also created a faux blooper reel showing the characters playing practical jokes and, in one case, bursting into laughter when one "sneezes" during a dramatic sequence. However, the movie Shrek has actual bloopers that were released on DVD. These bloopers are technical errors within the system, causing blurred characters or the characters bodies going through objects, such as a bush or the crown Lord Farquaad wears. Going back decades earlier, in 1939 Warner Bros. cartoon director Bob Clampett produced a short "blooper" film (for the studio's annual in-house gag reel) of Looney Tunes character Porky Pig smashing his thumb with a hammer and cursing.[12]

The television show, Full House, had various bloopers in television specials but unreleased bloopers were leaked containing cast members using profanity to express their mistakes in a family-friendly program.[citation needed]

The fishing television series Bill Dance Outdoors has produced four videos (two VHS and two DVD) focusing entirely on bloopers occurring during production of the show and associated commercials, often showing various mishaps such as missed lines (which sometimes take several takes to finally deliver correctly), accidents during filming (including falling into the water, being impaled with a fish hook, or equipment malfunctions), as well as practical jokes played on the host by his guests and film crew (and vice versa). Some of the outtakes shown on these videos would sometimes be shown over the end credits.[citation needed]

The Discovery Channel series MythBusters will often keep some bloopers included in the actual episodes, usually various mishaps that occur on the show, such as minor injuries suffered by the cast, or various other accidents and malfunctions, which are usually quite spectacular and/or embarrassing when they do occur.

In Asia, variety shows, which is broadcast in a live-like format, would sometimes air bloopers titled NG's, which stands for no good/not good. These NG's would usually feature hosts forgetting their words by mistake and admit they make mistakes on occasion.

The Disney Channel Original Series Sonny with a Chance season 1 episode "Sonny So Far" included bloopers where actress Demi Lovato had uncontrollable laughter while suffering from hiccups during a supposedly "serious" scene, and several other scenes where the cast-members either humorously messed-up their lines, or props were forgotten.

A recent example of a well-publicized live blooper occurred during the March 2, 2014 telecast of the 86th Academy Awards. In introducing the singer Idina Menzel's performance of one of the Best Song nominees, actor John Travolta accidentally announced her as "Adele Dazeem".[13]

Acceptance of out-takes

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The proliferation of out-takes/gag reels/blooper reels, especially on recent DVD releases, has received mixed response by actors and directors. While many do not mind the extra publicity offered by such material being shown to the public and others simply enjoy seeing the mistakes, other actors complain that out-takes are demeaning to themselves and/or the craft and refuse to allow them to be made public.[citation needed]

Director Hal Ashby's decision to include a blooper reel of star Peter Sellers in his 1979 film Being There, for example, is sometimes blamed for Sellers' failure to win that year's Academy Award for Best Actor (for which he was nominated). Sellers had reportedly urged Ashby not to include the outtakes in the final edit of the film, to no avail.

Among his other issues with Star Trek's producer Gene Roddenberry, Leonard Nimoy was not happy that Roddenberry showed the show's blooper reels to fans at conventions in the early 1970s. He felt actors needed to be free to make mistakes without expecting that they would be shown to the public, and wrote a letter to Roddenberry asking him to stop. Roddenberry's answer was to send Nimoy a blooper reel of his own should he have wished to show it at conventions.

Conversely, actors and crew on many productions treat the creation of gag reels as part of the filmmaking process, with innumerable examples of commercially released outtakes in which an actor can be heard remarking that a failed take was likely destined for a gag or blooper reel. Film producer Sam Raimi went so far as to commission veteran composer Vic Mizzy to create unique scores for the gag/blooper reel special features for the DVD releases of the films Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 3.[14]

Comedian Greg Giraldo flubbed a joke about sex with koalas during a performance of his Comedy Central special Midlife Vices. Giraldo then made several self-deprecating jokes, suggesting the flub would be included with the "DVD extras", before repeating the joke correctly. The entire bit made the final cut.[15]

Alternative definitions

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The term "blooper" or "flub," is often applied to describe continuity errors and other mistakes that have escaped the notice of film editors and directors and have made it into a final, televised or released product, where these errors are subsequently identified by viewers. For example, in a film taking place in the Old West, a viewer might spot a twentieth century vehicle driving in the distance of one shot, or in a film taking place in ancient Greece, an actor may have forgotten to remove his wristwatch and it was caught on film. Or it might be a piece of clothing, such as shoes, that change for one shot then change back with no explanation. Strictly speaking, however, these are film errors, and not "bloopers" since they did not occur in outtake footage or a live broadcast. The Internet Movie Database website uses the term goofs instead. In the mid-1990s, author Phil Farrand published a series of Nit-Picker's Guides books in which he collected continuity errors and other on-screen "bloopers" from various Star Trek series that had been identified by either himself or fans; the listing of such information is commonplace on wiki-style websites devoted to TV and film production.[citation needed]

In baseball, the term is used to describe a Texas Leaguer, or a short fly ball that lands just past the infield, eluding both infielders and outfielders alike.

The Vietnam-era M79 grenade launcher also has the nickname "Blooper" due to its distinctive firing noise. Gustav Hasford refers to this in his novel, The Phantom Blooper: A Novel of Vietnam (1990).[16]

See also

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References

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Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia
from Grokipedia
A blooper is an embarrassing or humorous mistake, such as a flubbed line, forgotten cue, or technical error, that occurs during the production of a , , radio broadcast, or similar media and is usually edited out prior to release. These errors often arise from actors, announcers, or crew members and can include verbal slips, physical mishaps, or unintended on-air indiscretions. The term originated in American English in the 1920s as radio slang for an unpleasant interference noise produced by early radio sets, derived from "bloop," an imitation of a flopping or disruptive sound. It was adopted as baseball slang in the late 1920s or 1930s for a weakly hit fly ball that drops just beyond the infielders' reach. By the 1930s and 1940s, it expanded to describe stage blunders and broadcasting errors, before solidifying in its primary modern sense as a media production mistake around 1943. Bloopers have long fascinated audiences for revealing the human side of polished entertainment, with compilations of such outtakes becoming a popular format for highlighting comedic failures. Notable collections of bloopers emerged in the mid-20th century, particularly through the work of producer Kermit Schafer, who earned the nickname "Mr. Blooper" for amassing and releasing over 32 record albums and 15 books filled with audio and televised gaffes from broadcasts dating back decades. Schafer's efforts, beginning in the , popularized the concept of blooper reels as entertainment products, influencing later television specials and online sharing of unedited media mistakes. Today, bloopers continue to be celebrated in end-credit sequences, viral videos, and dedicated shows, underscoring their enduring appeal as lighthearted glimpses into production imperfections.

Definition and Overview

Core Definition

A blooper is an unintended mistake captured on film, tape, , or audio during the production of media, such as movies, television programs, or radio broadcasts, typically involving actors forgetting lines, crew intrusions, or technical malfunctions like equipment failures. These errors are generally excised from the final edit but preserved in outtakes, distinguishing them from intentional gaffes or fixes. Unlike scripted humor or deliberate comedic bits, bloopers emphasize their accidental nature, arising spontaneously without prior planning, which often amplifies their authenticity and appeal in compilations. The term's traces to slang for a short, weak hit—possibly imitating the ball's sound—and extended in to errors, evoking interference noises. Central characteristics of bloopers include their documentation in raw production footage or deleted scenes, rendering them visible artifacts of the creative , alongside their dual potential for eliciting through relatability or via exposure of imperfection.

Historical Context

The concept of production errors predates the term "blooper," which emerged in the . In the era of the and , physical mishaps during filming, such as prop failures, were common but typically edited out and not preserved for , though audiences occasionally spotted visible goofs in via trade publications. In during the and , verbal slips by announcers gained recognition, with the term "blooper" deriving from the "bloop" sound of technical interference caused by over-amplified equipment disrupting signals; it later applied to such errors as a . A notable example occurred in when announcer referred to President as "Hoobert Heever" during a live . The transition to sound films in the 1930s increased the capture of audio-visual errors, though studios like rarely shared outtakes publicly, using them internally for gag reels to boost crew morale. Prior to television, Hollywood tightly controlled such material to uphold the illusion of perfection, with mentions limited to industry anecdotes in publications like Variety.

Origins and Evolution

Early Film and Radio

In the era of the 1910s and 1920s, bloopers manifested as on-set mishaps such as actor falls, prop malfunctions, and continuity errors, which were typically concealed through meticulous editing and multiple takes. Charlie Chaplin's productions from this period, including his Keystone and Mutual comedies like (1915) and The Rink (1916), exemplified this approach; Chaplin's perfectionism often required dozens or even hundreds of retakes to eliminate visible flubs, as seen in rediscovered outtakes showing him stumbling or . Some outtakes were deliberately destroyed to maintain professional standards, such as those from his 1916-1917 Mutual films, which Chaplin ordered discarded due to content deemed inappropriate for the era. Early radio broadcasting in the 1930s introduced bloopers primarily through live flubs like mispronunciations and unintended crosstalk, given the medium's real-time nature. A seminal incident occurred on NBC in 1931 when announcer Harry von Zell introduced President Herbert Hoover as "Hoobert Heever" during a live tribute broadcast, an error that aired unfiltered and became a cornerstone of broadcast lore. Other NBC examples from the decade included announcer Ben Grauer's stumbles over conductor Arturo Toscanini's name, rendered as "Atosco Touranini" or "Otosco Tiscanini." These errors were often impossible to retract in the moment, though networks sometimes used organ music or quick apologies to pivot. Technological constraints amplified blooper occurrences and handling in both media. Silent film's use of hand-cranked cameras and physical film stock enabled multiple takes and post-production editing to hide errors, preserving evidence only in rare outtakes rather than destroying entire reels routinely. In contrast, early radio's absence of recording or delay mechanisms meant live broadcasts from the 1930s transmitted errors instantaneously, with no opportunity for edits; crosstalk arose from open microphones and script-reading pressures, while the lack of tape left most incidents unpreserved beyond eyewitness accounts or industry anecdotes. Bloopers were culturally regarded as professional embarrassments rather than sources of amusement during this period, often kept from public view to uphold industry prestige. By the , however, film crews began forming private collections of gag reels for internal morale-boosting events, such as ' annual parties featuring outtakes from stars like and , marking an early shift toward viewing them as insider entertainment. Radio mishaps, meanwhile, circulated mainly through whispered trade stories, reinforcing their status as cautionary tales for performers.

Television and Broadcast Era

The advent of television in the 1950s marked a significant increase in the visibility of bloopers, particularly through live broadcasts where errors could not be edited out before airing. , many early programs were transmitted live, leading to accidental on-air mistakes such as forgotten lines, prop malfunctions, and unscripted interruptions that reached millions of viewers in real time. Shows like (1951–1957), filmed in front of a live using a multi-camera setup, captured similar unscripted laughs and prop failures during production, with some authentic moments retained in the final episodes to enhance the comedic spontaneity. In the , the BBC's transition from radio to television during the and brought blooper-like elements into visual media. Radio programs such as (1951–1960), a seminal series starring , , and , incorporated intentional ad-libs and absurd improvisations, influencing the chaotic humor of early British TV sketches and evolving into deliberate stylistic choices. This radio-to-TV shift highlighted how unpolished moments could be embraced as part of the entertainment, bridging audio traditions with broadcast visuals. The and saw the globalization of blooper awareness through television syndication, which distributed classic shows worldwide and exposed audiences to preserved errors in reruns. During this period, production teams began compiling private blooper reels for end-of-season parties and events, marking the first semi-public releases of such material, including 1970s Hollywood tapes shared among insiders that featured outtakes from popular series. These compilations, often screened at sponsor gatherings, gradually normalized the appreciation of production mishaps beyond live incidents. The widespread adoption of technology from the onward revolutionized blooper preservation by enabling cost-effective, high-quality recording and editing without the physical degradation of . Unlike earlier film-based productions, allowed crews to retain extensive outtakes for potential reuse, facilitating the creation of future compilation reels and reducing the loss of spontaneous errors during storage and rebroadcast. This technical shift laid the groundwork for bloopers to transition from ephemeral live mishaps to archived cultural artifacts.

Causes and Mechanisms

Technical and Production Errors

Technical and production errors in media creation often stem from mechanical or environmental disruptions that interrupt filming and necessitate retakes or adjustments. Equipment malfunctions, such as camera jams or lighting failures, can halt production abruptly; for instance, inadequate maintenance or on cameras may cause mechanical glitches that render unusable, while equipment breakdowns can alter scene visibility and require resets. feedback, resulting from improper setup or electrical interference, introduces unwanted audio that compromises and demands immediate intervention during shoots. Set and prop issues further contribute to these errors by introducing instability into controlled environments. Collapsing scenery, often due to structural weaknesses in temporary constructions, can disrupt takes and pose risks, while wardrobe slips may occur from faulty attachments or materials that fail under movement. Animal actors misbehaving, such as unexpected movements or refusals to perform, complicate scenes reliant on their cooperation, frequently leading to multiple retakes as handlers attempt to regain control. These prop-related failures highlight the challenges of maintaining physical elements under repetitive use. Environmental factors exacerbate technical vulnerabilities, particularly in location filming where weather interruptions like sudden rain or wind can damage equipment and delay schedules. In sound stages, echoes or audio glitches arise from acoustic imbalances, such as reflective surfaces causing reverberation that distorts dialogue capture. Power outages, another environmental trigger, can shut down essential gear without warning, amplifying any underlying human oversight in preparation. Post-production oversights, while typically addressed in , often trace back to on-set technical lapses that create continuity mismatches. For example, mismatched prop positions or inconsistencies between takes may only become apparent during assembly, requiring digital fixes or reshoots if not caught live; however, such errors are less characteristic of spontaneous bloopers compared to in-camera incidents.

Human Factors

Human factors in the production of bloopers often stem from the cognitive and emotional demands placed on actors and crew members during filming or recording. Actors frequently encounter mistakes such as forgetting lines, which can arise from the psychological pressure to deliver spontaneous performances while maintaining emotional authenticity. Studies on actors' memory indicate that line recall is deeply tied to contextual cues and emotional meaning rather than rote memorization; disruptions occur when performers overfocus on words, reducing their ability to listen and respond naturally in the moment. Corpsing, or breaking character through involuntary laughter, is another common actor error triggered by unexpected humor in scenes, such as ad-libs or subtle provocations from co-stars, which elicit genuine emotional responses that undermine the illusion of the role. Physical blunders, like tripping or unintended gestures, may also result from the heightened physical and mental coordination required, exacerbated by the need to embody characters under scrutiny. Crew interactions contribute to bloopers through interpersonal miscommunications that disrupt synchronized production efforts. Directors' instructions can be misinterpreted by or due to vague articulation of creative vision, leading to mismatched or operational errors, such as a boom operator failing to adjust positioning after unclear cues. This misalignment often stems from hierarchical dynamics where feedback loops are insufficient, causing to pursue interpretations that diverge from the intended scene flow or to execute tasks out of sync with the director's timing. Such lapses highlight the reliance on clear, collaborative to prevent human-induced disruptions in the production process. Fatigue and performance pressure further amplify these human factors, particularly in extended shooting schedules that cognitive resources. Long hours, often exceeding 12 hours per day, lead to and reduced concentration among , resulting in ad-lib slips or lapses in delivering scripted material accurately. Psychological research on reveals that unresolved emotional immersion in roles, combined with stress from unstable work conditions, heightens vulnerability to errors, as performers struggle to separate character demands from personal well-being. These pressures can manifest in diminished focus, increasing the likelihood of both verbal and physical mistakes during high-stakes scenes. In comedic productions, improvisational techniques introduce additional risks where the line between innovative genius and unintended flubs blurs. While fosters spontaneity, it can lead to misheard prompts or off-script deviations that the scene's structure, especially when push boundaries without prior alignment. The psychological thrill of unscripted moments heightens the chance of errors, as performers balance creative risks against the need for cohesive output, often resulting in bloopers from overextension or mismatched timing with co-. Technical failures, such as equipment glitches, can occasionally worsen these human lapses by adding unforeseen stressors.

Media-Specific Examples

Film Bloopers

Film bloopers in cinema often arise from the intricate demands of , practical stunts, and large-scale productions, resulting in unintended narrative or visual discrepancies that slip past initial . These errors highlight the challenges of feature-length , where high-stakes scenes involving props, costumes, and can lead to momentary lapses in continuity or realism. Unlike television's more forgiving episodic format, film's edited nature amplifies the impact of such mistakes when they evade detection. In classic Hollywood productions, bloopers frequently involved rudimentary that proved difficult to conceal. For instance, in (1939), the flying monkeys scene features visible piano wires suspending the actors, a technical oversight from the era's wire-work techniques used to simulate flight. Similarly, Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) includes a well-known moment where a stormtrooper accidentally bumps his helmet on a doorframe while entering a room on the , a retained in the final cut for its subtlety. These instances underscore early cinema's reliance on practical effects, where mechanical aids like wires or bulky costumes could inadvertently reveal production artifice. Modern blockbusters, with their reliance on digital integration, are prone to continuity slips amid complex CGI sequences. In Titanic (1997), the Southampton docks scene reveals aspects of the contemporary set construction in the background, betraying elements of the 1912 setting despite efforts to recreate the historical environment. Likewise, Avengers: Endgame (2019) contains CGI-related errors, such as a clipping issue in Thanos's snapping hand during the final battle, where the digital model intersects unnaturally with surrounding elements, and inconsistencies in Captain America's suit during the 2012 sequence. Such flaws emerge from the post-production fusion of live-action and , where minor alignment issues can persist in fast-paced action. International cinema also showcases distinctive bloopers tied to genre conventions. Bollywood films often feature flubs in elaborate dance sequences, as seen in (2007), where behind-the-scenes reels reveal actors like forgetting choreography steps or props malfunctioning amid synchronized group routines. In Japanese films produced by , model malfunctions are common, such as visible eye holes in monster suits or miniature sets catching fire unexpectedly during destruction scenes, evident in titles like (1974). These errors reflect the labor-intensive stop-motion and suitmation techniques central to the genre. Bloopers tend to be more prevalent in action-oriented genres due to the heightened physicality of stunts and effects, which increase the likelihood of mishaps compared to dialogue-driven narratives. Since the , many such instances have been revealed through DVD extras, including blooper reels that compile outtakes for fan engagement, transforming potential flaws into celebrated glimpses of the process.

Television and Streaming Bloopers

In the realm of sitcoms, bloopers often arise from the high volume of takes required for multi-camera setups, leading to frequent line flubs and laughter from the cast. The long-running series Friends (1994–2004) exemplifies this, with its official blooper reels showcasing numerous instances where actors like and stumbled over dialogue or broke character due to ad-libs gone awry, such as Perry's repeated mispronunciations during emotional scenes in later seasons. Similarly, the U.S. version of (2005–2013) captured improvised mishaps in its format, where unscripted moments like Rainn Wilson's off-the-cuff Dwight quips during talking-head segments often devolved into corpsing, as the single-camera style encouraged natural, unplanned reactions from the ensemble. These errors highlighted the serialized nature of television, where retakes were feasible but outtakes preserved the human element of performance. Live television amplifies blooper risks due to its real-time demands, with no opportunity for edits once broadcast. (1975–present), a staple of late-night programming, has produced iconic errors such as hosts misreading cue cards during monologues— for instance, when guest Ashlee Simpson's lip-sync malfunction in 2004 exposed a technical gaffe mid-performance—or guest flubs like Adrien Brody's culturally insensitive opening in 2003, which derailed the show's timing and tone. These incidents underscore the serialized yet ephemeral quality of live TV, where ad-libs or prop mishandlings can cascade into viral moments, contrasting with the more controlled environment of pre-recorded series. The streaming era, emerging post-2010, introduced bloopers tied to innovative effects and on-demand platforms, often revealed in post-release extras. In (2019–present), on-set challenges with the Baby Yoda (Grogu) animatronic prop—operated by multiple puppeteers for nuanced movements—frequently caused filming delays and humorous takes, as the puppet's complexity led to malfunctions like unintended blinks or gestures during close-ups with . Platforms like and further democratized unedited viral fails through live streams, where creators' real-time slips gain millions of views without polish, exemplifying streaming's emphasis on immediacy over perfection. The saw bloopers evolve with pandemic-driven remote production, incorporating virtual tools that introduced new technical hurdles in serialized content. Shows like (2020–2023) navigated these shifts during Season 2 filming, where distributed teams across and relied on remote collaboration platforms for production coordination. This trend highlighted television's adaptation to serialized under constraints, turning potential disasters into anecdotes that humanized the streaming workflow.

Compilation and Presentation

Blooper Reels

Blooper reels, also known as gag reels, emerged as a popular supplementary feature in films during the late and early 1980s, initially attached to the end credits to showcase humorous outtakes from production. These early public compilations often highlighted actors flubbing lines or improvising spontaneously, providing audiences with a lighthearted glimpse behind the polished final cut. One of the earliest notable examples appeared in (1979), where struggled through multiple takes of a simple scene, extending the reel to about three minutes of comedic frustration. Actor played a pivotal role in popularizing blooper reels during this period, advocating for their inclusion to boost audience engagement and reveal the fun side of filmmaking. In (1980), Reynolds's frequent line mix-ups with co-star became a highlight, setting a template for subsequent comedies. Reynolds continued this trend in (1981), where the post-credits reel featured an ensemble cast, including and , in chaotic, unscripted moments that emphasized camaraderie on set. By the , as home video formats like gained traction, studios began packaging these reels as bonus content on releases, extending their reach beyond theaters and capitalizing on fans' interest in material. The production of blooper reels typically involves sifting through raw —daily footage shot during —to identify entertaining errors or alternate takes that capture genuine reactions. Editors then these clips, focusing on light-hearted flubs like forgotten or physical mishaps, while trimming for pacing and adding upbeat music or sound effects to enhance the humor. Ranging from three to around five minutes in length, the final reel prioritizes moments that humanize the cast without revealing sensitive production details, often serving as a morale booster for crews during wrap parties before public release. By the 2010s, traditional end-credits blooper reels began to wane, largely supplanted by the rise of online video platforms where short clips could go viral independently, reducing the need for bundled features in theaters. Increased reliance on CGI in blockbusters also limited opportunities for on-set physical gags, shifting emphasis to digital extras. However, revivals have occurred in home media formats, particularly with Blu-ray editions of major franchises; for instance, Marvel Studios included gag reels in the 2025 Blu-ray releases of Captain America: Brave New World and The Fantastic Four: First Steps, featuring stars like Anthony Mackie and Pedro Pascal in improvised laughs and set antics. Similarly, the Thunderbolts* (2025) digital and Blu-ray versions offered a gag reel highlighting ensemble mishaps, reaffirming their value as promotional bonuses.

Dedicated Shows and Digital Media

One of the earliest dedicated television formats for bloopers was the special series TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes, hosted by and co-hosted by from 1984 to 1998, with continuations on ABC (1998–2007) and in syndication (2012–2013). This program showcased a mix of on-set flubs from celebrities, scripted gaffes, and orchestrated pranks, drawing millions of viewers by blending humor from production errors with lighthearted surprises. Over its run, it aired irregularly as specials, evolving from simple clip compilations to include audience-submitted content, establishing bloopers as a standalone entertainment genre. In the 1990s, network produced blooper-focused anthologies like the 1996 special Oops! The World's Funniest Outtakes, hosted by , which compiled production mistakes from films, TV, and commercials into humorous segments. These specials built on the era's appetite for reality-style programming, transitioning from shock-oriented series to more playful error collections that highlighted human mishaps in media. Across the Atlantic, the series You've Been Framed!, which ran from 1990 to 2022, dedicated episodes to viewer-submitted funny clips, including amateur bloopers and fails from everyday recordings. Hosted by figures like and later others, it emphasized short, relatable errors, amassing a for its unpolished charm and annual specials. The digital era marked a shift toward user-generated and aggregated blooper content, exemplified by the YouTube channel FailArmy, launched in 2011 by Jukin Media. With approximately 17.4 million subscribers as of November 2025, FailArmy curates weekly compilations of professional and amateur fails, including production bloopers from viral videos, prioritizing high-energy edits and thematic playlists like "Fails of the Week." Post-2020, TikTok amplified this trend through short-form blooper challenges, where creators share behind-the-scenes outtakes under hashtags like #blooper, fostering viral series of scripted errors and improv mishaps that garner billions of views annually. By 2025, advancements in AI have introduced dedicated apps for generating and editing bloopers, such as , an AI video generator that transforms user selfies or clips into simulated error sequences for pranks and social sharing. These tools automate the creation of humorous flubs, like exaggerated stumbles or dialogue slips, reducing production barriers for digital creators. Complementing this, VR platforms have begun offering immersive blooper experiences, such as fail compilations in Meta Quest environments that simulate virtual production errors, allowing users to relive or interact with recreated mishaps from popular media in 360-degree formats.

Cultural and Alternative Uses

Acceptance in Entertainment

In the late 1970s, the entertainment industry began incorporating blooper reels into and releases, marking a shift from viewing mistakes as professional taboos to extras that added value and authenticity to productions. This transition was driven by economic incentives, as studios used bloopers to differentiate VHS tapes in a competitive market, boosting sales by offering glimpses that appealed to audiences seeking more content. By the 1990s, bloopers had mainstreamed further through dedicated television specials that humanized high-profile stars, transforming errors into relatable entertainment. Shows like TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes, hosted by and , drew massive viewership by showcasing celebrity flubs, which helped demystify the polished image of performers. These specials also served as effective marketing tools for franchises; for instance, the extended editions of trilogy included extensive blooper reels that enhanced fan engagement and drove DVD sales, contributing to the films' commercial dominance. In the , the embrace of bloopers has accelerated via , with casts actively sharing clips to connect with fans and foster a sense of camaraderie. This modern approach extends therapeutic benefits to crews, as capturing and reviewing bloopers provides in high-stress environments, helping to alleviate burnout by emphasizing shared humanity over perfection. The widespread acceptance has influenced industry practices, with standard clauses in actor contracts now addressing blooper to ensure performers have approval over their inclusion in reels or promotional materials. Additionally, events celebrating production errors, such as the Found Footage Festival's screenings of humorous outtakes, underscore this cultural pivot by treating bloopers as artistic highlights rather than flaws.

Non-Entertainment Definitions

In sports, the term "blooper" broadened within to encompass any clumsy or costly mistake, extending beyond the initial hitting anomaly to errors like fumbles in or mishandled plays in other athletics. For instance, infamous moments such as the 2012 "" by quarterback —where he collided with his own lineman and lost the ball—are retrospectively cataloged alongside historical sports blunders as bloopers, highlighting their public and often replayed embarrassment. This evolution underscores the term's shift from a specific hitting anomaly to a general descriptor for athletic gaffes that undermine performance under scrutiny. In and writing, "blooper" refers to typographical errors, factual inaccuracies, or stylistic slips that appear in print or digital publications, often requiring corrections that draw attention to the oversight. These can range from misspelled names in headlines to garbled quotes that alter intended meaning, as seen in compilations of newsroom mistakes that underscore the pressure of tight deadlines. Verbal gaffes by public figures, such as the malapropisms and semantic errors popularized as "Bushisms" during George W. Bush's presidency—like his 2000 remark, "They misunderestimated me"—are frequently classified as bloopers due to their spontaneous, unscripted nature and widespread media replay. Beyond professional domains, "blooper" functions in everyday as a label for social or unintended verbal slips in casual conversations or speeches, denoting any awkward blunder that causes momentary discomfort without formal recording. According to standard lexicographic definitions, it broadly signifies an embarrassing public mistake, applicable to personal interactions where tactlessness exposes .

References

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