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I'll admit
it - I used to watch The
Daily Show. A lot. I'm pretty sure I watched the very first episode,
and we used to watch it every night when we lived in Michigan. It was
really funny, the writing was sharp and I liked most of the people on
the show. I really, really liked Lizz Winstead, and the interactions
between her and Craig Kilborn. She always seemed to be making a little
fun of Craig for his piggish ways, but letting him know that she was
also kind of kidding.
In the
beginning, I wasn't a big fan of Craig Kilborn, but he seemed really
happy to be hosting the show, and was able to make fun of himself. Then
the show became Comedy Central's highest rated show (this was before
South Park existed), and "Kilby" started believing his own
press releases. He gave an interview to Esquire where he said that Lizz
would "blow him" if he asked her to - and he was suspended
and Lizz left the show. It hasn't been the same since.
So now
"Craiggers" has taken over for Tom Snyder on The Late Late
Show. It is so obvious that CBS is desperate for some semblance of a
young demographic - Craig is a hit with the college kids, ya know. I
tuned in to the show during the first week to see how it was doing.
Craig Kilborn
thinks he is God's gift to women, as well as some sort of icon to frat
boys everywhere. May I remind him that most of his funny lines on The
Daily Show were written by writers? He actually seems kind of dim, as
witnessed by his interactions with guests. They will make a reference
to something that he doesn't understand, and he quickly changes the
subject.
Anyway,
the set for the show is supposed to represent a sort of swinging bachelor
pad, circa 1957, I think. There's a piano and some groovy furniture.
And here's the kicker (and what Craig discussed in oh, I don't know
- every single interview he did to promote the show) -- a working wet
bar! Yes, that's right, Craig drinks alcoholic beverages! I just can't
stand how cool he is.
The show
has carried over the "Five Questions" and "Moment for
Us" segments from the Daily Show. "Five Questions" used
to be funny because it showed celebrities as normal people, who may
or may not be very smart. Now it seems like an opportunity for the writers
to show off how funny they are instead of an opportunity to learn something
about the guest. I can't even discuss how much the "Moment for
Us" has always annoyed me.
The night
I watched the show, the first guest was Jeff Goldblum. The two of them
kind of sat there and congratulated each other on how smart they are.
I learned nothing interesting about Jeff Goldblum. Maybe there isn't
anything interesting about Jeff Goldblum.
The second
guest was Jonny Mosely, the Olympic champion freestyle mogul skier.
(Oooh - extreme sports! Way to appeal to that target demo, CBS!). Jonny
was none too bright, but he was kind of funny. Craig seemed to know
nothing about skiing - way to do your homework, Craiggers!
The final
guests of the evening were 2 of the stars of the Spanish version of
Charlie's Angels. Craig kind of stared at their bodies and babbled about
his teenage lust for Farrah. One of the women tried to discuss how she
wants to portray a strong, fit woman who is a good role model for young
girls, and Craig cut her off so he could have his picture taken with
them in the Angels pose.
I flipped
by the show the other night and Vince Vaughn was on. They were talking
about chicks and swingers and martinis or something. I quickly changed
the channel.
So I'm
assuming from what I've seen that Craig will continue to have as guests
only swinging bachelors and hot babes. It's kind of like The Playboy
Mansion on TV. Actually, that's probably exactly what he's going for.
The only problem with my hatred of all things Kilborn is that my personal
goddess, Janeane Garofolo, appears to be friends with him. Oh well,
part of Janeane's shtick is her poor choices in men, right?
My conclusion
- Craig Kilborn needs to get over his fear of women. And get a soul.
And get off my damn TV. |