Crossballs

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Crossballs was a Comedy Central television show poking fun at cable news networks' political debate shows, especially CNN's Crossfire and MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews (the name of the show is a portmanteau of Crossfire and Hardball). In each episode, a comedian posing as an expert on a particular subject would debate a real commentator, who is unaware that the show is a sham. Past topics have included whether Jesus was gay and whether vegetarianism is smart or ethical.

It debuted on July 6, 2004 and ran for eight weeks. It aired Tuesday-Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET. The last show, number 23, aired on August 24, 2004. Show number 24 was taped, and was to be titled "Pistol Whipped America", but never aired. One of the unsuspecting guests, James March, threatened to sue Comedy Central.

[edit] "Pistol Whipped America"

This episode featured a debate between defenders of gun rights and those in favor of gun control. Guest James March of Concerned Citizens for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms was brought in as a guest. On his website, he chronicled the ordeal of how the producers managed to keep him on the show and how he wasn't allowed to speak to the other guests beforehand.

Once I got there, I was hustled into a private “dressing room” and segregated from everybody else. They were weirdly vague about what was going on or who else was present, and kept me incommunicado for the first 10 or 15 minutes or so.

Then it’s “my turn”.

On entering the set, I immediately spotted Andre Soto. I know Soto real well...and when he looked up and saw me, he muttered “oh shit”.

But other things were…puzzling.

There was a lady to my right who was supposedly pro-gun (some sort of RKBA button, American flag lapel pin, denim jacket and weird hair), introduced by first name only. To my left was the moderator, then past him was a guy in a tie, short-sleeve shirt and camo hat, then Soto at the end.

March also detailed how one of the guests, whom he had nicknamed "Camo Boy" and turned out to be one of the comedians, screamed at March about not trusting police, said that the reason March liked guns was because he had "sexual issues", had offered him a month's supply of penis enlargement pills if he would give up guns, handed him a penis pump during the taping, and would eventually threaten to throw a rock at him (his schtick being that he didn't hunt with guns but with rocks).

He said that he told producers afterwards that he had a concealed weapon (a knife) on him at the time, and that he wouldn't have hesitated to use it if the rock had been thrown at him.

After March threatened to sue, the episode was replaced with a re-run of the "Vegetarian or Vegetarded" episode. It was intended to be the last episode of the season before it was pulled.