Posted on 03/21/2019 3:45:31 AM PDT by Kaslin
I’ve never seen such a nasty reaction to something so simple, honest, and sincere. Jay Leno appeared on the "Today Show" last week to discuss the importance of monitoring cholesterol. During the interview, Al Roker pivoted to ask if he missed hosting the “Tonight Show.” Leno’s answer detailed the reasons it’s no longer a forum he recognizes or misses.
“Now everyone HAS to know your politics…When people see you as one-sided, it just makes it tough,” Leno said. “And look, I did it when Clinton was horny and Bush was dumb. It was just a little easier. You know, now it’s very serious. I’d just like a bit of civility to come back.”
Immediately journalists, writers, and hosts sprung into some kind of comedy crisis communications drill. Stephen Colbert was first to respond publicly to Leno’s critique.
As I noted last month, Colbert stopped pretending he could entertain non-leftists and decided to peddle partisanship full time. Once again, when asked about Leno’s comments Colbert didn’t dispute it. In fact, he proudly embraced it.
“I agree with what he said. He said it was a different time….now there’s one subject, so people see your politics more when you do it now, but I’m fine with that. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with saying this person is damaging the nation…I feel seriously about what’s going on in the country….I’m there to make everybody feel better and know they’re not alone in that.”
That’s some rib-tickling hilarity!
Does Colbert hear himself? He’s proud of a “comedy/variety” show people can tune into to hear him discuss why he believes the President is “damaging the nation.” Further, that variety/comedy show’s stated goal is to make “everybody feel better about what’s going on” and that “they’re not alone.”
Who’s “everybody?” Who’s “they?” Well, we know who. People who didn’t vote for Donald Trump. Anyone who did vote Trump and happens to support his agenda can watch a syndicated re-run, I suppose.
Consider the extraordinary nature of Colbert’s comments.
A man hired to host a variety show on a major network has effectively declared sixty-plus million voters unwelcome to tune in. In an era of perpetual corporate panic and preoccupation not to offend - major television networks continue to openly embrace politically segregated programming as a preference.
I’ve said previously it’s certainly their right, but it’s a striking departure and proves every word Jay Leno said is true. Non-Trump haters need not apply for late night.
To really drive this home, HBO’s John Oliver took to his battle station and fired both barrels at Leno’s review of late night.
During his “Last Week Tonight” monologue about the necessity - yes, necessity - of publicly shaming those with whom he disagrees, Oliver took aim at Leno’s plea for civility by airing a montage of old Leno jokes from his days on “The Tonight Show.”
The clips were standard nineties fare. Literally, everyone told versions of the same jokes. They wrote themselves. Naughty sex jokes and puns about a grown woman and the most powerful man in the world having sex were layups.
But they weren’t malicious. They weren’t told with the goal of seeing Clinton run out of office or framed as if he posed some great threat to the nation.
That’s the key distinction from then to now.
Remember, Leno even said last week in the “offending” interview it was an easier time when “Clinton was horny and Bush was dumb.” He wasn’t denying he told sex and dumb guy jokes.
Still, Oliver beat his chest with the righteous indignation one must display for authenticity and applause in today’s “wokeness” where gown women who diddle the President are victims, not “sluts.”
“Those jokes have not dated well in any sense of the word, and they’re pretty rough,” Oliver ranted, “especially coming from a guy who just this week complained about late-night TV, saying he’d like to see a bit of civility come back, you know, like that time when he did a bit with a fake book about Lewinsky titled ‘The Slut in the Hat.’
Oliver concluded, “…if that’s what he means by civility, may I offer my new book, ‘Oh the places you can go to f--k yourself, Jay Leno!’ Look how civil this is!”
The rage makes your sides hurt from laughing, doesn’t it? Once again, do they hear themselves proving the point?
If Oliver watched the entirety of Leno’s comments on “Today” he’d know Leno went on to say how tough he thinks the job of joking about the President is now because Trump is already such an outsized political figure.
Seeming to empathize and somewhat excuse the lack of good-natured, goodwill in the punch lines among the current crop of late night hosts, Leno concluded, “How do you get more outrageous than that?” (The president with a porn star).
While I don’t agree with Leno’s assessment any more than those who used to say there was “nothing funny about Barack Obama,” the broader point remains.
It didn’t use to be a prerequisite to wear your politics on your sleeve to joke about politicians. Nor was it required to be a regular reader of the New Yorker to qualify as a joke teller.
That’s not the case today. Late night hosts feel a duty to weaponize their shows with the belief they are helping to actively defeat a president while boosting his opposition. At the same time, they believe they’re providing a “safe space” for those who can’t bring themselves to function in Trump’s America.
That’s heavy. That’s hostile. That’s a mission. That’s a campaign. That’s not comedy. Leno’s right.
That’s “very serious.”
Colbert is on CBS, Kimmel is on ABC, and Fallon is on NBC. But all are DNC sock puppets.
Of the three main characters Stephen Colbert is the one I despise the most, by far.
He is so full of himself he thought he could get his sister elected to congress just by his endorsement.. Sorry Charlie.
He was really taken aback when she lost .
Disgusting creep.
You said it.
It’s part of “reparations”. /s
The FCC, don’t know if they still do it, but “race norm” the listener numbers for black-owned radio stations, basically screwing the advertisers for phantom audience numbers.
I wished I could get antenna TV
and that is probably 29 minutes to long.
The Republican bashers are competing for the same fans. The reason Rush got so big is that he had no competition while the news networks were all competing against each other. Fox is #1 because no one is doing what Fox does. If the networks kill Fox, someone who wants to make money will have to create another one.
Fox is self-destructing anyway
I also saw Leno back in the early ‘80’s. I don’t recall in any detail what he said, but I do remember that it was funny.
I remember that he told some jokes about his elderly parents; he talked about them in a way that was funny but loving at the same time. Something about a VCR.
I was talking to a friend of mine last night about “comedians” today. If they couldn’t talk about sex or bodily functions and couldn’t use the “f-word” most of them couldn’t talk at all. He said “they don’t have a sense of humor.” I couldn’t disagree at all.
The only answer I could come up with (and I think it’s a valid one) is that the networks realize the host would get the same treatment by the celebrity class that Donald Trump got on Inauguration Day.
No doubt most celebrities would both boycott the show and browbeat those who would even consider making an appearance.
“A man hired to host a variety show on a major network has effectively declared sixty-plus million voters unwelcome to tune in. In an era of perpetual corporate panic and preoccupation not to offend - major television networks continue to openly embrace politically segregated programming as a preference.”
What I am doing is looking at publicly traded companies who have alienated 1/2 the country and see which ones are ripe for downside investments.
None of them can work clean like the comedians of old who I still revere. There were a few geniuses like Richard Pryor and George Carlin who got quite filthy but they were geniuses, not morons like Colbert and the rest of the late nights.
The body function garbage they picked up directly from the Brits (and maybe Mel Brooks). The lowest form of humor possible.
“Colbert is on CBS, Kimmel is on ABC, and Fallon is on NBC. But all are DNC sock puppets.”
Kimmel is the worst because of “The Man Show.” The fact that leftist women stand behind him is testament to the fake outrage of the left.
They are already on the Antenna Network every night, they run the old 90 and 60 minute shows and they are great and fun to watch.
Because of the partisan stupidity that Colbert and others have been spewing, hardly anybody even watches late night talk shows anymore except for the partisan left... So if they don’t cater to them they would end up with no viewers at all and ultimately cancellation.
Pandering to the left is all they have. In fact, I’ll wager that more people tune into Johnny Carson re-runs on you-tube, than tune into the current tonight show on a daily basis.
I get it over the air for free. No cable TV subscription needed for me to watch it. Go to their website, type in your ZIP code in the "channel finder" tab and see if it is available over the air in your area. An inexpensive indoor digital antenna might be all you need to invest in to get that station.
I’ve been told, and probably you have too, The problem isn’t that the comedians aren’t funny; the problem is me. I don’t have a sense of humor. Not having the sense of humor of a 12-year-old boy is not the same thing as not having a sense of humor at all!
Most of them aren’t smart enough nor funny enough to make ordinary life the source of humor. Things like “Who’s on First” or the Tim Conway/Harvey Korman dentist skit are just beyond them.
Most accurate label ever.
Reruns of the Tonight Show I would happily stay up to watch.
I'm pretty sure Carson, and now his sons and is regularly shown on 'Antenna TV' seven days a week.
Just as an aside, something that I noticed only years later watching reruns, as the years went by Carson was less and less concerned with keeping his far left lean hidden and it clearly came through when he had a like minded celebrity on the show. Though even then compared to the idiots on the late shows now he was politics neutral.
..guess you could tell I don’t watch late night azzholes..
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