Archive for category talk show
Missed It: Stephen Fry on Craig Ferguson
Posted by admin in late night TV, talk show on March 14, 2010
The week I was on vacation, away from CBS TV, Craig Ferguson pulled off an experimental episode of his Late Late Show. On the February 23 episode (which unfortunately is no longer archived on the CBS website), after the opening monologue he interviewed the British actor and writer Stephen Fry for the length of the whole show without a studio audience. That element of the show hearkened back to the format done by original Late Late Show host, Tom Snyder, who always had done the show without a studio audience.
The opening monologue, which I linked to above, reveals the transparency in which Ferguson consistently conducts the show. He conceded that he was slightly bothered by the dust-up on NBC involving Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien. Coming out of that, it got Ferguson thinking about the dynamics of his television show and itching to try a show without a studio audience (an aspect of his normal show that he fully concedes he appreciates and feeds off of on a regular basis).
If anyone doubted his being inspired by Snyder’s old format, Ferguson eliminated that possibility with the closing line of the monlogue, quoting Snyder’s traditional line to his audience: “Fire up a colortini, sit back, relax, and watch the pictures, now, as they fly through the air.”
CBS did not post the entire episode, but I’m sure if you look through You Tube, you might find snippets here or there. But for now, I provide you the five-minute snippet CBS was kind enough to post. Should I find out they will be replaying the episode, I will try to post a note here or on my Twitter account (TalkingwithTim).
One last thought on this experiment, to echo Entertainment Weekly’s Ken Tucker, who wrote a great analysis of this episode: “I vote for one edition a month of The Late Late Show in this format.”
Suggestions for NBC to Fill the 10 PM Slot (Expanded)
Posted by admin in episodic TV, late night TV, talk show on January 12, 2010
OK, so the other day, I said I lost the draft of a post. It appears that I misplaced it. Since this version is a tad more informative and less primal, I present it for you. Sorry for the technical snafu folks.
Something amazes me about NBC’s primetime/late night challenges. The Jay Leno 10 PM experiment did not work and will stop by mid-February 2010 (as confirmed by NBC and detailed in this New York Times article). Now NBC is struggling to quickly fill the slot in the short term, while ordering up multiple new pilots for the long run (including one that I’m very excited to hear about, a reworking of the Rockford Files, produced by House co-creator David Shore and Office star, Steve Carrell).
What amazes me about the short-term struggle is that after a few years of placing some of the Law & Order product on USA Network, why has NBC never considered airing Burn Notice (or any of the USA Network [owned by NBC Universal] original series), in the 10 PM slot? Back in August 2009, as noted in this TV Squad article, Burn Notice’s “August airings are burning down nine million viewers at a pop”. NBC wishes Leno could have pulled numbers on that level at 10 PM consistently.
Remembering George Plimpton
Posted by admin in Literature, streaming video, talk show on January 1, 2010
So I was recently reading James Lipton’s autobiography, Inside Inside. In remembering his late friend George Plimpton, who died in September 2003, he mentioned discussing Plimpton with Charlie Rose. I had missed that show back in 2003, so I was happy to find it online. Here it is.
Inside Inside
As described by Google Video:
First, a conversation in remembrance of American journalist, novelist and editor George Plimpton, with James Lipton of “Inside the Actor’s Studio”, Robert Silvers of “The New York Review of Books”, and Lewis Lapham of “Harper’s Magazine”. Then, a conversation with Terry McDonell of “Sports Illustrated”, David Remnick of “The New Yorker”, and restaurateur Elaine Kaufman, in remembrance of George Plimpton. Then, a conversation with former Republican Congressman Felix Grucci of New York about his collaboration with George Plimpton. Finally, a conversation with Jay McCulloch, friend and former colleague of George Plimpton, about Plimpton’s work as editor of “The Paris Review”.
Classic Interview: Dick Cavett on Charlie Rose
Posted by admin in episodic TV, late night TV, talk show on November 27, 2009
I should have mentioned this earlier in the week, but due to the U.S. holiday, I opted not to run a new interview this week. Hopefully, you have enjoyed the slightly increased posting level this week, however.
I love a good interview, and Dick Cavett is a damn good interviewer. So is Charlie Rose. So a chance to watch the two of them talk (from back in 2001)–a good opportunity.
I hope you agree.
TV Trends: Thoughts on Oprah’s Show Ending in 2011
I’m honestly stupefied by the fact that Oprah’s announcement of her show ending in 2011 has made such a big splash. I guess if I was one of the local TV stations carrying her show, the news might be a serious blow–given her ratings track record of more than 20 years. But as a consumer, does anyone doubt the existing show will not be replaced with some other daily project on her OWN upcoming channel (set to launch in 2010)?
TV: John Irving on the Bonnie Hunt Show
I felt giddy just typing the headline. I enjoy The Bonnie Hunt Show. In some ways, it’s a throwback to the era of the 1970s Mike Douglas show–but with a twist. Hunt, a former oncology nurse, frequently campaigns for her cancer charity (as is her right–and for which I admire her). So it did not surprise me that she got novelist John Irving to discuss his battle with prostate cancer (he was on the show last week), as shown in this clip.
Irving is my favorite living novelist, and I am glad he is still living. Oh, and if you didn’t know, his new novel, Last Night in Twisted River, was released late last month. I cannot wait to read it.
Documentary: Oprah Gets A Gig for Life
According to Brian Stelter over at the NYTimes’ Media Decoder (and as confirmed by Discovery Channel’s own press release), Oprah Winfrey “will narrate Discovery Channel’s all-new 11-part series LIFE, set to premiere in March 2010″.
Does she actually need the money and isn’t she running the risk of overexposing herself? OK the latter part of that question is truly absurd, I’ll admit. Once you have the power to set up a school in a foreign country and are in the process of developing your OWN cable channel (no really its her OWN channel as in “Oprah Winfrey Network”) with Discovery (to replace Discovery Health) in 2010, you really cannot be overexposed.
If you have ever heard Oprah introduce Doris Kearns Goodwin enthusiastically (as she did around the time of Obama’s inauguration, when Kearns Goodwin appeared as a panelist) you know that Oprah can even make sedate presidential historians sound as exciting as the day Tom Cruise was hopping on Oprah’s couch. With that kind of voice power and sometimes (seemingly oddly placed) enthusiasm, I must admit I look forward to hearing what kind of intonation she’ll opt for when tackling subjects like “the star-nosed mole that hunts underwater using bubbles to smell its prey, to epic spectacles, including millions of fruit bats darkening the Zambian sky”. I just like to imagine here saying, as a teaser: “Next week’s episode, we visit with the star-nosed MOOOOOOOOOOLE!”
Yep, should be fun.