Pauly Shore and the world-famous The Comedy Store Stage a Comeback in TBS's Original Comedy Series, Minding the Store
series premieres Sunday, July 17 at 10/9c

TBS, television's very funny network, is giving down-but-not-out comedian Pauly Shore (Encino Man, Jury Duty) the chance to get his mother's world-famous Comedy Store back on track, while also giving his own career a boost, in a new original comedy series Minding the Store. The half-hour series, premiering Sunday, July 17 at 10/9c, comes to TBS from Shapiro/Grodner Productions (Big Brother) and Bayonne Entertainment, with Arnold Shapiro, Allison Grodner and Rob Lee executive-producing.

"The Comedy Store is the place where such comedians as Jim Carrey, Richard Pryor and David Letterman got their starts, so it seems perfectly fitting for television's very funny network to follow its revival," said Steve Koonin, executive vice president and chief operating officer of TBS. "The show will blend the comedy on-stage at The Comedy Store with the quirky personalities and offbeat backstage antics of Pauly Shore and his mother, Comedy Store owner Mitzi Shore."

Minding the Store opens with Mitzi Shore reluctantly handing over the reins of her legendary Comedy Store to her youngest son Pauly, in the hopes that maybe he can pump some life back into it. With his plans of renovations, new promotions and A-list talent, Pauly's goal of making the comedy club great again proves to be a daunting task, especially since his mom just can't seem to let him take over completely.

Equally as daunting are Pauly's attempts to regain his professional footing as an actor, taking classes and telling his agent to put him up for serious, more dramatic roles. He also runs into problems as he tries to juggle relationships with the women in his life and finally date someone "appropriate."

The Comedy Store, located on the Sunset Strip, was founded in 1972 by Mitzi Shore and her husband, comedian Sammy Shore. From the beginning, it featured the top new comedic talent on the circuit, quickly becoming host for HBO's Young Comedians Special in 1980. The venue continues to present stand up comedy seven days a week.

Pauly Shore gained national attention in 1990, when his MTV series "Totally Pauly" became an immediate hit. After a four-year run, Shore moved into feature films, starring as the wiezel in Encino Man, Son-In-Law, In the Army Now, Jury Duty, Bio-Dome and The Curse of Inferno. He recently had his directorial feature debut, Pauly Shore is Dead, a semi-autobiographical dark comedy in which he fakes his own death in order to get the attention he craves.