WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., Feb. 1, 2010 -- It's often said that only a college with a sense of humor would have a purple cow for its mascot.  At the same time, Williams College has a whacky fondness for the poem "I never saw a purple cow; I never hope to see one; but I can tell you anyhow; I'd rather see than be one."* Situated in what is known as "The Purple Bubble," however, this humor-sense has largely gone unnoticed outside the bubble.

Now, one can hope that "The Mountains," a student produced television series, may bring the world to Williams comedy doorstep.  The series combine familiar faces, places, and jokes about the campus in spoofs of TV's reality shows, all the time putting Williams students' good humor on parade.

"The Mountains" is the product of Live Television Production, an experimental film class led by Penny Lane, visiting lecturer in art at Williams. The show premiered on Williamstown's local TV, WilliNet, in early January. In all, there will be six episodes showing the best of the students' productions peppered with retro Virginia Slims commercials featured as the show's "sponsor."

Under Lane's guidance, students Lindsay Aubin '10 of West Simsbury, Conn., Amanda Darling '12 of Clancy, Mon., Danny Huang '11 of China, Edward Mazurek '10 of Melrose Park, Penn., Aubree Stephens '12 of Staten Island, N.Y., Ryann Tookes '11 of Stamford, Conn., and Keenan Williams '10 of Little Rock, Ark., brainstormed ideas and developed segments for the show. Their vision â€" ranging from pranking to trivia to spoofing popular MTV shows â€" showcase humor that combine into a collective medley of skits good-naturedly poking fun at students, campus, and themselves.

In one of the episodes Lindsay Aubin spoofs popular television shows ranging from 48 Hours to MTV Cribs. Her 48 Hours clip delves into the issue of drunken squirrels on campus. Her MTV Cribs segment explores her co-op bedroom, where she raves over her light fixtures and her twin-sized bed. "Some people like to sleep on queen beds, king beds, or full beds … Who needs 'em? Those are for old people. I'm a college kid â€" give me my twin bed!"

Another episode includes Amanda Darling's pranks and Keenan Williams' makeover show. Amanda recruits a student to pretend to sleep in a sleeping bag in Mission, and videotapes the reactions of the students who must step over and around him. Keenan brings a fashion-challenged fellow student to the Browns' shop on Water St., creating for him a whole new "chic, metro, New York City gentleman" look. Ryann Tookes, in her "School" segment, asks numerous students questions such as "What is the capital of South Dakota?" and "What is your favorite bathroom on campus?" compiling a record of their hesitations and confusion. 

When this release was written, two episodes had aired. Tune into WilliNet (willinet.org) to follow the series and laugh along with "The Mountains."

* From Gelett Burgess' 1895 poem

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Founded in 1793, Williams College is the second oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts. The college's 2,000 students are taught by a faculty noted for the quality of their teaching and research, and the achievement of academic goals includes active participation of students with faculty in their research. Students' educational experience is enriched by the residential campus environment in Williamstown, Mass., which provides a host of opportunities for interaction with one another and with faculty beyond the classroom. Admission decisions are made regardless of a student's financial ability, and the college provides grants and other assistance to meet the demonstrated needs of all who are admitted.

To visit the college on the Internet: www.williams.edu/ Williams College can also be found on Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/williamscollege and Twitter: http://twitter.com/williamscollege

News: Laura Corona