The Book of Mormon: Parker & Stone | 60 Minutes Archive
In a Nutshell
Trey Parker and Matt Stone, South Park creators, achieved massive Broadway success with their satirical musical *The Book of Mormon*, grossing $32 million, selling out for years, and winning nine Tony Awards for its blasphemous take on Mormon missionaries in AIDS-ravaged Africa. Their career began with the cult film *Cannibal! The Musical*, exploded via the viral *Spirit of Christmas* cartoon leading to South Park's 15+ seasons of profane, boundary-pushing episodes parodying religion, politics, race, and more. The duo's partnership thrives on shared subversive humor, total creative freedom, and balancing sharp ridicule of dogma with pro-faith uplift, sustained by a tight team despite controversies.
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If you came to New York this summer to see a Broadway play or musical, the one show you couldn't get tickets for was The Book of Mormon. Book reservations now to see it next summer. The new musical is from Trey Parker and Matt Stone, creators of South Park, which changed cable TV and is celebrating its 15th season. They're working their magic on Broadway with outrageous satire. Not their first musical: South Park movie included Oscar-nominated song Blame Canada. Now the toast of Broadway.
Scene outside Eugene O'Neill Theater since March: people line up for The Book of Mormon, hottest ticket on Broadway. Grossed $32 million, sold out for next 5 months, probably for years.
Were you surprised it's been so successful? >> Yeah. >> Yeah. I mean, we thought it was good. We thought the songs were really good but we didn't think it was going to be like this.
Musical is satire of clean-cut, earnest Mormons with unorthodox beliefs and playful sendup of all organized religion.
Hello, my name is Elder Price. Hello, my name is Elder Young. Did you know that Jesus lived here in the USA?
Story of two mismatched missionaries (Andrew Rannells and Josh Gad) sent to Africa to proselytize to pagans who have heard similar spiels with no results.
And in this part of Africa, we all have a say. Whenever something bad happens, we just throw our hands to the sky and say Hasa Diga Eebowai.
Does it mean no worries for the rest of our days? >> Kind of. We've had no rain in several days and 80% of us have AIDS.
Mormons don't know locals are flipping the finger at their heavenly father.
Have you heavenly father? Holy moly, I said it like 13 times.
Rude, crude, lewd, blasphemous. Critics proclaim it best Broadway musical in a decade, won nine Tony Awards.
For theatergoing fans of Parker and Stone, exactly what they wanted from South Park creators.
A lot of the subject matter we've tackled is by trying to do something no one else has touched. There's a reason why people haven't touched that. We're like, oh really? Cuz we want to do jokes that other people haven't done.
Are there lines that you won't cross? >> No. We haven't found one yet.
They're barely 40, collaborating 20 years. Met in film class at University of Colorado, partnered on project, shared love of Monty Python and subversive humor.
What were you like back then? >> Really cool. Most popular guys at CU.
Do you remember what the attraction was? >> Our senses of humor were so similar that we would crack each other up. It got really annoying for everyone else in film school.
At ages 19 and 20, raised $100,000 to make movie about Colorado prospector Alfred Packer who dined on colleagues while snowbound.
Cannibal! The Musical rejected by Sundance, but they held guerrilla screenings in hotel conference room.
Did the film get released? >> Basically, a release. You can buy it on Amazon.com. You might not want to pay more than a dollar.
Moved to Hollywood, spent 3 years starving until studio executive gave $1,200 for video Christmas card.
Went back to Colorado, spent 3-4 weeks cutting construction paper for The Spirit of Christmas.
Primitive 5-minute cartoon: epic battle between Jesus and Santa Claus over holiday control, witnessed by boys who became South Park kids.
Behold my glory. >> Holy, it's Jesus. Help me put an end to him once and for all. >> No, boys. Help me. Stan, remember the choo choo when you were 3? >> I died for your sins, boys. Don't forget that.
Video underground sensation, bootlegs circulated, reached executives in LA, New York, London.
That became so huge. Really viral before YouTube. People wanted to meet us, got meetings everywhere.
Signed contract for 6 episodes on Comedy Central. Show named South Park after real place in remote Colorado where strange things happen.
South Park was where all the stories came from: found another UFO, cattle mutilations.
Creative petri dish to parody weird adult world through four elementary school boys.
Inspired by All in the Family; couldn't do Archie Bunker in early 90s due to PC culture, but if 8 years old, could.
By the way children, there's a walk out scheduled today to protest the war in Iraq. If you're against the war, run along outside. If you're for the war, stay here and we'll do math problems.
Drop kids in explosive situations with extremes on all sides.
Here you go, boys. These will help you protest. Tom Steele, HBC News. Can you tell me why you kids marched out of school today? >> Uh, war. >> Hey, all you unamerican bastards, if you don't like America, why don't you get out?
Regularly takes on race and bigotry.
Wheel of Fortune episode: boy's father says naggers.
Financial crisis episode:
How can I help you, young man? I got a $100 check from my grandma and my dad said I need to put it in the bank so it can grow. >> Fantastic. Put in money market mutual fund, reinvest in foreign currency accounts with compounding interest and it's gone. >> What's gone? >> The money in your account. It's gone.
Sanitized scenes for network TV; cable/movie/DVD versions scatological, profane, profound. Pitch perfect to 10-year-olds.
We talked like this in fourth and fifth grade. Learned to shut it off around adults. Let's do a show where kids talk the way kids talk. We were young enough to remember.
Over 15 years, written, directed, voiced major characters in 200+ episodes.
Typical week: Thursday in LA conference room, blank storyboard, brainstorming with executive producer Anne Garffino and two staff writers. 6 days to deliver episode airing Wednesday. 10-12 hour days, one all-nighter. Parker bangs out scenes, hands to animators and lawyers.
We have more freedom than anyone in television. But we have lawyers.
Scientology episode: wanted Tom Cruise flamboyantly gay, but legal issues led to literal closet.
Tom Cruise won't come out of the closet. >> Mr. Cruise, come out. >> Tom, it's Nicole. You don't need to be in that closet. >> Tom, it's John Travolta. You got to come out.
Politics indecipherable, tending libertarian. Don't carry water for anyone, no market research, target audience each other.
How do you describe this relationship? >> Like a marriage. Been together so long, can almost finish each other's sentences. >> One says, one time I was doing this. Other: Yeah, I know. I was there.
Strongest partnership; Anne Garffino (exec producer) and Scott Rudin (launched films, produced musical) know them since beginning.
People try to triangulate one against the other. They shut it down fast. Have each other's backs. Disagree frequently but genuinely a partnership.
Garffino: Matt Stone more ruthless in satire, Trey softer with sweet humor.
Ann's pretty smart. See, that proves the opposite. Trey is ruthless. She's fired.
Sharp teeth and big heart foundation of success. Book of Mormon ridicules silliness of religious dogma while uplifting and pro-faith. A Mormon just believes
The Lord God created the universe. He sent his
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