In late March 2005, a Ball State University student Brian Collins, who was in his first year, did a sports broadcast on the campus’ TV station.
There was only one problem – Collins had to painfully ad-lib the segment. The teleprompter was operational but an inexperienced crew member sped through the entire script. You can see Collins looking confused and then just winging it, even though he doesn’t do a good job.
You can see the entire clip here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W45DRy7M1no
There’s a reason scenes in Broadcast News where Albert Brooks’ character begins to sweat very profusely under the studio lights are so funny – because they’re true. Live TV, even at the college level, leaves a lot of room for error if one mistake is made.
But Collins became famous for the phrase “Boom goes the dynamite while reporting on a game between the New Jersey Nets and the Indiana Pacers. When Pacers shooting guard Fred Jones makes a three-pointer, Collins utters the phrase with about as much excitement as a doctor giving a patient a terminal cancer diagnosis.
The video would be one of the first to really go viral on YouTube and turned Collins into a minor celebrity. He was invited to appear on the Late Show with David Letterman, as the long-time host was also an alumni. In 2008, it was used on an episode of Family Guy where Cleveland Brown says it after having an orgasm. The Best Damn Sports Show Period would list at at the No. 1 sports blooper in the history of reporting,
Collins would later appear on the Comedy Central show Tosh.0 for a Web Redemption segment. Collins reportedly went into the new reporter in the Waco, Texas area. Attempts to trademark the phrase were unsuccessfully as an application was filed but later abandoned.
The phrase would be the title of a Scandal episode as well.
What do you think? Please comment.
Zane Says 