News

Emmy Awards Find Conan Funnier Than Jay, Too

Matt Kiebus :: Thursday, July 8th, 2010 2:45 pm

In a minor victory for mankind, Conan O’Brien has officially been named victorious in his shit tossing competition with Jay Leno and the rest of NBC. Today the Emmy Award nominations were announced and The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien was the only representative amongst the late night network TV crowd. It’s especially shocking that The Late Show with David Letterman is missing from field for the first time in 16 years. Granted, the only thing O’Brien has won here is a piece of paper nominating him to lose to Jon Stewart and The Daily Show, but it’s still a victory over “the man.” MORE »

Conan Returns Home… For a Couple Nights

Matt Kiebus :: Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010 1:45 pm

America’s funniest ginger not named Carrot Top returned home last night. Conan O’Brien’s Legally Prohibited from Being on Television Tour reached New York City last night, performing the first of two nights at Radio City Music Hall. A mere 200 feet away from NBC headquarters the lanky redhead delighted the crowd with his wacky variety show. Being back in the city that made him famous O’Brien invited some of his famous friends to join in on the fun and Vampire Weekend to play a tune. MORE »

MacGruber: That’s My Forte

Matt Kiebus :: Thursday, May 20th, 2010 3:30 pm

Story by Matt Kiebus

Photos by Kevin Zacher

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When casting a leading man for a summer blockbuster studios normally stay away from actors who are known for their uncanny ability to play a convincing sex offender. But Will Forte is about to redefine what it means to be Hollywood star in the action-comedy of the summer, MacGruber.

“When you put the wig on and the clothes for some reason you just feel a little different,” said actor Will Forte on a bright day in Santa Monica, California. “And right when you put on the mustache you just feel different. You automatically talk differently from feeling this thing above your upper lip, you just become a different person. I’m a mustache away from being a very realistic looking sex offender.”

If you haven’t noticed, Will Forte is not your typical movie star. MORE »

Tiki Barber Has Abandonment Issues

Matt Kiebus :: Wednesday, April 7th, 2010 3:00 pm

Tiki Barber cares deeply about his public image. It took Barber many years to carefully craft his persona as an intelligent, likable, charming, and respectful athlete. The NBC broadcaster apparently forgot the cardinal rule about being a nice guy. You never leave your wife of 11 years for a 23-year-old former NBC intern. It makes you look bad, especially if your wife is 8-months preggers with twins. MORE »

Larry David Doesn’t Find “The Marriage Ref” Funny Either

Matt Kiebus :: Friday, March 12th, 2010 4:30 pm

The Marriage Ref faced it’s biggest critic last night, the perpetually annoyed and ever-irreverent Larry David. No one seems more bothered with the existence of the show than Jerry Seinfeld’s long time friend. David did what he does best; he spoke his mind and made people laugh.

“This is easily the most uncomfortable hour I’ve ever spent in my entire life,” said a frustrated looking David during last night’s episode.

Nonetheless The Marriage Ref finally received some genuine laughs, granted it was at the show’s expense, but people were laughing. Panelists Larry David, Ricky Gervais, and Madonna found common ground by questioning why the show exists and why they decided to appear on it.

In the end Larry David said what everyone else is probably thinking.

“Can we wrap this up? I need to go to the bathroom.”

Jimmy Fallon May Not Be Funny, But He Knows Good Music

Matt Kiebus :: Friday, March 12th, 2010 3:00 pm

Jimmy Fallon seems to be a likeable guy. Sure, he laughs at his own jokes, he’s awkward when interviewing people and comes up with dumb half-thought out games. All of these things are fine, for your average drinking buddy. But for some reason Jimmy Fallon isn’t average. In fact he’s really fucking famous, so all these in adequacies add up to 55 minutes of god awful late night television. However the whole hour isn’t a complete waste of time, because those last 5 minutes are normally music gold. MORE »

Don’t Worry NBC, Seinfeld’s Got Your Back

Matt Kiebus :: Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 6:30 pm

It’s been over a decade since the Seinfeld finale aired and Jerry’s boner for NBC has not subsided. Throughout all the turmoil that is currently leaving the National Broadcast Company in shambles the funnyman has never expressed an opinion against the company line. When NBC needs someone credible to say some kind words, Seinfeld is their man. He would defend NBC’s embarrassment of a network to the grave. MORE »

Andy Richter Spills the Beans on Leaving The Tonight Show

Johnny Sanford :: Tuesday, March 9th, 2010 2:00 pm

Andy Richter is pretty funny for being pissed off. He finally spoke publicly as the cohost of Regis and Kelly about the Leno/Conan/NBC clusterfuck. While Conan has yet to speak his mind on the subject in the media, Andy claimed that he did feel a bit of resentment for the situation that Leno created.

“Do you have any ill feelings toward NBC and Jay [Leno]? Not that you’re going to be honest . . .” asked Kelly.

“Um, yes! Yes, I do. Why wouldn’t I? NBC, definitely . . . Everybody said they were going to do something and then they didn’t. They all said years ago, ‘We’re going to do something’ and then they didn’t…he [Leno] says ‘I didn’t have any choice, they wouldn’t let me out of my contract.’ You know how multimillionaires are always being forced to do things they don’t want to do. I’ve calmed down about it.” Video of the interview after the jump. MORE »

Conan O’Brien To Take It On The Road

Amy Rose Spiegel :: Friday, March 5th, 2010 4:20 pm

A caveat of Conan O’Brien’s exit agreement with NBC states that he’s not allowed to have a TV show for some time. Isn’t it a little outrageous that they can not only kill his show, but his TV career? He can, however, perform his material live, and it looks as though he’s preparing to do just that. MORE »

Craig Ferguson Revisits Late Late Show History

Matt Kiebus :: Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 4:15 pm

There were a lot of winners and losers in the most recent “late night war.” Conan O’Brien lost The Tonight Show, but walked away with 140 million quarters. Jay Leno regained The Tonight Show, but lost a lot of respect in the process. Dave Letterman, the reigning king of late night, reignited his rivalry with Leno and NBC by throwing a flaming bag of shit on peacocks whenever possible. Jimmy Kimmel became relevant, if only for a brief moment, by chastising Leno while a guest on his show. Carson Daly died from shrapnel injuries and Jimmy Fallon was just happy to be there. However the biggest winner was the Scotsman from CBS, Craig Ferguson.

It is refreshing when someone displays honesty in the entertainment industry especially after the cynicism that followed the betrayal on NBC. Last night Ferguson paid homage to the originator of the Late Late Show, Tom Snyder. When Snyder hosted the show from ’95-99 it functioned quite differently. There was no studio audience and no laugh track, just Snyder interviewing one guest for one hour. It was intimate and simple. MORE »

Guest Article: Gavin McInnes Discusses Roman Polanski And Child Predators

Amy Rose Spiegel :: Friday, February 12th, 2010 2:30 pm

Roman Polanski’s 18^th feature film, “The Ghost Writer,” opens this week. Its imminent release has reignited the well-worn debate about Polanski’s arrest in 2009 for a rape charge that is now over 31 years old. Below, a timely discussion about what makes a predator a predator by the writer and media polymath Gavin McInnes. This article originally appeared in the fifteenth issue of Death+Taxes.

Aubrey Plaza: The Perfect Snotty Comedian

Amy Rose Spiegel :: Friday, February 12th, 2010 12:05 pm

Facebook is a self-centered technology through and through. Even though this has been understood since its inception, I’m still surprised sometimes to see just how conceited its users can be. I know a lot of it is all in good fun, but there’s something about the “celebrity doppelganger” craze that I just don’t like. Everyone, at one time or another, has been told that they look like someone famous, and whether that’s true or just meant to flatter, this trend is a way for some people to revel in that compliment for as long as they choose to leave their lookalike as their profile picture.

Conan O’Brien’s Final Tonight Show, Tonight

Simon Rich :: Friday, January 22nd, 2010 3:30 pm

On Thursday, January 21st, NBC and current Tonight Show host, Conan O’Brien, reached an agreement that will end his short stint as host of “The Tonight Show.” After weeks of finger-pointing about ratings and general disarray between the two parties and Jay Leno, O’Brien’s contract was finally bought out by NBC for $32.5 million, meaning his last show is tonight. MORE »