Monday February 8, 2010
If you were one of the gazillion people who watched Sunday night's Super Bowl, then you caught the surprise Late Show with David Letterman ad .
Surprise because it starred heavyweight Oprah Winfrey and late night rival Jay Leno. Letterman and Leno have traded wicked barbs recently because of NBC's late night talk show debacle.
The ad mimics a famous 2007 commercial starring Letterman and Winfrey. At the time, the two were thought to be involved in a feud. In the commercial, they act as boyfriend and girlfriend.
This year, we find Winfrey and Letterman sitting on the same couch, watching the Super Bowl. Letterman complains that "this is the worst Super Bowl party ever."
"Now, Dave, be nice," says Winfrey.
"He's only saying that because I'm here," says a voice off-screen. We then discover that Leno is sitting on the couch as well. Winfrey separates the two.
The sullen party was Letterman's idea. Leno's folks jumped at the idea, possibly to help mended Leno's tarnished image. The commercial was filmed at Letterman's Ed Sullivan Theatre on Tuesday.
To keep it secret, producers snuck Leno into the studio around a corner from guests waiting to get into the show. Leno was wearing a hoodie and sunglasses.
Thursday February 4, 2010
If you missed The Daily Show's Jon Stewart on Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor last night, you're not alone. I missed it, too.
Which is a bummer, because interviews like these don't come around often. Stewart, who is famous for challenging Fox News for the way it covers the news, rarely finds himself as a guest on pundit shows like Bill O'Reilly's. The last time he was a guest was 2004.
But we're in luck! The miracle of the Internet means we can watch the interview online. And we can catch the second half of O'Reilly's interview with Stewart tonight on Fox (check your local listings).
During the first part of the interview, Stewart called O'Reilly Fox's "voice of sanity" and the news channel a "cyclonic perpetual motion machine." When asked why he criticizes Fox News, Stewart said the channel "sells the clearest narrative of all the news networks" and that, with regard to President Barack Obama, Fox has "taken reasonable concerns about this president and this economy and turned it into a full-fledged panic attack about the next coming of Chairman Mao."
Overall, the interview was friendly and playful, but rich with good debate. I can't wait to see what the two talk about tonight!
More Stewart & O'Reilly online:
Tuesday February 2, 2010
Two recommendations for today's talk show viewing: Former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer takes on Stephen Colbert on The Colbert Report and Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse theorize about the final season of Lost on Jimmy Kimmel Live.
Spitzer resigned as governor in March 2008 after it was revealed he was a client of a high-end prostitution ring under federal investigation.
Appearing on Colbert may be the former governor's attempt to resurrect his image. In much the same way that actor Hugh Grant appeared on The Tonight Show after he was arrested for his involvement with a prostitute, Spitzer could be allowing Colbert to absolve him of his public relations sins by going through the comedy gauntlet.
Speaking of gauntlets, you'll be hard-pressed to talk about anything other than Lost with fans of the show after Tuesday night's final season premiere. And if you happen to be one of those fans (me included), then you'll want to catch creators Cuse and Lindelof on Kimmel tonight.
They're sure to field a bunch of strange questions. Or, more likely, confuse fans by posing a ton of their own.
Thursday January 28, 2010
Set your DVRs are tune in to The Oprah Winfrey Show today. Jay Leno appears to discuss the entire NBC late night talk show fiasco.
Previews from the show were released (the interview was taped Tuesday). About the two-week-long kerfuffle: "It was a huge mess."
Leno tells Oprah that he hasn't spoken to Conan O'Brien since the whole mess started. "It didn't seem appropriate. I don't know, I think, let things cool down and maybe we'll talk, you know?"
Leno also says he wasn't particularly upset about the numerous jokes targeting both him and NBC - some of the sharpest coming from David Letterman (What does Jay Leno stand for?) and Jimmy Kimmel (Jimmy Kimmel Mocks The Jay Leno Show).
"They were jokes and that's O.K. It's what we do. It's like being a fighter and saying, 'When you got punched in the head, did it hurt?' Well, yeah, but you're a fighter, that's what you do."
Check your local listings to see when Oprah is on in your town.
