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Corny Collins
Cornycorny
The 1988 and the 2007 Corny

Name:

Corny Collins

Gender:

Male

Friends:

Tracy Turnblad
Seaweed J. Stubbs
Motormouth Maybelle
The Corny Collins Show Members
Little Inez Stubbs

Enemies:

Velma Von Tussle
Amber Von Tussle (somewhat)
Franklin Von Tussle (1988 only)

Portrayed by:

Shawn Thompson (1988)
James Marsden (2007)
Derek Hough(2016 special)

Corny Collins is a central character on Hairspray, both, 1988 and 2007. Is the host of The Corny Collins Show and a friend of the lead character Tracy Turnblad.

1988 Version[]

In the original 1988 film, it is implied that Corny is an alcoholic who may be sleeping with his assistant, Tammy Turner.

2007 Version[]

In the 2007 remake, he is much more extroverted and groovy. He believes that Velma and the show's sponsors are too uptight and that their thinking is backwards, particularly in regards to race.

He has dreams of making the show more progressive and contemporary, and makes multiple attempts to integrate the show, with little success.

Unlike Velma, he sees Tracy's talents, offering her a spot on the council.

He dislikes Velma for interfering with his show and for her racist views. By extent, he also has a contentious relationship with Amber, often looking the other way when she gets shoved by her castmates and rolling his eyes at her poor dance moves.

When Tracy shows up late to the pageant, Corny is quick to find a loophole to allow her to dance. This move both allows him to take a jab at Velma and Amber and also improve the rating of his show.

When Link unexpectedly brings out Little Inez, Corny is quick to adapt, announcing her name as a contestant and finding justification for her to compete without being disqualified. He uses this opportunity to finally integrate his show, bringing Motormouth Maybelle on stage and telling her, "it's your time to shine!" Maybelle invites the Negro Day performers on stage, and they start dancing with the white council members. Afterwards, Little Inez is crowned and Corny announces that the Corny Collins Show is "now and forever officially integrated!"

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