Bill Maher once said that, “Everybody who ever has done a talk show should pay a royalty to Steve Allen.” Allen would probably have agreed. He was the first host of NBC’s Tonight Show, starting with a local New York version in 1953 and then launching the series nationally in September of 1954. David Letterman,
I’m still not sure how to critique, or even process, Norm Macdonald: Nothing Special. The Quebec City native died of acute leukemia in Duarte, Calif., in September of 2021. This final, posthumous comedy performance, self-recorded from his home in the summer of 2020, shows him delivering a 50-minute comedy monologue the night prior to a
Alan Kalter, best known as David Letterman’s CBS Late Show announcer for 20 years, died Oct. 4. He was 78. Kalter was born in New York, or as he used to call it at the top of each show, “the greatest city in the world.”. He took over from retiring announcer Bill Wendell as the
One of the great late night talk show guests of all time was Charles Grodin. Who else was cocky enough to slump down next to Johnny Carson and ask if he cared at all about any of his guests? (As he does in the above clip from 1990.) The studio audience and viewers at home
On Sunday, CNN premieres The Story of Late Night, a six-part docuseries examining the nearly 70-year history of television’s post-primetime talk shows. The series was produced by Toronto-based Cream Productions. To set it all up, listen to my conversation with Bill Carter (above), the long-time New York Times columnist and bestselling “Late Shift” author who
If you’re into stand-up comedy, you already know The Comedy Store. The Sunset Boulevard showplace has long been mecca for fans of live comedy. Way back when I was working for TV Guide Canada and living in Los Angeles in the mid-’80s, I saw Eddie Murphy, Jim Carrey, Sam Kineson, Howie Mandel, Elaine Boozler, Jay
David Letterman’s Netflix series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction returns for a third season Oct. 21. Guests will include Dave Chappelle, Robert Downey, Jr., Kim Kardashian West and Lizzo. The streaming service issued this trailer today and I can already think of Top 10 reasons to watch the series again — just for Chappelle.
THURS/OCT 1 Let’s Be Real (Fox). Triumph the Insult Comedy Dog puppet master Robert Smigel goes after the upcoming presidential election like a puppet pit bull in this special. FRI/OCT. 2 Emily in Paris (Netflix). Lily Collins stars as an American in Paris who takes a job at a marketing firm in this comedy from