In keeping with our increasingly hostile weather, I thought you might like to read a preview of a piece I wrote for the upcoming third edition of my book, Pennsylvania Curiosities (Globe Pequot Press), due out this spring. Where once Philadelphia's Hollywood image was dominated by Rocky or Thirty Something, there is now a gloomier, fair weather Philly to consider:

It's Always Funny in Philadelphia

One of the darkest hit comedy series on cable TV in the last couple of years has been the FX network's "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" which it's creator, Philadelphia-born and St. Joseph's Prep graduate Rob McElhenny, described as "Seinfeld on crack." The series centers around four friends in the late 20's (McElhenney, Glenn Howerton, Kaitlin Olson, Charlie Day) and Danny DeVito, who plays the biological father of one of "the gang" born out of wedlock, as well as the divorced father (but not biological) of two others.

Think of the "Sunny" cast as "Friends" who stab each other in the back, and the Philadelphia bar they run called Paddy's Pub as "Cheers" where everybody knows you name and Social Security number and has cleaned out your savings account.

The show is wickedly funny and totally without redeeming social value. In fact "It's Always Funny in Philadelphia" show is gleefully psychopathic, as if the cast consisted of Hannibal Lecter, John Wilkes Booth, Lucretia Borgia, Carrot Top and the Wart Hogs from "Welcome Back Kotter." When they find a healthy baby in a dumpster, DeVito's character says, "Put it back where you found it."

The characters not only sleep with each other but with each others parents. One character shows up at an AA meeting, insisting he's not an alcoholic, and carrying a beer. Other characters take drugs -- whatcha got? -- crack, ecstasy, steroids. They burn down buildings, set each other on fire, slip knock-out drops to priests and then taken abusive photos of them when they pass out, they run for political office so they can take bribes, they sell drugs for the mob, they're shallow, criminal, vain, sexist, insincere, racist, and dumb as posts. There is no motive too shallow, no scheme too stupid, no morality untrampled upon.

And not only is it hilarious in a way that creeps you out for laughing, it's a big hit in Ireland and Sweden as well.

The original pilot was shot on a digital camcorder by McElhenney, Day and Howerton who claimed the total budget for original episode in August 2005 was $200, although Divito told David Letterman on his late night show on Sept. 6, 2007 that the bottom line was actually $85. The show is shot in California with occassional on-location Philadelphia scenes with cast members. Like it's Scranton counterpart, The Office" on NBC, "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" opens with establishing shots of Philaddelphia landmarks like South Street, Boathouse Row, the Ben Franklin Bridge. Logan Circle and 30th Street Station. "Sunny" is the kind of show that would do a city proud, so long as the mayor of that city was Jerry Springer.