BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!

Subject: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Nov 08 - 11:37 PM

They've certainly bulked up their audiences this political season. I haven't watched it regularly for years, yet here I am in stitches over the John McCain appearance. He really did have to be a good sport on this. (Just so it doesn't buy him votes!)

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Nancy King
Date: 02 Nov 08 - 12:11 AM

Yup, the opening McCain skit (with Tina Fey as Palin) was hilarious. I just wish the rest of the show was as good. I'm givin' up for tonight.

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Nov 08 - 12:25 AM

He's been pretty good so far. It's a process of disassociating from what is actually going on. He was on the "news" just now, and it really was quite funny.

Ben Affleck was really quite inspired as Keith Olbermann.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Nov 08 - 12:40 AM

http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/exclusives/Weekend_Update/

They just mentioned this on the program. We'll have to see what happens.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: katlaughing
Date: 02 Nov 08 - 01:05 AM

The QVC thing was funny thought it seems so close to what she really could do it might be prophetic!:-) It took a minute or two, but I really enjoyed the COuntdown, too. Really well done. We never watch the rest, it's usually so mediocre, so thanks for the link, Maggie. Update was good, too.

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Nov 08 - 11:17 PM

I think they're doing a special on Monday night.

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 03 Nov 08 - 09:23 AM

Terry Gross recently interviewed Seth Meyers on NPR's "Fresh Air" show. He said some insightful things, for example:

Liberal people thought, "You did a great job. You took [Sarah Palin] down a peg. She didn't even know you were making fun of her." And conservative people were like, "She was great. She looked great in front of the camera. She showed she was a good sport." So people will see what they want to see, with pieces like that, if you do them right.

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Nov 08 - 10:39 AM

I heard that interview, and thought that was a very interesting remark.

I think Palin filmed another bit they are planning to use in their special, if I heard his remarks correctly during that interview.

Did they say the SNL folks are taking off next weekend?

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Nov 08 - 01:00 PM

There was more today on Fresh Air. Tina Fey was interviewed at length.

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: Bill D
Date: 03 Nov 08 - 04:35 PM

Here's what started the "candidates on comedy shows".

1968:

[The Nixon episode of "Laugh-In"] was broadcast at the height of Nixon's (ultimately successful) campaign against Vice-President Hubert Humphrey, and was an immediate sensation. George Schlatter, the creator of "Laugh-In" ... told me that Nixon had been extremely reluctant to be on the show; although the producers had repeatedly entreated him to appear, his campaign aides had even more insistently urged him not to. Eventually, the race brought Nixon out to Los Angeles. He gave a press conference, and Schlatter and one of "Laugh-In"'s writers, Paul Keyes, who happened to be a close friend of the former Vice-President's, went over to watch it, bringing a TV camera with them.

"While his advisers were telling him not to do it, Paul was telling him how much it would mean to his career," Schlatter recalled. "And we went in, and he said, 'Sock it to me.' It took about six takes, because it sounded angry: 'Sock-it-to-me!' After that, we grabbed the tape and escaped before his advisers got to him.

"Then, realizing what we had done—because he did come out looking like a nice guy—we pursued Humphrey all over the country, trying to get him to say, 'I'll sock it to you, Dick!'" Schlatter went on. "And Humphrey later said that not doing it may have cost him the election. We didn't realize how effective it was going to be. But there were other factors in the election, too—I can't take all the blame."

Nixon on "Laugh-In" is often cited as a watershed moment in the history of television—the unthinking man's version of Nixon in China.

Subject: RE: BS: Live From New York It's Saturday Night!
From: WFDU - Ron Olesko
Date: 04 Nov 08 - 11:51 AM

Wonderful special last night. It was great to see clips from earlier years. Unless I missed it, they did not include Dan Ackroyd's version of Nixon.

I will give McCain credit - he came across well. He poked fun at himself, had a few laughs at Obama - but none of the bitter lies that has repulsed anyone with an open mind.