Joan Rivers 1933-2014

We lost Joan Rivers today. The award winning actress, producer, writer, director, hostess, and comedienne was 81. The star of stage, film, and television will be missed.

Joan Rivers has been around as long as I can remember. While still fairly young she first started showing up on Johnny Carson's "The Tonight Show" around the time I was born. She was always a hit, always hilarious. Later as the show entered its guest host phase, when Johnny would take weeks off at a time and they would have a fill-in for a week at a time, Joan rose to prominence.

I loved her stand-up and she interacted with guests almost as easily as Johnny. She was almost the designated guest host throughout most of the seventies and early eighties. Joan was always funny, sometimes later mean and funny, but always funny. Most of her jokes revolved around her husband Edgar, and her star shined bright.

Sadly her career turn a bad turn when she chose to go against Johnny as his competitor on the fledgling Fox network. The show, which eventually fell into the hands of Arsenio Hall, was not a good move. It's even been said that the stress of the show may have killed her husband. Joan drifted after that, falling into crazed and botched plastic surgery and hosting home shopping shows before she found a new career on the red carpet with the E! network.

Joan's meanness had tamed, and her face was nearly unrecognizable, but her presence and humor shone through as she, along with her daughter Melissa, interviewed celebrities on the entertainment channel.

I will still remember sneaking downstairs at 11:35 PM weeknights to see Joan's monologue on "The Tonight Show" as I also did with Johnny, and David Brenner, and Jerry Seinfeld, etc. I'll remember how much everyone wanted to see her movie Rabbit Test in eighth grade, and how bad it actually was. Joan was funny, and yes, she'll be missed.

More of the Same, Just Earlier

I just finished watching the first episode of the new prime time version of "The Tonight Show," um, I mean "The Jay Leno Show." I was unimpressed. I wish I wasn't, but that was how I saw it. It's just more of the same stuff we were getting at 11:30 three months ago.

There's literally nothing new here. I still wouldn't tune in for Jay Leno, no offense, he's just not that funny for me, but rather for his guests. And if Jay continues to softball the guests, especially when they are Twitter of-the-moment hot like Kanye West - what's the point really?

A few comments about tonight's episode... I gotta give props to Dan Finnerty, but really, when isn't he entertaining? Still, I like him better doing covers, but that's just me. I want the desk back. Jerry Seinfeld certainly is fighting a losing battle against male pattern baldness, but he's still funny. I kinda liked the Obama bit but I was sad that Jay stooped to stealing two decade old Weird Al MTV bits. And speaking of MTV and the VMAs, as heartfelt and sincere as Kanye's apology was, I think he could have rehearsed it more. And killer performance by Kanye, Jay-Z and Rhianna.

If you liked Jay at 11:30, you'll love him an hour and a half earlier, just don't expect any surprises.

Seinfeld for Microsoft

Now just for the record, I'm a Mac guy, and I'm never going back to PCs. Just not going to happen. But that said, I'm also a huge "Seinfeld" fan. That's why I just don't get all the negative hubbub over Jerry Seinfeld's new ad for Microsoft. I thought it was quirky, cool and funny. I doubt that it will sell computers and Jerry's looking a bit worse for wear, but I still enjoyed it.

Now I'm going back to working on my MacBook while I watch "Seinfeld" reruns.

In a World Without… Don LaFontaine

Brilliant voiceover artist, Don LaFontaine, best known for narrating movie previews and notably the opening phrase, “In a world without…” has passed away. Movie trailers will never be the same again…

Comedian

A Film Review of "Comedian"

Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker

This is being advertised as a movie about Jerry Seinfeld returning to stand-up. That's only about half the picture.

It's a very confused flick. At times it's an art film, at times a documentary and sometimes a straight performance film. But only half of it is about Jerry Seinfeld's struggle to do comedy clubs again after having one of the most successful sitcoms on television.



Comedian could have been just about that but they decided to switch hit. We also see the rise to the top of Orny Adams (yes, his real name), a surly obsessive compulsive manic depressive young comic who could've quite easily been the star of this flick. Indeed he overshadows Jerry.

Once we return to Jerry we get bored waiting to go back to the manic antics of Orny and his inability to be happy with his success. I see big things for this guy. Either that or at least entertaining stories in the National Enquirer.

Chris Rock, Bill Cosby, Robert Klein and Colin Quinn all have cameos but only Colin Quinn is funny. Wait for the video and keep a look out for Orny Adams.