| KVN | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Game-show franchise |
| Created by | Sergey Muratov, Albert Axelrod, Mikhail Yakovlev |
| Country of origin | Soviet Union, Russian Federation |
| Production | |
| Running time | 60–180 minutes (depending on the version) |
| Production companies | Home Edition programs for the youth of the Central Television of the USSR (1961-1972, 1986-1990) Igra-Tekhnika (1988-1990) AMiK (Alexander Maslyakov & Company) (1990-present) |
| Original release | |
| Network | Programme One (1961-1972, 1986-1991) Channel One (1992-present) |
| Release | 8 November 1961 – present |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (February 2023) |
KVN (Russian: КВН, an abbreviation of Клуб весёлых и находчивых, Klub vesyolykh i nakhodchivykh or Ka-Ve-En, "Club of the Funny and Inventive [people]") is a Russian and formerly Soviet comedy television show and international competition in which teams compete by giving humorous answers and show prepared sketches. The show originated in the Soviet Union and is based on the earlier program An Evening of Funny Questions (Russian: Вечер весёлых вопросов, romanized: Vecher vesyolykh voprosov). The program was first aired on the Soviet First Channel on 8 November 1961.[1][full citation needed]
In 1972, Soviet censors, who found the students' impromptu jokes offensive and anti-Soviet, banned KVN. The show was revived in 1986 during the perestroika era, with Alexander Maslyakov as its host. It is one of the longest-running programs on Russian television; its anniversary on 8 November is celebrated by KVN players every year since its inception and was widely celebrated for the first time in 2001.
During the perestroika era (c. 1985-1991), KVN spread to Russian expatriate communities. In 1992, an Israeli team played against the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) team. The game became a success, and more international games followed: the CIS team visited Israel, Germany and the United States. In 1994, the first KVN World Festival was held in Israel; it featured four teams representing the United States, Israel, the CIS and Germany.