Conan O'Brien (and many friends) @ Radio City Music Hall

Conan O'Brien; Reggie Watts
@ Radio City Music Hall
New York, NY - June 1, 2010

Just 200 feet from the scene of the crime, Conan O'Brien made his performing return to New York City via the Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television Tour, a lengthy cross-continental romp designed to keep him fresh and in the public consciousness while Jay Leno entertains a couple million soft-headed old fuddy-duddies and Conan himself prepares for his autumn return on TBS.

The basic format of the live show was a drawn out, uncensored (but still fairly PG-13, TV-14 whatever) version of his television show. Andy Richter was back in his old sidekick role. Triumph the Insult Comic Dog appeared in a taped monologue which included an old Conan-era Simpsons bit - the dubbed-in specific proper noun to fit between the generic jokes. That bear who found onanistic pleasure (and whose original name may be the intellectual property of the guys across the street) was there.

Despite the old format, Conan relied somewhat surprisingly on musical numbers - including a poke at mundane upper class upbringing and ending the show with a cover of "The Weight" (snob moment: the version was clearly inspired by the Band's performance in The Last Waltz, what with the Cokettes singing verses). But Conan's emphasis on music was unnecessary as he continues to work with the once-upon-a-time Max Weinberg 7 (now known as the Legally Prohibited Band). The outfit, now officially led by Jimmy Vivino, remain the amazingly tight and talented troupe they have been for 17 years. How did Mark Pender hold that note?!?! Also none too shabby was the appearance of Vampire Weekend - playing a rocking version of "Wolcott" in the guest-band slot.

And in the stand-up guest slot was Deon Cole, a staff writer on the Tonight Show run, who relied on a narrative of surveying the audience for future material and racial difference humor (and who riffed on some hipster's pretty direct racial bait call-out). Good delivery, creepy eyes.

The big spectacle though were the marquee guests. Stephen Colbert appeared in character to question Conan's New York credentials and to challenge Conan to a dance-off. Stephen pulled his classic fake injury move in order to get a sub in. Who else but Jon Stewart - Conan's future 11pm rival - dressed in Mexican dance regalia to save his Comedy Central colleague? If that wasn't enough, Paul Rudd, John Krasinski, and Bill Hader all appeared to pull the lever for random Walker, Texas Ranger clips - the clips needing no celebrity cameos to be extremely awesome.

With all of this surrounding him, it was easy - and perhaps somewhat purposely so - to forget that Conan was the star of all this. As naturally funny as Conan is, the goofy, lanky, awkward geek always shined most when being in good company. That company includes the audience. Unlike any other late night host, Conan had a direct, almost intimate relationship with his fans. That intimacy carried over into the live show, specifically in a bit in which the crowd is supposed to respond in conversation with Conan. The crowd quickly caught on that they/we were supposed to be difficult and to make Conan feel inadequate. And everyone pretty much got the joke.

Conan's bitterness over the fiasco at NBC came up consistently throughout the show but it never dominated the set (despite the tour title and the crazily close surroundings of this venue). And the bitterness was tinged with that sweet sense of humanity this guy has always had. Conan made as much fun of his own expected, perceived despondency as he made of the suits (and The Chin) at the network. And his rant about living in a media world which has not one but two shows about guys who make cakes, maybe signaled that the future of Conan's comedy may be in the vein of a wise old salty crank.

Reggie Watts, a fast rising comedic/music talent, opened the night with the kind of skill at dissecting and reinventing the English language in ways not seen since the likes of Carlin. His explanation of music, and the balladry of how an owl eats, took apart both the art of description and the deceptive ease of how certain music feels. The parody on rap was biting and a bit heavy handed but was dwarfed by Reggie's actual ability to rap. His accent switching was an old trope but a well crafted one. Nothing proves the persnickety nature of the language like an Oxford accent.

Senator Al Franken?

In what is possibly the final part of the addendum of the 2008 Election, if the courts process affirms the presumed final tally, Al Franken - an original Not Ready for Prime Time Player on Saturday Night Live, the comedian who rejoined the show during one of its better eras, the political satirist that sought to be a more reasonable answer on the liberal side to the right wing machine, the guy who made a noble effort at a liberal talk radio network (he succeeded, as did Rachel Maddow, the rest failed), will be the elected Senator from the state of Minnesota, a New York Jew who defeated an incumbent Brooklyn Jew by the name of Norm Coleman - a man who lost to professional wrestler Jesse "The Body" Ventura for Governor 8 years ago, and who won the Senate seat in 2002 after his opponent - the amazing human being known as Paul Wellstone - died in a plane crash and the right wing exploited the fervor of the memorial service to gather opposition to replacement candidate Fritz Mondale.

But like I said, this guy is quite possibly (and now probably) the next Senator from Minnesota:

George Carlin Didn't Die...

The massive Times obit leaves out his role as the conductor on the children's show Shining Time Station.

Remembering Harvey Korman

Remembering Dick Martin

Barbara Feldman alert! Barbara Feldman alert!

Does It Offend You, Yeah?

This band took its name from a line from this show.

Karl Pilkington Won't Do Another Podcast

Karl Pilkington: The Real Extras

Part 1


Part 2

A Reason To Watch Sports

From 1987:

New Pilkington Podcast

A 41 minute conversation between Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant, and Karl Pilkington that was placed on a special disc distributed during Ricky's recent stand-up run has been added to the podcast archives. Subscribe.

For good measure:

The Spirit of Truth

Bitch, I'm God

Walk Hard trailer and pics

One of the longest trailers in history is finally out for Walk Hard, the seemingly scene-for-scene (with extra) parody of Walk the Line - which didn't strike me as a movie that entered the public consciousness so strongly that it merited such an ode.

I have to say, that guy playing Elvis did better in that little clip than he did in all of Cold Mountain.

Having the girl from the American version of The Office seems to be the best for this thing right now...all it needs is a little Elvis Costello.

Karl Pilkington's 3 Minute Wonders

Holidays (Vacations)
Science
Health
The Zoo

As a bonus, here is Karl on the Culture Show with the utter fox that is Lauren Laverne:

The idea of Karl Pilkington and Mark Kermode having a chat and that is horrifying, immensely horrifying, and everyone involved should be utterly ashamed of themselves.
If you need an idea of Kermode - here.

Pancake Mountain

I'm not quite sure what the heck Pancake Mountain actually is but it sure is weird.

What The Gervais Shows in New York Were Missing

The First Ever Comedy Review! Ricky Gervais!

Ricky Gervais; Robin Ince
@ Tribeca Performing Arts Center
New York, NY - May 17, 2007

Ricky Gervais made his American stand-up debut as part of the High Line Festival (no Bowie cameos tonight), the first of two nights of prep for his big spectacular at the Theater at MSG on Saturday. Gervais hit the ground running with bits on AIDS and the obese. Then, for a softer touch, he switched to Anne Frank. You can't beat that. Gervais' stand-up is similar though not exact to his approach to television and radio. The generic Gervais persona, an observational comedian who achieves Larry David-like awkwardness sans Jewish neuroses, is enhanced by a more politically incorrect angle. Think early, pre-angry George Carlin, and you get the idea. Unlike the Gervais characters, the stand-up Ricky doesn't get awkward making fun of the Nazis for not being able to find Anne Frank or contemplating what the diagnosis moment was like for the first AIDS patient.
The particular bit about Humpty Dumpty is very Seinfeld-esque but a lot more blue as Ricky is never one to shy away from colorful language. This is also arguably the best bit that he does.
The childhood friend, David Beasley, seems awfully similar to Karl Pilkington. Afterall, wouldn't Karl ask if cannibals would try to get their victim sexually aroused as to ensure more...flesh?
Opener Robin Ince was arguably as funny as Ricky but in a different observational vein. Ince is the English equivalent of a Woody Allen-type. Very self-concious, very neurotic but in a genuinely English way. He's essentially a literate chap who finds himself in precarious situations with, say, street hoodlums. He's also a bit spastic, which helps.

A taste of Ricky:

RICKY GERVAIS IS COMING

I normally don't post much about non-political comedy but I make exceptions for Ricky Gervais. The funniest bloke alive is bringing his stand-up comedy to the U.S. for the first time as part of David Bowie's High Line Festival. As of this posting, there are still tickets available for the Thursday 5/17 performance.

A Moment To Think About With Emo Philips

Blue Republic Holiday Special Number 2: The World of Karl Pilkington

2006 was the year of the podcast and of YouTube. No question about it. And the most popular (among the It crowd like those such as myself) merged the two through the video editions of the Ricky Gervais show podcast. The last 3 holiday audio podcasts are free for download here but in the meantime here are the video podcasts and that. Right.

Blue Republic Holiday Special Number 1: Stephen Colbert vs. The Decemberists

What with the continuing violence in Iraq bogging down our country, the continued plagues of poverty and global warming festering on the open wounds of this nation, and the sheer mass insanity that is our celebrity-crazed media and culture...I skipped blogging this week and have decided to give you a couple Chrismukkah-Festivus treats. First up: this past week's historic half-hour showdown between Stephen Colbert and the Decemberists. Enjoy: