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A telethon is a Fundraising event broadcast on Television that lasts many hours or even days, the purpose of which is to raise Money for a charitable, political, or other allegedly worthy cause. Correspondingly, the term is a Portmanteau of "television" and " Marathon ." FORMAT The format of a telethon usually consists of performances by singers, musicians, comedians, or other entertainers interspersed with pitches for donations. Typically the program is staged on a set containing volunteer telephone operators, a stage, a Tote Board that displays the amount of money raised, a band, and a studio audience. EXAMPLES United States In the United States , telethons are held for various Charities ; best known among them is the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon , staged each Labor Day to benefit Muscular Dystrophy Associations. In the past, other charities such as the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the Children's Miracle Network produced telethons on a nationwide or regional basis. Public radio and television stations, such as those affiliated with National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service , as well as unaffiliated non-commercial radio stations such as WFMU , produce annual Pledge Drive s which are similar in format to telethons, but instead use brief breaks between regular programs to appeal for funds. Trinity Broadcasting Network , a Religious Television Network , hosts non-stop, week-long, semi-annual telethons called "Praise-a-Thons". The Christian Broadcasting Network / The 700 Club stages a modified form of a telethon twice a year, which runs for approximately one week but is shown for only an hour or so each day. (In its early days, CBN's telethons were of the more traditional round-the-clock form. this format ended when the ministry sold its Family Channel , which no longer gave it access to a round-the-clock outlet for such telethons.) In 1972, the Democratic Party even held a one-time telethon to help it erase a multi-million Dollar Debt (This may have provided the inspiration for the 1979 film comedy '' Americathon '', where a telethon is held to prevent national bankruptcy). The telethon idea was created and promoted by John Y. Brown, Jr. , the businessman who built Kentucky Fried Chicken into a worldwide chain and later became Governor of Kentucky . Local telethons, once a common fixture in nearly every major city in the United States, are now rare but still found in a handful of cities. Canada In Saskatchewan , the Kinsmen Foundation puts on a 20 hour telethon, known as Telemiracle . Since it's inception in 1977, Telemiracle has raised over $73 Million, including $5.6 Million in the 2007 edition, held in Saskatoon . Europe In the United Kingdom , regular telethons are held for charitable groups such as Comic Relief 's Red Nose Day and Sport Relief , and the BBC's Children In Need . These are highlights every year, with millions of Pounds Sterling raised to support various charities. They usually include music artists, sketches, and other various sections, usually with quite a few videos in between each section or song to promote the charity that money is being raised for - usually children in either Africa or the United Kingdom. |
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