Talking Funny

Ricky Gervais stuck out like a sore thumb during that special; dude was SOOO out of his league discussing stand-up with three legends.

I wanted to hear more Rock and Gervais wouldn't let him talk.  They must have had Gervais to have it play better overseas.

 

"Sitting on a cock cause i'm gay..." 

I liked that. He clearly knows comedy, but the rest were veterans. It had a nice contrast.

Jerry Seinfeld is a giant. His presence alone would sell it overseas. Ricky Gervais isn't nearly as famous as Seinfeld, especially here in America

 

Wasn't Gervais the one who put the whole thing together?

 

I don't think you understood what you were watching. Or you're some kind of idiotic xenophobe. Even if you don't like the Office or his persona, he's highly respected among real comedians. He's pretty much the single reason why TV swung away from Reality Shows in favor of scripted shows again.
 

But in this particular situation, while his Theory is top notch, the other guy's Practical Experience trumps such things. And yeah, Rock had a few things forming that sounded like they were going to be interesting (Theory and Practice at the same time) but his talking style is too slow-off-the-bat. The other guys were better at either jumping in, steam rolling or, like JS, setting up extended bits of silence for themselves to do a bit.

 

LCK is the guy I most relate to out of the 4 of them. But Gervais was bang-on about the whole "Fucking Cave" thing AND the "Cock, coz I'm Gay" thing. But it's so second nature to guys like LCK I think they feel uncomfortable about the idea that they do something that can be quantifiable (and maybe even respectable on some level - skewered brilliantly by JS's line about dancing over laser beams). LCK repeatedly talks about destroying material he knows "works" while RG said outright that he feels uncomfortable about being funny without knowing why he's being funny. He's the perfect host for this sort of thing because he's not afraid of challenging other people about their opinions and insights, no matter who they are. It's actually his greatest talent and the core of who he is a comedian (He is however, totally shit at making movies).

 

I really hope that "Talking Chat" show happens. Likely he won't get Letterman, which is a shame.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I know EXACTLY what I was watching: a comedy special featuring three stand-up legends (each with a minimum of 25 years of performing experience) and another guy who was included because he had a production deal with HBO.  If Gervais had acted as more of a moderator instead of an equal peer, it would have made a more interesting program.  There were times during that special that I thought Seinfeld was going to turn to Rock and say "Who the fuck is this guy!?"  

 

And for the record, I do like Gervais and I find him to be funny; I just don't think he is in the same league as other three comedians.

 

So, according to your reasoning, I guess that makes me an idiotic xenophobe. 

I think you're letting some bias against Gervais intrude on your watching of this show a bit. I mean, what I watched was an interesting discussion of comedy between four people who have all made an amazing living from comedy. Gervais certainly went from TV to a stand-up career, but they have all dabbled in the same areas of the entertainment industry. What was most interesting to me was how they all thought Seinfeld was the true legend. Considering he doesn't have an "edginess" too him, it was interesting to see how much respect he got from the other three.

 

Is this a show, or was it a special? 

what I want to know is: when can we see those other 4 hours?

Yup, some really weird bias against Gervais.  He doesn't have their years but his comedy, including his stand-up, is just as good as theirs. The other guys treat him like a peer because he is, it's only you who obviously doesn't think he belongs there... He takes a more cerebral/British approach to his comedy and that's part of what makes putting him in amongst the others so interesting.

I'd like at least one rotating comic.  Christopher Titus one week, Cosby the next, then Dane Cook to see if CK murders him on television, and if you really want to get controversial, Leno, because he did use to be great

 

I'm also surprised by all of the Gervais hate in here. If Louis CK thinks they're funny, he's right and you're wrong.

 

I would love to see that rumored edition with Jon Stewart and Conan O'Brien (and we know it won't happen but Letterman would be great)

Wait, did someone really suggest Christopher Titus?

Um-no.  Reality is still king and scripted shows are being cancelled or not made in favor of cheap reality shows.  Can you please explain your Gervais saving the scripted tv show again?

 

 

I like Titus. I liked his sitcom, and I liked his special Norman Rockwell is Bleeding and the "sequel" Love is Evol.

well i think Christopher Titus has brilliant comic timing and is fine actor

 

Yeah, count me in on the Titus love.

 

Anyway, enough cerebral debate...Jerry Seinfeld is fucking 57 today.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000632/

 

Holy shit. I would have said 50 tops. Son of a bitch.

 

Re: The Office.

 

Go do some fucking reading. I'm not writing a damn essay for you. You think Reality TV is prevalent NOW? Oh to be young and stupid.

(I'm not really pissed - seriously though, it's worth looking at how The Office changed things and the shows/artists that inspired it - I'm not going to do the legwork for you though. If you give a fuck, you'll enjoy the journey)

 

 

 

 

Christ, Ricky Gervais has a painful laugh.

 

However, that was a very interesting conversation and I hope there are more installments with a bit more of a pinpoint topic of comedy. For instance: have an episode where the guests are Carlos Mencia, Denis Leary, and Dane Cook.

 

The thing that I took most out of that is the discussion of taboo comedy, and Seinfeld saying, "the question is not 'should you?"', but 'could you?'". Which I took as anything is fair game for comedy, but it's just that the approach to it is really key.

 

Gervais saying "having a laff" is never not funny. Even when he says it in a sincere context.

I had to watch Rock's "Did he do the whistle?" line a couple of times just to see everyone else completely lose it. CK's entire head turned beet red because of how hard he was laughing. Incredible.

I love watching comedians break down stand up comedy like this. It's the same reason I loved Jerry Seinfeld's "Comedian".....it seems like its made for all those who think stand up is easy......watching these guys agonize over how to tweak a joke JUST RIGHT, is fascinating.

I also don't get the Gervais hate, nor do I think Seinfeld and Rock were looking at him sideways. They obviously all respect each other, and the biggest criticism I can give Gervais in that was that he seemed a little TOO awestruck with those guys.

You know, I never really watched Seinfeld (I'm not a huge TV guy, and I think because my mother watched it all the time when I was a kid, that and fucking home & garden shows), but I have to respect the man, especially after this. He totally knows his shit and he made some of the most pertinent and knowledgeable observations out of the four of them. His assessment of Louis C.K.'s rape joke as "dance step", "tapdancing around six laser beams and not touching a single one", was great. Though I have to admit, more than anyone else there, I did feel he was giving Gervais a sideways glance every now and again, ocassionally registering some annoyance. I thought Gervais was good, and brought something to the table, but there was a vibe I think.

 

I really enjoyed this.

Gervais certainly telegraphed his relative inexperience and insecurity, compared to the seasoned pros he was talking to; that may have simply been grating.  I thought they were all funny and insightful.

Finally caught it last night. It was pretty great. Didn't see a problem with Gervais like some did.

 

Loved when Jerry broke down when he decided to not use "Fuck" anymore.

 

And man I almost fell off the chair with "did he do the whistle"

 

Would love to see another with Conan and Jon Stewart.

I just want to clarify, *I* didn't have an issue with Gervais, I just felt like I picked up on Seinfeld maybe responding to him in a certain way a few time through out. Some part of me kind of wishes that when they started up with bad comedians not being able to sustain a career, that they'd drop dime on Carlos Mencia and Dane Cook. I really dug Rock in this, and it only served to remind me that his career has been weird in the way that stand-up has been his retreat when all the other shit just kept on falling off. When you've not starred in a better movie tailored to your voice than CB4, it's a bit sad (and I like CB4). Edit: Though, taking a moment to think about it, that's hardly unique thing amongst truly singular stand-up comedians. What they do on stage isn't the easiest thing to translate to a narrative film.