Kermit Schafer
| Kermit Schafer | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 24, 1914 |
| Died | March 8, 1979 (aged 64) |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Writer and producer |
Kermit Schafer (March 24, 1914 – March 8, 1979) was an American writer and producer for radio and television in the 1950s and 1960s. He is best known for his collections of "bloopers"—the word Schafer popularized for mistakes and gaffes of radio and TV announcers and personalities.
Bloopers came into prominence in 1931, when radio announcer Harry Von Zell mispronounced the name of the then-President of the United States, Herbert Hoover, as "Hoobert Heever" on the air, but Schafer's is believed to be the first attempt at collecting and presenting them. Other similar famous finds of Schafer's include ABC correspondent Joel Daly intoning, "The rumor that the President would veto the bill is reported to have come from a high White Horse souse", and veteran radio host Paul Harvey breaking into uncontrollable laughter at a story about a pet poodle.
These were collected and released in LP audio collections such as Pardon My Blooper! and Your Slip is Showing, which were briefly popular in the 1960s. A movie version, Pardon My Blooper, was released in 1974. These led the way for such later TV shows as TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes hosted by Dick Clark. Schafer himself gained minor celebrity under the nickname "The Blooper Man".
Schafer has come under criticism from TV and radio historians who have noted his deceptive presentations in his albums. If Schafer could not obtain an actual audio recording of the event (as many of these bloopers occurred live and were not always transcribed onto recordings), he would simply hire actors and recreate the event—without offering any disclaimer. This led to some misrepresentations. For example, the blooper by Harry Von Zell described above was not recorded, so Schafer recreated it.
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