TV: Late Show - Letterman retiring May 20; Colbert debuting Sept 8 (post: 248)

[Shareefruck]

Great choice

 

[TootooTrain]

Fallon, Colbert, Conan, Kimmel and Ferguson. Insane late night line up. I wish more shows would do what Kimmel's does, where they upload pretty much the whole show up on youtube.

Ferguson does it for some episodes. Full length. It's a joy when I can't stay up for his show some nights.

I'm not a Kimmel fan at all, but that's really cool. Props for that.

 

[Shareefruck]

It's more of a perception thing for me. He's been doing it so long that I just can't see him outside of that role. I'd sort of equate it to watching a show with Michael Richards in it and constantly having Kramer in the back (or even the forefront) of your mind. I'm sure it's something that would pass in time, but that's just my initial reaction to it.

I equate it more to something like Will Arnett-- Obviously it's an act, but I think he'd probably still jokingly have the same type of attitude in real life. The humor never really hinged on the concept anyways-- it hinged on the personality and I don't think that needs to be thrown away

 

[Garo]

I was always under the impression Ferguson didn't even want the Late Show...

I remember that, too.

Are Colbert and Fallon BFFs or Best Enemies now?

 

[JS19]

I remember that, too.

Are Colbert and Fallon BFFs or Best Enemies now?

Best Frenemies

 

[Sharpshooter]

I remember that, too.

Are Colbert and Fallon BFFs or Best Enemies now?

Conan, Fallon and Colbert are all friends. I can't wait for the many faux and real late night warring. I will dub them 'The Teevee Wars: Threeway-pocalypse'.

 

[tacogeoff]

Fantastic! I will have to tune in and give it a try as I am not a fan of kimmel or fallon.

 

[GKJ]

If anything, it shows CBS isn't NBC

 

[SB164]

BBC One's The Graham Norton Show is better than any American late night talk show.

 

[le_sean]

Great decision. Also love Craig Ferguson, but I could see that older generation hating him like they hated Conan.

Too bad John Oliver is already on to his own show, he would have been a nice replacement on CC.

 

[John Price]

Yeah, at least this isn't another SNL alumni. NBC only hires in-house

Colbert is a fresh new face from a medium where he's already destroyed the current late night hosts, and built up a strong youthful following. He'll be fine

 

[Stanley Foobrick]

http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/04/10/stephen-colbert-letterman/

Colbert is expected to shed his ultra-conservative Colbert Report character for Late Show, which leads to perhaps the biggest question mark surrounding his hiring. Though he’s been going through the broad motions of being a late-night host since 2005, he hasn’t been “himself†on the air — so what does that look and feel like, exactly?

This is why a question the choice. Wonder how much say Dave had in this, if any?

 

[Garo]

Conan, Fallon and Colbert are all friends. I can't wait for the many faux and real late night warring. I will dub them 'The Teevee Wars: Threeway-pocalypse'.

I keep forgetting Conan is also in that time frame. Doesn't help that his show is on at 1:30 here.

For Colbert, the character might not be back but there's no reason to not bring in some of the segments he made on the Report (Cheating Death, for example, had little to do with his character)... Well, unless Comedy Central legally owns them, in which case there's a pretty good reason.

 

[aleshemsky83]

Stephen, my guy

 

[Mr Atoz*]

Naming a guy whose entire persona is dedicated to making fun of conservatives. What a great shock. Now all we need are the minions to swear that there's no left wing bias here.

 

[parabola]

Naming a guy whose entire persona is dedicated to making fun of conservatives. What a great shock. Now all we need are the minions to swear that there's no left wing bias here.

There isn't if he is not going to portray his Colbert Report persona.

 

[ClassLessCoyote]

Looks like I'll have another reason to not watch late night TV shows anymore. CBS is making a big mistake here I feel with Stephen Colbert. They're plenty of comedians who are funnier than him that would do a better job as host of the Late Show. Chris Rock. Bill Maher, though I don't like his program on HBO. Dennis Miller would be the most ideal host as his HBO show was great. Just some examples of others who I find much funnier than Stephen Colbert here.

 

[Mr Atoz*]

There isn't if he is not going to portray his Colbert Report persona.

No? You mean he's been faking it all these years.

Talk about not getting it.

Not that I'm surprised.

 

[parabola]

No? You mean he's been faking it all these years.

Talk about not getting it.

Not that I'm surprised.

Huh? Faking his bias? No, probably not. Taking it to an extreme though? Yes.

 

[Brodie]

show me the conservative comedian who's hosted a wildly successful late night show for a decade that CBS should have hired instead

and you can't say Dennis Miller

 

[Ozamataz Buckshank]

No? You mean he's been faking it all these years.

Talk about not getting it.

Not that I'm surprised.

You'll appreciate this wonderful piece of conservative writing then. From the brilliant Ben Shapiro, responsible for the page turner Primetime Propaganda: The True Hollywood Story of How the Left Took Over Your TV

http://www.truthrevolt.org/commentary/stephen-colberts-vile-political-blackface#.U0b5yymLkB0.twitter

Stephen Colbert's Vile Political Blackface

Last week, after President Obama gave his highly-mockable “Mission Accomplished†speech announcing that 7.1 million Americans had selected an Obamacare plan, Comedy Central’s Stephen Colbert hit the airwaves. He did mock. But instead of mocking Obama’s laughably manipulated 7.1 million number, he did his usual routine: pretending to be a cluelessly cruel right-winger, Colbert spat, “I wish I could come to you with some good news, but the worst imaginable thing has happened: Millions of Americans are going to get healthcare.â€

This routine, in which Colbert plays at conservatism in order to portray it as unendingly ugly, should be labeled for what it is: vile political blackface. When Colbert plays “Colbert,†it’s not mere mockery or satire or spoof. It’s something far nastier.

Blackface, which has an ugly history dating back to at least the fifteenth century according to historian John Strausbaugh, was used to portray demeaning and horrifying stereotypes of blacks. Such stereotypical imitation has not been limited to blacks, of course; actors tasked with playing stereotypical Jew Shylock often donned a fake nose and red wig, as did actors who were supposed to play Barabas in The Jew of Malta. Such stereotypical potrayals create a false sense of blacks, or Jews, or whomever becomes the target of such nastiness.

And this is precisely what Colbert does with regard to politics: he engages in Conservativeface. He needs no makeup or bulbous appendage to play a conservative – after all, conservatives come in every shape and size. Instead, he acts as though he is a conservative – an idiotic, racist, sexist, bigoted, brutal conservative. He out-Archie Bunkers Archie Bunker. His audience laughs and scoffs at brutal religious “Colbert†who wishes to persecute gays; they chortle at evil sexist “Colbert†who thinks men are victims of sexism. This is the purpose of Colbert’s routine. His show is about pure hatred for conservatives in the same way that blackface was about pure hatred of blacks. In order to justify their racism, racists had to create a false perception of blacks; in the same way, Colbert and his audience can justify their racism only by creating a false perception of conservatives.

This is why Colbert is such an effective weapon for the left. Unlike Stewart, whose mockery is no different in kind from Greg Gutfeld’s on the other side, Colbert’s shtick is of a different sort: it’s based on creation of a character who doesn’t exist, but the audience is supposed to believe does exist in type. “Colbert†may not be real, but his audience thinks that Colbert’s Conservativeface resembles reality closely enough to suffice as a stand-in for conservatism. Which means that when they do encounter conservatism, they’re firmly convinced they’re looking at “Colbert-ism†in disguise.

It is nearly impossible to watch an episode of The Colbert Report without coming away with a viscerally negative response to conservatives. That’s because if conservatives were all like “Colbert,†they would be worthy of such a response. Colbert’s routine is designed to convince millions of Americans, especially young people, that the real fakery comes from genuine conservatives, who are all as morally ignorant and repulsive on the inside as Colbert’s character is on the surface.

CBS knows that. That’s likely why they aren’t bringing “Colbert†along with Colbert – it’s too offputting, too niche. Instead, they’ll hope that Colbert without the political blackface can be just as entertaining. The problem is this: will 50% of CBS’ audience simply go amnesiac on Colbert’s career-making hate?

Satire of Bill O'Reilly = blackface

 

[Shareefruck]

The only right leaning comedian I love is Norm.

I'm glad if there's leftist bias

 

[EvilCoop]

The only right leaning comedian I love is Norm.

I'm glad if there's leftist bias

Indeed; I must say that Norm should have a late night show.

 

[Shareefruck]

Indeed; I must say that Norm should have a late night show.

It honestly disturbs and deflates me a little bit when you hear him talk about politics and his candid personal beliefs. It seems so jarring compared to his comedic personality

 

[ClassLessCoyote]

Leave the political bias out of it and just be funny. Leno certainly has that ability though likely he'll never do late night TV again.