Kenny Hotz

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Kenny Hotz bigraphy, stories - Comedians

Kenny Hotz : biography

May 3, 1967 –

Kenneth Joel "Kenny" Hotz (born May 3, 1967) is a Canadian producer, writer and a comedian. He is a former South Park consultant and writer, creator/star of the Comedy Central television show Kenny vs. Spenny, creator and writer of the FX series Testees, and the creator/star of Kenny Hotz’s Triumph of the Will.

The Papal Chase

Hotz also starred in his second feature film titled The Papal Chase, a related documentary about Hotz trying to meet the Pope John Paul II, released in 2004. The film received the Phillip Borsos Award for Best Canadian Feature Film at the 2004 Whistler Film Festival, and in 2005 won the People’s Choice Award for Best Canadian Feature at the Canadian Filmmakers Festival and the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Brooklyn International Film Festival.

Kenny vs. Spenny

Kenny vs. Spenny was first aired on CBC Television in 2003 and went on to be nominated for a 8 Gemini awards. The original pilot had been commissioned by USA Network, but never aired before the show was picked up by the CBC for 26 episodes. The series centered around Hotz and friend Spencer Rice as they competed against each other in competitions, the loser of which would perform a "humiliation". The show was embroiled in a deliberate controversy with the British Columbia Human Rights Commission for Hotz’s actions in the episode Who Can Piss Off More People, where he paid to have a plane fly over Toronto dragging a banner that reads "Jesus Sucks". Though he claimed his friend Jesus was getting married and it was not directed towards a religion. The show moved from CBC to Showcase television in Canada after the nationally run CBC censored 2 episodes of Kenny vs. Spenny, refusing to air them on their network. Censored episodes of the show aired in the United States on the Game Show Network before the show was officially relocated to the Comedy Central network, moving from Canada to the US.

The last episode, ("The Kenny vs. Spenny Christmas Special"), was aired in 2010. The series produced 89 original episodes, over six seasons. Each of the main characters of the show would go on to have their own shows the following year. Hotz also created the concept for the videogame Versusville to accompany the television show, which was nominated for a Canadian New Media Award for Excellence in Gaming.

In 2009 Maclean’s magazine named Kenny vs. Spenny the number eight pick in its list of the top ten Canadian television shows of the previous decade. The magazine said of the show and Kenny’s on air role that, "Many episodes feature the evil Kenny destroying his supposed friend through deceit, trickery and blatant cheating." Hotz also produced the series Elton vs. Simon, a German remake of the series Kenny vs. Spenny that aired between 2004 and 2006. Kenny vs. Spenny show was broadcast in over 25 different countries and licensed globally, with remakes including Cenk vs. Erdem in Turkey, Juan vs. Roman in Colombia, Katja vs. Bridget in the Netherlands, and Ed vs. Spencer in the UK. This resulted in the show becoming the largest selling comedy format in Canadian television history. The show was named #8 among the top 10 Canadian television shows of the 21st century.

Awards and nominations

Film and television

Year Project Award Awarding Body Result
1996 It Don’t Cost Nothin’ to Say Good Morning Best Canadian Documentary Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival
2002 Kenny vs. Spenny Golden Rose of Montreux Rose d’Or Light Entertainment Festival
2004 The Papal Chase Phillip Borsos Award Whistler Film Festival
2004 Kenny vs. Spenny Best Comedy Program or Series Gemini Awards
2005 The Papal Chase Audience award (best documentary) Brooklyn Film Festival
2005 The Papal Chase Audience award (documentary) Canadian Filmmakers’ Festival
2006 Kenny vs. Spenny Best Comedy Program or Series Gemini Awards
2008 Kenny vs. Spenny Best Comedy Program or Series Gemini Awards
2009 Testees Best Comedy Program or Series Gemini Awards
2009 Testees Best Comedy Writing in a Program or Series Gemini Awards
2010 Kenny vs. Spenny Best Ensemble Performance in a Comedy Program or Series Gemini Awards
2010 Kenny vs. Spenny Best Director in a Comedy Program or Series Canadian Comedy Awards url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004192/awards |title=Awards for Kenny Hotz |accessdate=October 22, 2012}}
2010 Kenny vs. Spenny Best Writing in a Comedy Program or Series Canadian Comedy Awards url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004192/awards |title=Kenny Hotz Awards |accessdate=March 10, 2013}}
2012 Kenny Hotz’s Triumph of the Will Best International Comedy Series Banff World Media Festival url=http://www.banffmediafestival.com/showcase.php?cid=133 |title=Rockies Program Competition Nominee Showcase |accessdate=October 21, 2012}}
2012 Kenny Hotz’s Triumph of the Will Best Director in a Comedy Program or Series Canadian Comedy Awards
2012 Kenny Hotz’s Triumph of the Will Comedy Person of the Year Canadian Comedy Awards
2013 Kenny Hotz’s Triumph of the Will Best Comedy Program or Series Canadian Screen Awards url=http://www.academy.ca/awards/nominees.cfm |title=Nominees for the Canadian Screen Awards |accessdate=January 16, 2013}}
2013 Kenny Hotz’s Triumph of the Will Best Photography in a Comedy Program or Series Canadian Screen Awards url=http://www.academy.ca/press/ACCTNEWSRELEASE-2013-TVFullCSAnom.pdf |title=2013 CANADIAN SCREEN AWARDS: Television Nominations |accessdate=January 16, 2013}}