Buoyed by a two-year deal at HBO, a weekly CNN presence and a new book, Bill Maher now has decided to describe himself as a “centrist.” Is it a claim in vain?
Having watched his show for years and done several shows with him, I suspect he’s instinctively too “incorrect” to qualify for “moderation.” Strategically, some feel he shouldn’t even try.
The audience for stand-ups and for TV in general is changing noticeably, to some performers’ discomfort. At their annual upfronts, TV executives two weeks ago no longer were obsessed by that premium 18-49 age group, acknowledging that their remaining audience is becoming geriatric – 66 for the ABC network, for example, and 69 for Fox News.
Stand-up comics report their crowds at arenas or clubs are aging as well, and they are adjusting their routines accordingly. Even the jokes seem less coital, more socially consensual.
So will the more mature...
Having watched his show for years and done several shows with him, I suspect he’s instinctively too “incorrect” to qualify for “moderation.” Strategically, some feel he shouldn’t even try.
The audience for stand-ups and for TV in general is changing noticeably, to some performers’ discomfort. At their annual upfronts, TV executives two weeks ago no longer were obsessed by that premium 18-49 age group, acknowledging that their remaining audience is becoming geriatric – 66 for the ABC network, for example, and 69 for Fox News.
Stand-up comics report their crowds at arenas or clubs are aging as well, and they are adjusting their routines accordingly. Even the jokes seem less coital, more socially consensual.
So will the more mature...
- 5/30/2024
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
An Emmy-winning writer, producer and director, Todd Robinson has worked in film and television for nearly four decades — penning screenplays for White Squall, Lonely Hearts and The Last Full Measure. Prior to the current WGA strike, the second since he joined the guild, he’d been working on his next features Eldorado and Neponsit Circle, slated for production in 2024.
Nov. 24, 2007, I was asleep in my childhood bedroom in my hometown of Media, Pennsylvania. Crushed after a brutal red-eye, followed by my 30th high school reunion, I was wasted.
In L.A., it was day 18 of the 2007-08 writers strike, where I’d been picketing right up until Thanksgiving. It was a relief to get away from the sunburn, signs and honking cars. Back home, the gloom of a painful work stoppage seemed far away.
The strike had brought much into focus for my wife, Elizabeth, and me. I was a...
Nov. 24, 2007, I was asleep in my childhood bedroom in my hometown of Media, Pennsylvania. Crushed after a brutal red-eye, followed by my 30th high school reunion, I was wasted.
In L.A., it was day 18 of the 2007-08 writers strike, where I’d been picketing right up until Thanksgiving. It was a relief to get away from the sunburn, signs and honking cars. Back home, the gloom of a painful work stoppage seemed far away.
The strike had brought much into focus for my wife, Elizabeth, and me. I was a...
- 8/19/2023
- by Todd Robinson
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Bill Maher used a pointer to illustrate his lecture Friday night on HBO’s Real Time, as he gave a “Zapruder-ized” analysis of the Oscars moment that everyone can’t let go.
Maher called the segment, “Explaining Jokes to Idiots” and said he would break down jokes for the humor-impaired (a Will Smith shot accompanying).
“Comedians have been under attack for some time,” Maher said. “So I must defend my tribe. This war on jokes must end.” He contended that the infamous “G.I. Jane 2” quip from Chris Rock “wasn’t an alopecia joke, any more than the chicken crossing the road is about bird flu.”
Maher pointed out an earlier joke on Oscars night where Timothée Chalamet was teased for looking a little run-down, with the cameras quickly cutting to J.K. Simmons in the Oscar audience. “That’s where it ended,” Maher said. “It’s called being a good sport.
Maher called the segment, “Explaining Jokes to Idiots” and said he would break down jokes for the humor-impaired (a Will Smith shot accompanying).
“Comedians have been under attack for some time,” Maher said. “So I must defend my tribe. This war on jokes must end.” He contended that the infamous “G.I. Jane 2” quip from Chris Rock “wasn’t an alopecia joke, any more than the chicken crossing the road is about bird flu.”
Maher pointed out an earlier joke on Oscars night where Timothée Chalamet was teased for looking a little run-down, with the cameras quickly cutting to J.K. Simmons in the Oscar audience. “That’s where it ended,” Maher said. “It’s called being a good sport.
- 4/9/2022
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
If you still happen to be wondering what’s causing the rampant wealth inequality in the United States, here’s a hint: The richest Americans are now paying a lower tax rate than the working class.
The revelation is part of an analysis by University of California at Berkeley economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman, whose new book The Triumph of Injustice breaks down the troubling evolution of tax rates in the United States. Saez and Zucman found that in 2018, the total tax rate for the 400 wealthiest families in America was 23 percent,...
The revelation is part of an analysis by University of California at Berkeley economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman, whose new book The Triumph of Injustice breaks down the troubling evolution of tax rates in the United States. Saez and Zucman found that in 2018, the total tax rate for the 400 wealthiest families in America was 23 percent,...
- 10/9/2019
- by Ryan Bort
- Rollingstone.com
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