Television Party Ideas

Mix one group of good friends with a favorite TV show to make one fantastic party.

What better way to enjoy friends and favorite television shows than to host a television-themed party. Choose among several ideas: a sports-themed party, movie night or a classic TV show theme. You also can dress up as a character from a favorite TV show and act out a scene with your friends.

Sports-Themed TV Parties

Sports parties are popular with men and women.

You don't need Thanksgiving Day, New Year's Day or the Super Bowl to celebrate a football-themed TV party. Create a party around any game day. Bake or buy a football-shaped cake or make a sheet cake decorated as a basketball court or baseball diamond. Wear team jerseys and bring the beverages of your choice during any Sunday or Monday night football game. March Madness, the World Series or the Stanley Cup are also ideal times to host a sports-themed party.

Girls Night In

Your best friends will enjoy watching the season opener or finale with you.

For a girls' night in, invite your closest gal pals to your living room to watch the characters and their escapades of your favorite show as it begins or ends a season. For the season opener, dress up as a character from the show and make food the characters would eat. For a season or series finale, include the beverage of your choice, several boxes of tissues and lots of chocolate, then cry your eyes out.

Classic TV Shows

Classic shows never go out of style. In the movie "Crocodile Dundee," when actor Paul Hogan's character Mick Dundee landed in New York City for his first trip away from the Australian outback, he turned on the TV in his hotel room. An old rerun of "I Love Lucy" was playing, and Dundee said: "Yep. Saw that before," meaning that the only other time he had watched TV, the "I Love Lucy" show was also on. "I Love Lucy","Happy Days", "All in the Family" "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "That 70s Show" and "90210" are perennial favorites. Rent a season on DVD for your friends to watch, and make snacks that characters from the show would eat.

TV Movie Night

Movie night is another great idea. Turn to your favorite movie channel or stream in the movie content. Watch classic horror movies such as "Godzilla," cult films like "Night of the Living Dead" or Hitchcock's classic "Psycho." Humphrey Bogart's "Casablanca" never wanes in popularity, and Hollywood action-adventure movies like the "Pirates of the Caribbean" series with Johnny Depp or romantic comedies like "Sleepless in Seattle" are terrific choices, as are any new or old superhero movies. If you enjoy highbrow fare, watch Jane Austin's novels or Shakespearean plays in movie form.

Favorite TV Series

If the series you and your friends love most is off the air, invite your friends over for a DVD party. "Seinfeld" and "Friends" are always popular choices, and you can find these episodes in syndication or on DVD. For a series still on the air such as the dramedy "Desperate Housewives" or the mockumentary "The Office," ask friends to act out a scene from a show and guess which characters they are. For "The Office," you can nominate someone to give out the Dundies Awards.

Resources

• eVite: Movie Night/TV Night Party Ideas
• Punchbowl: Biggest Finale Ever
• IMDb: Crocodile Dundee