Continuing its quest for original, student-instigated programming, ISU9 seems to have found the perfect show to fit an open 30-minute, 1800 second time slot.

The sketch comedy program “1800 Seconds” debuted Monday night on Iowa State’s student-run channel with a half-hour chock-full of laughs.

The mix of live and taped sketches range from “Campus Cabbies,” a group of shopping cart taxi drivers who pride themselves on delivering customers right to the door of Ross Hall, to “Kid’s Games on Campus,” where innocent students may find themselves caught in the middle of a game of Red Light, Green Light or Freeze Tag.

The show that gets up at 4 a.m. to “bake you a fresh batch of funny” has been in the works since the beginning of this semester, but the idea was originally brainstormed last spring by Abby Zirikle, Trent Melven, Mike Dahlstrom and Andy Langager.

“We wanted something not normally seen on an ISU9 show,” says co-producer Langager. “The name ‘1800 Seconds’ was decided on because it was simple, but it would also stick in someone’s head.”

The show currently has a home in Exhibit Hall, but it will soon make a big move to the Communications Building’s state-of-the-art facilities, hopefully in time for the taping of the second show.

Langager said the equipment in the Communications Building is working, but the cable has to be moved.

“Hopefully, there will be no more asbestos so we don’t all die of cancer,” Langager says.

“Seconds” boasts 20 writers and six crew members, and the cast hopes to grow when they hold auditions next semester. One of the actors opens the show each night with a short monologue, but the group isn’t opposed to a celebrity host, a la “Saturday Night Live.” Jeff Hansen, writer and actor for “Seconds,” says he invites local celebrities and athletes to come on down.

More then seven hours of raw footage has been shot so far without any sponsorship, using the cast’s own props and the school’s equipment. But these kids don’t plan on staying local for long.

“Our goal is to be picked up by Fox with a multimillion dollar deal,” Langager jokes. “But I wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of [the show] staying on the ISU campus and being carried on by other students.”

Hansen landed at “1800 Seconds” after being turned down by “Grandma Mojo’s,” but he has no regrets.

“This turned out better anyway,” Hansen says. “This gives me a lot more options.”

Already, “Seconds” is beginning to find its ground and come into its own.

“When we first started recruiting people, the show was similar to ‘Mad TV,'” Langager says. “But we’ve slowly tried to move away and get a unique brand of humor. I think we’ve done that with our writers. We offer a unique brand of sketch comedy you can’t find on network shows.”

“Seconds” also prides itself on using clean humor.

“It’s easy to cuss, swear and use sexual innuendoes,” Hansen says. “And sometimes you can get away with that, but it’s harder to make humor clever and tasteful. I’m sure we’ll piss off some people, but we try to make our grandmas laugh.

“Students can watch the show and laugh at themselves and their peers. They’ll watch channel nine for something other than aerobics.”

John Woodsie, the man behind the “God Socks” sketch and a spin-off of the Animal Planet’s “Crocodile Hunter,” feels that “Seconds” is unique.

“The show appeals to a select crowd on campus,” Woodsie says. “We deal with events that occur around campus instead of nation-wide. We’re college-age specific.”

The cast invites everyone to come to a live taping of the show every other Monday, beginning on Oct. 25. Taping begins at 7:30 p.m., lasts about a half hour and will hopefully take place in the Communications Building.