Comedy Kings and Queens

How Comedy Turned Serious

Wall Street Journal  |  Nov 29, 08 7:53 AM CST

(Newser) - Politics and comedy are trading places, Lee Siegel writes in the Wall Street Journal , as the antics of politicians get more outlandish and comics are increasingly the people speaking truth to power. Fake newsmen like Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert, with their stern commentary, lean more towards the "dark, piercing and wise" humor of Mark Twain than simple belly laughs, Seigel writes. More »

Palin's Top 10 Excuses for Ignoring Turkey Slaughter

Huffington Post  |  Nov 25, 08 5:05 AM CST

(Newser) - David Letterman couldn't let news of Sarah Palin's gruesome turkey farm visit fly past him without comment, the Huffington Post notes. Palin pardoned one turkey but was oblivious to others being slaughtered behind her during a TV interview last week. Among Letterman's Top 10 purported excuses for Palin's disregard of the gorefest: More »

Sarah Palin, Come Back! SNL Needs You

Gawker  |  Nov 23, 08 1:07 PM CST

(Newser) - Without Sarah Palin and with a dull Barack Obama impression on its hands, Saturday Night Live is in election withdrawal, Alex Carnevale writes for Gawker. The show’s opening skit about congressional hearings on automaker bailouts was “less than hilarious,” and it “tried to squeeze jokes out of country singer and host Tim McGraw saying slightly unexpected things for an hour.” More »

With Election Gone, SNL Enters 'Rebuilding' Phase

USA Today  |  Nov 21, 08 3:14 PM CST

(Newser) - The election may be over, but SNL  still has 14 episodes to fill. Lorne Michaels says the show will be in one of its periodic "rebuilding" periods, but he has much praise for three new faces. Here's the lowdown, from USA Today : Abby Elliott: The daughter of former cast member Chris Elliott is only 21, but  Michaels says "her sense of humor was clearly there." More »

Emanuel Pokes Fun at Stephen Colbert

Huffington Post  |  Nov 16, 08 12:28 PM CST

(Newser) - Emboldened by the election, at least one Democrat brashly took potshots at a satirist who relishes zapping politicians on TV. Barack Obama's new chief of staff Rahm Emanuel roasted faux newsman Stephen Colbert at a weekend charity function—but in a deft word twist managed to zing a number of politicians. Emanuel said he was "afraid of Colbert—the same way Sarah Palin is scared of a geography bee, and John Edwards is scared of the National Enquirer ." More »

Fox Cancels Mad TV

Defamer  |  Nov 12, 08 5:50 PM CST

(Newser) - Mad TV will bid adieu after 14 seasons of Saturday night sketches, the final nail in its coffin coming from a failure to boost ratings during the presidential campaign, reports Defamer. Fox's Saturday Night Live competitor, which has been on the chopping block for years, will finish up the season before being relegated to DVD collections. More »

Leno Gets First McCain Interview on Veterans Day

Monsters and Critics  |  Nov 7, 08 5:39 PM CST

(Newser) - John McCain will help Jay Leno celebrate Veterans Day by appearing on NBC’s “Tonight Show,” Monsters & Critics reports today. The Tuesday appearance will mark the Republican’s first TV interview since his loss to Barack Obama in the Nov. 4 election. More »

White Comics Lack Nuance Needed to Mine Obama

The Root  |  Nov 7, 08 3:37 PM CST

(Newser) - Bill Maher recently said Barack Obama “needs to give comedians something to work with.” The President-elect is “too perfect,” he groused, and worse, liberals are afraid to laugh at black people. If only Dave Chappelle were working, laments Salamishah Tillet for the Root. He’d quickly prove Obama is plenty funny, if only white comedians learned the “cultural nuances of black America.” More »

Fey Waves Goodbye to Playing Palin

Entertainment Weekly  |  Nov 6, 08 10:35 AM CST

(Newser) - To the list of political figures out of a job after Election Day, add one: Sarah Palin impersonator Tina Fey. "I have to retire just because I have to do my day job," the creator and star of 30 Rock tells Entertainment Weekly . More »

With Conan on Deck, NBC Thinks Young

Advertising Age  |  Nov 3, 08 10:20 AM CST

(Newser) - With the Tonight Show 's June transition from Jay Leno to Conan O’Brien on the front burner, NBC is already anticipating a jump in younger viewers. The June handover "is as important an event as is going to happen to this company in 2009," an NBC VP tells Advertising Age. Even with Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert dominating late-night buzz, NBC's signature property made $255.9 million in ad dollars last year. More »

Estelle Reiner Dead at 94

New York Times  |  Oct 30, 08 1:22 PM CDT

(Newser) - Estelle Reiner, wife of actor Carl Reiner and mother to actor/director Rob Reiner, died Saturday at her home in Beverly Hills at 94, the New York Time s reports. Estelle is perhaps best known for her cameo in Rob’s 1989 film When Harry Met Sally , where, following Meg Ryan’s faked orgasm at a deli, said: “I’ll have what she’s having.” More »

Obama: 'We've Got a Good Shot at This Thing'

Chicago Tribune  |  Oct 30, 08 2:10 AM CDT

(Newser) - Barack Obama wrapped up his night of blitzing TV with an upbeat appearance on the Daily Show , the Chicago Tribune writes. "I think we've got a good shot at this thing," he told Jon Stewart last night, downplaying the chances of his race costing him the election. Pundits "have been saying that for a while but we’re still here," he said. "I don’t think white voters have gotten this memo about the Bradley effect." More »

Curb Cranks Up for New Season

Variety  |  Oct 23, 08 12:12 PM CDT

(Newser) - Curb Your Enthusiasm , the longest-running show in HBO’s lineup, is returning for a seventh season next year, Variety reports. Ten episodes of the half-hour sitcom are set to begin production in December, a source says; the executive producers and air dates are still under wraps. The show, created by its star Larry David, was nominated for four Emmys this year. More »

'Caribou Barbie' Debuts on SNL

USA Today  |  Oct 19, 08 4:50 AM CDT

(Newser) - The real Sarah Palin made her much anticipated debut on Saturday Nigh Live last night, gamely sparring with cast members who still skewered the candidate and show producer Lorne Michaels, reports USA Today . In the opening skit Tina Fey delivers Palin’s “first press conference” (she’s yet to hold one)—which an “off-stage” Palin tells Michaels it isn't “a realistic depiction." More »

CNN Adds Laughs to News Lineup

CNN  |  Oct 16, 08 12:33 PM CDT

(Newser) - The 24-hour news cycle will take a break for comedy with a Letterman-like talk show set to make its debut on CNN next weekend. Comic and actor DL Hughley, one of the "Original Kings of Comedy," will host. "When you watch as much news as our audience does, there comes a time you just want to stop and laugh—and that time will be Saturday nights at 10 on CNN," says the network's US chief. More »

Letterman: Mac May Brin